Surnames from Locations

usage
source
Ellington English
From the name of multiple towns in England. 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 tun meaning "enclosure, town".
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".
Elton English
From an English place name meaning "Ella's town".
Ely English
From the name of a town in eastern England meaning "eel district".
Elzinga Dutch
Probably from a place name that was a derivative of Dutch els meaning "alder tree".
Endicott English
Topographic name derived from Old English meaning "from the end cottage".
Engman Swedish
From Swedish äng (Old Norse eng) meaning "meadow" and man (Old Norse maðr) meaning "person, man", originally a name for a person who lived in a meadow.
Ennis Irish
Variant of Innes 1.
Escamilla Spanish
Derived from the name of the town of Escamilla in Gualadajara, Spain.
Escárcega Spanish
Derived from the Basque place name Eskarzaga, which itself is derived from Basque hazkar "maple".
Esparza Spanish
Derived from the Basque place name Espartza, a town in the province of Navarre.
Espina Spanish
Means "thorn" in Spanish, a name for someone who lived near a thorn bush.
Espino Spanish
Variant of Espina.
Espinosa Spanish
From Spanish espinoso meaning "thorny", ultimately from Latin spinosus, a derivative of spina meaning "thorn, spine".
Estrada Spanish
Spanish form of Street.
Etxebarria Basque
Original Basque form of Echeverría.
Etxeberria Basque
Original Basque form of Echeverría.
Everest English
Originally denoted a person from Évreux in Normandy, itself named after the Gaulish tribe of the Eburovices. Mount Everest in the Himalayas was named for the British surveyor George Everest (1790-1866).
Everly English
From place names meaning derived from Old English eofor "boar" and leah "woodland, clearing".
Ewart 2 English
From the name of an English town, derived from Old English ea "river" and worþ "enclosure".
Fairburn English
From a place name meaning "fern stream", from Old English fearn "fern" and burna "stream".
Fairclough English
From a place name meaning "fair ravine, fair cliff" in Old English.
Farnham English
Indicated a person from any of the various towns named Farnham in England, notably in Surrey. Their names are from Old English fearn "fern" and ham "home, settlement" or ham "water meadow, enclosure".
Farro Italian
Derived from the name of a place on Sicily, Italy, derived from Latin far meaning "wheat, spelt".
Favager French
Possibly indicated a person from the town of Faverges in eastern France, derived from Old French faverge meaning "forge".
Fay 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.
Feigenbaum German, Jewish
Means "fig tree" in German.
Feld German, Jewish
Means "field" in German. The name was originally given to someone who lived on land cleared of forest.
Feldt German, Danish, Swedish
North German, Danish and Swedish variant of Feld.
Feng 1 Chinese
From Chinese (féng), which referred to an ancient city in Henan province.
Fenn English
From a name for someone who dwelt near a marsh, from Old English fenn meaning "fen, swamp, bog".
Fermi Italian
Originally indicated a person from the town of Fermo in the Marche region of Italy, originally called Firmum in Latin meaning "strong, steady, firm".
Ferrara Italian
Italian form of Ferreira.
Ferreira Portuguese, Galician
Denoted a person from a town named because it was near an iron mine, from Latin ferrum meaning "iron".
Fiala Czech
Means "violet" in Czech, referring to the flower. It may have originally referred to a person who lived near a sign bearing violets, or it may have been given to a person who lived in a place where violets grew.
Field English
Variant of Fields.
Fields English
Name for a person who lived on or near a field or pasture, from Old English feld.
Figueroa Spanish
From places named for Galician figueira meaning "fig tree".
Filipowski Polish
Either a patronymic from the given name Filip, or a habitational name denoting a person from the Polish town of Filipów (also derived from the given name).
Flater German
Means "reed bed" in German.
Flintstone Popular Culture
From the English words flint and stone, created by Hanna-Barbera Productions for the caveman family (Fred, Wilma and Pebbles) in their animated television show The Flintstones, which ran from 1960 to 1966.
