Submitted names are contributed by users of this website. The accuracy of these name definitions cannot be guaranteed.
Marjoribanks ScottishReputedly from the name of a Scottish estate (
Ratho-Marjoribankis) bestowed on Robert the Bruce's daughter
Marjorie on her marriage in 1316... [
more]
Mark English, German, DutchTopographic name for someone who lived on a boundary between two districts, from Old High German
marka "border, boundary, march". The German term also denotes an area of fenced-off land (see
Marker) and, like the English word, is embodied in various place names which have given rise to habitational names.
Markell EnglishHabitational name from various locations in England containing the Old English element
mearc (from Old Germanic
markō) meaning "border, boundary".
Marker GermanStatus name for someone who lived on an area of land that was marked off from the village land or woodland, Middle High German
merkære.
Markham EnglishEnglish name from a place in Nottinghamshire, named in Old English as 'homestead at a (district) boundary', from
mearc 'boundary' +
ham 'homestead'. English surname used as an equivalent of Gaelic
Ó Marcacháin 'descendant of Marcachán', a diminutive of Marcach (see Markey).
Markina BasqueFrom the town of Markina in the Basque county of Spain.
Markland EnglishFrom Old English
mearc meaning "boundary" and
lanu meaning "lane", it is a habitational name from a place in the town of Wigan in Greater Manchester, England. It can also be a topographic name for someone who lived by a stretch of border or boundary land, or a status name for someone who held land with an annual value of one mark.
Markley EnglishFrom Old English
mearc meaning "border, mark" combined with
leah meaning "clearing, grove."
Marklund SwedishCombination of Swedish
mark "ground, field" and
lund "grove".
Marks EnglishThis surname is derived either from the name
Mark or from Old English
mearc meaning "border, mark."
Marksman EnglishAn occupational surname indicating a person who was a hunter, especially a skilled one.
Marlborough EnglishFrom the name of the market town and civil parish of Marlborough in Wiltshire, England, derived from the Old English given name
Mǣrla and
beorg meaning "hill, mound".
Marler English (British)The name Marler might be loosely tied to marl, the type of crumbly clay made up of sand, silt, or clay. The name Marler likely means to mine marl, so they were called Marlers.
Marlock German (Archaic)Derived from Middle High German and Middle Low German
mar(e), denoting an evil elf, a creature that sits on one's chest at night, and Middle High German
loc "a lock of hair; hair; mane"... [
more]
Marmolejo SpanishThis indicates familial origin within the eponymous Andalusian municipality.
Marner English, GermanOccupational name for a sailor from Anglo-Norman French
mariner Middle, High German
marnære "seaman". English variant of
Mariner.
Marohom Filipino, MaranaoFrom an honorific title bestowed upon deceased sultans, derived from Arabic مرحوم
(marhum) meaning "late, deceased".
Marois Norman, Picard, Frenchtopographic name from the Old French words "mareis", "maresc", mareis, marois meaning "marsh" ‘marshy ground’.
Marongiu ItalianFrom Sardinian
marongiu "to hoe, hoeing", from
marra "hoe, digging tool".
Maroni ItalianCan be a nickname derived from Italian
maroni "balls, bollocks", from the Latin given name
Maronius, or from a diminutive of the Germanic-origin name
Ademaro... [
more]
Marple EnglishMeans "boundary stream" from Old English maere (boundary), and pyll (stream).
Marquis English, FrenchFrom the title of nobility, which originally denoted an officer whose duty was to guard the marches or frontiers of the kingdom. A march was originally denoted as a border region at a frontier. The word marquis was derived from Late Latin
marchensis, from Frankish *
marku "boundary, border"... [
more]
Marrero SpanishOccupational name for a stonecutter, derived from Spanish
marrear "to hit with a sledgehammer", ultimately from Latin
marra "hoe, hook, spade".
Marriage EnglishHabitational name from a lost place called Marhach, which was probably in or near Aythorpe Roding (Essex).
Marron SpanishDerived from the French word
marron meaning "chestnut", which now means "brown" in Spanish.
