Browse Surnames

Jiang 2 Chinese
From Chinese 姜 (jiāng) meaning "ginger".

Finnin Irish
Diminutive form of Finn.

Greene English
Variant of Green.

Leoni Italian
Derived from the given name Leone 1.

Irvin Scottish, English
Variant of Irvine 1 or Irwin.

Huxley English
From the name of a town in Cheshire. The final element is Old English leah "woodland, clearing", while the first element might be hux "insult, scorn". A famous bearer was the British author Aldous Huxley (1894-1963).

El-Ghazzawy Arabic
Alternate transcription of Arabic الغزّاوي (see Al-Ghazzawi).

Sakamoto Japanese
From Japanese 坂 or 阪 (saka) meaning "slope" and 本 (moto) meaning "base, root, origin".

Fry English
From Old English frig (a variant of freo) meaning "free".

Bustillo Spanish
From the name of Spanish towns, diminutive forms of Busto.

Hölzer German
German cognate of Holt.

Quinn Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Cuinn meaning "descendant of Conn".

Huỳnh Vietnamese
Variant of Hoàng used more often in southern Vietnam.

Nicolai Italian
Means "son of Nicola 1".

Klement m Czech
Derived from the given name Klement.

Anthony English
From the given name Anthony.

Mendoza Spanish, Basque
From a Basque place name derived from mendi "mountain" and hotz "cold".

Montes Spanish
From Spanish monte "mountain, hill", derived from Latin mons.

Kravets Ukrainian
Means "tailor" in Ukrainian.

Colby English
From various English place names, which were derived from the Old Norse byname Koli (meaning "coal, dark") and býr "farm, settlement".

Hoffman German (Anglicized)
Americanized form of Hoffmann.

Ó Caiside Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Cassidy.

Zeman m Czech, Slovak
Means "landowner", ultimately from Old Slavic zemľa meaning "land".

O'Hanigan Irish
Variant of O'Hannigain.

Jerković Croatian, Serbian
Means "son of Jerko".

Rundström Swedish
Ornamental name derived from Swedish rund (from Latin rotundus) meaning "round" and ström (Old Norse straumr) meaning "stream".

Paden English
Variant of Patton.

Robertsen Danish
Means "son of Robert".

Liepiņa f Latvian
Feminine form of Liepiņš.

Nicchi Italian
From the Italian word nicchio meaning "shell", possibly a nickname for people related to the sea.

Madden Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Madaidhín.

Ó Dubhthaigh Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Duffy 1.

Lewandowski m Polish
From the Polish estate name Lewandów, which is itself possibly derived from a personal name or from lawenda "lavender".

Aita Italian
Originally denoted a person from Aieta, Italy, a place name derived from Greek ἀετός (aetos) meaning "eagle".

Ataýewa f Turkmen
Feminine form of Ataýew.

Ziegler German
Means "bricklayer" or "brickmaker" in German, from Middle High German ziegel "brick, tile".

Grósz Hungarian
Hungarian form of Groß.

Jacobs English, Dutch
Derived from the given name Jacob.

Furnadzhieva f Bulgarian
Feminine form of Furnadzhiev.

Obando Spanish
Habitational name for someone who came from Obando in Extremadura, Spain.

Linville English
From an unknown place name.

Ó Brádaigh Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Brady.

Duda um Polish, Czech
Means "bagpiper" in Polish and Czech.

Matsubara Japanese
From Japanese 松 (matsu) meaning "pine tree, fir tree" and 原 (hara) meaning "field, plain".

Slezáková f Czech, Slovak
Feminine form of Slezák.

Ramires Portuguese
Means "son of Ramiro" in Portuguese.

Traves English
English variant of Travers.

Romijnders Dutch
Variant of Romeijnders.

Adriatico Italian
Originally denoted a person who lived near the Adriatic sea.

Duke English
From the noble title, which was originally from Latin dux "leader". It was a nickname for a person who behaved like a duke, or who worked in a duke's household.

Zahradník m Czech
Derived from Czech zahrada meaning "garden". It referred to someone who owned less land than a Sedlák or a Dvořák, but more land than a Chalupník.

Jervis English
Variant of Jarvis.

