BEAUCHENE FrenchFrom French place names derived from
beau "beautiful" and
chêne "oak".
BEAUFORT FrenchFrom various French place names derived from
beau "beautiful" and
fort "strong place, fortress".
BEAULIEU FrenchFrom various French place names derived from
beau "beautiful" and
lieu "place".
BLANC FrenchMeans "white" in French. The name referred to a person who was pale, or whose hair was blond.
BOIVIN FrenchNickname for a wine drinker, from Old French
boi "to drink" and
vin "wine".
BONFILS FrenchDerived from Old French
bon fils meaning "good son".
BONHEUR FrenchFrom Old French
bonne heure meaning "good time", or "lucky".
BORDE FrenchFrom Frankish
bord meaning "board, plank". This name belonged to a person who lived in a house made of planks.
BRISBOIS FrenchReferred to a person who cleared land, from Old French
briser "to cut" and
bois "forest".
BUREAU FrenchFrom Old French
burel, diminutive of
bure, a type of woolen cloth. It may have originated as a nickname for a person who dressed in the material or as an occupational name for someone who worked with it.
CHAPUT FrenchFrom a diminutive of the Old French word
chape meaning "cloak, hood". The name referred to a person who made, sold or often wore cloaks.
CHARBONNEAU FrenchDerived from a diminutive form of French
charbon "charcoal", a nickname for a person with black hair or a dark complexion.
CHARRON FrenchMeant "cart" in Old French, used to denote a carter or a cartwright.
CHASTAIN FrenchFrom Old French
castan "chestnut tree" (Latin
castanea), a name for someone who lived near a particular chestnut tree, or possibly a nickname for someone with chestnut-coloured hair.
CHEVALIER FrenchFrom a nickname derived from French
chevalier meaning "knight", itself from
cheval meaning "horse", ultimately from Latin
caballus.
CHEVROLET FrenchFrom a diminutive of
chèvre meaning "goat", indicating a person who cultivated goats.
CLOUTIER FrenchDerived from French
clou meaning "nail", referring to someone who made or sold nails.
COMTOIS FrenchIndicated a person from Franche-Comté, a province in eastern France, which translates to "free county".
D'ARAMITZ FrenchOriginally denoted one who came from Aramits, a town in the French Pyrenees Mountains named for the abbey it grew around.
DEGARMO FrenchAmericanized form of French
de Garmeaux, which may derive from a place called Garmeaux in Normandy.
DELACROIX FrenchMeans "of the cross" in French. It denoted one who lived near a cross symbol, or near a crossroads.
DESROSIERS FrenchMeans "of the rose bushes", from French
rosier "rose bush". The name probably referred to a person who lived close to, or cared for a rose garden.
DROIT FrenchMeans "right, straight" in French, a nickname for an upright person.
DUBOIS FrenchMeans "from the forest", from French
bois "forest".
DUCHAMPS FrenchMeans "from the fields, countryside", from French
champs.
DUVAL FrenchMeans "from the valley" in French. The original name was spelled
Du Val (two words).
FAURE FrenchMeans "blacksmith" in French. It is a regional variant of
LEFÉVRE in southern France.
FAVAGER FrenchFrom the old French or Swiss word
faverges or
favarges meaning a "forge", hence a name for a blacksmith. Alternatively it could indicate one from the area of Faverges or La Favarge near Neuchatel (derived from the same word).
FAY French, EnglishRefers to one who came from Fay or Faye (meaning "beech tree") in France.
FONTAINE FrenchDerived from old French
fontane "well". It was probably a nickname for a person living by a well.
FOREST English, FrenchOriginally belonged to a person who lived near or in a forest. It was probably originally derived, via Old French
forest, from Latin
forestam (silva) meaning "outer (wood)".
GAGE French, EnglishOccupational surname deriving either from Old French
gauge "measure" (a name for an assayer) or
gage "pledge" (a name for a moneylender).
GAGNON FrenchDerived from old French
gagnon "guard dog". The name most likely started as a nickname for an aggressive or cruel person.
GARDINIER FrenchOccupational surname which comes from the old Norman-French word
gardinier meaning "gardener".
GÉROUX FrenchDerived from the French form of the old Germanic name
Gerwulf.
GRANGER English, FrenchMeans "farm bailiff" from Old French
grangier, ultimately from Latin
granum meaning "grain". It is borne in the Harry Potter novels by Harry's friend Hermione Granger.
GROS FrenchMeans "thick, fat, big" in French, from Late Latin
grossus, possibly of Germanic origin.
GUILLORY FrenchDerived from a Germanic name, composed of the elements
wil meaning "will" and
ric meaning "powerful".
JOUBERT FrenchFrom a given name derived from the Germanic elements
gaut (see
JOCELYN) and
beraht "bright".
LACHAPELLE FrenchMeans "the chapel" in French. It was most likely used to denote a person who lived by a church or a chapel.
LAMAR French, EnglishOriginally from a place name in Normandy, which was derived from Old French
la mare meaning "the pool".
LANE (2) FrenchDerived from a French word meaning "wool", designating one who worked in the wool trade.
LAPOINTE FrenchMeans "point of a lance" in French. The name was originally a nickname for a soldier.
LAVIGNE FrenchMeans "the vineyard" in French. The name referred to a person who lived close to a vineyard, or was from the town of Lavigny.
