American Surnames

Aaron Jewish, English
From the given name Aaron.

Abbey English
Indicated a person who lived near an abbey or worked in an abbey, from Middle English abbeye.

Abbott English
English cognate of Abate.

Abel 1 English, French, Danish, Spanish, Portuguese
Derived from the given name Abel.

Abney English
From the name of a town in Derbyshire, derived from Old English meaning "Abba's island".

Abraham Jewish, English, German, French, Spanish, Dutch
Derived from the given name Abraham.

Abrahams Jewish, English, Dutch
Means "son of Abraham".

Abrahamson Jewish, English
Means "son of Abraham".

Abram English
Derived from the given name Abraham.

Abrams Jewish, English
Means "son of Abraham".

Abramson English
Means "son of Abraham".

Acker German, English
Denoted a person who lived near a field, derived from Middle English aker or Middle High German acker meaning "field".

Ackerman English
Means "ploughman", derived from Middle English aker "field" and man.

Adair English
Derived from the given name Edgar.

Adam um English, French, German, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Romanian, Jewish
Derived from the given name Adam.

Adams English, Jewish
Derived from the given name Adam.

Adamson English
Means "son of Adam".

Adcock English
Derived from a diminutive of the given name Adam.

Addison English
Means "son of Addy 2".

Adkins English
Variant of Atkins.

Aiken English
From the medieval given name Atkin, a diminutive of Adam.

Ainsworth English
Habitational name for a person from the village of Ainsworth near Manchester, itself from the Old English given name Ægen and worþ meaning "enclosure".

Aitken Scottish, English
Derived from the medieval given name Atkin, a diminutive of Adam.

Akerman English
Variant of Ackerman.

Akers English
Variant of Acker.

Alan English, Scottish
Derived from the given name Alan.

Albert English, French, Catalan, Hungarian, Romanian, German
Derived from the given name Albert.

Alberts English, Dutch
Means "son of Albert".

Albertson English
Means "son of Albert".

Albinson English
Means "son of Albin".

Alden English
Derived from the Old English given name Ealdwine.

Alexander English
Derived from the given name Alexander.

Alfredson English
Means "son of Alfred".

Alger English
From the given name Algar.

Allan English, Scottish
Derived from the given name Alan.

Allard French, English
Derived from the given name Adalhard (or the Old English cognate Æðelræd).

Allen English, Scottish
Derived from the given name Alan.

Allison English
Means "son of Alan" or "son of Alexander" (as well as other given names beginning with Al).

Allsopp English
From the name of the village of Alsop en la Dale in Derbyshire, England. It means "Ælli's valley" in Old English.

Alvey English
Derived from the given name Ælfwig.

Alvin English
Variant of Elwyn.

Anderson English
Means "son of Andrew".

Andrews English
Means "son of Andrew".

Andrewson English
Variant of Anderson.

Ansel English
Derived from the given name Anselm.

Anson English
Means "son of Agnes".

Anthony English
From the given name Anthony.

Anthonyson English (Rare)
Means "son of Anthony".

Appleby English
From the name of various English towns, derived from Old English æppel "apple" and Old Norse býr "farm, settlement".

Appleton English
From the name of several English towns, meaning "orchard" in Old English (a compound of æppel "apple" and tun "enclosure, yard").

Apted English
Probably from an unidentified place name meaning "up tower" in Old English.

Archer English
Occupational name for one who practiced archery, from Latin arcus "bow" (via Old French).

Arkwright English
Occupational name meaning "chest maker", from Middle English arc meaning "chest, coffer" and wyrhta meaning "maker, craftsman".

Armistead English
Means "hermitage", indicating a person who lived near one, from Middle English ermite "hermit" and stede "place".

Armstrong English
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.

Arnold English, German
Derived from the given name Arnold.

Arrington English
From the name of a town in Cambridgeshire, originally meaning "Earna's settlement" in Old English (Earna being a person's nickname meaning "eagle").

Arterberry English
Variant of Atteberry.

