AINSLEY ScotsFrom a place name: either Annesley in Nottinghamshire or Ansley in Warwickshire. The place names themselves derive from Old English
anne "alone, solitary" or
ansetl "hermitage" and
leah "woodland, clearing".
ALLAWAY ScottishFrom a Scottish place name, itself derived from
alla "wild" and
mhagh "field".
BEGBIE ScottishFrom the name of a town in East Lothian, Scotland. It is derived from the Old Norse given name
BAGGI and
býr "farm, settlement".
BLAIR ScottishFrom any one of several places of this name in Scotland, which derive from Gaelic
blár meaning "plain, field, battlefield".
BOYD ScottishFrom the name of the Scottish island of Bute (
Bód in Gaelic), which is of unknown meaning.
BRECKENRIDGE Scottish, EnglishOriginally 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).
BRODIE ScottishOriginally derived from a place in Moray, Scotland. It is probably from Gaelic
broth meaning "ditch, mire".
BRUCE ScottishPossibly from the name of the town of Brix in Normandy, which is of unknown meaning. It was brought to Scotland in the 12th century by the Anglo-Norman baron Robert de Brus. It was later borne by his descendant Robert the Bruce, a hero of the 14th century who achieved independence from England and became the king of Scotland.
BUCHANAN ScottishFrom the name of a region in Stirlingshire, Scotland, which means "house of the canon" in Gaelic.
BURNS (1) English, ScottishDerived from Old English
burna "stream, spring". A famous bearer was the Scottish poet Robert Burns (1759-1796).
CAMERON ScottishMeans "crooked nose" from Gaelic
cam "crooked" and
sròn "nose".
CAMPBELL ScottishFrom a Gaelic nickname
cam béul meaning "wry or crooked mouth". The surname was later represented in Latin documents as
de bello campo meaning "of the fair field".
CARSON ScottishMeaning uncertain, possibly from the town of Courson in Normandy.
COCKBURN Scottish, EnglishOriginally indicated someone who came from Cockburn, a place in Berwickshire. The place name is derived from Old English
cocc "rooster" and
burna "stream".
COLQUHOUN ScottishFrom a place name meaning "narrow corner" or "narrow wood" in Gaelic.
COUTTS ScottishFrom the name of the town of Cults in Aberdeenshire, derived from a Gaelic word meaning "woods".
CRAIG ScottishDerived from Gaelic
creag meaning "crag, rocks", originally belonging to a person who lived near a crag.
CUNNINGHAM ScottishFrom the name of place in the Ayrshire district of Scotland. It possibly comes from Gaelic
cuinneag meaning "milk pail".
DARROW ScottishHabitational name from Darroch near Falkirk, in Stirlingshire, said to be named from Gaelic
darach "oak tree".
DAVIS English, ScottishMeans "son of
DAVID". This was the surname of the revolutionary jazz trumpet player Miles Davis (1926-1991).
DONNE Scottish, IrishFrom Gaelic
donn meaning "brown", a nickname for a person with brown hair.
DOUGLAS ScottishAnglicized form of Gaelic
Dubhghlas, which meant "dark river" from
dubh "dark" and
glais "water, river". This is the name of a river near Glasgow.
DUNBAR ScottishMeans "castle headland" and comes from the old barony of Dunbar, now in East Lothian in Scotland. The place name Dunbar itself comes from the Gaelic
dun meaning "fort" and
barr meaning "summit". The town of Dunbar, at the mouth of the Frith of Forth, Scotland, is so called from its situation on a rock which projects into the sea.
DUNN English, Scottish, IrishDerived from Old English
dunn "dark" or Gaelic
donn "brown", referring to hair colour or complexion.
FORNEY English, ScottishName for someone who lived around ferns, from Middle English
fern "fern" and
heye "enclosure".
FRASER ScottishMeaning unknown, originally Norman French
Fresel, possibly from a lost place name in France.
GLENN ScottishDerived from Gaelic
gleann "valley". A famous bearer is American astronaut John Glenn (1921-).
GORDON ScottishFrom a place name meaning "spacious fort" in the ancient Brythonic language.
GRAHAM ScottishDerived 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.
GRIEVE ScottishOccupational name meaning "farm manager" in Middle English.
HAMILTON English, ScottishFrom an English place name, derived from the elements
hamel "crooked, mutilated" and
dun "hill". This was the name of a town in Leicestershire, England (which no longer exists).
HEPBURN Scottish, EnglishFrom a place name meaning "high burial mound" in Old English. Famous bearers of the name include Hollywood actresses Katherine Hepburn and Audrey Hepburn. Mary Queen of Scot's infamous third husband, James Hepburn, Earl of Bothwall, also bore the name.
HOLME English, ScottishRefers either to someone living by an island in a fen (from northern Middle English
holm) or near a holly tree (Middle English
holm).
HOLMES English, ScottishVariant of
HOLME. A famous fictional bearer was Sherlock Holmes, a detective in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's mystery stories beginning in 1887.
HUNTER English, ScottishOccupational name which referred to someone who hunted for a living, from Old English
hunta.
IRVING Scottish, EnglishOriginally derived from a Scottish place name (in North Ayrshire) meaning "green water".
KEITH ScottishFrom a place name which is probably derived from the Brythonic element
cet meaning "wood". This was the surname of a long line of Scottish nobles.
KERR ScottishFrom Scots
kerr meaning "rough wet ground", ultimately from Old Norse
kjarr.
