Browse Surnames

Stoppelbein German
Means "stump leg" from Middle Low German stoppel "stump" and bein "leg".

Mac Giolla Dhuibh Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Kilduff.

Buonarroti Italian
From the medieval Italian given name Buonarroto meaning "good increase". This was the surname of the Renaissance painter and sculptor Michelangelo (1475-1564).

Wong 1 Chinese (Cantonese)
Cantonese romanization of Wang 1.

Håkansson Swedish
Means "son of Håkan".

Van den Andel Dutch
Variant of Van Andel.

Nejem Arabic
Alternate transcription of Arabic نجم (see Najm).

Comstock English
Possibly from the name of the River Culm in Devon, England. This name is seen in the Domesday book as Culmstoke or Colmstoke.

Van Veenen Dutch
Variant of Van der Veen.

Gustavsson Swedish
Means "son of Gustav".

Abrams Jewish, English
Means "son of Abraham".

Gabrielson English
Means "son of Gabriel".

Arena Italian
Italian cognate of Arenas.

Wasilewska f Polish
Feminine form of Wasilewski.

Demirović Bosnian
Means "son of Demir".

D'Aramitz French
Originally denoted one who came from Aramits, the name of a town in the French Pyrenees that is possibly derived from Basque haran meaning "valley".

Quigley Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Coigligh meaning "descendant of Coigleach", a given name meaning "untidy".

Swallow English
From the name of the bird, from Old English swealwe, a nickname for someone who resembled or acted like a swallow.

Mercier French
French form of Mercer.

Szweda Polish
Derived from Polish Szwed meaning "Swede, person from Sweden".

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

Kozłowska f Polish
Feminine form of Kozłowski.

Spyrou Greek
Means "son of Spyros".

Habicht German
German cognate of Hawk.

Ognianov m Bulgarian
Alternate transcription of Bulgarian Огнянов (see Ognyanov).

Martinović Croatian, Serbian
Means "son of Martin".

Dedrick English
Derived from the given name Dederick, an older form of Derek.

Strohkirch German
Means "straw church" in German.

Ricci Italian
From Italian riccio meaning "curly", a nickname for someone with curly hair. It is ultimately from Latin ericius meaning "hedgehog".

Schnur German, Jewish
From Old High German snuor meaning "rope, cord", an occupational name for a maker of rope.

Fujiwara Japanese
From Japanese 藤 (fuji) meaning "wisteria" and 原 (wara) meaning "field, plain".

Hennig German
From a diminutive of the given name Heinrich.

Årud Norwegian
From Norwegian å meaning "river, stream" and the archaic word rud meaning "cleared land".

Blanc French
Means "white" in French. The name referred to a person who was pale, or whose hair was blond.

Francis English
Derived from the given name Francis.

Böhme German
Variant of Böhm.

Lindsey English, Scottish
Variant of Lindsay.

Senft 2 German
Nickname for a helpful, kind person, from Old High German semfti meaning "soft, accommodating".

Aafjes Dutch
Means "son of Aafje".

Kita Japanese
From Japanese 北 (kita) meaning "north".

Grady Irish
From Irish Ó Gráda or Ó Grádaigh meaning "descendant of Gráda". The byname Gráda means "noble, illustrious".

Suchý m Czech, Slovak
Means "dry" in Czech and Slovak. This was a nickname for a thin person.

Logan Scottish
From a Scottish place name meaning "little hollow", derived from Gaelic lag "hollow, pit".

Resnik Slovene
Possibly from Slovene resa meaning "heather".

Rivers English
Denoted a person who lived near a river, from Middle English, from Old French riviere meaning "river", from Latin riparius meaning "riverbank".

Afolabi Yoruba
From the given name Afolabi.

Turunen Finnish
From Finnish turku meaning "marketplace" or the Finnish city of Turku (derived from the same word).

Leonardi Italian
From the given name Leonardo.

McLean Scottish
Anglicized form of Gaelic MacGillEathain or MacGillEain meaning "son of the servant of Eòin".

Schwarz German, Jewish
Means "black" in German, from Old High German swarz. It originally described a person with black hair or a dark complexion.

