Lyon 1 English, FrenchOriginally denoted a person from the city of Lyon in central France, originally Latin
Lugdunum, of Gaulish origin meaning "hill fort of
Lugus". It could also denote a person from the small town of Lyons-la-Forêt in Normandy.
Maeda JapaneseFrom Japanese
前 (mae) meaning "front, forward" and
田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".
Magalhães PortugueseDenoted a person hailing from one of the numerous minor places of this name in Portugal, possibly of Celtic origin. A notable bearer was the Portuguese explorer Fernão de Magalhães (1480-1521), normally called Ferdinand Magellan in English.
Malinowski m PolishFrom Polish
malina meaning
"raspberry", originally indicating a person who lived near a raspberry patch.
Mandel German, YiddishMeans
"almond" in German, an occupational name for a grower or seller, or a topographic name for a person who lived near an almond tree. As a Jewish name it is ornamental.
Manfredonia ItalianOriginally indicated a person from Manfredonia, Italy. The city was named for the 13th-century King
Manfred of Sicily.
Mantovani ItalianFrom the name of the city of Mantua in Lombardy, northern Italy (
Mantova in Italian).
Maradona SpanishFrom the name of a place near Lugo in northern Spain. A notable bearer is the former Argentinian soccer star Diego Maradona (1960-2020).
Marchegiano ItalianFrom the name of the Marche region in Italy, derived from Late Latin
marca meaning "borderland". It was the real surname of the American boxer Rocky Marciano (1923-1969), who was born Rocco Marchegiano.
Marley EnglishOriginally denoted a person who hailed from one of the various places in Britain called
Marley, ultimately meaning either "pleasant wood", "boundary wood" or "marten wood" in Old English. One of the main characters in Charles Dickens'
A Christmas Carol (1843) bears this surname. It was also borne by the Jamaican reggae musician Bob Marley (1945-1981).
Marlow EnglishOriginally a name for a person from Marlow in Buckinghamshire, England. The place name means "remnants of a lake" from Old English
mere "lake" and
lafe "remnants, remains". A notable bearer was the English playwright and poet Christopher Marlowe (1564-1593).
Marmo ItalianMeans
"marble" in Italian, possibly indicating a person who lived near a quarry or one who worked with marble.
Marsden EnglishFrom a place name derived from Old English
mearc "boundary" and
denu "valley".
Marsh EnglishOriginally denoted one who lived near a marsh or bog, derived from Old English
mersc "marsh".
Marston EnglishFrom a place name derived from Old English
mersc "marsh" and
tun "enclosure".
Massey EnglishDerived from
Massy, the name of several towns in France. The name of the town is perhaps derived from a personal name that was Latinized as
Maccius.
Mata Spanish, Portuguese, CatalanFrom Spanish, Portuguese and Catalan
mata meaning
"trees, shrubs", possibly from Late Latin
matta meaning "reed mat".
Matsumoto JapaneseFrom 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".
Maxwell ScottishFrom a place name meaning "Mack's stream", from the name
Mack, a short form of the Scandinavian name
Magnus, combined with Old English
wille "well, stream". A famous bearer was James Maxwell (1831-1879), a Scottish physicist who studied gases and electromagnetism.
Mazur PolishIndicated a person from either Mazovia (Polish
Mazowsze) or Masuria (Polish
Mazury), regions in Poland.
Meadows EnglishReferred to one who lived in a meadow, from Old English
mædwe.
Medeiros PortugueseFrom various Portuguese place names that were derived from Portuguese
medeiro meaning
"haystack", ultimately from Latin
meta meaning "cone, pyramid".
Meggyesfalvi HungarianDerived from a Hungarian village named
Meggyesfalva meaning "cherry village", from
meggy "cherry" and
falu "village".
Meissner GermanOriginally denoted a person from the German town of Meissen, which is probably of Slavic origin.
Melsbach GermanFrom the name of a German town, possibly meaning "mill stream".
Melville ScottishFrom the place name
Malleville meaning "bad town" in Norman French.
Mercado SpanishMeans
"market" in Spanish, originally given to a person who lived near a market or worked in one.
Merrill 2 EnglishFrom the name of various places in England, derived from Old English
myrige "pleasant" and
hyll "hill".
Messina ItalianFrom the name of the Sicilian city of Messina, founded by Greek colonists. The city was named after the Greek city
Μεσσήνη (Messene).
Metharom ThaiPossibly refers to a place or institute of learning or where knowledge is provided.
Michalski m PolishHabitational name for a person from a village named
Michale or
Michały, both derived from the given name
Michał.