Lamb English
From the name of the animal, perhaps a nickname for a shy person.

Paisley Scottish
From the name of a town near Glasgow, which may ultimately be derived from Latin basilica "church".

Cortez Spanish
Variant of Cortés.

Krauß German
Variant of Kraus.

Mac an Bhaird Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Ward 2.

Muggia Italian
From the town of Muggia in northeastern Italy near the Slovenian border. It was called Muglae in Latin.

Alberici Italian
Means "son of Alberico".

Arkes Dutch
Means "son of Arke 2".

Ellsworth English
Habitational name for a person from the town of Elsworth in Cambridgeshire. The town's name is derived from the masculine given name Ella (a short form of Old English names beginning with the elements ælf meaning "elf" or eald meaning "old") combined with worþ meaning "enclosure".

Barnes English
Denoted a person who worked or lived in a barn. The word barn is derived from Old English bere "barley" and ærn "dwelling".

Specht German
Means "woodpecker" in German.

Sourd French
French cognate of Sordi.

Idowu Yoruba
From the given name Idowu.

Rudzīte f Latvian
Feminine form of Rudzītis.

Goldhirsch Jewish
Means "golden stag" in Yiddish.

Sartore Italian
Variant of Sarto.

Everett English
From the given name Everard.

Habich German
German cognate of Hawk.

Baníková f Slovak
Feminine form of Baník.

Ozola f Latvian
Feminine form of Ozols.

O'Callaghan Irish
Variant of Callahan.

Fontana Italian, Spanish
Italian and Spanish cognate of Fontaine.

Westley English
From the name of various English towns, derived from Old English west "west" and leah "woodland, clearing".

Whalen Irish
Variant of Whelan.

Zdravkova f Bulgarian, Macedonian
Feminine form of Zdravkov.

Vieth German
From the given name Veit.

Suess German
Variant of Süß. A famous bearer was the American children's author Dr. Seuss (1904-1991), who was born Theodor Seuss Geisel.

François French
Derived from the given name François.

Clifton English
Derived from various place names meaning "settlement by a cliff" in Old English.

Probert Welsh
Derived from Welsh ap Robert, which means "son of Robert".

Díaz Spanish
Means "son of Diego" in Spanish.

Bermúdez Spanish
Means "son of Bermudo".

Meeuwes Dutch
Variant of Meeuwsen.

Terrell English
Probably derived from the Norman French nickname tirel meaning "to pull", referring to a stubborn person.

Hernandez Spanish
Unaccented variant of Hernández.

Saarinen Finnish
From Finnish saari meaning "island".

Cunningham 2 Irish
From Irish Ó Cuinneagáin meaning "descendant of Cuinneagán", a diminutive of Conn.

Zhukov m Russian
Derived from Russian жук (zhuk) meaning "beetle".

Ó Caoindealbháin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Quinlan.

Keller German
Means "cellar" in German, an occupational name for one in charge of the food and drink.

Cooper English
Means "barrel maker", from Middle English couper.

Marcos Spanish, Portuguese
From the given name Marcos. A famous bearer was Philippine president Ferdinand Marcos (1917-1989).

Zorić Serbian, Croatian
Means "son of Zora".

Gniewek Polish
Derived from Gniewek, a diminutive of Zbigniew, Jarogniew, or other names containing gniew "anger".

Hakobyan Armenian
Means "son of Hakob" in Armenian.

Norman English
Referred to a person who was originally from Scandinavia or Normandy. Even before the Norman Conquest, Scandinavians were settling the north and east of England. The Normans who participated in the Conquest were originally from Scandinavia, but had been living in Normandy, France for over a century and spoke French.

Vogels Dutch
Variant of Vogel.

Nikolov m Bulgarian, Macedonian
Means "son of Nikola 1".

Martikainen Finnish
From a diminutive of the given name Martti.

Hermans Dutch, Flemish
Means "son of Herman".

Gjorgiev m Macedonian
Means "son of Gjorgji".

Jonaitienė f Lithuanian
Feminine form of Jonaitis. This form is used by married women.

Zajac m Slovak
Means "hare" in Slovak.

Bone 2 English
Variant of Baines 2.