Arterbury English
Variant of Atteberry.

Arthur English, French
From the given name Arthur.

Arthurson English
Means "son of Arthur".

Ash English
From Old English æsc meaning "ash tree", indicating a person who lived near ash trees.

Ashley English
Denoted a person hailing from one of the many places in England that bear this name. The place name itself is derived from Old English æsc "ash tree" and leah "woodland, clearing".

Ashton English
Denoted a person from one of the towns in England that bear this name, itself derived from Old English æsc "ash tree" and tun "enclosure, yard, town".

Ashworth English
From an English place name meaning "ash enclosure" in Old English.

Aston 1 English
From a place name meaning "east town" in Old English.

Aston 2 English
From the Old English given name Æðelstan.

Atkins English
Means "son of Atkin", a medieval diminutive of Adam.

Atkinson English
Means "son of Atkin", a medieval diminutive of Adam.

Attaway English
Means "at the way", originally denoting someone who lived close to a road.

Atteberry English
Means "dweller at the fortified town" from Middle English at and burh "fortified place".

Atterberry English
Variant of Atteberry.

Attwater English
Variant of Atwater.

Attwood English
Variant of Atwood.

Atwater English
From Middle English meaning "dweller at the water".

Atwood English
From Middle English meaning "dweller at the wood".

Audley English
From a place name meaning "Ealdgyð's clearing" in Old English.

Augustine English
From the given name Augustine 1.

Austin English
Derived from the given name Austin.

Auteberry English
Variant of Atteberry.

Averill English
From Middle English aueril, Old French avrill meaning "April", perhaps indicating a person who was baptized in that month.

Avery English
Derived from a Norman French form of the given names Alberich or Alfred.

Ayers 1 English
From Middle English eir meaning "heir".

Ayers 2 English
Derived from the given name Ealhhere.

Ayers 3 English
Indicated a person from the town of Ayr in Scotland. The town was named for the river that flows through it, itself derived from an Indo-European root meaning "water".

Aylmer English
Derived from the Old English name Æðelmær.

Ayton English
From the name of towns in Berwickshire and North Yorkshire. They are derived from Old English ea "river" or ieg "island" combined with tun "enclosure, yard, town".

Babcock English
Derived from the medieval name Bab, possibly a diminutive of Bartholomew or Barbara.

Backus English
Means "bakery", an occupational name for a baker, from Old English bæchus literally "bake house".

Badcock English
From a diminutive of the medieval given name Bada.

Bagley English
From various English place names, derived from the Old English given name Bacga combined with leah "woodland, clearing".

Bailey English
From Middle English baili meaning "bailiff", which comes via Old French from Latin baiulus "porter".

Bain English
Variant of Baines 2.

Baines 2 English
From a nickname derived from Old English ban "bones", probably for a thin person.

Baker English
Occupational name meaning "baker", derived from Middle English bakere.

Baldwin English
Derived from the given name Baldwin.

Ball English
From Middle English bal, Old English beall meaning "ball". This was either a nickname for a rotund or bald person, or a topographic name for someone who lived near a ball-shaped feature.

Ballard English
Variant of Ball using a pejorative suffix.

Bancroft English
From any of the various places of this name, derived from Old English bean meaning "bean" and croft meaning "small enclosed field".

Banister English
Variant of Bannister.

Banks English
Originally indicated someone who lived near a hillside or a bank of land.

Banner English
Occupational name for a flag carrier, derived from Old French baniere meaning "banner", ultimately of Germanic origin.

Bannerman English
Variant of Banner.

Bannister English
From Norman French banastre meaning "basket". This was originally a name for a maker of baskets.

Barber English, Scottish
Indicated a barber, one who cut hair for a living.

Barclay English, Scottish
From the English place name Berkeley, derived from Old English beorc "birch" and leah "woodland, clearing". The surname was imported to Scotland in the 12th century.

Bardsley English
From the name a village near Manchester, from the Old English given name Beornræd and leah "woodland, clearing".

