Browse Surnames

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

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

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".

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.

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

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

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

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.

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

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

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

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".

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-).

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

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

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

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

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

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".

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

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

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

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

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

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".

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

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.

Cleveland English
Derived from a place name meaning "cliff land" in Old English.

Clifford English
Derived from various place names that meant "ford by a cliff" in Old English.

Clifton English
Derived from various place names meaning "settlement by a cliff" in Old English.

Clinton English
Derived from the English place name Glinton, of uncertain meaning, or Glympton, meaning "settlement on the River Glyme". This surname is borne by former American president Bill Clinton (1946-).

Cockburn Scottish, English
Originally indicated someone who came from Cockburn, a place in Berwickshire. The place name is derived from Old English cocc "rooster" and burna "stream".

Colby English
From various English place names, which were derived from the Old Norse byname Koli (meaning "coal, dark") and býr "farm, settlement".

Collingwood English
From a place name, itself derived from Old French chalenge meaning "disputed" and Middle English wode meaning "woods".

Colton English
From a place name meaning "Cola's town".

Cowden English
From various English place names, which meaning either "coal valley", "coal hill" or "cow pasture" in Old English.

Crawford English
From a place name derived from Old English crawe "crow" and ford "river crossing". A notable bearer was the American actress Joan Crawford (1904-1977), born Lucille Fay LeSueur.

Crawley English
From various place names derived from Old English crawe "crow" and leah "woodland, clearing".

Dalton English
Derived from a place name meaning "valley town" in Old English. A notable bearer of the surname was the English chemist and physicist John Dalton (1766-1844).

Denzil English
From the place name Denzell, a manor in Cornwall, which is of unknown meaning.

Dudley English
From a place name meaning "Dudda's clearing" in Old English. The surname was borne by a British noble family.

Dwerryhouse English
Indicated a person who worked or lived at a dyehouse, which is a place where dyeing was done.

Elton English
From an English place name meaning "Ella's town".

Everly English
From place names meaning derived from Old English eofor "boar" and leah "woodland, clearing".

Fairburn English
From a place name meaning "fern stream", from Old English fearn "fern" and burna "stream".

Fairclough English
From a place name meaning "fair ravine, fair cliff" in Old English.

Fenwick English
From an English place name, derived from Old English fenn "fen, swamp, bog" and wic "village, town".

Glenn Scottish, English
From place names derived from Gaelic gleann "valley". A famous bearer was the American astronaut John Glenn (1921-2016).

Graham Scottish, English
Derived from the English place name Grantham, which probably meant "gravelly homestead" in Old English. The surname was first taken to Scotland in the 12th century by William de Graham.

Granville English
Derived from a Norman place name Grainville.

Haden English
From a place name derived from Old English hæþ "heath" and dun "hill".

Hambleton English
From various English place names, derived from Old English hamel "crooked, mutilated" and tun "enclosure, yard, town".

Hamilton English, 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).

Hanley English
From various English place names meaning "high meadow" in Old English.

Harden English
From a place name meaning "hare valley" in Old English.

Harland English
From various place names meaning "hare land" in Old English.

Harley English
Derived from a place name meaning "hare clearing", from Old English hara "hare" or hær "rock, heap of stones" and leah "woodland, clearing".

Hart English
Means "male deer". It was originally acquired by a person who lived in a place frequented by harts, or bore some resemblance to a hart.

Hartell English
From various place names derived from Old English heorot "hart, male deer" and hyll "hill".

Hayden 1 English
From place names meaning either "hay valley" or "hay hill", derived from Old English heg "hay" and denu "valley" or dun "hill".

Hayes 1 English
From 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).

Haywood English
From various place names meaning "fenced wood" in Old English.

Headley English
From place names meaning "heather clearing" in Old English.

Hepburn English, Scottish
From 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).

Hilton English
From 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.

Holden English
From various English place names, derived from Old English hol "hollow, sunken, deep" and denu "valley".

Homewood English
From various place names derived from Old English ham meaning "home" and wudu meaning "wood".

Horsfall English
From a minor place in Yorkshire derived from Old English hors "horse" and fall "clearing".

Hudnall English
From various English place names, derived from the Old English given name Huda combined with halh "nook, recess".

Huxtable English
Derived from the name of an English place meaning "hook post", from Old English hoc "hook" and stapol "post".

Keaton English
From 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.

Keighley English
Derived from an English place name meaning "clearing belonging to Cyhha". The Old English given name Cyhha is of unknown meaning.

Kelsey English
From an English place name meaning "Cenel's island", from the Old English name Cenel "fierce" in combination with eg "island".

Kersey English
From an English place name meaning derived from Old English cærse "watercress" and ieg "island".

Kingsley English
From a place name meaning "king's clearing" in Old English.

Kingston English
From a place name meaning "king's town" in Old English.

Kynaston English
Originally derived from a place name meaning "Cynefrith's town" in Old English.

Lamar French, English
Originally from a place name in Normandy, derived from Old French la mare meaning "the pool".

Linton English
Originally from place names meaning either "flax town" or "linden tree town" in Old English.

Linville English
From an unknown place name.

Linwood English
Originally from place names meaning "linden tree forest" in Old English.

Lockwood English
From an English place name meaning "enclosed wood".

Lyndon English
Originally from a place name meaning "linden tree hill" in Old English.

Marlow English
Originally a name for a person from Marlow in Buckinghamshire, England. The place name means "remnants of a lake" from Old English mere "lake" and lafe "remnants, remains". A notable bearer was the English playwright and poet Christopher Marlowe (1564-1593).

Marsden English
From a place name derived from Old English mearc "boundary" and denu "valley".

Marston English
From a place name derived from Old English mersc "marsh" and tun "enclosure".