KINNAIRD ScottishFrom the name of a place in Scotland. The area concerned is high and occupies a vantage point and may have been named in Gaelic as
Ceann Ard meaning "high end or head". In the 12th century a Norman nobleman received a charter of land here from King William the Lion (King of Scots), and was thereafter known by this name.
KYLES ScottishDerived from Gaelic
caol meaning "narrows, channel, strait", originally given to a person who lived by a strait.
LENNOX ScottishFrom the name of a district in Scotland, called
Leamhnachd in Gaelic, possibly meaning "place of elms".
LESLIE ScottishFrom a Scottish place name, probably derived from Gaelic
leas celyn meaning "garden of holly".
LISTER ScottishAnglicized form of the Gaelic
Mac an Fleisdeir meaning "son of the arrow maker".
LITHGOW ScottishHabitation name meaning "pool, damp, hollow". A famous bearer of this name is actor John Lithgow (1945-).
LOGAN ScottishFrom a Scottish place name meaning "little hollow".
LYNE ScottishHabitational name for someone who lived in places of this name in Ayrshire, Peeblesshire, and Wigtownshire.
MACBETH ScottishDerived from the Gaelic given name
Mac Beatha meaning "son of life", which denoted a man of religious devotion. This was the name of an 11th-century Scottish king, and the name of a play based on his life by William Shakespeare.
MACDONALD ScottishAnglicized form of Gaelic
Mac Domhnaill meaning "son of
DONALD". It originates from the Highland clan Donald.
MACGREGOR ScottishAnglicized form of Gaelic
Mac Griogair meaning "son of
GREGOR". It originates from the Highland clan Gregor. A famous bearer was the Scottish folk hero Rob Roy MacGregor (1671-1734).
MACKENZIE ScottishAnglicized form of the Gaelic
Mac Coinnich meaning "son of
COINNEACH". It originates from the Kintail area of Scotland on the northwest coast.
MAXWELL ScottishFrom a place name meaning "Mack's stream", from the name
Mack, a short form of the Scandinavian name
MAGNUS, combined with Old English
wella "stream". A famous bearer was James Maxwell (1831-1879), a Scottish physicist who studied gases and electromagnetism.
MCCRAE Irish, ScottishFrom the Gaelic
Mag Raith meaning "son of Rath", a given name meaning "prosperity" or "grace".
MCINTYRE ScottishFrom Scottish Gaelic
Mac an tSaoir meaning "son of the carpenter".
MCLEOD ScottishFrom Gaelic
Mac Leòid meaning "son of Leod", a given name derived from Old Norse
ljótr "ugly".
MELVILLE ScottishFrom the place name
Malleville meaning "bad town" in Norman French.
MILLIGAN Irish, ScottishFrom the Gaelic given name
Maolagán, a derivative of
maol meaning "bald" or "tonsured".
MONROE ScottishDesignated a person who had originally lived near the mouth of the Roe River in Derry, Ireland.
MONTGOMERY English, ScottishFrom 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.
MURRAY ScottishDerived from the region in Scotland called
Moray meaning "seaboard settlement". A notable bearer of this surname was General James Murray (1721-1794), who was the first British Governor-General of Canada.
NORRIS (1) English, ScottishMeans "from the north" from Old French
norreis. It either denoted someone who originated in the north or someone who lived in the northern part of a settlement.
PAYNE Irish, Scottish, EnglishMeans "villager, rustic" and later "heathen" from Middle English
Payn, Old French
Paien which was often given to children whose baptism had been postponed or adults whose religious zeal was lacking.
RAMSEY Scottish, EnglishMeans "garlic island", derived from Old English
hramsa "garlic" and
eg "island". The surname was brought to Scotland by the Norman baron Simundus de Ramsay.
RATTRAY ScottishFrom a place name meaning "fortress town", from Gaelic
rath "fortress" and Welsh
tref "town".
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.
ROSS English, ScottishFrom various place names (such as the region of Ross in northern Scotland) which are derived from Scottish Gaelic
ros meaning "promontory, headland".
ROWE English, Scottish, IrishMeans "dweller by a row of hedges or houses" from Middle English
row. Some examples of the name are derived from the medieval name
Row, which is either a variant of
ROLLO or
ROLAND.
RUTHERFORD ScottishOriginally taken by families who lived near the town of Rutherford in Scotland. It means "cattle ford" in Old English. The name dates back to the 13th century.
SCHOOL Scottish, EnglishDerived from either the Old Norse given name
Skúli, the Old Danish
Skuli or the Old Swedish
Skule which probably all mean "to protect".
SCOTT English, ScottishOriginally given to a person from Scotland or a person who spoke Scottish Gaelic.
SHEEHY Scottish, IrishAnglicized form of the Gaelic given name
Sítheach meaning "mysterious, eerie".
SKEATES ScottishFirst found in Ayrshire, taken from the village of Skeoch, near Mauchline.
STARRETT ScottishOriginally indicated a person from Stairaird, a town in Scotland.
STERLING ScottishDerived from city of Stirling, which is itself of unknown meaning.
STEWART ScottishOccupational name for an administrative official of an estate or steward, from Old English
stig "house" and
weard "guard". The Stewart family (sometimes spelled
Stuart) held the Scottish crown for several centuries. One of the most famous members of the Stewart family was Mary, Queen of Scots.
STROUD English, ScottishLocational name meaning "thicket, marsh, marshy ground overgrown with brushwood".
SUTHERLAND ScottishScottish regional name that described a person who came from the former county by this name, which got its name from Old Norse
suðroen "southern" and
land "land". It was called the South Land because it was south of Scandinavia and south of the Norse colonies of Orkney and Shetland Islands.