Middleton EnglishOriginally 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".
Midgley EnglishFrom the English village of Midgley in West Yorkshire, meaning "midge (insect) wood" in Old English.
Milburn EnglishDerived from various place names meaning "mill stream" in Old English.
Milford EnglishOriginally derived from various place names all meaning "ford by a mill" in Old English.
Milton EnglishDerived 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".
Miranda Spanish, PortugueseHabitational name from any of the numerous places in Spain and Portugal bearing this name, possibly derived from Latin
mirandus "admirable, wonderful". A notable bearer was the Portuguese-born Brazilian singer and actress Carmen Miranda (1909-1955).
Miyamoto JapaneseFrom Japanese
宮 (miya) meaning "temple, shrine, palace" and
本 (moto) meaning "base, root, origin". A notable bearer is video game pioneer Shigeru Miyamoto (1952-).
Miyata JapaneseFrom Japanese
宮 (miya) meaning "temple, shrine, palace" and
田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".
Mlakar Slovene, CroatianReferred to someone who lived near a pool, derived from South Slavic
mlaka meaning
"pool, puddle".
Modugno ItalianFrom the town of Modugno, in Apulia in southern Italy. It is the surname of the Italian actor and singer Domenico Modugno (1928-1994).
Moffett ScottishFrom the town of Moffat in Scotland, meaning "long field" in Gaelic.
Monroe ScottishAnglicized (typically American) form of
Munro. It was borne by the American actress Marilyn Monroe (1926-1962).
Montagna ItalianMeans
"mountain" in Italian, from Latin
montanus, indicating a person who lived on or near a mountain.
Montague EnglishFrom a Norman place name meaning "sharp mountain" in Old French.
Montes SpanishFrom Spanish
monte "mountain, hill", derived from Latin
mons.
Montgomery English, ScottishFrom a place name in Calvados, France meaning "
Gumarich's mountain". A notable bearer was Bernard Montgomery (1887-1976), a British army commander during World War II.
Monti ItalianMeans
"mountain, hill" in Italian, from Latin
mons.
Montoya SpanishFrom the name of a village in the province of Álava in Spain. It is possibly of Basque origin, or possibly from Latin
mons "mountain, hill".
Moon 2 EnglishOriginally indicated a person from the town of Moyon in Normandy.
Moore 1 EnglishOriginally indicated a person who lived on a moor, from Middle English
mor meaning
"open land, bog".
Mora SpanishDerived from Spanish
mora meaning
"mulberry", of Latin origin.
Morales SpanishDerived from Spanish
moral meaning
"mulberry tree", of Latin origin.
Moravec m CzechOriginally indicated a person from Moravia (Czech
Morava).
Morley EnglishFrom the name of various English towns, from Old English
mor "moor, bog" and
leah "woodland, clearing".
Morra ItalianLocative name derived from Italian places such as Morra De Sanctis, Campania, or Morra del Villar, Piedmont.
Mortimer EnglishFrom the name of a town in Normandy meaning
"dead water, still water" in Old French.
Morton EnglishDerived from a place name meaning
"moor town" in Old English.
Moser GermanName for someone who lived near a peat bog, from Middle High German
mos.
Moto JapaneseFrom Japanese
本 (moto) meaning
"base, root, origin". More commonly it is the final character in Japanese surnames.
Motta ItalianFrom various names of places around Italy. It is derived from a Gaulish word meaning "hill".
Mottershead EnglishFrom the name of a lost place in Cheshire, derived from the Old English byname
Motere meaning "speaker" and
heafod meaning "headland".
Moya SpanishFrom any of various towns named Moya in Spain, of uncertain meaning.
Muggia ItalianFrom the town of Muggia in northeastern Italy near the Slovenian border. It was called
Muglae in Latin.
Muir ScottishScots form of
Moore 1. This name was borne by the Scottish-American naturalist John Muir (1838-1914).
Munro ScottishDesignated a person who had originally lived near the mouth of the Roe River in Derry, Ireland. It is derived from Gaelic
bun meaning "root, base" combined with the river's name.
Munteanu RomanianFrom Romanian
muntean meaning
"mountaineer, from the mountains", ultimately from Latin
mons.
Murray 1 ScottishDerived from the region in Scotland called
Moray (Gaelic
Moireabh), possibly of Pictish origin, meaning
"seashore, coast". A notable bearer of this surname was General James Murray (1721-1794), who was the first British Governor-General of Canada.
Mushyan ArmenianOriginally denoted someone who came from the Armenian town of Mushi.
Nagarkar MarathiDerived from the name of the town of Nagar in Maharashtra, India.