Merritt English
From an English place name meaning "boundary gate".

Milburn English
Derived from various place names meaning "mill stream" in Old English.

Milford English
Originally derived from various place names all meaning "ford by a mill" in Old English.

Milton English
Derived 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".

Montague English
From a Norman place name meaning "sharp mountain" in Old French.

Montgomery English, Scottish
From a place name in Calvados, France meaning "Gumarich's mountain". A notable bearer was Bernard Montgomery (1887-1976), a British army commander during World War II.

Morton English
Derived from a place name meaning "moor town" in Old English.

Mottershead English
From the name of a lost place in Cheshire, derived from the Old English byname Motere meaning "speaker" and heafod meaning "headland".

Murgatroyd English
From a place name meaning "Margaret's clearing".

Norwood English
Originally taken from a place name meaning "north wood" in Old English.

Oakley English
From a place name meaning "oak clearing" in Old English. It was borne by American sharpshooter Annie Oakley (1860-1926).

Ogden English
From a place name derived from Old English ac "oak" and denu "valley".

Paxton English
From an English place name meaning "Pœcc's town". Pœcc is an Old English name of unknown meaning.

Penn 1 English
Derived from various place names that were named using the Brythonic word penn meaning "hilltop, head".

Preston English
Originally derived from various place names meaning "priest town" in Old English.

Priestley English
From a place name meaning "priest clearing", from Old English preost and leah.

Quincy English
Originally from various place names in Normandy that were derived from the given name Quintus.

Radcliff English
From various place names in England that mean "red cliff" in Old English.

Read 2 English
From Old English ryd, an unattested form of rod meaning "cleared land". It is also derived from various English place names with various meanings, including "roe headland", "reeds" and "brushwood".

Rodney English
From a place name meaning "Hroda's island" in Old English (where Hroda is an Old English given name meaning "fame").

Ross English, Scottish
From various place names (such as the region of Ross in northern Scotland), which are derived from Scottish Gaelic ros meaning "promontory, headland".

Roydon English
Originally derived from a place name meaning "rye hill", from Old English ryge "rye" and dun "hill".

Royle English
Originally derived from a place name meaning "rye hill" from Old English ryge "rye" and hyll "hill".

Royston English
Originally taken from an Old English place name meaning "Royse's town". The given name Royse was a medieval variant of Rose.

Ryland English
From various English place names, derived from Old English ryge "rye" and land "land".

Schofield English
From various northern English place names, which were derived from Old Norse skáli "hut" and Old English feld "field".

Seymour 1 English
From Saint Maur, a French place name, which commemorates Saint Maurus.

Seymour 2 English
From an English place name, derived from Old English sæ "sea" and mere "lake".

Shirley English
From an English place name, derived from Old English scir "bright" and leah "woodland, clearing".

Sidney English
Originally derived from various place names in England meaning "wide island", from Old English sid "wide" and eg "island". Another theory holds that it comes from the name of a town in Normandy called "Saint Denis", though evidence for this is lacking.

Smedley English
From an unidentified place name probably meaning "smooth clearing" in Old English.

Stafford English
From the name of the English city of Stafford, Staffordshire, derived from Old English stæð meaning "wharf, landing place" and ford meaning "ford, river crossing".

Stanford English
Derived from various English place names meaning "stone ford" in Old English.

Stanley English
From various place names meaning "stone clearing" in Old English. A notable bearer was the British-American explorer and journalist Henry Morton Stanley (1841-1904).

Statham English
From the name of a village in the English county of Cheshire, derived from Old English stæð meaning "wharf, landing place" and ham "home, settlement".

St John English
From a place named for Saint John.

Stoke English
From the name of numerous places in England, derived from Old English stoc meaning "place, dwelling".

Street English
Habitational name for a person who lived in a place called Street, for example in Somerset. It is derived from Old English stræt meaning "Roman road", from Latin strata.

Strudwick English
From an English place name derived from Old English strod meaning "marshy ground overgrown with brushwood" and wic meaning "village, town".

Sudworth English
From an English place name composed of Old English suþ "south" and worþ "enclosure".

Sutton English
From various English place names meaning "south town".

Swindlehurst English
From the place name Swinglehurst in the Forest of Bowland in central Lancashire, derived from Old English swin "swine, pig", hyll "hill" and hyrst "wood, grove".

Timberlake English
From an English place name, derived from Old English timber "timber, wood" and lacu "lake, pool, stream".

Travers English, French
From an English and French place name that described a person who lived near a bridge or ford, or occasionally as an occupational name for the collector of tolls at such a location. The place name is derived from Old French traverser (which comes from Late Latin transversare), which means "to cross".

Treloar English
Originally denoted a person from a place of this name in Cornwall, England.

Upton English
Denoted a person hailing from one of the many towns in England bearing this name. The place name itself is derived from Old English upp "up" and tun "enclosure, yard, town".

Vann English
From Old English fenn meaning "fen, swamp", indicating a person who lived near such a place.

Wade 1 English
Derived from the Old English place name wæd meaning "a ford".

Washington English
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.

Whitaker English
From a place name composed of Old English hwit "white" and æcer "field".

Whittemore English
From various English place names derived from Old English hwit "white" and mor "moor, heath, bog".

Whittle English
From various English place names derived from Old English hwit "white" and hyll "hill".

Winchester English
From an English place name, derived from Venta, of Celtic origin, and Latin castrum meaning "camp, fortress".

Winfield English
From various English place names, derived from Old English winn "meadow, pasture" and feld "field".

Winslow English
Derived from an Old English place name meaning "hill belonging to Wine".

Winthrop English
Habitational name from the place names Winthrope 1 or Winthrope 2.

Woodrow English
From a place name meaning "row of houses by a wood" in Old English.