Aaij DutchDerived from the given name
Aaij, a short form of
Adriaan and other names.
Aaldenberg DutchOriginally denoted a person who came from an uncertain place called
Aaldenberg, meaning "old mountain".
Aarden DutchFrom Dutch
aarden meaning
"earthen, clay". It denoted a person who worked with clay.
Aarle DutchDenoted a person who hailed from a place of this name in the Netherlands, or from Arlon in Belgium (which is
Aarlen in Dutch).
Abbey EnglishIndicated a person who lived near an abbey or worked in an abbey, from Middle English
abbeye.
Åberg SwedishFrom Swedish
å meaning "river, stream" and
berg meaning "mountain".
Abney EnglishFrom the name of a town in Derbyshire, derived from Old English meaning "Abba's island".
Abspoel DutchFrom
Abtspoel, the name of an estate near Oegstgeest in South Holland, meaning
"abbot's pool".
Achterberg Dutch, GermanFrom the name of various places in the Netherlands and Germany, for example the village of
achterberg in Utrecht. The place names are derived from Low German
achter "behind" and
berg "mountain, hill".
Achterkamp DutchFrom the name of various places in the Netherlands, derived from Low German
achter "behind" and
kamp "field".
Achthoven DutchDenoted a person from various towns in the Netherlands called Achthoven, which is derived from Dutch
acht "eight" and
hoven "farmsteads".
Acker German, EnglishDenoted a person who lived near a field, derived from Middle English
aker or Middle High German
acker meaning "field".
Ackerman EnglishMeans
"ploughman", derived from Middle English
aker "field" and
man.
Ackermann GermanDenoted a person who lived near a field, from Middle High German
acker "field" and
man "man".
Adenauer GermanDenoted a person from the town of Adenau in Germany. The name of the town is of uncertain etymology.
Adrichem DutchFrom the name of an estate and castle (demolished in 1812) that was formerly in North Holland, the Netherlands. It means "Adrik's home".
Ahlberg SwedishOrnamental name derived from Swedish
al (Old Norse
ǫlr) meaning "alder" and
berg meaning "mountain".
Ahlgren SwedishOrnamental name derived from Swedish
al (Old Norse
ǫlr) meaning "alder" and
gren (Old Norse
grein) meaning "branch".
Ahlström SwedishOrnamental name derived from Swedish
al (Old Norse
ǫlr) meaning "alder" and
ström (Old Norse
straumr) meaning "stream".
Ainsworth EnglishHabitational name for a person from the village of Ainsworth near Manchester, itself from the Old English given name
Ægen and
worþ meaning "enclosure".
Akkersdijk DutchOriginally denoted a person from the town of Akkersdijk, near Delft in the Netherlands. It means "field by the dyke" in Dutch.
Albronda DutchFrom the name of various streets in the Netherlands.
Aldenkamp DutchPossibly from an unknown place name meaning "old field" in Dutch.
Alderliesten DutchFrom Dutch
allerliefste meaning
"most dearest". This name could have referred to the nature of the person or perhaps a phrase the person commonly used.
Allsopp EnglishFrom the name of the village of Alsop en la Dale in Derbyshire, England. It means "Ælli's valley" in Old English.
Almstedt SwedishOrnamental name derived from Swedish
alm (Old Norse
almr) meaning "elm" and
stad (Old Norse
staðr) meaning "town, city".
Altena DutchFrom the name of a town in the Netherlands, possibly meaning "close, near" in Dutch.
Althaus GermanName for a person dwelled in or by an old house, from German
alt "old" and
haus "house".
Amundsen NorwegianMeans
"son of Amund". This name was borne by the Norwegian polar explorer Roald Amundsen (1872-1928).
Angenent DutchReferred to person who lived at the end of the road or the village, derived from Dutch
an gen ent meaning
"at the end".
Anholts DutchOriginally denoted a person from Anholt in the Netherlands, which means "hold, rest" in Dutch (a place where people could rest for the night).
Annevelink DutchFrom Dutch
aan 't veldink meaning
"next to the little field".
Apeldoorn DutchFrom the name of a city in the Netherlands, meaning "apple tree" in Dutch.
Appelhof DutchIndicated a person who lived by or at an apple garden, from Dutch
appel "apple" and
hof "yard, court".
Appelo DutchIndicated a person who was from a farm called Aperloo, probably a derivative of
appel meaning "apple".
Appleby EnglishFrom the name of various English towns, derived from Old English
æppel "apple" and Old Norse
býr "farm, settlement".
Appleton EnglishFrom the name of several English towns, meaning "orchard" in Old English (a compound of
æppel "apple" and
tun "enclosure, yard").
Apted EnglishProbably from an unidentified place name meaning "up tower" in Old English.
Archer EnglishOccupational name for one who practiced archery, from Latin
arcus "bow" (via Old French).
