Knef GermanOccupational name for a shoemaker, derived from Low German
knif meaning
"shoemaker's knife".
Knight EnglishFrom Old English
cniht meaning
"knight", a tenant serving as a mounted soldier.
Knochenmus GermanFrom German
Knochen "bone" and
Mus "sauce". It probably referred to someone who worked in the butcher trade.
Knopf GermanMeans
"button" in German, originally belonging to a button maker or button seller.
Kohler GermanFrom Middle High German
koler meaning
"charcoal burner" or
"charcoal seller".
Kolář m CzechMeans
"wheelwright", a derivative of Czech
kolo "wheel".
Kolbe GermanFrom Middle High German
kolbe meaning
"club".
Kopitar SloveneFrom Slovene
kopito meaning
"hoof", an occupational name for a shoer.
Košar CroatianFrom Croatian
koš meaning
"basket", originally indicating a person who made or sold baskets.
Koszorús HungarianDerived from Hungarian
koszorú meaning
"garland, wreath, girdle", a name for someone who made garlands.
Kowalski m PolishFrom Polish
kowal meaning
"blacksmith". This is the second most common surname in Poland.
Kozioł PolishMeans
"male goat" in Polish, probably used to denote a goatherd.
Kozlov m RussianDerived from Russian
козёл (kozyol) meaning
"male goat", probably used to denote a goatherd.
Krämer GermanMeans
"shopkeeper, merchant" in German, derived from Old High German
kram meaning "tent, trading post".
Kranz German, JewishDerived from Old High German
kranz meaning
"wreath", an occupational name for a maker of wreaths or an ornamental Jewish name.
Kravitz JewishOccupational name derived from Polish
krawiec meaning
"tailor".
Król PolishMeans
"king" in Polish. The name referred to one who acted like a king or was connected in some way with a king's household.
Krüger 1 GermanIn northern Germany an occupational name for a tavern keeper, derived from Middle Low German
kroch meaning
"tavern".
Krüger 2 GermanIn southern Germany an occupational name for a potter, derived from Middle High German
kruoc meaning
"jug, pot".
Küchler GermanOccupational surname for a baker who made small cakes or cookies, derived from Middle High German
kuoche "cake, pastry".
Kumięga PolishPossibly from Polish
kum "godfather, friend" or
komięga "raft, barge".
Kundakçı TurkishFrom Turkish
kundak meaning
"stock, wooden part of a rifle".
Kunkel GermanOccupational name for a maker of distaffs, from Middle High German
kunkel "distaff, spindle", of Latin origin.
Kurucz HungarianDerived from the Hungarian word
kuruc, referring to rebels who fought against the Habsburgs in the late 17th to early 18th century.
Laganà ItalianOccupational name for a greengrocer, meaning
"vegetables" in southern Italian dialects, ultimately from Greek
λάχανον (lachanon).
Laguardia ItalianOccupational name meaning
"sentry, sentinel" in Italian, also a locative name referring to a person who lived near a watchtower. Fiorello Laguardia (1882-1947) was the first mayor of New York of Italian origin.
Lagunov m RussianDerived from Russian
лагун (lagun) meaning
"water barrel". It was used to denote the descendants of a person who made water barrels.
Laird ScottishMeans
"landowner" in Scots, derived from northern Middle English
laverd "lord", from Old English
hlafweard.
Lane 2 FrenchDerived from a French word meaning
"wool", designating one who worked in the wool trade.
Láník m CzechDerived from Czech
lán, a measure of land equal to approximately 18 hectares. The name loosely translates as "farmer" and is considered a Moravian equivalent of
Sedlák.
Lantos HungarianMeans
"minstrel, bard, lutist" in Hungarian, from
lant meaning "lute".
Lapointe FrenchMeans
"the point (of a lance)" in French, possibly a nickname for a soldier.
Leach EnglishOriginally indicated a person who was a physician, from the medieval practice of using leeches to bleed people of ills.
Lécuyer FrenchFrom French
écuyer meaning
"squire, shield-bearer".
Lefèvre FrenchOccupational name meaning
"blacksmith" in Old French, derived from Latin
faber.
Lehmann GermanFrom Middle High German
lehenman meaning
"vassal, liege man".
Lemaire FrenchMeans
"the mayor" in French. It was a title given to a town official, or else a nickname for someone who was pompous and officious.
Lemoine FrenchMeans
"the monk" in French. This was typically a nickname or an occupational name for a person who worked in a monastery.
Lister ScottishAnglicized form of the Gaelic
Mac an Fleisdeir meaning
"son of the arrow maker".
Machado Portuguese, SpanishDenoted a person who made or used hatchets, derived from Spanish and Portuguese
machado "hatchet", both from Latin
marculus "little hammer".
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.
Marchesi ItalianFrom the Italian title
marchese meaning
"marquis". It was probably a nickname for a person who behaved like a marquis or worked in the household of a marquis.
Marmo ItalianMeans
"marble" in Italian, possibly indicating a person who lived near a quarry or one who worked with marble.
Marquardt GermanFrom Old High German
marka "border, boundary" and
wart "protector". This was an occupational name for a border guard.
Marshall EnglishDerived from Middle English
mareschal "marshal", from Latin
mariscalcus, ultimately from Germanic roots akin to Old High German
marah "horse" and
scalc "servant". It originally referred to someone who took care of horses.
Martel 2 French, EnglishNickname for a smith, derived from Old French
martel "hammer", ultimately from Late Latin
martellus.
