Acciai ItalianDerived from medieval Italian
accia meaning
"axe", ultimately from Latin
ascia.
Acerbi ItalianFrom Italian
acerbo meaning
"bitter, harsh, severe".
Adesso ItalianPerhaps a nickname for a punctual or fast person, from Italian
adesso meaning
"now, at this moment".
Affini ItalianFrom Latin
affinis meaning
"neighbouring, kindred".
Aiello ItalianFrom various place names in Italy, such as Aiello del Friuli, Aiello del Sabato and others. They are derived from Latin
agellus meaning "little field".
Albero ItalianFrom Italian
albero meaning
"tree", ultimately from Latin
arbor, referring to someone who lived in the woods or worked as a woodcutter.
Aleppo ItalianFrom the name of the Syrian city of Aleppo, which is from Arabic
خالاب (Khālāb), of uncertain meaning.
Aquino Italian, SpanishFrom the name of an Italian town near Rome, derived from Latin
aqua meaning "water", the home town of the 13th-century saint Thomas Aquinas. In Italy the surname is derived directly from the town's name. As a Spanish-language surname, it was sometimes bestowed by missionaries in honour of the saint as they evangelized in Spanish colonies.
Armati ItalianFrom Italian
armato meaning
"armed, armoured, equipped".
Arnoni ItalianMeans
"son of Arnone" from the medieval name
Arnone, of uncertain origin.
Azzarà ItalianSicilian name, derived from Greek dialects of southern Italy. It is from Greek
ψαράς (psaras) meaning
"fisherman".
Baggio ItalianOriginally denoted a person from the Italian town of Baggio (now part of Milan). It is probably derived from Latin
Badalocum meaning "watch place".
Becker GermanDerived from Middle High German
becker meaning
"baker".
Beiler GermanDerived from Middle High German
beile meaning
"measuring stick".
Berger 1 FrenchOccupational name meaning
"shepherd", from Old French
bergier.
Beutel GermanFrom Middle High German
biutel meaning
"bag", originally belonging to a person who made or sold bags.
Bieber German, JewishFrom Middle High German
biber meaning
"beaver", possibly a nickname for a hard worker.
Biondi ItalianMeans
"fair-haired, blond" in Italian. This name was borne by the American swimmer Matt Biondi (1965-).
Bleier GermanOccupational name for a worker of lead, derived from German
blei "lead".
Böhler GermanDerived from the name of several German towns called
Boll or
Böhl, meaning "hill".
Boivin FrenchNickname for a wine drinker, from Old French
boi "to drink" and
vin "wine".
Borgia ItalianItalian form of
Borja. This was the name of an Italian noble family who were influential during the Renaissance period.
Brahms GermanDerived from the given name
Abraham. A famous bearer of this surname was the German composer Johannes Brahms (1833-1897).
Brivio ItalianFrom the name of the town of Brivio in Lombardy. Supposed it derives from a Celtic word meaning "bridge".
Brunet FrenchFrom a diminutive of French
brun meaning
"brown".
Bureau FrenchFrom Old French
burel, a diminutive of
bure, a type of woollen 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.
Caruso ItalianMeans
"close-cropped hair" in Italian, also having the secondary sense "boy, young man".
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.
Dreher GermanMeans
"turner" from Middle High German
drehen "to turn". A turner was a person who used a lathe to create small objects from wood or bone.
Dubois FrenchMeans
"from the forest", from French
bois "forest".
Dufort FrenchMeans
"from the fort", from French
fort "stronghold".
Dufour FrenchOccupational name for a baker, from French
four "oven".
Dumont FrenchMeans
"from the mountain", from French
mont "mountain".
Dupont FrenchMeans
"from the bridge", from French
pont "bridge".
Dupuis FrenchMeans
"from the well", from Old French
puts, Latin
puteus "well".
Durand French, EnglishFrom Old French
durant meaning
"enduring", ultimately from Latin
durans. This was a nickname for a stubborn person.
Eichel GermanMeans
"acorn" in German, indicating a person who lived near an oak tree.
Fabbri ItalianFrom Italian
fabbro meaning
"blacksmith", ultimately from Latin
faber.
Färber GermanOccupational name meaning
"dyer", derived from German
Farbe "colour".
Farina ItalianOccupational name for a miller, derived from Italian
farina "flour".
Fleury FrenchFrom the name of various towns in northern France, derived from the Gallo-Roman personal name
Florus.
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)".
Forney GermanName for someone who lived near ferns, from Old High German
farn "fern".
Freund GermanFrom Middle High German
vriunt, modern German
Freund meaning
"friend".
Furlan Italian, SloveneFrom the name of the Italian region of
Friuli, in the northeast of Italy, which is derived from the name of the Roman town of Forum Iulii meaning "forum of Julius".
Gabler GermanOccupational name for someone who made or sold forks, from Old High German
gabala "fork".
Geiger GermanMeans
"fiddle player" in German, derived from Old High German
giga "fiddle".
Gerber GermanMeans
"tanner, leather dresser" in German, derived from Old High German
garawen meaning "to prepare".
Giunta ItalianFrom the old Italian given name
Bonagiunta or
Bonaggiunta (derived from
bono "good" and
aggiunto "assistant").
Graner GermanOriginally denoted a person from Gran, the German name for Esztergom, a city in northern Hungary.
Grasso ItalianMeans
"fat" in Italian, originally a nickname for a stout person. It is derived from Latin
crassus.
Grillo ItalianFrom an Italian nickname meaning
"cricket", perhaps given originally to a cheerful person (the cricket is associated with cheerfulness).
Gruber Upper GermanFrom German
Grube meaning
"pit", indicating a person who lived or worked in a pit or depression. This is the most common surname in Austria.