LAVOIE FrenchDerived from French
voie "road". The name started as a nickname for someone who lived close to a road.
LEBEAU FrenchMeans "the handsome one" from French
le "the" and
beau "beautiful, handsome".
LEBLANC FrenchMeans "the white", from French
blanc "white". The name referred to a person who was pale or whose hair was blond.
LÉCUYER FrenchLiterally means "the shield-bearer" in French. The name was used to denote an esquire (a person of the nobility one rank below a knight).
LEFEBVRE FrenchVariant of
LEFÉVRE, whose spelling is most likely influenced by the Latin word
faber "craftsman".
LEFURGEY FrenchFrom French
forger meaning "to forge". This was an occupational last name taken by blacksmiths, equivalent to the English
Smith.
LEMAIRE FrenchMeans "the mayor" in French. It was a title given to a town official, or else a nickname for someone who was pompous and officious.
LÉMIEUX FrenchDerived from the place name
Leymieux, a town in the Rhône-Alpes region of France.
LEROY FrenchMeans "the king" in French. It referred to one connected in some way with a king's household or one who played the part of a king in a pageant or a play.
LÉVESQUE FrenchDerived from French
évêque meaning "bishop", ultimately derived from Greek
episkopos "overseer".
LINVILLE FrenchRefers to one who came from Linivilla, meaning "Lennius's estate", now Ninville, in France.
LYON (1) English, FrenchHabitational name from either the Lyon in southern central France, or Lyons-la-Forêt in Eure, Normandy.
MARCHAND English, FrenchOccupational surname meaning "merchant", ultimately from Latin
mercari "to trade".
MARTEL (2) French, EnglishNickname for a smith, derived from old French
martel "hammer", ultimately from Latin
martellus.
MONET FrenchDerived from either of the given names
HAMON or
EDMOND. A famous bearer was the French impressionist painter Claude Monet (1840-1926).
NOEL French, EnglishEither from the given name
NOËL, or else derived directly from Old French
noel "Christmas" and given to a person who had a particular connection with the holiday.
PAGE English, FrenchOccupational name meaning "servant, page". It is ultimately derived (via Old French and Italian) from Greek
παιδιον (paidion) meaning "little boy".
PAQUET (1) FrenchMeans "gatherer or seller of firewood" from Old French
pacquet.
PATERNOSTER English, French, German, ItalianOccupational name for a maker of rosaries, also called paternosters. They are derived from the Latin phrase
pater noster "our Father", the opening words of the Lord's Prayer.
PETIT Catalan, English, FrenchMeans "small, little" derived from Old French
petit. It was perhaps used for a short, small person or to denote the younger of two individuals.
PLAMONDON FrenchDerived from a diminutive of French
plamont "a flat-topped mountain". The name probably referred to someone who lived close to a flat-topped mountain.
PLOURDE FrenchProbably derived from old French
palorde, a type of a shellfish.
POIRIER FrenchMeans "pear tree" in French. The name was originally a nickname for someone who lived close to a pear tree.
POULIN FrenchDerived from old French
poule "chicken". The name was most likely used to denote a person who raised or sold poultry.
RICHELIEU FrenchMeans "home of a rich person" in French, from the elements
riche wealthy and
lieu place. The historic figure Cardinal Richelieu was named such for his family estates. Due to the Cardinal's villainous portrayal in Alexander Dumas' 'The Three Musketeers', the name Richelieu is now associated with political intrigue and ambition.
ROMILLY English, FrenchOriginally denoted a person who came from any of the various places in northern France called Romilly or Remilly, or from Romiley in England.
ROSE (1) English, French, German, Scottish, JewishMeans "rose" from the Middle English, Old French and Middle High German
rose. All denote a person of a rosy complexion or a person who lived in an area abundant with roses. It is also found derived from the Yiddish
royz, which always referred to the flower.
ROUSSEAU FrenchDiminutive of
ROUX. A famous bearer was the philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) whose ideas influenced the French Revolution.
ROUX FrenchDerived from old French
rous "red", most likely a nickname for a red-haired person.
ROYER FrenchFrom the Old French verb, which comes from
roye meaning "to furrow with little irrigation trenches". In the Ardennes Mountains it means "to ret or steep flax".
SAUVETERRE FrenchFrom one of the towns in France derived from
sauve "safe" and
terre "land": therefore "safe haven".
SAVATIER FrenchFrom Old French
savatier "shoemaker", derived from
savate "shoe", of uncertain ultimate origin.
SOUCY FrenchOriginally denoted someone who lived in towns by this name in Aisne or Yonne, from the Latin estate name
Suciacum.
TASSE FrenchFrom Old French
tasse "purse, bag", an occupational name for a maker or seller of purses.
TOLBERT English, FrenchDerived from a continental Germanic given name of unknown meaning, the second element of the name is derived from
berht meaning "bright, famous".
TRAVERS English, FrenchFrom 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".
TREMBLE FrenchDerived from an Old French place name which meant "aspen".
VILLENEUVE FrenchMeans "(dweller in a) new settlement" from French
ville "settlement" and
neuve "new".
VIPOND French, EnglishAnglicized form of French
Vieuxpont "old bridge". It is a place in Calvados (Normandy).
VOCLAIN FrenchAlteration of the name
Vauclain, which is a variant of
Vauquelin, possibly derived from the Norman-French name
Walkelin or
Wakelin meaning "wealthy one".