Máselník m Czech (Rare)Referred to one who churned or sold butter or buttermilk, derived from Czech
máslo "butter".
Mason EnglishOccupational name for a stoneworker or layer of bricks, from Old French
masson, of Frankish origin (akin to Old English
macian "to make").
Masterson EnglishPatronymic derived from Middle English
maister meaning
"master", via Old French from Latin
magister.
Mataracı TurkishOccupational name for a person who made water bottles or flasks, from Turkish
matara "flask".
Mathers EnglishOccupational name meaning
"mower, cutter of hay" in Old English.
Maurer GermanOccupational name meaning
"wall builder" in German.
Mayer 3 EnglishOccupational name for a mayor, from Middle English
mair, derived via Old French from Latin
maior.
Mazza ItalianFrom a nickname (perhaps occupational) meaning
"maul, mallet" in Italian.
McIntyre ScottishFrom Scottish Gaelic
Mac an tSaoir meaning
"son of the carpenter".
McLean ScottishAnglicized form of Gaelic
MacGillEathain or
MacGillEain meaning
"son of the servant of Eòin".
McNeilly ScottishAnglicized form of Gaelic
Mac an Fhilidh meaning
"son of the poet".
Melnyk UkrainianMeans
"miller" in Ukrainian. This is the most common Ukrainian surname.
Mencher PolishPossibly an occupational name derived from Polish
maczarz meaning
"miller".
Mercer EnglishOccupational name for a trader in textiles, from Old French
mercier, derived from Latin
merx meaning "merchandise".
Messer GermanOccupational name for a person who made knives, from Middle High German
messer "knife".
Messner GermanOccupational name for a sexton or churchwarden, from Old High German
mesinari.
Metaxas m GreekDerived from Greek
μέταξα (metaxa) meaning
"silk", referring to a silk merchant or another occupation dealing with silk.
Metz 1 GermanOccupational name for maker of knives, from Middle High German
metze "knife".
Meyer 1 GermanFrom Middle High German
meier meaning
"bailiff, administrator", derived from Latin
maior meaning "greater". Later it also denoted a tenant farmer. The spellings
Meier and
Meyer are more common in northern Germany while
Maier and
Mayer are more common in southern Germany.
Miller EnglishOccupational surname meaning
"miller", referring to a person who owned or worked in a grain mill, derived from Middle English
mille "mill".
Millhouse EnglishName for someone whose house was in a mill or who worked in a mill.
Mills EnglishOriginally given to one who lived near a mill or who worked in a mill, from Middle English
mille.
Milne ScottishFrom Scots and Middle English
milne (a variant of
mille) meaning
"mill".
Moloney IrishFrom Irish
Ó Maol Dhomhnaigh meaning
"descendant of a church servant".
Mondadori ItalianFrom Italian
mondatore meaning
"weeder". This was an occupational name for someone who kept fields clear of weeds.
Monk EnglishNickname or occupational name for a person who worked for monks. This word is derived from Latin
monachus, from Greek
μοναχός (monachos) meaning "alone".
Montero SpanishMeans
"hunter" in Spanish, an agent derivative of
monte meaning "mountain, wilderness".
Moździerz PolishMeans
"mortar" in Polish. It probably referred to someone who worked with or sold mortar.
Müller GermanGerman equivalent of
Miller, derived from Middle High German
mülnære or
müller.
Muraro ItalianOccupational name for a wall builder, from Italian
murare meaning
"to wall up".
Murgia SardinianMeans
"brine" in Sardinian, perhaps a nickname for someone who pickled foods.
Mussolini ItalianFrom Italian
mussolina meaning
"muslin", a type of cloth, itself derived from the city of Mosul in Iraq. This name was borne by the Italian dictator Benito Mussolini (1883-1945).
Mutton EnglishReferred to a shepherd or else someone who in some way resembled a sheep, derived from Norman French
mouton "sheep".
Myer EnglishFrom Old French
mire meaning
"doctor", derived from Latin
medicus.
Nagel German, DutchMeans
"nail" in German and Dutch, an occupational name for a carpenter or nailsmith.
Necchi ItalianPossibly from Italian
neccio, a type of flat bread.
Nervetti ItalianPossibly a nickname for an innkeeper, from archaic Milanese
nervètt, a local meal prepared from a calf.
Nicchi ItalianFrom the Italian word
nicchio meaning
"shell", possibly a nickname for people related to the sea.
Norris 2 EnglishMeans
"wet nurse, foster mother" from Old French
norrice, from Latin
nutricius.
Notaro ItalianOccupational name for a clerk, derived from Latin
notarius.
Offermans DutchFrom Dutch
offer meaning
"offering, donation", referring to a person who collected money in a church.
Oliveira PortugueseMeans
"olive tree" in Portuguese, ultimately from Latin
oliva. It indicated a person who lived near or worked with olive trees.
Ó Máille IrishMeans
"descendant of a nobleman" from the Irish Gaelic
mál.
Page English, FrenchOccupational name meaning
"servant, page". It is ultimately derived (via Old French and Italian) from Greek
παιδίον (paidion) meaning "little boy".
Palladino ItalianFrom Italian
paladino meaning
"knight, defender", from Late Latin
palatinus meaning "palace officer".
Palmer EnglishMeans
"pilgrim", ultimately from Latin
palma "palm tree", since pilgrims to the Holy Land often brought back palm fronds as proof of their journey.