Submitted names are contributed by users of this website. The accuracy of these name definitions cannot be guaranteed.
Meloni ItalianFrom Italian
mela ("apple", from Latin
malum) or
melone ("melon", from Latin
melopepo), both ultimately from Ancient Greek μῆλον (
mêlon), meaning "apple", "fruit from a tree"... [
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Melrose Scottish, EnglishHabitational name from a place near Galashiels in the Scottish Borders, so named from British words that were ancestors of Welsh
moel ‘bare, barren’ +
rhos ‘moor, heath’. ... [
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Meltzer GermanGerman and Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name for a maltster, a brewer who used malt, from German Meltzer (an agent derivative of Middle High German malt ‘malt’, ‘germinated barley’), Yiddish meltser ‘maltster’... [
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Memon UrduFrom the name of the Memon people who inhabit parts of India and Pakistan. The name itself is derived from Arabic مؤمن
(mu'min) meaning "believer".
Mencia SpanishDerived from the female personal name Mencía Mencia a cognate of the male name Matías.
Mendarozketa BasqueIt indicates familial origin within the eponymous council of the municipality of Zigoitia.
Mendarte BasqueHabitational name of Gipuzkoan origin, possibly derived from Basque
mendi "mountain" and
arte "between, among".
Mendeleev RussianMeaning uncertain. A famous bearer was
Dimitri Mendeleev (1834-1907), a Russian chemist who developed an early model of the periodic table.
Mendenhall EnglishIt indicates familial origin within the eponymous place in Wiltshire.
Mendibil BasqueHabitational name derived from Basque
mendi "mountain" and
-bil "round, circular".
Mendieta BasqueHabitational name derived from Basque
mendi "mountain" and
-eta "place of, abundance of".
Mendiguren BasqueFrom the name of a hamlet meaning "edge of the mountain" in Basque.
Mendinueta BasqueFrom the name of a village in Itzagaondoa, Navarre, Spain, derived from Basque
mendino "small mountain" and the toponymic suffix
-eta "place of, abundance of".
Mendiola BasqueFrom the name of a village in Álava, Basque Country, derived from
mendi "mountain" combined with either
ola "hut, cabin; foundry, factory" or
-ola "place of".
Mendizabal BasqueMeans "wide mountain", derived from Basque
mendi "mountain" and
zabal "wide, broad, ample". This was also the name of a neighborhood of Arratzua-Ubarrundia that the falangists demolished in 1959 to make way for a reservoir.
Mendler GermanOccupational name for a maker of coats from an agent derivative of Middle High German
mantel,
mandel,
mendel "coat".
Mendola Italiantopographic name for someone who lived by an almond tree or trees or a habitational name from any of the places called with the dialect term
amendola mendula "almond almond tree" (see
Amendola ). Compare
Lamendola.
Menear Cornish, English (British)English (Devon; of Cornish origin): topographic name for someone who lived by a menhir, i.e. a tall standing stone erected in prehistoric times (Cornish men ‘stone’ + hir ‘long’). In the United States, it is a common surname in Pennsylvania & West Virginia.
Meneses Spanish (Caribbean)Meneses is my maternal grandfather's surname. He was born in Cuba in 1888 but his family came from Spain in the 1800's... [
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Meneses Spanish, PortugueseMeaning uncertain. It was likely a habitational name from either the municipality of Meneses de Campos in Palencia or the municipality of Valle de Mena in Burgos.
Meng ChineseFrom Chinese 孟
(mèng) meaning "eldest brother". It was also adopted by descendants of Meng Sun, a prince from the state of Lu that existed during the Zhou dynasty.
Mengele GermanDoctor Josef Mengele (Born on March 16, 1911 - Died on February 7, 1979), also known as the Angel of Death, was a German Schutzstaffel (SS) Officer and physician during World War II. He is mainly remembered for his actions at the Auschwitz concentration camp, where he performed deadly experiments on prisoners, was a member of the team of doctors who selected victims to be killed in the gas chambers and was one of the doctors who administered the gas.
Mengíbar SpanishThis indicates familial origin within the eponymous Andalusian municipality.
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-).
Messler GermanHabitational name for someone from Messel near Darmstadt.
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".