Broż Polish
Derived from Broż, a diminutive of Ambroży.

Ślązak Polish
Polish cognate of Slezák.

Lacey English
Derived from Lassy, the name of a town in Normandy. The name of the town was Gaulish in origin, perhaps deriving from a personal name that was Latinized as Lascius.

Cunha Portuguese
From any of the numerous places in Portugal called Cunha, possibly from Portuguese cunha meaning "wedge".

Akhmetov m Kazakh
Means "son of Akhmet".

Wolff German, Danish, Norwegian, Jewish
Variant of Wolf.

Matoušková f Czech
Feminine form of Matoušek.

Siegert German
Derived from the given name Sieghard.

Schreiber German
German cognate of Scriven.

Kijek Polish
Means "small stick", from Polish kij "stick".

Langenberg German, Dutch
From various place names meaning "long mountain" in German and Dutch.

Hayley English
Variant of Haley.

Ziskind Jewish
Ornamental name, or from a given name, meaning "sweet child", derived from Yiddish זיס (zis) meaning "sweet" and קינד (kind) meaning "child", both words of Old High German origin.

Jenson Danish (Anglicized)
Americanized form of Jensen.

Merrick Welsh
Derived from the given name Meurig.

Moravec m Czech
Originally indicated a person from Moravia (Czech Morava).

Maessen Dutch
Means "son of Maas".

Lundqvist Swedish
Derived from Swedish lund (Old Norse lundr) meaning "grove" and qvist (Old Norse kvistr) meaning "twig, branch".

MacKenna Scottish
Variant of McKenna.

Babineaux French
Variant of Babin.

Halle German
German variant of Hall.

Barker English
From Middle English bark meaning "to tan". This was an occupational name for a leather tanner.

Cokes English
Variant of Cook.

Vaško m Slovak
Derived from a diminutive of the given name Václav.

Mac Giolla Rí Irish
Means "son of the king's servant" in Irish.

Puskás Hungarian
Occupational name for a gunsmith or cannon maker, from Hungarian puska meaning "gun" (from German, itself from Latin buxis "box").

Ueno Japanese
From Japanese 上 (ue) meaning "above, top, upper" and 野 (no) meaning "field, wilderness".

Babayev m Azerbaijani
Means "son of Baba".

Bachchan Hindi
From Hindi बच्चा (bachchā) meaning "child", a word of Persian origin. This surname was adopted by the Indian poet Harivansh Rai Srivastava (1907-2003).

Orozco Spanish
From the name of a valley in the Basque region of Spain.

Nagasawa Japanese
From Japanese 長 (naga) meaning "long" and 沢 or 澤 (sawa) meaning "marsh".

Pavičić Croatian
Means "son of Pavao".

Broadbent English
From a place name derived from Old English brad "broad" and beonet "bent grass".

Dressler German
Means "turner" from Middle High German dreseler, an agent derivative of drehen "to turn". A turner was a person who used a lathe to create small objects from wood or bone.

Fay 1 French, English
Referred to a person who came from various places named Fay or Faye in northern France, derived from Old French fau "beech tree", from Latin fagus.

Giffard French, English
Possibly from Old French gifart meaning "chubby" or possibly from the Germanic name Gebhard. Walter Giffard was one of the Norman companions of William the Conqueror.

Kamińska f Polish
Feminine form of Kamiński.

Kadyrov m Kyrgyz, Kazakh, Chechen
Means "son of Kadyr".

Ashton English
Denoted a person from one of the towns in England that bear this name, itself derived from Old English æsc "ash tree" and tun "enclosure, yard, town".

Slováčková f Czech
Feminine form of Slováček.

Yu 4 Chinese
From Chinese 虞 (yú) meaning "concerned, anxious" and also referring to the ancient state of Yu, which was situated in what is now Shanxi province.

Viktorova f Russian, Bulgarian
Feminine form of Viktorov.

Yusupova f Uzbek, Tajik, Tatar (Russified)
Feminine form of Yusupov.

Fitzroy English
Means "son of the king" in Anglo-Norman French, from French roi meaning "king". This name has been bestowed upon illegitimate children of kings.

