ArmstrongEnglish Means "strong arm" from Middle English. Tradition holds that the family is descended from Siward, an 11th-century Earl of Northumbria. Famous bearers of this name include the Americans Louis Armstrong (1901-1971), a jazz musician, and Neil Armstrong (1930-2012), an astronaut who was the first person to walk on the moon.
BaileyEnglish From Middle English baili meaning "bailiff", which comes via Old French from Latin baiulus "porter".
BakerEnglish Occupational name meaning "baker", derived from Middle English bakere.
BanksEnglish Originally indicated someone who lived near a hillside or a bank of land.
BarkerEnglish From Middle English bark meaning "to tan". This was an occupational name for a leather tanner.
Bell 1English From Middle English belle meaning "bell". It originated as a nickname for a person who lived near the town bell, or who had a job as a bell-ringer.
BrownEnglish Originally a nickname for a person who had brown hair or skin. A notable bearer is Charlie Brown from the Peanuts comic strip by Charles Schulz.
BurtonEnglish From a common English place name, derived from Old English meaning "fortified town".
CarterEnglish Occupational name for a person who operated a cart to transport goods, from Norman French caretier. A famous bearer is the former American president Jimmy Carter (1924-).
ClayEnglish Means simply "clay", originally referring to a person who lived near or worked with of clay.
EarlEnglish From the aristocratic title, which derives from Old English eorl meaning "nobleman, warrior". It was either a nickname for one who acted like an earl, or an occupational name for a person employed by an earl.
FletcherEnglish Occupational name for a fletcher, someone who attached feathers to the shaft of an arrow. It is derived from Old French fleche meaning "arrow".
FranklinEnglish Derived from Middle English frankelin meaning "freeman". It denoted a landowner of free but not noble birth, from Old French franc meaning "free". Famous bearers include American statesman Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) and American singer Aretha Franklin (1942-2018).
GarlandEnglish Means "triangle land" from Old English gara and land. It originally belonged to a person who owned a triangle-shaped piece of land.
Garner 1English 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.
GrantEnglish, Scottish Derived from Norman French meaning "grand, tall, large, great". A famous bearer was the American general and president Ulysses S. Grant (1822-1885).
HunterEnglish, Scottish Occupational name that referred to someone who hunted for a living, from Old English hunta.
JacksonEnglish Means "son of Jack". Famous bearers of this name include the American president Andrew Jackson (1767-1845) and the singer Michael Jackson (1958-2009).
JeffersonEnglish Means "son of Jeffrey". A famous bearer was American president Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826). Since his surname was sometimes adopted by freed slaves, it is now more common among the African-American population.
JohnsonEnglish Means "son of John". Famous bearers include American presidents Andrew Johnson (1808-1875) and Lyndon B. Johnson (1908-1973).
KingEnglish From Old English cyning"king", originally a nickname for someone who either acted in a kingly manner or who worked for or was otherwise associated with a king. A famous bearer was the American civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. (1929-1968).
RooseveltDutch Means "rose field" from Dutch roos "rose" and veld "field". This was the surname of American presidents Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919) and Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882-1945).
SmithEnglish Means "metalworker, blacksmith" from Old English smiþ, related to smitan "to smite, to hit". It is the most common surname in most of the English-speaking world. A famous bearer was the Scottish economist Adam Smith (1723-1790).
StaffordEnglish From the name of the English city of Stafford, Staffordshire, derived from Old English stæð meaning "wharf, landing place" and ford meaning "ford, river crossing".
TaylorEnglish Derived from Old French tailleur meaning "tailor", ultimately from Latin taliare "to cut".
ThorntonEnglish From any of the various places in England by this name, meaning "thorn town" in Old English.
TuckerEnglish Occupational name for a fuller of cloth, derived from Old English tucian meaning "offend, torment". A fuller was a person who cleaned and thickened raw cloth by pounding it.
VaughanWelsh From Welsh bychan (mutated to fychan) meaning "little". It was a descriptive name to distinguish father from son.
WallaceScottish, English, Irish Means "foreigner, stranger, Celt" from Norman French waleis (of Germanic origin). It was often used to denote native Welsh and Bretons. A famous bearer was the 13th-century Scottish hero William Wallace.
Waters 1English Originally given to a person who lived near the water.
WellsEnglish Derived from Middle English wille meaning "well, spring, water hole".
WheelerEnglish Occupational name for a maker of wagon wheels, derived from Middle English whele"wheel".
WhiteEnglish Originally a nickname for a person who had white hair or a pale complexion, from Old English hwit"white".
WilsonEnglish Means "son of Will". A famous bearer was the American president Woodrow Wilson (1856-1924).
WinterEnglish, German, Swedish From Old English winter or Old High German wintar meaning "winter". This was a nickname for a person with a cold personality.
WitherspoonEnglish Originally given to a person who dwelt near a sheep enclosure, from Middle English wether "sheep" and spong "strip of land".
YoungEnglish Derived from Old English geong meaning "young". This was a descriptive name to distinguish father from son.
ZappaItalian From Italian zappa meaning "hoe, mattock", probably denoting a farmer. Two musicians of Italian origin have bore this name: Francesco Zappa (1717-1803) and Frank Zappa (1940-1993).