Fonda Italian
Of Italian origin, possibly from a place derived from fondo meaning "deep". The family of Henry Fonda (1905-1982) came from the Netherlands, but they were of Genoese origin.
Fonseca Spanish, Portuguese
Originally belonged to a person who lived near a dry spring, from Latin fons "well, spring" and siccus "dry".
Fontaine French
Derived from Old French fontane meaning "well, fountain", a derivative of Latin fons.
Fontana Italian, Spanish
Italian and Spanish cognate of Fontaine.
Ford English
Name given to someone who lived by a ford, possibly the official who maintained it. A famous bearer was the American industrialist Henry Ford (1863-1947).
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)".
Forney German
Name for someone who lived near ferns, from Old High German farn "fern".
Forst German
Derived from Old High German forst "forest". Probably unrelated to the Old French word forest, which was derived from Latin, Old High German forst was derived from foraha meaning "fir tree".
Förstner German
Denoted a keeper or one in charge of a forest (see Forst).
Foss English
Variant of Fosse.
Fosse English, French
Derived from Old French fosse "ditch".
Frank 3 German, Dutch, Danish, Norwegian
Name for a person from Franconia in Germany, so called because it was settled by the Frankish people.
Frankenstein German, Literature
From any of the various minor places by this name in Germany, meaning "stone of the Franks" in German. It was used by the author Mary Shelley in her novel Frankenstein (1818) for the character of Victor Frankenstein, a scientist who creates a monster and brings it to life. The monster, nameless in the novel, is sometimes informally or erroneously called Frankenstein in modern speech.
Franzese Italian
From a nickname that indicated a person who came from France. It is typical of the area around Naples.
Fraser Scottish
Meaning unknown, originally Norman French de Fresel, possibly from a lost place name in France.
Freitas Portuguese
Means "broken" in Portuguese, a name for one who lived on broken, stony ground.
Fries German
Denoted someone from Frisia, an area along the coastal region of the North Sea stretching from Netherlands to Germany.
Friis Danish, Norwegian, Swedish
Scandinavian (mostly Danish) form of Fries.
Fuentes Spanish
Means "spring, well" in Spanish, derived from Latin fons.
Fujimori Japanese
From Japanese (fuji) meaning "wisteria" and (mori) meaning "forest".
Fujimoto Japanese
From Japanese (fuji) meaning "wisteria" and (moto) meaning "base, root, origin".
Fujimura Japanese
From Japanese (fuji) meaning "wisteria" and (mura) meaning "town, village".
Fujioka Japanese
From Japanese (fuji) meaning "wisteria" and (oka) meaning "hill, ridge".
Fujisawa Japanese
From Japanese (fuji) meaning "wisteria" and 沢 or 澤 (sawa) meaning "marsh".
Fujita Japanese
From Japanese (fuji) meaning "wisteria" and (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".
Fujiwara Japanese
From Japanese (fuji) meaning "wisteria" and (wara) meaning "field, plain".
Fukui Japanese
Denoted a person who was from Fukui prefecture in Japan.
Fukuzawa Japanese
From Japanese (fuku) meaning "happiness, good fortune, blessing" and 沢 or 澤 (sawa) meaning "marsh".
Fulton English
From the name of the English town of Foulden, Norfolk, meaning "bird hill" in Old English.
Furlan Italian, Slovene
From the name of the Italian region of Friuli, in the northeast of Italy, which is derived from the name of the Roman town of Forum Iulii meaning "forum of Julius".
Furukawa Japanese
From Japanese (furu) meaning "old" and (kawa) or (kawa) both meaning "river, stream".
Gadsby English
Habitational name from the villsage of Gaddesby in Leicestershire, so named from Old Norse gaddr "spur, spike (of land)" and býr "farm, settlement".
Gallego Spanish
Originally indicated a person from Galicia, a region in northwestern Spain.
Gárdonyi Hungarian
Originally denoted a person from Gárdony, a town near Budapest in Hungary.
