Submitted names are contributed by users of this website. The accuracy of these name definitions cannot be guaranteed.
Menke GermanDerived as a diminutive of several Germanic given names whose first element was derived from Germanic
*magin- and
*megin- "strength; force; power".
Mennen DutchDerived from a given name such as
Manno, or any name containing the element
megin "power, strength".
Menon MalayalamMeans "accountant" in Malayalam, itself derived from the title മേലവൻ
(melavan) meaning "overseer, boss, exalted one", from മേല
(mel) meaning "top, above, high" and the third person pronoun അവൻ
(avan) meaning "he".
Mentzer GermanHabitational name with the agent suffix -er, either from Mainz, earlier Mentz, derived from the medieval Latin name Mogontia (Latin Mogontiacum, probably from the Celtic personal name Mogontios), or from Menz in Brandenburg and Saxony.
Menzie ScottishMenzie (originally spelled Menȝie) derives from the surname
Menzies, which in turn derives from the Norman commune Mesnières (known as Maneria in the 1300s)... [
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Merage PersianLikely from Arabic
Miraj, meaning ‘ascension’. A famous bearer of the surname is the co-founder of Hot Pockets, Paul Merage.
Meràs OccitanThis indicates familial origin within the eponymous Languedocien commune.
Mercante ItalianAn occupational name meaning "merchant, trader" in Italian, from Latin
mercans "trading".
Mercedes Spanish (Caribbean)Means "mercies," from the Spanish title of the Virgin Mary,
María de las Mercedes, meaning "Mary of Mercies."
Mercey FrenchDerived from the name of the commune in the Eure department in Normandy in northern France.
Meredith WelshFrom the personal name
Maredudd. In Welsh the stress is on the second syllable. The Old Welsh form is
Morgetiud, of which the first element may mean "pomp, splendor" and the second is
iudd "lord".
Méri HungarianMeaning as of yet unknown. It might possibly be a variant of
Mérő (or vice versa).
Meriloo EstonianMeriloo is an Estonia surname derived from "meri" (sea) and "loo", one of several named locations in Estonia.
Meritee EstonianMeritee is an Estonian surname meaning "sea road/causeway".
Merivale EnglishThe surname Merivale was first found in Cornwall and Devon, where this prominent family flourished. Walter
Merifild was recorded in Devon in 1200 but it is believed the family had established itself earlier in St... [
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Meriwether EnglishMeans "happy weather" in Middle English, originally belonging to a cheery person.
Merkh German (Anglicized, ?)Anglicized form of the name Märkh, a German name that existed in southern Germany with Arabic roots tied to the village of al-Märkh in Qatar; the name became Anglicized in the early 17th century. It is one of those surnames where anyone who possesses it is related to everyone else who possesses the name.
Merlette FrenchFeminine diminutive of French
merle "blackbird", this name was given as a nickname to a cheerful person or to someone who liked to sing.
Mermer TurkishMeans "marble" in Turkish, ultimately of Greek origin.
Merriam WelshDerived from either the personal name Meuric, which is the Welsh form of
Maurice, or ultimately from the Latin personal name Mauritius, which means "dark".
Merridew EnglishA different form of
Meredith (from the Welsh personal name
Meredydd, perhaps literally "lord of splendour"). It occurs in Wilkie Collins' 'The Moonstone' (1868) belonging to Mrs Merridew, widowed sister to Sir John Verinder.
Merrifield EnglishEnglish habitational name from any of various places, such as
Merryfield in Devon and Cornwall or
Mirfield in West Yorkshire, all named with the Old English elements
myrige 'pleasant' +
feld 'pasture', 'open country.' See also
Merivale.
Merrigan IrishIrish: Anglicized Form Of Gaelic Ó Muireagáin ‘Descendant Of Muireagán’-'The son of the descendant of Mary'/or/ A Personal Name Derived From Muir ‘Sea’.
Merrimen NormanAn ancient Norman name, that would have been used in Britain soon after the Conquest of the island in 1066. This name was given to a person who was a person who was a mischievous child, or who liked to play tricks and make jokes.
Merriott EnglishEither a habitational name from Merriott in Somerset. The placename may derive from Old English
mere miere "mare" mere "pool" or
gemære "boundary" and
gæt "gate gap"... [
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Mertesacker GermanMeans "Merten's field" in German, derived from the given name
Merten and Middle High German
acker meaning "field". A famous bearer is the retired German soccer player Per Mertesacker (1984-).
Merton EnglishFrom a place name meaning "town on a lake" in Old English.
Mervyn English(i) from the medieval personal name
Merewine, literally "fame-friend"; (ii) from the Old English personal names
Mǣrwynn, literally "famous joy", and
Merefinn, from Old Norse
Mora-Finnr; (iii) from the Welsh personal name
Merfyn, literally probably "marrow-eminent"
Mesa SpanishHabitational name for someone from any of the various locations in Spain called Mesa meaning "table" or "mesa" in Spanish (referring to a flat area of land).
Mescal Irish (Anglicized)From Irish
Ó Meiscill meaning "descendant of Meisceall", a personal name perhaps related to
meisce (“drunkeness”).
Mesila EstonianMesila is an Estonian surname meaning "apiary" and "bee garden".
Mesina ItalianFrom Sardinian
mesina "keg, small barrel", probably given as a nickname to someone with a round or fat build.
Mesipuu EstonianMesipuu is an Estonian surname meaning "beehive" (literally, "honey tree").
Mesmer GermanOccupational name for a maker of knives from Middle High German
messer meaning "knife". A famous bearer was Franz Mesmer (1734-1815), a German doctor known for his theory of "animal magnetism", which was eventually incorporated into the field of hypnosis.
