This is a list of surnames in which the categories include history.
Bach 1German Topographic name for someone who lived by a stream, from Middle High German bach meaning "stream". This name was borne by members of the Bach musical family, notably the composer Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750).
CastroSpanish, Portuguese Means "castle" in Spanish and Portuguese, referring to one who lived near a castle. A famous bearer was Fidel Castro (1926-2016), revolutionary and president of Cuba.
DarwinEnglish From the given name Deorwine. A famous bearer was the British naturalist Charles Darwin (1809-1882).
DickensEnglish From the medieval given name Dicun, a medieval diminutive of Dick 1. A famous bearer of this surname was the British author Charles Dickens (1812-1870).
EdisonEnglish Means "son of Eda 2" or "son of Adam". The surname was borne by American inventor Thomas Alva Edison (1847-1931).
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).
FreudGerman, Jewish Means "joy" in German, a nickname for a cheerful person. A famous bearer was the psychologist Sigmund Freud (1856-1939).
FryEnglish From Old English frig (a variant of freo) meaning "free".
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).
HamiltonEnglish, 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).
HitlerGerman 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.
KhanUrdu, Pashto, Bengali From a title meaning "king, ruler", probably of Mongolian origin but used in many languages.
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).
LincolnEnglish Originally indicated that the bearer was from the English city of Lincoln, called Lindum Colonia by the Romans, derived from Brythonic lindo "lake, pool" and Latin colonia "colony". A famous bearer was Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865), president of the United States during the American Civil War.
LutherGerman From the old given name Leuthar. It was notably borne by the religious reformer Martin Luther (1483-1546).
NewtonEnglish From the name of one of many English towns meaning "new town". A famous bearer was the English physicist Isaac Newton (1643-1727).
RasputinmRussian From Russian распутье (rasputye) meaning "crossroads". A famous bearer was the Russian mystic Grigoriy Rasputin (1869-1916).
ReaganIrish Anglicized form of Irish Ó Riagáin meaning "descendant of Riagán". A famous bearer was the American president Ronald Reagan (1911-2004).
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).
ShakespeareEnglish From a nickname for a warlike person, from Old English scacan "to shake" and spere "spear". A famous bearer was the English dramatist and poet William Shakespeare (1564-1616).
WashingtonEnglish From a place name meaning "settlement belonging to Wassa's people", from the given name Wassa and Old English tun meaning "enclosure, yard, town". A famous bearer was George Washington (1732-1799), the first president of the United States. This surname was sometimes adopted by freed slaves, resulting in a high proportion of African-American bearers.