Baldinotti Italian
Derived from the given name Baldinotto, from the Latin name Baldinoctus, a diminutive of Baldo.

Klimek um Polish, Czech
Derived from a diminutive of Klemens.

Babayev m Azerbaijani
Means "son of Baba".

Reardon Irish
Variant of Riordan.

MacEalair Scottish Gaelic
Scottish Gaelic form of McKellar.

Kersey English
From an English place name meaning derived from Old English cærse "watercress" and ieg "island".

Otto German
From the given name Otto.

Park 2 English
From Middle English park, from Latin parricus, of Frankish origin. This was a name for someone who worked in or lived in a park.

Victorsson Swedish
Means "son of Victor".

Padovan Italian
Regional variant of Padovano.

Isakov m Russian
Means "son of Isaak".

Szarka Hungarian
From Hungarian szarka meaning "magpie", often used as a euphemistic term for a thief.

Martinsson Swedish
Means "son of Martin".

English English
Denoted a person who was of English heritage. It was used to distinguish people who lived in border areas (for example, near Wales or Scotland). It was also used to distinguish an Anglo-Saxon from a Norman.

Michaels English
Derived from the given name Michael.

Kraemer German
Variant of Krämer.

Shirazi Persian
Originally denoted someone who came from the city of Shiraz, located in southern Iran. The city's name is possibly of Elamite origin.

Roy 1 French, English
Variant of Rey 1.

D'Ovidio Italian
From the given name Ovidio.

Meyer 4 English
Variant of Myer.

Coppola Italian
From the name of a type of hat characteristic of Sicily and southern Italy. This surname indicated a person who wore or made these hats. A famous bearer is the filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola (1939-), as well as other members of his extended family also in show business.

D'Cruz Indian (Christian)
Variant of Cruz more common among Christians from India.

Huff English
Means "spur of a hill", from Old English hoh.

Cleary Irish
From Irish cléireach meaning "clerk" (see Clark).

Kistner German
Variant of Kistler.

Ibrohimov m Uzbek, Tajik
Means "son of Ibrohim".

Bramson Jewish
Means "son of Bram".

Nikolaidou f Greek
Feminine form of Nikolaidis.

Persson Swedish
Means "son of Per".

Lister Scottish
Anglicized form of the Gaelic Mac an Fleisdeir meaning "son of the arrow maker".

Spijker 1 Dutch
Denoted a dweller by or worker at a granary, from Dutch spijker "granary".

Zeni Italian
Means "son of Zeno".

Domínguez Spanish
Means "son of Domingo".

Scavo Italian
Means "serf, slave", from Old Sicilian scavu.

De Snaijer Dutch
Dutch cognate of Snyder.

Van Hout Dutch
Variant of Van Houten.

Vos Dutch
Dutch cognate of Voss.

Burrows English
Topographic name derived from Old English beorg meaning "hill, mountain" or burg meaning "fort". Alternatively, it could come from a compound of bur "room, cottage, dwelling" and hus "house".

Tumicelli Italian
Possibly from a diminutive of the given name Bartolomeo.

Camacho Spanish, Portuguese
Meaning unknown, possibly related to the Celtic root *kambos meaning "crooked, twisted".

Van Buren Dutch
Means "from Buren", a small town on the island of Ameland in the north of the Netherlands, as well as a small city in the Dutch province Gelderland. The place names derive from Old Dutch bur meaning "house, dwelling". In the 16th century the countess Anna van Buren married William of Orange, the founder of the Dutch royal family. A famous bearer of this surname was Martin van Buren (1782-1862), the eighth President of the United States.

Ó Cuirc Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Quirke.

Slezáková f Czech, Slovak
Feminine form of Slezák.

Alexandrescu Romanian
Means "son of Alexandru".

Wojciechowski m Polish
From the given name Wojciech.

Wolfe English
Variant of Wolf.

Banks English
Originally indicated someone who lived near a hillside or a bank of land.

Van Ankeren Dutch
Means "from the anchor" in Dutch.

Aritza Spanish, Basque
From Basque aritz meaning "oak tree". This was a nickname of Iñigo, the first king of Pamplona, Spain (9th century).