Barker English
From Middle English bark meaning "to tan". This was an occupational name for a leather tanner.

Barlow English
Derived from a number of English place names that variously mean "barley hill", "barn hill", "boar clearing" or "barley clearing".

Barnes English
Denoted a person who worked or lived in a barn. The word barn is derived from Old English bere "barley" and ærn "dwelling".

Barnet English
Variant of Barnett.

Barnett English
Derived from Old English bærnet meaning "place cleared by burning".

Baron English, French
From the title of nobility, derived from Latin baro (genitive baronis) meaning "man, freeman", possibly from Frankish barō meaning "servant, man, warrior". It was used as a nickname for someone who worked for a baron or acted like a baron.

Barr English
Indicated a person who lived near a barrier, from Old French barre.

Barret English
Variant of Barrett.

Barrett English
Probably derived from the Middle English word barat meaning "trouble, deception", originally given to a quarrelsome person.

Barton English
From a place name meaning "barley town" in Old English.

Bartram English
From the given name Bertram.

Bass English
English cognate of Basso.

Bates English
Means "son of Bate".

Bateson English
Means "son of Bate".

Battle English
From a nickname for a combative person. In some cases it may come from the name of English places called Battle, so named because they were sites of battles.

Batts English
Means "son of Bate".

Baxter English
Variant (in origin a feminine form) of Baker.

Beake English
Variant of Beck 3.

Bean English
English cognate of Bohn.

Beasley English
From the name of a place in Lancashire, from Old English beos "bent grass" and leah "woodland, clearing".

Beaumont French, English
From French place names derived from beau "beautiful" and mont "mountain".

Beck 1 English, German, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian
From Middle English bekke (from Old Norse), Low German beke or Old Norse bekkr all meaning "stream".

Beck 3 English
From a nickname for a person with a big nose, from Middle English bec meaning "beak".

Beck 4 English
From Old English becca meaning "pickaxe", an occupational surname.

Becket English
Variant of Beckett.

Beckett English
Originally a diminutive of Beck 1 or Beck 3.

Beckham English
From an English place name meaning "Becca's homestead" in Old English (with Becca being a masculine byname meaning "pickaxe"). A famous bearer is retired English soccer player David Beckham (1975-).

Beech 1 English
English cognate of Bach 1.

Beech 2 English
Originally a name for a person who lived near a beech tree, from Old English bece.

Belanger English
From the given name Berengar.

Belcher English
From a Middle English version of Old French bel chiere meaning "beautiful face". It later came to refer to a person who had a cheerful and pleasant temperament.

Bell 1 English
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.

Bell 2 English
Derived from the given name Bel, a medieval short form of Isabel.

Bellamy French, English
From Old French bel ami meaning "beautiful friend".

Belmont French, English
French and English form of Belmonte.

Benbow English
From a nickname "bend the bow" given to an archer.

Benjaminson English
Means "son of Benjamin".

Benn English
From a short form of Benedict.

Bennet English
Derived from the medieval English given name Bennett.

Bennett English
Derived from the medieval English given name Bennett.

Bennington English
From the English town name Benington, which can mean either "settlement belonging to Beonna's people" or "settlement by the River Beane".

Benson English
Means "son of Benedict".

Bentley English
From a place name derived from Old English beonet "bent grass" and leah "woodland, clearing". Various towns in England bear this name.

Benton English
Denoted someone who came from Benton, England, which is derived from Old English beonet "bent grass" and tun "enclosure".

Beringer German, English
From the given name Berengar.

Bernard um French, English, Dutch, German, Czech, Slovene
From the given name Bernard.

Berry English
Derived from a place name, which was derived from Old English burh "fortification".

Best 1 English
Derived from Middle English beste meaning "beast", an occupational name for a keeper of animals or a nickname for someone who acted like a beast. A famous bearer of this surname was soccer legend George Best (1946-2005).

Beverley English
From the name of an English city, derived from Old English beofor "beaver" and (possibly) licc "stream".

Beverly English
Variant of Beverley.