Garfagnini Italian
Originally denoted one from the region of Garfagnana in Tuscany, Italy, near the historical city of Lucca.
Garfield English
Means "triangle field" in Old English. A famous bearer was American president James A. Garfield (1831-1881).
Garland English
Means "triangle land" from Old English gara and land. It originally belonged to a person who owned a triangle-shaped piece of land.
Garner 1 English
From Old French gernier meaning "granary", a derivative of Latin granum meaning "grain". This name could refer to a person who worked at a granary or lived near one.
Garrastazu Basque
From the Basque word arratz "bush" combined with the suffix sta denoting a place.
Gass German
Name for someone who lived on a street in a city, from German gasse.
Gates English
Originally denoted a person who lived near the town gates.
Gatsby English (Rare), Literature
Rare variant of Gadsby. This name was used by the American author F. Scott Fitzgerald for the central character in his novel The Great Gatsby (1925). In the book, James Gatz renames himself as Jay Gatsby at age 17 because he believes it sounds more sophisticated.
Gebara Basque
Habitational name for someone who lived in Gebara, a village in the province of Álava in Spain.
Genovese Italian
Denoted a person from the Italian city of Genoa (Genova in Italian).
Gill English
Originally indicated someone who lived near a ravine, from Middle English gil (of Old Norse origin).
Giugovaz Italian
Italian form of the Croatian surname Jugovac.
Glen Scottish
Variant of Glenn.
Glenn Scottish, English
From place names derived from Gaelic gleann "valley". A famous bearer was the American astronaut John Glenn (1921-2016).
Glöckner German
Derived from Middle High German glocke "bell". It may have referred to a person who worked at or lived close to a bell tower.
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.
Gordon Scottish
From the name of a place in Berwickshire, Scotland, derived from Brythonic words meaning "spacious fort".
Gore English
From the Old English word gara meaning "triangular plot of land".
Gorecki Polish
Originally indicated a person from Górka, the name of various towns in Poland, ultimately from Polish góra "mountain".
Górka Polish
Variant of Gorecki.
Görög Hungarian
Means "Greek" in Hungarian.
Górski Polish
From the Polish word góra meaning "mountain".
Gouveia Portuguese
From the name of the city of Gouveia in Portugal, of unknown meaning.
Grabowski Polish
Habitational name for someone from any of the various places called Grabów, Grabowa or Grabowo, all derived from Polish grab meaning "hornbeam tree".
Graham Scottish
Derived from the English place name Grantham, which probably meant "gravelly homestead" in Old English. The surname was first taken to Scotland in the 12th century by William de Graham.
Graner German
Originally denoted a person from Gran, the German name for Esztergom, a city in northern Hungary.
Granville English
Derived from a Norman place name Grainville.
Grec Catalan
Catalan cognate of Greco.
Greco Italian
Means "from Greece" in Italian.
Green English
Descriptive name for someone who often wore the colour green or someone who lived near the village green.
Greenberg German, Jewish
Anglicized form of Grünberg.
Greenwood English
Topographic name for someone who lived in or near a lush forest, from Old English grene "green" and wudu "wood".
Grover English
From Old English graf meaning "grove of trees". A famous bearer was the American president Grover Cleveland (1837-1908).
Groves English
From Old English graf meaning "grove". This originally indicated a person who lived near a grove (a group of trees).
Gruber Upper German
From German Grube meaning "pit", indicating a person who lived or worked in a pit or depression. This is the most common surname in Austria.
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.
Grünewald German
Means "green forest" from German grün "green" and Wald "forest".
Guadarrama Spanish
Derived from the name of the town of Guadarrama near Madrid.
Guan Chinese
From Chinese (guān) meaning "frontier pass".
Guo Chinese
From Chinese (guō) meaning "outer city".
Guzmán Spanish
From the name of the town of Guzmán in Burgos, Spain. The town's name itself may be derived from an old Visigothic given name, from the Germanic elements *gautaz "a Geat" and *mannô "person, man".