Field English
Variant of Fields.

Goebel German
Variant of Göbel.

Markey Irish
From the Irish Ó Marcaigh meaning "descendant of Marcach", a given name meaning "horse rider".

Soler Occitan, Catalan
Denoted a person from any of the numerous places in the area whose names derive from Occitan or Catalan soler meaning "ground, floor".

Raine 2 English, French
Derived from a Germanic name that was short for longer names beginning with the element ragin meaning "advice, counsel".

Owen Welsh, English
From the Welsh given name Owain.

Boon 1 English
Variant of Bone 1.

O'Shea Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Séaghdha.

Mac Neachtain Irish
Means "son of Nechtan" in Irish.

Triantafyllou Greek
From the given name Triantafyllos.

Haley English
From the name of an English town meaning "hay clearing", from Old English heg "hay" and leah "woodland, clearing".

Milne Scottish
From Scots and Middle English milne (a variant of mille) meaning "mill".

Glynn Welsh, Cornish
Topographic name for someone who lived in a valley, from Welsh glyn and Cornish glin, or a habitational name from a place named with this word.

Kawakami Japanese
From Japanese 川 (kawa) meaning "river, stream" and 上 (kami) meaning "above, top, upper".

Severins Dutch
Derived from the Latin given name Severinus.

Guerrero Spanish
Means "warrior" in Spanish, an occupational name for a soldier. It is derived from Late Latin werra "war", of Germanic origin.

Virág Hungarian
From a nickname meaning "flower" in Hungarian.

Van Leeuwen Dutch
Means "from Leeuwen", the name of towns in the Dutch provinces of Gelderland and Limburd. The place names may be from the Old Dutch word leo meaning "hill, burial mound".

Grenville English
Variant of Granville.

Török Hungarian
Means "Turkish" in Hungarian.

Carstensen Danish
Means "son of Carsten".

Hoxha Albanian
From the Persian title خواجه (khājeh) meaning "lord".

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

Garner 2 English
Variant of Gardener.

Lindquist Swedish
Variant of Lindqvist.

Sörös Hungarian
From Hungarian sör meaning "beer". Originally the name was given to beer brewers.

Gómez Spanish
Spanish form of Gomes.

Kowalczyk Polish
Patronymic derived from Polish kowal "blacksmith".

Lázár Hungarian
From the given name Lázár.

Gonzalez Spanish
Unaccented variant of González.

Yegorov m Russian
Means "son of Yegor".

Gomes Portuguese
From the medieval given name Gomes.

Kurucz Hungarian
Derived from the Hungarian word kuruc, referring to rebels who fought against the Habsburgs in the late 17th to early 18th century.

Leoni Italian
Derived from the given name Leone 1.

Artz Dutch
Means "son of Aart".

Adamczyk Polish
Derived from the given name Adam.

Akai Japanese
From Japanese 赤 (aka) meaning "red" and 井 (i) meaning "well, mine shaft, pit".

Vermeulen Flemish
Means "from the mill" in Dutch.

Fletcher English
Occupational name for a fletcher, someone who attached feathers to the shaft of an arrow. It is derived from Old French fleche meaning "arrow".

Nieminen Finnish
Derived from Finnish niemi meaning "peninsula, cape".

Weiß German
Variant of Weiss.

Kishimoto Japanese
From Japanese 岸 (kishi) meaning "beach, shore, bank" and 本 (moto) meaning "base, root, origin".

Barzetti Italian
Variant of Barsotti.

Couch Cornish
From Cornish cough "red", indicating the original bearer had red hair.

Moors English
Variant of Moore 1.

Groves English
From Old English graf meaning "grove". This originally indicated a person who lived near a grove (a group of trees).

Bonner English
From Middle English boneire "kind, courteous", derived from Norman French bon aire "good bloodline".

Sano Japanese
From Japanese 佐 (sa) meaning "help, aid" and 野 (no) meaning "field, wilderness".

Moriyama Japanese
From Japanese 森 (mori) meaning "forest" and 山 (yama) meaning "mountain, hill".

Bandini Italian
From the Latin name Bandinus, a derivative of Bandus, which is of unknown meaning.

