Gold English, German, JewishFrom Old English and Old High German
gold meaning
"gold", an occupational name for someone who worked with gold or a nickname for someone with yellow hair. As a Jewish name it is ornamental.
Gorman 2 IrishFrom the Irish
Ó Gormáin meaning
"descendant of Gormán". The given name
Gormán means "little blue one".
Górski m PolishFrom the Polish word
góra meaning
"mountain".
Grant English, ScottishDerived from Norman French meaning
"grand, tall, large, great". A famous bearer was the American general and president Ulysses S. Grant (1822-1885).
Graves EnglishOccupational name for a steward, derived from Middle English
greyve, related to the German title
Graf.
Gray EnglishFrom a nickname for a person who had grey hair or grey clothes.
Grayson EnglishMeans
"son of the steward", derived from Middle English
greyve "steward".
Groß GermanFrom Old High German
groz meaning
"tall, big".
Groves EnglishFrom Old English
graf meaning
"grove". This originally indicated a person who lived near a grove (a group of trees).
Guzmán SpanishFrom 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".
Haden EnglishFrom a place name derived from Old English
hæþ "heath" and
dun "hill".
Hájek m CzechMeans
"thicket" in Czech, a diminutive of
háj "woods".
Hale EnglishDerived from Old English
halh meaning
"nook, recess, hollow".
Haley EnglishFrom the name of an English town meaning "hay clearing", from Old English
heg "hay" and
leah "woodland, clearing".
Hamilton English, ScottishFrom 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).
Hampton EnglishFrom 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, KoreanFrom Chinese
韩 (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.
Harden EnglishFrom a place name meaning "hare valley" in Old English.
Harding EnglishDerived from the given name
Heard. A famous bearer was American president Warren G. Harding (1865-1923).
Hardy English, FrenchFrom Old French and Middle English
hardi meaning
"bold, daring, hardy", from the Germanic root *
harduz.
Harley EnglishDerived from a place name meaning "hare clearing", from Old English
hara "hare" or
hær "rock, heap of stones" and
leah "woodland, clearing".
Hart EnglishMeans
"male deer". It was originally acquired by a person who lived in a place frequented by harts, or bore some resemblance to a hart.
Hase GermanFrom Middle High German and Middle Low German
hase meaning
"hare, rabbit". This was a nickname for a person who was quick or timid.
Hawking EnglishFrom a diminutive of
Hawk. A famous bearer was the British physicist Stephen Hawking (1942-2018).
Hayden 1 EnglishFrom place names meaning either
"hay valley" or
"hay hill", derived from Old English
heg "hay" and
denu "valley" or
dun "hill".
Hayes 1 EnglishFrom 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).
He ChineseFrom Chinese
何 (hé), 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 EnglishFrom 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.
Hendrix DutchDerived from the given name
Hendrik. A famous bearer was the American rock musician Jimi Hendrix (1942-1970).
Hepburn English, ScottishFrom 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).
Herzog GermanFrom a German title meaning
"duke", a nickname for a person who either acted like a duke or worked in a duke's household.
Hickey IrishAnglicized form of Irish
Ó hÍcidhe meaning
"descendant of the healer".
Hidalgo SpanishMeans
"nobleman" in Spanish. The Spanish word is a contraction of the phrase
hijo de algo meaning "son of something". This surname was typically in origin a nickname or an occupational name for one who worked in a noble's household.
Hilton EnglishFrom 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.
Hines IrishAnglicized form of Irish
Ó hEidhin meaning
"descendant of Eidhin", a given name or byname of unknown origin.
Hirano JapaneseFrom Japanese
平 (hira) meaning "level, even, peaceful" and
野 (no) meaning "field, wilderness".
Hofer GermanOccupational name for a farmer, from German
Hof "farm", from Old High German
hof "yard, court".
Hogan IrishFrom Irish
Ó hÓgáin meaning
"descendant of Ógán". The given name
Ógán is a diminutive of
óg meaning "young".
Holmes English, ScottishVariant of
Holme. A famous fictional bearer was Sherlock Holmes, a detective in Arthur Conan Doyle's mystery stories beginning in 1887.
Holmgren SwedishOrnamental name derived from Swedish
holme (Old Norse
holmr) meaning "small island" and
gren (Old Norse
grein) meaning "branch".
Holst Danish, Low German, DutchOriginally 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).
Horn English, German, Norwegian, DanishFrom 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.
House EnglishReferred to a person who lived or worked in a house, as opposed to a smaller hut.
Hu ChineseFrom Chinese
胡 (hú) meaning
"beard, whiskers, recklessly, wildly, barbarian".
Huber GermanOccupational name for a farmer, derived from Old High German
huoba "plot of land, farm".