Gwózdek Polish
Derived from either archaic Polish gwozd meaning "forest" or gwóźdź meaning "nail".
Gynt Literature
Meaning unknown. This name was used by the Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen for the central character in his play Peer Gynt (1867). Ibsen based the story on an earlier Norwegian folktale Per Gynt.
Haanraads Dutch
Originally indicated a person from Haanrade, a small village in the south of the province of Limburg in the Netherlands.
Haden English
From a place name derived from Old English hæþ "heath" and dun "hill".
Hagen Norwegian, Dutch
From Old Norse hagi or Old Dutch hago meaning "enclosure, pasture".
Hagihara Japanese
From Japanese (hagi) meaning "bush clover" and (hara) meaning "field, plain".
Haig English, Scottish
From Old English haga or Old Norse hagi meaning "enclosure, pasture".
Haight English
Topographic name for someone who lived at the top of a hill, derived from Old English heahþu "height, summit".
Hailey English
Variant of Haley.
Hájek Czech
Means "thicket" in Czech, a diminutive of háj "woods".
Hale English
Derived from Old English halh meaning "nook, recess, hollow".
Haley English
From the name of an English town meaning "hay clearing", from Old English heg "hay" and leah "woodland, clearing".
Hall English, German, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish
Means simply "hall", given to one who either lived in or worked in a hall (the house of a medieval noble).
Halle German
German variant of Hall.
Halmi Hungarian
Derived from Hungarian halom meaning "mound, small hill". Originally the name was given to someone who lived near or on a hill.
Hamaguchi Japanese
From Japanese (hama) meaning "beach, seashore" and (kuchi) meaning "mouth, entrance".
Hämäläinen Finnish
Derived from the region in southern Finland known as Häme, also called Tavastia.
Hamasaki Japanese
From Japanese (hama) meaning "beach, seashore" and (saki) meaning "cape, peninsula".
Hambleton English
From various English place names, derived from Old English hamel "crooked, mutilated" and tun "enclosure, yard, town".
Hamilton English, Scottish
From an English place name, derived from Old English hamel "crooked, mutilated" and dun "hill". This was the name of a town in Leicestershire, England (which no longer exists).
Hamm English
Means "river meadow" in Old English.
Hampton English
From the name of multiple towns in England, derived from Old English ham "home" or ham "water meadow, enclosure" and tun "enclosure, yard, town".
Han Chinese, Korean
From Chinese (hán) referring to the ancient state of Han, which existed from the 5th to 3rd centuries BC in what is now Shanxi and Henan provinces.
Hanley English
From various English place names meaning "high meadow" in Old English.
Haraguchi Japanese
From Japanese (hara) meaning "field, plain" and (kuchi) meaning "mouth, entrance".
Harden English
From a place name meaning "hare valley" in Old English.
Hardwick English
From Old English heord "herd" and wic "village, town".
Harford English
Habitational name from places called Harford in Gloucestershire and Devon, meaning "hart ford" or "army ford".
Hargrave English
Derived from Old English har meaning "grey" and graf "grove".
Harland English
From various place names meaning "hare land" in Old English.
Harley English
Derived from a place name meaning "hare clearing", from Old English hara "hare" or hær "rock, heap of stones" and leah "woodland, clearing".
Harlow English
Habitational name derived from a number of locations named Harlow, from Old English hær "rock, heap of stones" or here "army", combined with hlaw "hill".
Harmaajärvi Finnish
Means "grey lake" in Finnish.
Harrington English
From the name of towns in England, meaning either "Hæfer's town" or "stony town" in Old English.
Hart English
Means "male deer". It was originally acquired by a person who lived in a place frequented by harts, or bore some resemblance to a hart.
Hartell English
From various place names derived from Old English heorot "hart, male deer" and hyll "hill".
Hartley English
Habitational name for someone originally from any of the various locations in England named Hartley, from Old English heorot "hart, male deer" and leah "woodland, clearing".