Hafner GermanOccupational name for a potter, derived from Old High German
hafan "pot, vessel".
Herzog GermanFrom a German title meaning
"duke", a nickname for a person who either acted like a duke or worked in a duke's household.
Hirsch 1 GermanMeans
"deer, hart" in German. This was a nickname for a person who resembled a deer in some way, or who raised or hunted deer.
Hitler GermanVariant of
Hiedler. This was spelling used by Alois Hitler, the father of German dictator Adolf Hitler (1889-1945), when he adopted his stepfather Johann Georg Hiedler's surname.
Hummel 2 German, DutchNickname for a busy person, from Middle Low German and Middle Dutch
hommel, Middle High German
hummel, all meaning
"bee".
Kahler GermanFrom a nickname derived from German
kahl meaning
"bald".
Kaiser GermanFrom Middle High German
keiser meaning
"emperor", originally a nickname applied to someone who acted kingly. The title ultimately derives from the Roman name
Caesar.
Kappel German, DutchName for a person who lived near or worked at a chapel, ultimately from Late Latin
cappella, a diminutive of
cappa "cape", arising from the holy relic of the torn cape of Saint
Martin, which was kept in small churches.
Keller GermanMeans
"cellar" in German, an occupational name for one in charge of the food and drink.
Kerner GermanDerived from Old High German
kerno "seed", an occupational name for one who sold or planted seeds.
Kiefer 2 GermanOccupational name for a barrel maker, derived from Old High German
kuofa meaning
"barrel".
Kohler GermanFrom Middle High German
koler meaning
"charcoal burner" or
"charcoal seller".
Krämer GermanMeans
"shopkeeper, merchant" in German, derived from Old High German
kram meaning "tent, trading post".
Krüger 1 GermanIn northern Germany an occupational name for a tavern keeper, derived from Middle Low German
kroch meaning
"tavern".
Krüger 2 GermanIn southern Germany an occupational name for a potter, derived from Middle High German
kruoc meaning
"jug, pot".
Kunkel GermanOccupational name for a maker of distaffs, from Middle High German
kunkel "distaff, spindle", of Latin origin.
Laganà ItalianOccupational name for a greengrocer, meaning
"vegetables" in southern Italian dialects, ultimately from Greek
λάχανον (lachanon).
Landau German, JewishDerived from the town of Landau in the Palatinate region of Germany, of Old High German origin meaning "land valley".
Lavoie FrenchMeans
"the road, the lane" in French, a name for someone who lived close to a road.
Lebeau FrenchNickname for a handsome person, from French
le "the" and
beau "beautiful, handsome".
Lebrun FrenchFrom a nickname meaning
"the brown" in French, from
brun "brown".
Leroux FrenchMeans
"the red", from Old French
ros "red". This was a nickname for a person with red hair.
Luther GermanFrom the old given name
Leuthar. It was notably borne by the religious reformer Martin Luther (1483-1546).
Mandel German, YiddishMeans
"almond" in German, an occupational name for a grower or seller, or a topographic name for a person who lived near an almond tree. As a Jewish name it is ornamental.
Martel 2 French, EnglishNickname for a smith, derived from Old French
martel "hammer", ultimately from Late Latin
martellus.
Maurer GermanOccupational name meaning
"wall builder" in German.
Mendel 2 GermanDerived from a diminutive of the given name
Meino. A famous bearer was Gregor Mendel (1822-1884), a Czech monk and scientist who did experiments in genetics.
Merkel GermanFrom a diminutive of the given name
Markus. A notable bearer is the former German chancellor Angela Merkel (1954-).
Messer GermanOccupational name for a person who made knives, from Middle High German
messer "knife".
Muggia ItalianFrom the town of Muggia in northeastern Italy near the Slovenian border. It was called
Muglae in Latin.
Müller GermanGerman equivalent of
Miller, derived from Middle High German
mülnære or
müller.
Muraro ItalianOccupational name for a wall builder, from Italian
murare meaning
"to wall up".
Nasato ItalianNickname for someone with a prominent nose, from Italian
naso "nose".
Necchi ItalianPossibly from Italian
neccio, a type of flat bread.
Nicchi ItalianFrom the Italian word
nicchio meaning
"shell", possibly a nickname for people related to the sea.
Nieddu ItalianFrom Sardinian
nieddu meaning
"black", derived from Latin
niger.
Notaro ItalianOccupational name for a clerk, derived from Latin
notarius.
Oberst GermanFrom Old High German
obar meaning
"above, upper", indicating a person from the uppermost end of a village or the top of a house.
Orsini ItalianFrom a nickname meaning
"little bear" in Italian, from Latin
ursus "bear".
Paquet 1 FrenchOccupational name for a firewood gatherer, from Old French
pacquet "bundle".
Parent English, FrenchDerived from Old French
parent meaning either
"notable" (from Latin
pārēre meaning "to be apparent") or
"parent" (from Latin
parere meaning "to produce, to give birth").
Parodi ItalianFrom the name of a village near Genoa in northern Italy.
Pavone ItalianMeans
"peacock" in Italian. It was originally a nickname for a proud or haughty person.
Pecora ItalianMeans
"sheep" in Italian, an occupational name for a shepherd.
Pesaro ItalianFrom the name of the city of Pesaro, in the Marche region (Latin
Pisaurum).
Piazza ItalianMeans
"plaza" in Italian, indicating that the residence of the original bearer was near the town square. It is derived from Latin
platea.
Picard FrenchOriginally denoted a person from Picardy, a historical region of northern France. It is derived from Old French
pic meaning "pike, spike".
Pierno ItalianFrom the name of the small town of Pierno in southern Italy near Potenza.
Pisani ItalianFrom Italian
pisano, the name for an inhabitant of the city of Pisa, Italy. The city's name is of unknown meaning.