Huerta SpanishMeans
"garden, orchard" in Spanish, ultimately from Latin
hortus.
Hunter English, ScottishOccupational name that referred to someone who hunted for a living, from Old English
hunta.
Hyland 1 EnglishTopographic name meaning
"high land", from Old English
heah and
land.
Ibsen DanishMeans
"son of Ib". A famous bearer was the Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen (1828-1906).
Im KoreanFrom Sino-Korean
林 (im) meaning
"forest", making it the Korean form of
Lin, or
任 (im) of uncertain meaning, making it the Korean form of
Ren.
Ingham EnglishFrom the name of an English town, of Old English origin meaning "
Inga's homestead".
Inoue JapaneseMeans
"above the well", from Japanese
井 (i) meaning "well, mine shaft, pit", an unwritten possessive marker
の (no), and
上 (ue) meaning "above, top, upper".
Jackson EnglishMeans
"son of Jack". Famous bearers of this name include the American president Andrew Jackson (1767-1845) and the singer Michael Jackson (1958-2009).
Jäger GermanMeans
"hunter" in German, from Old High German
jagon meaning "to hunt".
John EnglishDerived from the given name
John. A famous bearer is British musician Elton John (1947-), born Reginald Dwight.
Jordan 2 JewishDerived from the name of the Jordan river, which is from Hebrew
יָרַד (yaraḏ) meaning "descend" or "flow down".
Kaiser GermanFrom Middle High German
keiser meaning
"emperor", originally a nickname applied to someone who acted kingly. The title ultimately derives from the Roman name
Caesar.
Keaton EnglishFrom any of three English place names: Ketton in Rutland, Ketton in Durham or Keaton in Devon. The first is probably derived from an old river name or tribal name combined with Old English
ea "river", with the spelling later influenced by
tun "enclosure, yard, town". The second is from the Old English given name
Catta or the Old Norse given name
Káti combined with Old English
tun. The third is possibly from Cornish
kee "hedge, bank" combined with Old English
tun.
Keith ScottishFrom a place name that is probably derived from the Brythonic element
cet meaning
"wood". This was the surname of a long line of Scottish nobles.
Khan Urdu, Pashto, BengaliFrom a title meaning
"king, ruler", probably of Mongolian origin but used in many languages.
Kim KoreanKorean form of
Jin, from Sino-Korean
金 (gim) meaning
"gold". This is the most common surname in South Korea.
King EnglishFrom 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).
Kingsley EnglishFrom a place name meaning "king's clearing" in Old English.
Klein German, Dutch, JewishMeans
"small, little" from German
klein or Yiddish
kleyn. A famous bearer of this name is clothes designer Calvin Klein (1942-).
Knight EnglishFrom Old English
cniht meaning
"knight", a tenant serving as a mounted soldier.
Knowles EnglishFrom Middle English
knoll, Old English
cnoll meaning
"small hill, knoll". A famous bearer is American singer Beyoncé Knowles (1981-).
Knox ScottishFrom the name of various places in Scotland and northern England, derived from Scottish Gaelic
cnoc "round hill".
Kohl GermanDerived from Middle High German
kol "cabbage".
Kohler GermanFrom Middle High German
koler meaning
"charcoal burner" or
"charcoal seller".
Kranz German, JewishDerived from Old High German
kranz meaning
"wreath", an occupational name for a maker of wreaths or an ornamental Jewish name.
Kraus GermanFrom Middle High German
krus meaning
"curly", originally a nickname for a person with curly hair.
Kučera m Czech, SlovakMeans
"curl" in Czech and Slovak, a nickname for a person with curly locks of hair.
Kumar Hindi, Marathi, Telugu, Kannada, Punjabi, Bengali, Assamese, Gujarati, Odia, Malayalam, TamilMeans
"boy, prince" in Sanskrit.
Laird ScottishMeans
"landowner" in Scots, derived from northern Middle English
laverd "lord", from Old English
hlafweard.
Lamb EnglishFrom the name of the animal, perhaps a nickname for a shy person.
Lamont ScottishFrom the medieval Gaelic given name
Lagmann, derived from Old Norse
lǫgmaðr meaning
"law man".
Lane 1 EnglishOriginally designated one who lived by a lane, a narrow way between fences or hedges, later used of any narrow pathway, including one between houses in a town.
Langford EnglishFrom any of various places in England with this name, derived from Old English
lang "long" and
ford "ford, river crossing".
Lê VietnameseVietnamese form of
Li 2, from Sino-Vietnamese
黎 (lê). This is the third most common surname in Vietnam.
Leach EnglishOriginally indicated a person who was a physician, from the medieval practice of using leeches to bleed people of ills.