Hasegawa Japanese
From the Japanese place name 長谷 (Hase, not a standard reading) combined with (kawa) meaning "river, stream".
Hasenkamp German
From a northern German place name meaning "rabbit field", from Old Saxon haso "hare" and kamp "field" (from Latin campus).
Hashiguchi Japanese
From Japanese (hashi) meaning "bridge" and (kuchi) meaning "mouth, entrance".
Hashimoto Japanese
From Japanese (hashi) meaning "bridge" and (moto) meaning "base, root, origin".
Hathaway English
Habitational name for someone who lived near a path across a heath, from Old English hæþ "heath" and weg "way".
Haugen Norwegian
Means "hill" in Norwegian, referring to a person who lived on a hilltop.
Haupt German
German cognate of Head.
Häusler German
Name for someone who lived in a house with no land, derived rom Old High German word hus meaning "house".
Hawthorne English
Denoted a person who lived near a hawthorn bush, a word derived from Old English hagaþorn, from haga meaning "haw berry" and þorn meaning "thorn bush". A famous bearer was the American writer Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864), author of The Scarlet Letter.
Hayasaka Japanese
From Japanese (haya) meaning "already, now" and 坂 or 阪 (saka) meaning "slope".
Hayashi Japanese
From Japanese (hayashi) meaning "forest".
Hayden 1 English
From place names meaning either "hay valley" or "hay hill", derived from Old English heg "hay" and denu "valley" or dun "hill".
Hayes 1 English
From various English place names that were derived from Old English hæg meaning "enclosure, fence". A famous bearer was American President Rutherford B. Hayes (1822-1893).
Hayley English
Variant of Haley.
Hayter English
Name for a person who lived on a hill, from Middle English heyt meaning "height".
Haywood English
From various place names meaning "fenced wood" in Old English.
He Chinese
From Chinese (), representing a southern pronunciation of the name of the ancient state of Han (see Han). After Han was destroyed by the state of Qin, those who resettled further south changed their name to this character in order to match the local pronunciation.
Head English
From Middle English hed meaning "head", from Old English heafod. It may have referred to a person who had a peculiar head, who lived near the head of a river or valley, or who served as the village headman.
Headley English
From place names meaning "heather clearing" in Old English.
Heath English
Originally belonged to a person who was a dweller on the heath or open land.
Heikkilä Finnish
From the given name Heikki with the suffix -lä indicating a place.
Hepburn English, Scottish
From northern English place names meaning "high burial mound" in Old English. It was borne by Mary Queen of Scot's infamous third husband, James Hepburn, Earl of Bothwall. Other famous bearers include the actresses Katharine Hepburn (1907-2003) and Audrey Hepburn (1929-1993).
Heppenheimer German
From the name of the city of Heppenheim in Hesse, Germany.
Herrera Spanish
Spanish form of Ferreira.
Hershey English
Originally denoted a person from Hercé in Normandy.
Hiedler German
From southern German Hiedl meaning "underground stream".
Higashi Japanese
From Japanese (higashi) meaning "east".
Hightower English
Possibly a variant of Hayter.
Hill English
Originally given to a person who lived on or near a hill, derived from Old English hyll.
Hillam English
From English places by this name, derived from Old English hyll meaning "hill".
Hilton English
From various English place names derived from Old English hyll "hill" and tun "enclosure, town". Famous bearers of this name include the Hilton family of hotel heirs.
Himura Japanese
From Japanese (hi) meaning "scarlet, dark red" and (mura) meaning "town, village".
Hino Japanese
From Japanese (hi) meaning "sun, day" or (hi) meaning "fire" and (no) meaning "field, wilderness".
Hiramatsu Japanese
From Japanese (hira) meaning "level, even, peaceful" and (matsu) meaning "pine tree, fir tree".
Hirano Japanese
From Japanese (hira) meaning "level, even, peaceful" and (no) meaning "field, wilderness".