Arendonk DutchDenoted a person from Arendonk, a town between in northern Belgium. It is derived from
arend "eagle" and
donk "hill".
Arkwright EnglishOccupational name meaning
"chest maker", from Middle English
arc meaning "chest, coffer" and
wyrhta meaning "maker, craftsman".
Armbruster GermanMeans
"crossbow maker" from German
armbrust "crossbow". The word
armbrust was originally from Latin
arcuballista meaning "bow ballista", but was modified under the influence of German
arm "arm" and
brust "breast".
Armistead EnglishMeans
"hermitage", indicating a person who lived near one, from Middle English
ermite "hermit" and
stede "place".
Armstrong EnglishMeans
"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.
Arrington EnglishFrom the name of a town in Cambridgeshire, originally meaning "Earna's settlement" in Old English (
Earna being a person's nickname meaning "eagle").
Årud NorwegianFrom Norwegian
å meaning "river, stream" and the archaic word
rud meaning "cleared land".
Arzt DutchMeans
"doctor, physician" in German, ultimately from Latin
archiater.
Ash EnglishFrom Old English
æsc meaning
"ash tree", indicating a person who lived near ash trees.
Ashley EnglishDenoted 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 EnglishDenoted 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 EnglishFrom an English place name meaning "ash enclosure" in Old English.
Asselman DutchDenoted a person from Assel, Asselt or Hasselt, the name of communities in the Netherlands and Belgium. They derive from Old Dutch
ask "ash tree" and
loh "woods on sandy soil", or
hasal "hazel tree".
Assenberg DutchFrom Dutch
es meaning "ash tree" (plural
essen) and
berg meaning "mountain".
Assendorp DutchFrom the name of a place called Assendorp, composed of Dutch
essen and
dorp, meaning "ash tree village".
Åström SwedishFrom Swedish
å meaning "river, stream" and
ström (Old Norse
straumr) meaning "stream, current, flow".
Attaway EnglishMeans
"at the way", originally denoting someone who lived close to a road.
Atteberry EnglishMeans
"dweller at the fortified town" from Middle English
at and
burh "fortified place".
Aue GermanFrom German meaning
"meadow by a river, wetland". There are many places with this name in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
Auer GermanFrom German
Aue, Old High German
ouwa, meaning
"meadow by a river, wetland".
Averesch DutchFrom a place name, possibly from a dialectal variation of Dutch
over meaning "over" combined with
esch meaning "ash tree".
Averill EnglishFrom Middle English
aueril, Old French
avrill meaning
"April", perhaps indicating a person who was baptized in that month.
Ayers 3 EnglishIndicated 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".
Ayton EnglishFrom 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".
Baak DutchFrom a Frisian given name, a short form of Germanic names starting with the element
batu "fight, struggle".
Baardwijk DutchFrom the name of a town in the Netherlands, possibly from
Baard, a variant of
Bert, and
wijk meaning "neighbourhood, district".
Baars DutchIndicated a person coming from the town of Beers in the Netherlands.
Baart DutchMeans
"beard" in Dutch, originally describing a person who wore a beard.
Bach 1 GermanTopographic 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).
Bachmann GermanDenoted a person who lived near a stream, from Middle High German
bach "stream" and
man "man".
Bachmeier GermanOriginally referred to a farmer whose farm was beside a stream, from Middle High German
bach "stream" and
meier "steward, tenant farmer".
Backus EnglishMeans
"bakery", an occupational name for a baker, from Old English
bæchus literally "bake house".
Bader GermanDerived from Old High German
bad "bath", most likely referring to a bath attendant.
Bagley EnglishFrom various English place names, derived from the Old English given name
Bacga combined with
leah "woodland, clearing".
Bähr GermanFrom Middle High German
bër "bear" or
ber "boar". This was originally a nickname for a strong or brave person.
Bailey EnglishFrom Middle English
baili meaning
"bailiff", which comes via Old French from Latin
baiulus "porter".
Baines 2 EnglishFrom a nickname derived from Old English
ban "bones", probably for a thin person.
Bak DanishMeans
"slope, hillside" in Danish, from Old Norse
bakki "bank".
Baker EnglishOccupational name meaning
"baker", derived from Middle English
bakere.
Bakhuizen DutchMeans
"bakery" from Dutch
bak "bake" and
huis "house", an occupational name for a baker.
Bakke NorwegianMeans
"slope, hillside" in Norwegian, from Old Norse
bakki "bank".
Bakken NorwegianMeans
"the slope, the hillside" in Norwegian, from Old Norse
bakki "bank".
Ball EnglishFrom 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.
Bancroft EnglishFrom any of the various places of this name, derived from Old English
bean meaning "bean" and
croft meaning "small enclosed field".
Banks EnglishOriginally indicated someone who lived near a hillside or a bank of land.
Banner EnglishOccupational name for a flag carrier, derived from Old French
baniere meaning
"banner", ultimately of Germanic origin.