Vasiliauskaitė f Lithuanian
Feminine form of Vasiliauskas. This form is used by unmarried women.

Mateus Portuguese
From the given name Mateus.

Man Chinese (Cantonese)
Cantonese romanization of Wen.

Hino Japanese
From Japanese 日 (hi) meaning "sun, day" or 火 (hi) meaning "fire" and 野 (no) meaning "field, wilderness".

Paszek Polish
Derived from a diminutive of Paweł.

Cavan Irish
Anglicized form of the Irish Ó Caoimháin meaning "descendant of Caomhán".

Parisi Italian
Italian form of Parish 1.

Fujimoto Japanese
From Japanese 藤 (fuji) meaning "wisteria" and 本 (moto) meaning "base, root, origin".

Stephenson English
Means "son of Stephen".

Caito Italian
Occupational name from Sicilian càjitu meaning "official, leader", ultimately from Arabic قاضي (qāḍī) meaning "judge".

El-Amin Arabic
Alternate transcription of Arabic الأمين (see Al-Amin).

Tosto Italian
From a nickname for a tough, stubborn person, from Italian tosto "hard, tough".

Geerts Dutch
Means "son of Geert".

Ruzsa Hungarian
Dialectical variant of Rózsa.

Younge English
Variant of Young.

Brkić Croatian, Serbian
Derived from Serbo-Croatian brk meaning "moustache, whisker".

Fitzsimmons Irish
Means "son of Simon 1" in Anglo-Norman French.

Van der Hout Dutch
Variant of Van Houten.

Emerson English
Means "son of Emery". The surname was borne by Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), an American writer and philosopher who wrote about transcendentalism.

Nascimbene Italian
Variant of Nascimbeni.

Cock English
Derived from the medieval nickname cok meaning "rooster, cock". The nickname was commonly added to given names to create diminutives such as Hancock or Alcock.

Engel German
Derived from German given names beginning with Engel, such as Engelbert.

Ojeda Spanish
From the name of the Ojeda river in Soria, Spain, possibly derived from Latin folia "leaves".

Masterson English
Patronymic derived from Middle English maister meaning "master", via Old French from Latin magister.

Obama Luo
From a rare Luo given name meaning "crooked, bent". It was possibly originally given to a baby who had an arm or leg that looked slightly bent immediately after birth or who was born in the breech position.

Paulauskas m Lithuanian
From the given name Paulius.

Balboni Italian
Derived from the given name Balbino.

Alesini Italian
Means "son of Alesino", a diminutive of Alessio.

Vodenicharov m Bulgarian
Derived from Bulgarian воденичар (vodenichar) meaning "miller".

Hellström Swedish
From Swedish häll (Old Norse hallr), a type of flat rock, combined with ström (Old Norse straumr) meaning "stream".

Jurado Spanish
Occupational name for a judge or another official who had to take an oath, derived from Latin iurare "to take an oath".

Middleton English
Originally denoted a person who lived in one of the numerous English towns by this name, derived from Old English middel "middle" and tun "enclosure, yard, town".

Bogdanović Serbian, Croatian
Means "son of Bogdan".

Matsumoto Japanese
From one of the many places with this name in Japan, derived from Japanese 松 (matsu) meaning "pine tree, fir tree" and 本 (moto) meaning "base, root, origin".

Cooke English
Variant of Cook.

Mylonas m Greek
Means "miller" in Greek, from μύλος (mylos) meaning "mill".

Ó Maolmhuaidh Irish
Means "descendant of Maolmhuadh", Maolmhuadh being a given name meaning "proud chief", derived from Gaelic maol meaning "chief" and muadh meaning "proud, noble".

Mattsson Swedish
Means "son of Matts".

Gonzalo Spanish
From the given name Gonzalo.

Poirot French, Literature
From a diminutive of French poire "pear", originally referring to a pear merchant or someone who lived near a pear tree. Starting in 1920 this name was used by the mystery writer Agatha Christie for her Belgian detective Hercule Poirot. Christie based the name on that of Jules Poiret, a contemporary fictional detective.

Yakovleva f Russian
Feminine form of Yakovlev.