Bird English
Occupational name for a person who raised or hunted birds.

Bishop English
Means simply "bishop", ultimately from Greek ἐπίσκοπος (episkopos) meaning "overseer". It probably originally referred to a person who served a bishop.

Bisset English
From Old French bis meaning "drab, dingy", a nickname for someone who looked drab.

Bissette English
Variant of Bisset.

Black English
Means either "black" (from Old English blæc) or "pale" (from Old English blac). It could refer to a person with a pale or a dark complexion, or a person who worked with black dye.

Blackbourne English
Variant of Blackburn.

Blackburn English
From the name of a city in Lancashire, meaning "black stream" in Old English.

Blackman English
From a nickname, a variant of Black.

Blackwood English, Scottish
From an English place name meaning "black wood".

Blake English
Variant of Black. A famous bearer was the poet and artist William Blake (1757-1827).

Blakeley English
From name of various English places, derived from Old English blæc "black" and leah "woodland, clearing".

Blakely English
Variant of Blakeley.

Blakeslee English
Variant of Blakesley.

Blakesley English
From the name of a town in Northamptonshire, itself meaning "Blæcwulf's meadow" in Old English. Blæcwulf is a byname meaning "black wolf".

Blanchard French, English
Derived from the given name Blanchard.

Bloodworth English
Originally indicated someone from the town of Blidworth in Nottinghamshire, which was derived from the Old English byname Blīþa (meaning "happy, blithe") combined with worð "enclosure".

Bloxam English
Variant of Bloxham.

Bloxham English
From a place name meaning "Blocca's homestead". The Old English byname Blocca is of uncertain origin.

Blue English
From a nickname for a person with blue eyes or blue clothing.

Blythe English
From Old English meaning "happy, joyous, blithe".

Boatwright English
Occupational name meaning "maker of boats".

Bolton English
From any of the many places in England called Bolton, derived from Old English bold "house" and tun "enclosure".

Bond English
Occupational name for a peasant farmer, from Middle English bonde. A famous bearer is the fictional spy James Bond, created by Ian Flemming in 1953.

Bone 1 English
Derived from Old French bon meaning "good".

Bone 2 English
Variant of Baines 2.

Bonham English
English form of Bonhomme.

Bonner English
From Middle English boneire "kind, courteous", derived from Norman French bon aire "good bloodline".

Bonney English
From northern Middle English boni meaning "pretty, attractive".

Boon 1 English
Variant of Bone 1.

Boon 2 English
Originally indicated a person from the town of Bohon, in Manche in France. The town's name is of unknown origin.

Boone English
Variant of Boon 1 or Boon 2.

Booth English
Topographic name derived from Middle English both meaning "hut, stall".

Boothman English
Variant of Booth.

Botterill English
Probably indicated someone from the town of Les Bottereaux in Normandy, itself derived from Old French bot "toad".

Botwright English
Variant of Boatwright.

Bourke English
Variant of Burke.

Bourne English
Derived from Old English burna "stream, spring".

Bower English
From Old English bur meaning "dwelling, room".

Bowers English
Variant of Bower.

Bowman English
Occupational name for an archer, derived from Middle English bowe, Old English boga meaning "bow".

Boyce English
From Old French bois meaning "wood", originally given to someone who lived by or in a wood.

Braddock English
From various locations derived from Old English meaning "broad oak".

Bradford English
Derived from the name of the city of Bradford in West Yorkshire, which meant "broad ford" in Old English. This is also the name of other smaller towns in England.

Bradley English
From a common English place name, derived from brad "broad" and leah "woodland, clearing".

Bradshaw English
From any of the places by this name in England, derived from Old English brad "broad" and sceaga "thicket".

Brand 1 German, Dutch, English
Derived from the Old German given name Brando or its Old Norse cognate Brandr.

Brandon English
From the name of various places in England meaning "hill covered with broom" in Old English.

Branson English
Means "son of Brandr".

Brant German, English
Variant of Brand 1 and Brand 2.

Brasher English
Means "brass worker", derived from Old English bræs "brass".