Naggi ItalianOriginally denoted a person from the town of Naggio in Lombardy, Italy.
Nakai JapaneseFrom Japanese
中 (naka) meaning "middle" and
井 (i) meaning "well, mine shaft, pit".
Namgung KoreanFrom Sino-Korean
南 (nam) meaning "south" combined with
宮 (gung) meaning "palace, house". This is the most common Korean compound surname.
Narang HindiFrom the name of a Pakistani town that was in undivided India.
Nash EnglishDerived from the Middle English phrase
atten ash "at the ash tree". A famous bearer was the mathematician John Nash (1928-2015).
Navarro SpanishDenoted a person who came from Navarre in northern Spain (Spanish
Navarra). The name of the region is of Basque origin, possibly from
nabar meaning "brown".
Nepi ItalianFrom the town of Nepi in central Italy, which is of uncertain origin.
Nervi ItalianFrom the name of the town of Nervi in Liguria, northwestern Italy.
Nespoli ItalianFrom the name of towns such as Nespoli and Nespoledo, derived from Italian
nespola meaning "medlar (tree)".
Ness English, Scottish, NorwegianFrom English
ness and Norwegian
nes meaning
"headland, promontory", of Old Norse origin, originally referring to a person who lived there.
Neuville FrenchFrom the names of various French towns meaning "new town".
Neville English, IrishFrom the names of towns in Normandy, variously
Neuville or
Néville, meaning "new town" in French.
Newport EnglishGiven to one who came from the town of Newport (which means simply "new port"), which was the name of several English towns.
Newton EnglishFrom the name of one of many English towns meaning "new town". A famous bearer was the English physicist Isaac Newton (1643-1727).
Nicastro ItalianFrom the name of the town of Nicastro in Calabria, southern Italy.
Nickleby LiteratureCreated by Charles Dickens for the title character in his novel
Nicholas Nickleby (1839). He probably based it on
Nicol, a medieval vernacular form of
Nicholas, with the common English place name suffix
-by, which is derived from Old Norse
býr meaning "farm, settlement".
Nicolosi ItalianFrom the name of the town Nicolosi on Sicily, itself named for Saint Nicholas.
Niemelä FinnishFrom Finnish
niemi meaning
"peninsula, cape" with the suffix
-la indicating a place.
Niskanen FinnishDerived from Finnish
niska meaning
"neck", indicating someone who lived on a neck of land or who had a distinctive neck.
Nizzola ItalianFrom the name of the Italian town of Nizzola near Modena.
Nogueira Portuguese, GalicianFrom Portuguese and Galician
nogueira meaning
"walnut tree", from the Late Latin
nucarius, ultimately from Latin
nux meaning "nut".
Norman EnglishReferred 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.
Norris 1 English, ScottishMeans
"from the north" from Old French
norreis. It either denoted someone who originated in the north or someone who lived in the northern part of a settlement.
Northrop EnglishOriginally denoted one who came from a town of this name England, meaning "north farm".
Norton EnglishFrom the name of various towns in England meaning "north town" in Old English.
Nørup DanishFrom the name of Danish villages named
Nørup or
Norup.
Norwood EnglishOriginally taken from a place name meaning "north wood" in Old English.
Noschese ItalianFrom the name of the town of Nusco in Campania, southern Italy.
Nowakowski m PolishHabitational name for a person from various towns called
Nowakowo or similar, derived from Polish
nowy meaning "new".
Nowicki m PolishHabitational name for a person from any of the towns in Poland called
Nowice. The name is derived from Polish
nowy meaning "new".
Nurmi FinnishMeans
"meadow, field" in Finnish. It was the surname of the athlete Paavo Nurmi (1897-1973).
Nye EnglishOriginally indicated a person who lived near a river, from Middle English
atten eye meaning
"at the river".
Nyitrai HungarianIndicated someone from Nitra, a city and historic principality of Slovakia (formerly in Hungary). Its name is derived from that of a local river, which is of unknown meaning.
O KoreanAlternate transcription of Korean Hangul
오 (see
Oh).
Oakley EnglishFrom a place name meaning "oak clearing" in Old English. It was borne by American sharpshooter Annie Oakley (1860-1926).
Obando SpanishHabitational name for someone who came from Obando in Extremadura, Spain.
Oberst GermanFrom Old High German
obar meaning
"above, upper", indicating a person from the uppermost end of a village or the top of a house.
Odell EnglishOriginally denoted a person who was from Odell in Bedfordshire, derived from Old English
wad "woad" (a plant that produces a blue dye) and
hyll "hill".