Hirata Japanese
From Japanese (hira) meaning "level, even, peaceful" and (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".
Hisakawa Japanese
From Japanese (hisa) meaning "long time ago" and (kawa) meaning "river, stream".
Hitler German
Variant of Hiedler. This was spelling used by Alois Hitler, the father of German dictator Adolf Hitler (1889-1945), when he adopted his stepfather Johann Georg Hiedler's surname.
Ho Chinese (Cantonese), Chinese (Hokkien)
Cantonese and Min Nan romanization of He.
Hochberg German, Jewish
From place names meaning "high hill" in German.
Hoek Dutch
From Dutch hoek meaning "corner".
Hoekstra Frisian
From Frisian hoek meaning "corner".
Holland 1 English
From various English places of this name, derived from Old English hoh "point of land, heel" and land "land".
Holland 2 Dutch, German, English
Indicated a person from the Dutch province of Holland 1.
Hollins English
Referred to someone living by a group of holly trees, from Old English holegn.
Holm Swedish, Norwegian, Danish
From Swedish, Danish and Norwegian holme, holm meaning "islet" (Old Norse holmr).
Holme English, Scottish
Referred either to someone living by a small island (northern Middle English holm, from Old Norse holmr) or near a holly tree (Middle English holm, from Old English holegn).
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.
Holst Danish, Low German, Dutch
Originally referred to a person from the region of Holstein between Germany and Denmark. A famous bearer of this name was the English composer Gustav Holst (1874-1934).
Holt English, Dutch, Danish, Norwegian
From Old English, Old Dutch and Old Norse holt meaning "forest".
Holtman Dutch
Dutch cognate of Holzmann.
Holtz German
German cognate of Holt.
Hölzer German
German cognate of Holt.
Holzer German
German cognate of Holt.
Holzmann German
Derived from Old High German holz "wood" and man "man", a name for someone who lived close to a wood or worked with wood.
Homewood English
From various place names derived from Old English ham meaning "home" and wudu meaning "wood".
Honda Japanese
From Japanese (hon) meaning "root, origin, source" and (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".
Honeycutt English
Derived from the name of the English town of Hunnacott, derived from Old English hunig "honey" or the given name Huna combined with cot "cottage".
Honeysett English
Possibly a variant of Honeycutt.
Hooker English
Originally applied to one who lived near a river bend or corner of some natural feature, from Old English hoc "angle, hook".
Hope English
Derived from Middle English hop meaning "small valley".
Horáček Czech
Diminutive derived from Czech hora "mountain".
Horák Czech
Derived from Czech hora "mountain".
Horn English, German, Norwegian, Danish
From the Old English, Old High German and Old Norse word horn meaning "horn". This was an occupational name for one who carved objects out of horn or who played a horn, or a person who lived near a horn-shaped geographical feature, such as a mountain or a bend in a river.
Horne English
Variant of Horn.
Horowitz Jewish
From the German name of Hořovice, a town in the Czech Republic. Its name is derived from Czech hora "mountain".
Horsfall English
From a minor place in Yorkshire derived from Old English hors "horse" and fall "clearing".
Horton English
From the names of various places in England, which are derived from Old English horh "dirt, mud" and tun "enclosure, yard, town".
Horvat Croatian, Slovene
From Croatian and Slovene Hrvat meaning "Croat, person from Croatia".
Hoshino Japanese
From Japanese (hoshi) meaning "star" and (no) meaning "field, wilderness".
Houk Dutch (Anglicized)
Possibly an Americanized form of Hoek.
House English
Referred to a person who lived or worked in a house, as opposed to a smaller hut.
Houston Scottish
From a place name meaning "Hugh's town". The original Houston is in Scotland near Glasgow.
Houtman Dutch
Dutch cognate of Holzmann.
Howe English
Name for one who lived on a hill, from Middle English how "hill" (of Norse origin).
Howse English
Variant of Howe.
Hsieh Chinese
Alternate transcription of Chinese (see Xie).