Brassington English
From a place name, which is derived from Old English meaning "settlement by a steep path".

Braxton English
From an English place name place name meaning "Bracca's town" in Old English.

Bray English
From a place name derived from Cornish bre "hill".

Breckenridge Scottish, English
Originally indicated someone from Brackenrig in Lanarkshire, derived from northern Middle English braken meaning "bracken" (via Old Norse brækni) and rigg meaning "ridge" (via Old Norse hryggr).

Breckinridge Scottish, English
Variant of Breckenridge.

Brent English
Originally derived from the name of a hill (or the village nearby) in Somerset, perhaps derived from a Celtic word meaning "hill".

Brett English
Originally a name given to someone who was a Breton or a person from Brittany.

Brewer English
Occupational name for a maker of ale or beer.

Brewster English
Variant of Brewer, originally a feminine form of the occupational term.

Brice English
From the given name Brice.

Bridges English
Originally denoted a person who lived near a bridge, or who worked as a bridgekeeper, derived from Middle English brigge, Old English brycg.

Brierley English
From an English place name, derived from brer "briar" and leah "woodland, clearing".

Briggs English
Variant of Bridges.

Brigham English
Originally referred to one who came from a town called Brigham, meaning "homestead by the bridge" in Old English. This is the name of towns in Cumberland and Yorkshire.

Briley English
Possibly a variant of Brierley.

Brinley English
Possibly from English places named Brindley, derived from Old English berned "burned" and leah "woodland, clearing".

Bristol English
From the name of a city in England meaning "the site of the bridge".

Bristow English
From the name of the city of Bristol, originally Brycgstow in Old English, meaning "the site of the bridge".

Brittain English
Variant of Britton.

Britton English
Originally given to a person who was a Briton (a Celt of England) or a Breton (an inhabitant of Brittany).

Broadbent English
From a place name derived from Old English brad "broad" and beonet "bent grass".

Brock English
Derived from Old English brocc meaning "badger", ultimately of Celtic origin.

Bronson English
Patronymic form of Brown.

Brook English
Denoted a person who lived near a brook, a word derived from Old English broc.

Brooke English
Variant of Brook.

Brooks English
Variant of Brook.

Brown English
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.

Browne English
Variant of Brown.

Brownlow English
From Old English brun meaning "brown" and hlaw meaning "mound, small hill". The name was probably given to a family living on a small hill covered with bracken.

Bryan English
From the given name Brian.

Bryant English
From the given name Brian.

Bryce English
From the given name Brice.

Bryson English
Means "son of Brice".

Buckley 1 English
From an English place name derived from bucc "buck, male deer" and leah "woodland, clearing".

Bull English
From a nickname for a person who acted like a bull.

Bullard English
Possibly a nickname derived from Middle English bole "fraud, deceit".

Bullock English
From a nickname meaning "young bull".

Bunker English
Derived from Old French bon cuer meaning "good heart".

Burgess English
From Middle English and Old French burgeis meaning "city-dweller", ultimately from Frankish burg "fortress".

Burke English, Irish
Derived from Middle English burgh meaning "fortress, fortification, castle". It was brought to Ireland in the 12th century by the Norman invader William de Burgh.

Burnett English
Means "brown" in Middle English, from Old French brunet, a diminutive of brun.

Burnham English
From the name of various towns in England, typically derived from Old English burna "stream, spring" and ham "home, settlement".

Burns 1 English, Scottish
Derived from Old English burna "stream, spring". A famous bearer was the Scottish poet Robert Burns (1759-1796).

Burrell English
English form of Bureau.

Burroughs English
Variant of Burrows.

Burrows English
Topographic name derived from Old English beorg meaning "hill, mountain" or burg meaning "fort". Alternatively, it could come from a compound of bur "room, cottage, dwelling" and hus "house".

Burton English
From a common English place name, derived from Old English meaning "fortified town".

Bush English
Originally a name for a person who lived near a prominent bush or thicket.