Zakharova f Russian
Feminine form of Zakharov.

Brinley English
Possibly from English places named Brindley, derived from Old English berned "burned" and leah "woodland, clearing".

Segura Spanish, Catalan
From places with names derived from Spanish or Catalan segura meaning "safe, secure".

Gupta Hindi, Marathi, Bengali, Gujarati, Punjabi, Telugu
Means "protected" in Sanskrit.

Sokołowski m Polish
From the name of Polish towns called Sokołów or similar, derived from Polish sokół meaning "falcon".

Oriol Catalan
From Catalan or meaning "gold", originally a nickname for a person with blond hair.

Rolvsson Norwegian
Means "son of Rolf".

Gilchrist Scottish
From Gaelic MacGilleChrìosd meaning "son of Gille Críst".

Bailey English
From Middle English baili meaning "bailiff", which comes via Old French from Latin baiulus "porter".

Valerio Italian
From the given name Valerio.

Ó Flannagáin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Flanagan.

Crosby English
From the name of various towns in England, derived from Old Norse kross "cross" (a borrowing from Latin crux) and býr "farm, settlement".

Klíma m Czech
Derived from a diminutive of Klement.

Schröder 1 Low German
Occupational name for a tailor, from Middle Low German schroden meaning "to cut".

Hearn Irish
Anglicized form of Ó hEachthighearna.

Cloutier French
Derived from French clou meaning "nail", referring to someone who made or sold nails.

Holmes English, Scottish
Variant of Holme. A famous fictional bearer was Sherlock Holmes, a detective in Arthur Conan Doyle's mystery stories beginning in 1887.

Szántó Hungarian
Occupational name for a ploughman or tiller, derived from Hungarian szánt meaning "to plow".

Kohut Ukrainian, Polish
Means "rooster" in Ukrainian and Polish, a nickname for a proud person.

Wedekind German
From the given name Widukind.

Yamagishi Japanese
From Japanese 山 (yama) meaning "mountain" and 岸 (kishi) meaning "beach, shore, bank".

Guarneri Italian
From the given name Guanero, an Italian cognate of Werner.

Pék Hungarian
Means "baker" in Hungarian.

Harrelson English
Means "son of Harold". A famous bearer of this surname is the American actor Woody Harrelson (1961-).

Stárková f Czech
Feminine form of Stárek.

Salminen Finnish
From Finnish salmi meaning "strait".

Brankovich Serbian
Alternate transcription of Serbian Бранковић (see Branković).

Rhodes English
Topographic name derived from Old English rod meaning "cleared land", or a locational name from any of the locations named with this word.

Vrabcová f Czech, Slovak
Feminine form of Vrabec.

Elliston English
Variant of Ellison.

Borja Spanish
Originally indicated a person from the Spanish town of Borja in Aragon, derived from Arabic برْج (burj) meaning "tower".

O'Reilly Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Raghailligh.

Watt English
Derived from the Middle English given name Wat or Watt, a diminutive of the name Walter. A noteworthy bearer was the Scottish inventor James Watt (1736-1819).

Napoleoni Italian
From the medieval given name Napoleone.

Rybářová f Czech
Feminine form of Rybář.

Bohn German
Occupational name for a bean grower, derived from Middle High German bone "bean".

Mancuso Sicilian
Sicilian variant of Manco.

Ragno Italian
From a nickname meaning "spider" in Italian.

Pekkanen Finnish
Derived from the given name Pekka.

Sams English
Derived from the given name Samuel.

Nervetti Italian
Possibly a nickname for an innkeeper, from archaic Milanese nervètt, a local meal prepared from a calf.

Royer French
From French roue meaning "wheel", ultimately from Latin rota, an occupational name for a wheelwright.

Newell English
Variant of Neville.

Michelaki f Greek
Feminine form of Michelakis.

Joosten Dutch
Derived from the given name Joost.

Ó Caoimh Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Keefe.

Olson Swedish (Anglicized), Norwegian (Anglicized), Danish (Anglicized)
Americanized form of Olsson or Olsen.

Toset Catalan
Catalan form of Tosi.