Petraitis m Lithuanian
From the given name Petras.

Géroux French
Derived from the Germanic name Gerulf.

Adebayo Yoruba
From the given name Adebayo.

Olmos Spanish
Variant of Olmo.

De Bruijn Dutch
Dutch cognate of Brown.

Beridze Georgian
Means "son of the monk", from Georgian ბერი (beri) meaning "monk".

Sepúlveda Spanish
Derived from the name of the Sepúlveda Valley in the mountains of Segovia, and was originally used to denote people from that region. It is possibly derived from Spanish sepultar "to bury".

Bagheri Persian
From the given name Bagher.

Stanek Polish
Derived from a diminutive of the given name Stanisław.

Taggart Irish, Scottish
Anglicized form of Irish Mac an tSagairt meaning "son of the priest". This name comes from a time when the rules of priestly celibacy were not strictly enforced.

Brice English
From the given name Brice.

Klímová f Czech
Feminine form of Klíma.

Chavarría Spanish
Variant of Echeverría.

Capela Portuguese
Portuguese form of Kappel.

Daalman Dutch
Variant of Daalmans.

Grósz Hungarian
Hungarian form of Groß.

Janzen Dutch
Means "son of Jan 1".

Palmisano Italian
Locative name from the town of Palmi in the Calabria region of southern Italy.

Orbán Hungarian
Derived from the given name Orbán.

Armando Italian, Portuguese, Spanish
Derived from the given name Armando.

Albinson English
Means "son of Albin".

Wilk Polish
Means "wolf" in Polish.

Wehnert German
Variant of Wagner.

Nicodemo Italian
Derived from the given name Nicodemo.

Prebensen Norwegian, Danish
Means "son of Preben".

Ó Muireadhaigh Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Murray 2.

Joyce English, Irish
From the given name Joyce.

Botwright English
Variant of Boatwright.

Poggi Italian
Variant of Poggio.

McConnell Scottish, Irish
Derived from Gaelic MacDhòmhnaill (see MacDonald).

Pražaková f Czech
Feminine form of Pražak.

Wojewódzka f Polish
Feminine form of Wojewódzki.

Kavanagh Irish
Derived from the Irish Gaelic name Caomhánach, which means "a student of saint Caomhán". It was the name used by a 12th-century king of Leinster, Domhnall Caomhánach, the eldest son of the historic Irish king Diarmait Mac Murchada.

Conti Italian
From the Italian noble title conte meaning "count", derived from Latin comes (genitive comitis) meaning "companion, attendant". It denoted a person who worked for a count or behaved like one.

Ó hÉideáin Irish
Means "descendant of Éideán" in Irish. The given name Éideán is a diminutive of éideadh meaning "clothes, armour".

Benito Spanish
From the given name Benito.

Järvi Finnish
Means "lake" in Finnish.

Lindsay English, Scottish
From the region of Lindsey in Lincolnshire, which means "Lincoln island" in Old English.

Marie French
From the given name Marie.

Crusan Dutch (Anglicized)
Anglicized form of Cruyssen.

Ristić Serbian
Means "son of Risto".

Van der Wal Dutch
Means "from the wall" in Dutch.

Fontaine French
Derived from Old French fontane meaning "well, fountain", a derivative of Latin fons.

Sedláčková f Czech, Slovak
Feminine form of Sedláček.

Kwiatkowska f Polish
Feminine form of Kwiatkowski.

Stephanidis m Greek
Alternate transcription of Greek Στεφανίδης (see Stefanidis).

Musil m Czech
Possibly from a nickname meaning "the one who had to", from the past participle of the Czech verb muset meaning "must" (of Germanic origin).

Delaney 2 Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Dubhshláine meaning "descendant of Dubhshláine".

Ó Domhnaill Irish
Irish Gaelic form of O'Donnell.

Bisset English
From Old French bis meaning "drab, dingy", a nickname for someone who looked drab.

Bourgeois French
French cognate of Burgess.

Thomas English, Welsh, French, German
Derived from the given name Thomas.

Cavanah Irish
Variant of Kavanagh.

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

Baglio Italian
Italian cognate of Bailey.