Butcher English
Occupational name for a butcher, derived from Old French bouchier.

Butler English, Irish
Occupational name derived from Norman French butiller "wine steward", ultimately from Late Latin butticula "bottle". A famous bearer of this surname is the fictional character Rhett Butler, created by Margaret Mitchell for her novel Gone with the Wind (1936).

Butts English
From a nickname meaning "thick, stumpy", from Middle English butt.

Byrd English
Variant of Bird.

Caldwell English
From various English place names derived from Old English ceald "cold" and wille "spring, stream, well".

Cannon English
From the ecclesiastical usage of canon, referring to a church official or servant who worked in a clergy house.

Cantrell English
Originally a name for someone from Cantrell in Devon, from an unknown first element and Old English hyll meaning "hill".

Carl English, German
From the given name Carl.

Carlisle English
From the name of a city in northern England. The city was originally called by the Romans Luguvalium meaning "stronghold of Lugus". Later the Brythonic element ker "fort" was appended to the name of the city.

Carlyle English
Variant of Carlisle.

Carman 1 English
Occupational name for a carter, from Middle English carre "cart" (of Latin origin) and man "man".

Carman 2 English
From an Old Norse byname derived from karlmann meaning "male, man".

Carpenter English
From the occupation, derived from Middle English carpentier (ultimately from Latin carpentarius meaning "carriage maker").

Carr 1 Scottish, English
Variant of Kerr.

Carter English
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-).

Cartwright English
Occupational name indicating one who made carts.

Carver English
Occupational surname for a carver, from Middle English kerve "cut".

Case English
From Norman French casse meaning "box, case", ultimately from Latin capsa. This was an occupational name for a box maker.

Cash English
Variant of Case.

Cason English
From the English place name Cawston, derived from the Old Norse given name Kálfr combined with Old English tun meaning "enclosure, yard, town".

Castle English
From Middle English castel meaning "castle", from Late Latin castellum, originally indicating a person who lived near a castle.

Caulfield English
From a place name meaning "cold field", from Old English ceald "cold" and feld "pasture, field".

Causer English
Occupational name for one who made leggings, derived from Old French chausse "leggings".

Causey English
Indicated a person who lived near a causeway, from Old French caucie.

Chadwick English
From the name of English towns meaning "settlement belonging to Chad" in Old English.

Chamberlain English
Occupational name for one who looked after the inner rooms of a mansion, from Norman French chambrelain.

Chambers English
From Old French chambre meaning "chamber, room", an occupational name for a person who worked in the inner rooms of a mansion.

Chance English
From a nickname for a lucky person or a gambler.

Chancellor English
Occupational name for an administrator, a chancellor, from Norman French chancelier.

Chandler English
Occupational name meaning "candle seller" or "candle maker" in Middle English, ultimately derived from Latin candela via Old French.

Chaplin English, French
Occupational name for a chaplain, or perhaps for the servant of one, from Middle English, Old French chapelain. A famous bearer was the British comic actor Charlie Chaplin (1889-1977).

Chapman English
Occupational name derived from Old English ceapmann meaning "merchant, trader".

Chase English
Occupational name for a hunter, from Middle English chase "hunt".

Cheshire English
Originally indicated a person from the county of Cheshire in England. Cheshire is named for its city Chester.

Chester English
From the name of a city in England, derived from Latin castrum "camp, fortress".

Christian English, French, German
Derived from the given name Christian.

Christians English
Derived from the given name Christian.

Christianson English
Means "son of Christian".

Christinsen English
Means "son of Christian".

Christison English
Means "son of Christian".

Christopher English
Derived from the given name Christopher.

Christophers English
Derived from the given name Christopher.

Christopherson English
Means "son of Christopher".

Church English
From the English word, derived from Old English cirice, ultimately from Greek κυριακόν (kyriakon) meaning "(house) of the lord". It probably referred to a person who lived close to a church.

Churchill English
From an English place name meaning "church hill". A famous bearer was Winston Churchill (1874-1965), the British prime minister during World War II.