Lebrun FrenchFrom a nickname meaning
"the brown" in French, from
brun "brown".
León 1 SpanishReferred to a person from the city of León in northern Spain, derived from Latin
legio (genitive
legionis) meaning
"legion", so named because the Roman 7th Legion Gemina was stationed there.
Lewis 1 EnglishDerived from the given name
Lewis. The author C. S. Lewis (1898-1963) was a bearer of this surname.
Li 1 ChineseFrom Chinese
李 (lǐ) meaning
"plum, plum tree". This was the surname of Chinese emperors of the Tang dynasty.
Liang ChineseFrom Chinese
梁 (liáng) referring to the ancient state of Liang, which existed from the 8th to 7th centuries BC in what is now Shaanxi province.
Liao ChineseFrom Chinese
廖 (liào) referring to the ancient state of Liao, which was located in present-day Henan province.
Liu ChineseFrom Chinese
刘 (liú) meaning
"kill, destroy". This was the surname of Chinese emperors of the Han dynasty.
Logan ScottishFrom a Scottish place name meaning
"little hollow", derived from Gaelic
lag "hollow, pit".
Long EnglishOriginally a nickname for a person who had long limbs or who was tall.
Love EnglishFrom the Old English given name
Lufu meaning "love".
Luna SpanishFrom various places in Spain meaning "moon".
Lynch IrishFrom Irish
Ó Loingsigh meaning
"descendant of Loingseach", a given name meaning "mariner".
Lyne ScottishHabitational name for someone who lived in places of this name in Scotland.
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.
Madison EnglishMeans
"son of Maud". A famous bearer of this surname was the fourth American president James Madison (1751-1836).
Major EnglishFrom the Norman French given name
Mauger, derived from the Germanic name
Malger.
Malone IrishAnglicized form of Irish
Ó Maoil Eoin meaning
"descendant of a disciple of Saint John".
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.
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).
Mason EnglishOccupational name for a stoneworker or layer of bricks, from Old French
masson, of Frankish origin (akin to Old English
macian "to make").
Mathers EnglishOccupational name meaning
"mower, cutter of hay" in Old English.
Mazur PolishIndicated a person from either Mazovia (Polish
Mazowsze) or Masuria (Polish
Mazury), regions in Poland.
McGovern IrishAnglicized form of Irish Gaelic
Mag Shamhradháin meaning
"son of Samhradháin", a given name meaning "summer".
McGuire IrishAnglicized form of Irish
Mag Uidhir meaning
"son of Odhar", a given name meaning "pale-coloured".
McIntyre ScottishFrom Scottish Gaelic
Mac an tSaoir meaning
"son of the carpenter".
McLeod ScottishFrom Gaelic
MacLeòid meaning
"son of Leod", a given name derived from Old Norse
ljótr "ugly".
McRae ScottishFrom Gaelic
Mag Raith meaning
"son of Rath", a given name meaning "prosperity" or "grace".
Meadows EnglishReferred to one who lived in a meadow, from Old English
mædwe.
Mejía SpanishPossibly from a nickname derived from Spanish
Mesías meaning
"Messiah", from Latin
Messias, ultimately from Biblical Hebrew
מָשִׁיחַ (mashiyaḥ) meaning "anointed".
Milburn EnglishDerived from various place names meaning "mill stream" 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".
Monet FrenchDerived from either of the given names
Hamon or
Edmond. A famous bearer was the French impressionist painter Claude Monet (1840-1926).
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".
Montague EnglishFrom a Norman place name meaning "sharp mountain" in Old French.
Morales SpanishDerived from Spanish
moral meaning
"mulberry tree", of Latin origin.
Moser GermanName for someone who lived near a peat bog, from Middle High German
mos.
Muir ScottishScots form of
Moore 1. This name was borne by the Scottish-American naturalist John Muir (1838-1914).
Muñoz SpanishPatronymic derived from the medieval Spanish given name
Muño, from Latin
Munnius, possibly of Germanic origin.
Murphy IrishAnglicized form of Irish
Ó Murchadha meaning
"descendant of Murchadh". This is the most common Irish surname.
Musil m CzechPossibly from a nickname meaning
"the one who had to", from the past participle of the Czech verb
muset meaning "must" (of Germanic origin).
Nagy um Hungarian, SlovakFrom a nickname meaning
"big, great" in Hungarian, referring to one's characteristics. This is the most common Hungarian surname. In Slovakia this spelling is only used for men, with
Nagyová being the feminine form.
Nash EnglishDerived from the Middle English phrase
atten ash "at the ash tree". A famous bearer was the mathematician John Nash (1928-2015).
Neri ItalianFrom Italian
nero "black", indicating a person with a dark complexion or dark hair.
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).