Attar Persian
From Persian عطر (ʿaṭr) meaning "fragrance, perfume", ultimately from Arabic. It probably denoted a seller of perfume.

Espinosa Spanish
From Spanish espinoso meaning "thorny", ultimately from Latin spinosus, a derivative of spina meaning "thorn, spine". This was the real surname of the Dutch philosopher Baruch Spinoza (1632-1677), who was of Portuguese Jewish origin.

MacGilleChrìosd Scottish Gaelic
Scottish Gaelic form of Gilchrist.

Kokkonen Finnish
From Finnish kokko meaning "eagle".

Kok Dutch
Dutch cognate of Cook.

Roussel French
French form of Russell.

Gerhardt German
Derived from the given name Gerhard.

Pietrzak Polish
Means "son of Piotr".

Meijer Dutch
Dutch form of Meyer 1.

Arnolfi Italian
Means "son of Arnolfo".

Brož m Czech
Derived from Brož, a diminutive of Ambrož.

Boulos Arabic
From the given name Bulus.

Laakkonen Finnish
Possibly from a diminutive of the given name Niklas.

Ó Luain Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Lane 3.

De Wit Dutch
Variant of De Witte.

Romão Portuguese
Portuguese form of Romano 1 or Romano 2.

Orbán Hungarian
Derived from the given name Orbán.

Ivanovska f Macedonian
Feminine form of Ivanovski.

Jephson English
Variant of Jepson.

Womack English
Of uncertain origin. One theory suggests that it indicated a dweller by a hollow oak tree, derived from Old English womb "hollow" and ac "oak".

Virgo English
Possibly from Latin virgo "virgin, maiden". It may have been a nickname for an actor who played the Virgin Mary in mystery plays, or for a shy man or a lecher.

Ritchie Scottish
From a Scottish diminutive of the given name Richard.

Donne Scottish, Irish
From Gaelic donn meaning "brown", a nickname for a person with brown hair.

Andrade Portuguese, Galician
Possibly from the given name André.

Cantrell English
Originally a name for someone from Cantrell in Devon, from an unknown first element and Old English hyll meaning "hill".

Smirnova f Russian
Feminine form of Smirnov.

Ó Duibh Irish
Means "descendant of Dubh", Dubh being a byname meaning "dark".

Bonheur French
From Old French bonne heure meaning "good time" or "lucky".

Atkinson English
Means "son of Atkin", a medieval diminutive of Adam.

Shepard English
Variant of Shepherd.

Acciaio Italian
Variant of Acciai.

Selby English
From the name of a village that meant "willow farm" in Old English.

Sinclair English
Derived from a Norman French town called "Saint Clair".

Ergeshov m Kyrgyz
Means "son of Ergesh".

Magellan History
Anglicized form of Magalhães, referring to the explorer.

Maynard English
Derived from the Old German given name Meginhard.

Kumięga Polish
Possibly from Polish kum "godfather, friend" or komięga "raft, barge".

Irvine 1 Scottish
Originally derived from the name of a Scottish (North Ayrshire) town, which was named for the River Irvine, derived from Brythonic elements meaning "green water".

Castellano Spanish
Variant of Castilla.

Trengove English
Originally indicated a person from Trengove in Cornwall, England.

Čížková f Czech
Feminine form of Čížek.

Değirmenci Turkish
From a Turkish word meaning "miller".

Eason English
Variant of Eads.

Jundt German
Derived from a diminutive of the feminine given name Judith.

Duchamp French
Variant of Deschamps. A famous bearer was the French artist Marcel Duchamp (1887-1968).

Mah Chinese
Alternate transcription of Chinese 马 (see Ma).

Dobrev m Bulgarian
Means "son of Dobri".

Hardy English, French
From Old French and Middle English hardi meaning "bold, daring, hardy", from the Germanic root *harduz.

Mac an Ghoill Irish, Scottish Gaelic
Gaelic form of McGill.

Warszawski mu Polish, Jewish
Place name for someone from the Polish city of Warsaw, itself derived from the given name Warsz, a short form of Warcisław.

Nelissen Dutch
Means "son of Cornelis".

Joubert French
From the given name Gaubert.

Proudfoot English
Nickname for a person with a proud step.