Mesquita PortugueseMeans "mosque" in Portuguese, used as a topographic name for someone who lived near a mosque.
Messam English (British)originates from a place called Measham in the county of Leicestershire. The placename is first recorded in the famous Domesday Book of 1086, as Messeham, and in the Pipe Rolls of the county of 1182 as Meisham... [
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Messer GermanOccupational name for an official in charge of measuring the dues paid in kind by tenants, from an agent derivative of Middle High German
mezzen "to measure".
Messer ScottishOccupational name for someone who kept watch over harvested crops, Middle English, Older Scots mess(i)er, from Old French messier (see Messier).
Messerschmidt GermanName given to a knife smith. From German "messer" meaning knife, and "schmidt" meaning smith.
Messi Italian, Spanish (Latin American)Possibly from Italian
messi meaning "messengers". Aamous bearer of this surname is Lionel Messi (born 1987-), an Argentinian footballer of Italian descent.
Messier FrenchOccupational name for someone who kept watch over harvested crops, Old French messier 'harvest master' (Late Latin messicarius, agent derivative of messis 'harvest').
Messing German, JewishDerived from Middle High German
messinc meaning "brass", referring to a person who makes or repairs brass objects. A famous bearer is American actress Debra Messing (1968-).
Mestanza SpanishThis indicates familial origin within the eponymous Manchego municipality.
Metallo ItalianFrom the Greek vocabulary word
metallo "metal", used as a nickname for a miner or for someone with a clear or metallic tone of voice.
Metcalfe EnglishAn occupational name from Northern England, from Old English
mete, 'food' and
calf, 'calf', i.e calfs being fattened for consumption in late summer. Thus, making this surname an occupational name for either a slaughterer or herdsman... [
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Metheny EnglishOriginated from the village name of Methley in Yorkshire.
Metla RussianDerived from Russian метла
(metla) meaning "broom, besom".
Metrejon Louisiana Creole (?), French (?)Maiden surname of Constance Leto (nee Metrejon). She was born in Louisiana and has Cajun(French) ancestry. The Metrejon line is traced back to Joseph Marie Maitrejean, who was born c. 1778, in Belle-Île-en-Mer, France, an island off the coast of Brittany.
Mētriņš LatvianThe name is a combination of "mētra", the Latvian word for mint and -iņš, a suffix commonly used for Latvian male surnames.
Metsäniemi FinnishFinnish surname derived from metsä meaning forest and niemi meaning peninsula.
Metsavaht EstonianMetsavaht is an Estonian surname meaning "forest guard" and "forest warden".
Metsik EstonianMetsik is an Estonian surname meaning "wild" and " ferocious".
Metslang EstonianMetslang is an Estonian surname meaning "forest cutting area"; derived from the compounds "mets "forest" and "lank" (cutting area).
Metsnõmm EstonianMetsnõmm is an Estonian surname meaning "forest heath/moorland".
Metsola FinnishFrom Finnish
metso meaning "wood grouse, capercaillie" and the suffix
-la indicating a place. Metsola is the realm of forests in Finnish mythology.
Metwally Arabic (Egyptian)From Arabic متولي
(mutawalli) meaning "responsible, entrusted with, charged with", ultimately from the word تَوَلَّى
(tawalla) meaning "to take charge of, to take control of".
Meusburger German (Austrian)The history of this last name is that it means "Mountain Dweller." Being as part of the Austrian surnames, it's a widely used one in it's home country. A few brothers had gone to various countries, as of now there is Meusburgers in Columbia, as well as the United States and throughout Europe... [
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Meutstege DutchPossibly from Dutch
meute meaning "pack, crowd" and
steeg meaning "alleyway, lane, narrow path". Dutch former soccer player Wim Meutstege (1952-) bears this name.
Mewborn EnglishRare English name. The only place I have found it in the phone directory (other than several small towns in eastern North Carolina) is in Northumberland, UK. The word mew has to do with stables, and of course born is an English word.
Mézec BretonMézec derives from mezeg which means physician in Breton
Mezzadonna ItalianMeans "half a woman" in Italian, from
mezza "half" and
donna "lady, woman".
Mezzanotte ItalianMeans "midnight" in Italian, perhaps given to someone who was born at midnight.
Mezzasalma ItalianFrom Italian
mezza "half" and
salma, an archaic term for a small unit of land, indicating that the bearer was not very wealthy.
Salma also coincides with an Italian word meaning "corpse".
Mheenak ThaiFrom Thai มีนัก (Minak) meaning "of Khmer royalty or nobility".... [
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Mian Urdu, Bengali, Punjabi, SindhiFrom an honorific title used on the Indian subcontinent meaning "lord, master, sir" or "prince", derived from Persian میان
(miyan) meaning "middle, centre, between".
Miano ItalianHabitational name from Miano in Naples, Parma, and Teramo; Miane in Treviso; or Mian in Belluno.
Miao ChineseFrom Chinese 缪
(miào), another name for Duke Mu of Lu, an ancient official whose name (穆) had the same pronunciation as the character 缪. After his death his descendants adopted 缪 as their surname.
Miao ChineseFrom Chinese 苗
(miáo) meaning "seedling, shoot, sprout", also referring to the ancient fief of Miao, which existed in the state of Chu during the Zhou dynasty in what is now Henan province.
Michail GreekA common last name in Greece. Probably from the Archangel Michael who appeared to the Virgin Mary with a lily.
Michalk Sorbiana last name of Sorbian origin, literally means "little Michael", spelling has been anglicized.