Hsu 1 Chinese
Alternate transcription of Chinese (see Xu 1).
Hsu 2 Chinese
Alternate transcription of Chinese (see Xu 2).
Huddleston English
From the name of a town in the Yorkshire region of England, which means "Hudel's town" in Old English.
Hudnall English
From various English place names, derived from the Old English given name Huda combined with halh "nook, recess".
Huerta Spanish
Means "garden, orchard" in Spanish, ultimately from Latin hortus.
Huff English
Means "spur of a hill", from Old English hoh.
Hull English
Variant of Hill.
Hult Swedish
Swedish form of Holt.
Hume Scottish, English
Variant of Holme. A famous bearer was the philosopher David Hume (1711-1776).
Hunnisett English
Possibly a variant of Honeycutt.
Hurst English
Originally a name for a person who lived near a thicket of trees, from Old English hyrst "thicket".
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).
Huxtable English
Derived from the name of an English place meaning "hook post", from Old English hoc "hook" and stapol "post".
Hyde English
From Middle English hide, a unit of land, approximately the size necessary to support a household.
Hyland 1 English
Topographic name meaning "high land", from Old English heah and land.
Ibarra Basque, Spanish
From Basque place names derived from ibar meaning "meadow".
Iglesias Spanish
From Spanish iglesia meaning "church", from Latin ecclesia (of Greek origin).
Ikeda Japanese
From Japanese (ike) meaning "pool, pond" and (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".
Im Korean
From Sino-Korean (im) meaning "forest", making it the Korean form of Lin, or (im) of uncertain meaning, making it the Korean form of Ren.
Imai Japanese
From Japanese (ima) meaning "now, present" and (i) meaning "well, mine shaft, pit".
Inada Japanese
From Japanese (ina) meaning "rice plant" and (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".
Ingersleben German
From the name of the town of Ingersleben, Germany, which meant "Inge's village".
Ingham English
From the name of an English town, of Old English origin meaning "Inga's homestead".
Innes 1 Scottish
From a place name derived from Gaelic inis meaning "island".
Inoue Japanese
Means "above the well", from Japanese (i) meaning "well, mine shaft, pit", an unwritten possessive marker (no), and (ue) meaning "above, top, upper".
Iordanou Greek
From the name of the Jordan river, which is from Hebrew יָרַד (yarad) meaning "descend" or "flow down".
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".
Ishida Japanese
From Japanese (ishi) meaning "stone" and (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".
Ishikawa Japanese
From Japanese (ishi) meaning "stone" and (kawa) meaning "river, stream".
Iturburua Basque
Means "by the fountain" in Basque, from iturri "fountain, spring".
Iwai Japanese
From Japanese (iwa) meaning "cliff, rocks" and (i) meaning "well, mine shaft, pit".
Iwamoto Japanese
From Japanese (iwa) meaning "cliff, rocks" and (moto) meaning "base, root, origin".
Iwasaki Japanese
From Japanese (iwa) meaning "cliff, rocks" and (saki) meaning "cape, peninsula".
Iwata Japanese
From Japanese (iwa) meaning "cliff, rocks" and (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".
Izumi Japanese
From Japanese (izumi) meaning "spring, fountain".
Jabłoński Polish
Originally denoted someone who lived by an apple tree, from Polish jabłoń meaning "apple tree".
Jankauskas Lithuanian
Lithuanian form of Janowski.
Jankowski Polish
Habitational name for a person from a town named Jankowo or Janków, all derived from the given name Janek.
Janowski Polish
Habitational name for a person from a town named Janowo, Janów or Janowice, all derived from the given name Jan 1.
Järvi Finnish
Means "lake" in Finnish.
Järvinen Finnish
Derived from Finnish järvi meaning "lake". It is one of the most common surnames in Finland.
Jaskólski Polish
Originally indicated a person from various Polish towns named Jaskółki, derived from Polish jaskółka "swallow (bird)".