WoźniakPolish From Polish woźny meaning "caretaker, clerk".
WrayEnglish Originally denoted someone who came from any of the various places of this name in northern England, from Old Norse vrá meaning "corner, nook".
Wright 1English From Old English wyrhta meaning "wright, maker", an occupational name for someone who was a craftsman. Famous bearers were Orville and Wilbur Wright, the inventors of the first successful airplane.
Wu 1Chinese From Chinese 吴 (wú) referring to the ancient state of Wu, which was located in present-day Jiangsu province.
XiaoChinese From Chinese 蕭 (xiāo) referring to the fiefdom or territory of Xiao (in present-day Anhui province) that existed during the Zhou dynasty.
XieChinese From Chinese 谢 (xiè) referring to the minor state of Xie, which existed in what is now Hubei province.
Xu 1Chinese From Chinese 徐 (xú) referring to the ancient state of Xu, which existed to the 6th century BC in what is now Jiangsu and Anhui. The character 徐 means "slowly, calmly".
YangChinese From Chinese 杨 (yáng) meaning "willow, poplar, aspen".
YatesEnglish From Old English geat meaning "gate", a name for a gatekeeper or someone who lived near a gate.
YorkEnglish From the name of the English city of York, which was originally called Eburacon (Latinized as Eboracum), meaning "yew" in Brythonic. In the Anglo-Saxon period it was corrupted to Eoforwic, based on Old English eofor "boar" and wic "village". This was rendered as Jórvík by the Vikings and eventually reduced to York.
YoungEnglish Derived from Old English geong meaning "young". This was a descriptive name to distinguish father from son.
Yu 1Chinese From Chinese 于 (yú) meaning "in, on, at". According to legend, King Wu of Zhou bestowed the realm of Yu to his second son, who subsequently adopted this as his surname.
ZengChinese From Chinese 曾 (zēng) referring to the former state of Zeng, which existed during the Zhou dynasty in what is now Hubei province.
ZhangChinese From Chinese 张 (zhāng) meaning "stretch, extend". It may have denoted a bowmaker whose job it was to stretch bow wood.
ZhaoChinese From Chinese 赵 (zhào), which refers to an ancient city-state in what is now Shanxi province. According to legend, King Mu rewarded his chariot driver Zaofu with the city, at which time Zaofu adopted this surname. The later historic state of Zhao, which existed from the 5th to 3rd centuries BC, was named after this city.... [more]
ZhouChinese From Chinese 周 (zhōu) referring to the Zhou dynasty, which held power from 1046 to 771 BC, continuing for a few more centuries as figureheads.
ZhuChinese From Chinese 朱 (zhū) meaning "vermilion red, cinnabar" and also referring to the ancient state of Zhu, which existed in what is now Shandong province. This was the surname of the emperors of the Ming dynasty.