Mazur Polish
Indicated a person from either Mazovia (Polish Mazowsze) or Masuria (Polish Mazury), regions in Poland.

Pentti Finnish
Derived from the given name Pentti.

Garnier 1 French
From the given name Garnier.

Török Hungarian
Means "Turkish" in Hungarian.

Whittemore English
From various English place names derived from Old English hwit "white" and mor "moor, heath, bog".

Baas Dutch
Means "boss, overseer" in Dutch.

Scherer German
Occupational name for a cutter of cloth or a sheep-shearer, from Old High German skeran "to cut".

Jurković Croatian
Patronymic derived from a diminutive of Jure.

Assink Dutch
From a place name meaning "(farm) belonging to Asse".

Assendorp Dutch
From the name of a place called Assendorp, composed of Dutch essen and dorp, meaning "ash tree village".

Kalužová f Czech
Czech feminine form of Kaluža.

Veres Hungarian
Dialectical variant of Vörös.

Ragnvaldsson Swedish
Means "son of Ragnvald".

Mac Naoimhín Irish
Means "son of Naomhán" in Irish.

Agua Spanish
Means "water" in Spanish, indicating a person who lived near water or worked with water.

Apted English
Probably from an unidentified place name meaning "up tower" in Old English.

Stacey English
Variant of Stacy.

Abdullayeva f Azerbaijani, Uzbek, Kyrgyz, Kazakh
Feminine form of Abdullayev.

Salamanca Spanish
Originally indicated a person from Salamanca, a city in western Spain that is of unknown meaning.

Fay 2 English
From a nickname for a person who was thought to have magical qualities, from Middle English faie meaning "magical, enchanted".

Favager French
Possibly indicated a person from the town of Faverges in eastern France, derived from Old French faverge meaning "forge".

Somma Italian
From the names of Italian places like Somma Lombardo or Somma Vesuviana, derived from Latin summa meaning "summit".

Tobias English, German, Jewish
From the given name Tobias.

Pryor English
Originally belonged to one who was a prior (a religious official), or one who worked for a prior.

Forest English, French
Originally belonged to a person who lived near or in a forest. It was probably originally derived, via Old French forest, from Latin forestam (silva) meaning "outer (wood)".

Alfons Dutch
From the given name Alfons.

Alò Italian
Variant of Aloi.

Morelli Italian
Derived from a diminutive of the given name Mauro.

Tosetti Italian
Diminutive form of Tosi.

Medveď m Slovak
Slovak cognate of Medved.

Dudková f Czech
Czech feminine form of Dudek.

Binici Turkish
From the Turkish word binici meaning "rider, horseman".

Konečný m Czech, Slovak
Means "final, last" in Czech and Slovak, perhaps a nickname for the youngest son of a family or a topographic name for someone who lived at the end of a settlement.

Naggi Italian
Originally denoted a person from the town of Naggio in Lombardy, Italy.

Waller 1 English
Derived from Old French gallier meaning "person with a pleasant temper".

Medvedev m Russian
Derived from Russian медведь (medved) meaning "bear".

Banister English
Variant of Bannister.

Read 2 English
From Old English ryd, an unattested form of rod meaning "cleared land". It is also derived from various English place names with various meanings, including "roe headland", "reeds" and "brushwood".

Baines 1 Welsh
From Welsh ab Einws meaning "son of Einws", a diminutive of Einion.

Antoni f Greek
Feminine form of Antonis.

Poláková f Czech, Slovak
Feminine form of Polák.

Milton English
Derived from an English place name meaning "mill town" in Old English. A famous bearer was John Milton (1608-1674), the poet who wrote "Paradise Lost".

Magorian Irish
Possibly a variant of McGowan or McGovern.

Renaud French
From the given name Renaud.

Mohammad Persian, Urdu, Bengali
Derived from the given name Mohammad.

Amadei Italian
Means "son of Amadeo".

Kráľová f Slovak
Feminine form of Kráľ.

Böhmer German, Jewish
Variant of Böhm.

Grünberg German, Jewish
From German grün meaning "green" and Berg meaning "mountain". This name indicated a person who lived on or near a forest-covered mountain.