Collado Spanish
Means "hill" in Spanish.

Rutgers Dutch
Derived from the given name Rutger.

Seidel German
From a diminutive of the given name Siegfried.

Butts English
From a nickname meaning "thick, stumpy", from Middle English butt.

Wroński m Polish
Derived from Polish wrona meaning "crow".

Polley English
From Old French poli meaning "polite, courteous".

Blakesley English
From the name of a town in Northamptonshire, itself meaning "Blæcwulf's meadow" in Old English. Blæcwulf is a byname meaning "black wolf".

Galli Italian
Variant of Gallo, common in northern Italy.

Amatore Italian
From the given name Amatore.

Adolvsson Swedish (Rare)
Variant of Adolfsson.

Constable English
From Old French conestable, ultimately from Latin comes stabuli meaning "officer of the stable".

Garnet English
Variant of Garnett 1 or Garnett 2.

Dibra Albanian
From the Albanian name for the city of Debar in Macedonia, originally given to someone who came from there.

Brožová f Czech
Feminine form of Brož.

Ware 1 English
From Old English wer meaning "dam, weir", indicating someone who lived near such a structure.

Danell English
Derived from the given name Daniel.

Caldwell English
From various English place names derived from Old English ceald "cold" and wille "spring, stream, well".

Gerstle German
Variant of Gerst.

Márton Hungarian
Derived from the given name Márton.

Arlotti Italian
Means "son of Arlotto".

Ó Deoradháin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Doran.

Fyodorov m Russian
Means "son of Fyodor".

Sciacca Italian
Originally denoted someone from Sciacca, Sicily, Italy, which is of uncertain origin.

Hogan Irish
From Irish Ó hÓgáin meaning "descendant of Ógán". The given name Ógán is a diminutive of óg meaning "young".

Ahmadov m Azerbaijani
Alternate transcription of Azerbaijani Əhmədov.

Jakobsen Danish, Norwegian
Means "son of Jakob".

Ready 3 Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Rodagh.

Borgia Italian
Italian form of Borja. This was the name of an Italian noble family who were influential during the Renaissance period.

Feldt German, Danish, Swedish
North German, Danish and Swedish variant of Feld.

Carman 2 English
From an Old Norse byname derived from karlmann meaning "male, man".

Abaroa Basque
Possibly from Basque abaro meaning "refuge".

Klossner German
Derived from German Klausner, Middle High German klosenære meaning "hermit".

Romilly English, French
Originally denoted a person who came from any of the various places in northern France called Romilly or from Romiley in England.

Waxweiler German
Denoted a person from Waxweiler, a village in the Eifel region of Germany.

Grier Scottish
Derived from the given name Gregor.

Quesada Spanish
Habitational name from Quesada, a place in Jaén in southern Spain. The place name is of uncertain derivation; it could be connected to Old Spanish requexada meaning "corner, tight spot".

D'Antonio Italian
Means "son of Antonio".

Gimondi Italian
Probably derived from the Old German given name Gismund.

Baník m Slovak
Means "miner" in Slovak.

Schwinghammer German
Occupational name for a blacksmith, literally meaning "swing hammer" in German.

Hermans Dutch, Flemish
Means "son of Herman".

Meyer 3 English
Variant of Mayer 3.

Ferrero Italian
Regional variant of Ferrari. It is typical of the area around Turin.

Bandyopadhyay Bengali
From the name of the village of Bandoghat combined with upadhaya "instructor, priest".

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

Patenaude French (Quebec)
French form of Paternoster.

Pentti Finnish
Derived from the given name Pentti.

Modugno Italian
From the town of Modugno, in Apulia in southern Italy. It is the surname of the Italian actor and singer Domenico Modugno (1928-1994).

Halle German
German variant of Hall.

Wembley English
From the name of a town, now part of Greater London, meaning "Wemba's clearing" in Old English.

Eads English
Means "son of Eda 2" or "son of Adam".

Dijkstra Frisian
Variant of Dykstra.

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

Chevalier French
From a nickname derived from French chevalier meaning "knight", from Late Latin caballarius "horseman", Latin caballus "horse".

Alfero Italian
From the given name Adalfarus.