Oelberg GermanMeans
"oil hill" from Middle High German
öl "oil" and
berg "mountain, hill".
Ogtrop DutchOriginally denoted a person who was from the town of Ochtrup in Germany, which is of uncertain origin.
Ojala Finnish, EstonianFrom Finnish and Estonian
oja meaning
"ditch, channel, brook" with the suffix
-la indicating a place.
Ojeda SpanishFrom the name of the Ojeda river in Soria, Spain, possibly derived from Latin
folia "leaves".
Okabe JapaneseFrom Japanese
岡 (oka) meaning "hill, ridge" and
部 (be) meaning "part, section".
Ola BasqueFrom Basque
ola meaning
"hut, small house, forge".
Olander SwedishDenoted someone from the islands of Öland (eastern Sweden) or
Åland (western Finland).
Oleastro SpanishMeans
"wild olive" in Spanish, originally indicating one who lived near such a tree.
Oliveira PortugueseMeans
"olive tree" in Portuguese, ultimately from Latin
oliva. It indicated a person who lived near or worked with olive trees.
Olmo SpanishMeans
"elm tree" in Spanish, ultimately from Latin
ulmus. The name originally indicated a person who lived near such a tree.
Olszewski m PolishOriginally denoted someone who lived near an alder tree, from Polish
olsza meaning
"alder tree".
Omdahl NorwegianDenoted a person hailing from any one of a number of farms in Norway called either Åmdal or Omdal meaning "elm valley".
Ono JapaneseFrom Japanese
小 (o) meaning "small" and
野 (no) meaning "field, wilderness".
Oppenheimer GermanOriginally indicated a person from Oppenheim, Germany, perhaps meaning "marshy home". A notable bearer was the American physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer (1904-1967).
Oquendo SpanishOriginally indicated a person from the town of Okondo in Álava, northern Spain, possibly derived from Basque
ukondo "elbow".
Orellana SpanishOriginally indicated a person from one of the two towns named
Orellana in Badajoz, Spain. Their names are probably derived from Latin
Aureliana meaning "of
Aurelius".
Orozco SpanishFrom the name of a valley in the Basque region of Spain.
Ortega SpanishFrom a Spanish place name (belonging to various villages) derived from
ortiga "nettle".
Ōshiro JapaneseFrom Japanese
大 (ō) meaning "big, great" and
城 (shiro) meaning "castle". It is especially common on Okinawa.
Øster DanishFrom Danish
øst meaning
"east", originally denoting a dweller on the eastern side of a place.
Østergård DanishFrom Danish
øst meaning "east" and
gård meaning "enclosure, farm".
Oursler GermanOriginally a name designating a person from Ursel (now Oberursel) in Hesse, Germany.
Overton EnglishDenoted a person who hailed from one of the various places in England called Overton, meaning "upper settlement" or "riverbank settlement" in Old English.
Owston EnglishDenoted a person who came from any one of the places in Britain called Ouston or Owston.
Padilla SpanishFrom various Spanish place names, derived from Spanish
padilla, Latin
patella meaning "shallow dish", used to indicate a depression in the landscape.
Padmore EnglishOriginally indicated a person from Padmore in England, derived from Old English
padde "toad" and
mor "moor, marsh".
Padovano ItalianOriginally denoted one who came from the city of Padua in Italy, from Italian
Padova, itself from Latin
Patavium, of unknown meaning.
Paisley ScottishFrom the name of a town near Glasgow, which may ultimately be derived from Latin
basilica "church".
Palazzo ItalianMeans
"palace" in Italian, from Latin
palatium. It was originally used by someone who lived near a palace or mansion, or who worked there.
Palencia SpanishHabitational name from the city or region of Palencia in northern Spain.
Palmisano ItalianLocative name from the town of Palmi in the Calabria region of southern Italy.
Pan 2 ChineseFrom Chinese
潘 (pān) meaning
"water in which rice has been rinsed", and also referring to a river that flows into the Han River.
Pantoja SpanishOriginally indicated a person from the town of Pantoja, in Toledo, Spain.
Panza Italian, LiteratureFrom a variant of the Italian word
pancia meaning
"stomach, paunch", originally a nickname for a chubby person. The Spanish author Miguel de Cervantes used it in his novel
Don Quixote (1605), where it is the surname of Don Quixote's squire Sancho Panza. Not a common Spanish surname, Cervantes may have based it directly on the Spanish word
panza (a cognate of the Italian word).
Paredes Portuguese, SpanishDenoted a person who lived near a wall, from Portuguese
parede and Spanish
pared meaning
"wall", both derived from Latin
paries.