Marrufo Spanishnickname from marrufo a Portuguese word meaning literally 'lay brother' and figuratively 'cunning sly'
Marschall German, Englishoccupational name for a man in the service of a member of the nobility originally one who looked after the horses derived from Middle High German
marschalc from Latin
mariscalcus, ultimately from Old High German
marah "horse" and
scalc "servant"... [
more]
Marselli CatalanCatalan family that appears in the feudal list of 1355 with a Francis, lord of Chia.
Marsham Anglo-SaxonThis name originated from the Norfolk location of Marsham. The first family to use this name adopted it by living in that area.
Marsland EnglishProbably derived from some place named as being a boggy place, from Old English
mersc meaning "marsh" and
land meaning "land". Alternatively, it may be a variant of
Markland.
Marsman DutchDerived from Middle Dutch
marsch, mersch (Southern Dutch
meers), meaning "marsh". In some cases, however, it can also be a variant of
Meersman.
Marsteller GermanOccupational name for a stable boy in or for the supervisor of the stables on a noble estate, from Middle High German mar(c) 'noble horse' stall 'stable' + the agent suffix -er.
Marta Old Celtic (Latinized, Archaic)It is a small animal from the variety of mammals living in Spain and is prized for its skin has great finesse. Also known like Beech Marten (Stone Marten or White Breasted Marten).
Martello ItalianSouthern Italian: nickname for someone with a forceful personality, from Italian
martèllo ‘hammer’ (Late Latin
martellus), or a metonymic occupational name for someone who used a hammer in their work.
Martillo SpanishFrom the Spanish word "martillo" which means hammer. Occupational name for a user or maker of hammers.
Mártir Spanishfrom
mártir "martyr" probably a nickname for someone devoted to the religious cult of a Christian martyr or perhaps one who had played the part of a Christian martyr in a religious play.
Martirano ItalianLikely a habitational surname from a place in Catanzaro province in the Calabria region of Italy.
Martire Italianfrom
martire "martyr" probably a nickname for someone who had played the part of a Christian martyr in a religious play. However there was a Saint Martire and so the surname may be derived from a personal name.
Marton Englishhabitational name from any of several places so called
Marton principally in Lincolnshire, Warwickshire, and North Yorkshire named in Old English as "settlement by a lake" (from
mere or
mær "pool, lake" and
tun "settlement") or as "settlement by a boundary" (from
gemære "boundary" and
tun "settlement").
Marttinen FinnishDerived from the given name
Martti and the name suffix
-nen, which is sometimes patronymic. John Morton (1725-1777), Pennsylvania/American politician and signer of the Declaration of Independence, was descended from a Marttinen family whose name had been anglicized as
Morton.
Marugg RomanshDerived from the given name
Maurus, combined with the diminutive suffix
-ugg. Another theory, however, derives this name from Late Latin
maior domus "mayor of a palace" (compare
Meyer 1).
Marulanda Spanishtopographic or habitational name referring to a house named with maru 'Moor' + landa '(large) field prairie'.
Maruno JapaneseFrom Japanese 丸 or 圓
(maru) meaning "round, full" and 野
(no) meaning "field, plain, wilderness".
Maruri BasqueIt indicates familial origin within the eponymous municipality.
Maruya JapaneseFrom Japanese 丸 or 圓
(maru) meaning "round, full" and 谷
(ya) meaning "valley".
Marvel EnglishEither (i) from a medieval nickname (often ironic) for someone regarded as a prodigy; or (ii) "person from Merville", the name of two places in northern France ("smaller settlement" and "settlement belonging to a man with a Germanic name beginning with
Meri-, literally 'famous'")... [
more]
Marwood EnglishFrom the name of two places named
Marwood in England, or a nickname for a person who "casts an evil eye", derived from Norman French
malreward meaning "evil eye, glance".
Marx GermanFrom a short form of the given name
Markus. A famous bearer was Karl Marx (1818-1883), a German philosopher known for his work in socioeconomic theory.
Mary FrenchHabitational name from places in Saône-et-Loire, Seine-et-Marne, and Nièvre, named in Latin as Mariacum meaning "estate of Marius".
Marye EnglishDerived from Old French
marais "a marsh". It may have arisen as a surname from the place name (Le) Marais in Calvados, Normandy.
Marzon SpanishIs a portmanteau of the words mar, meaning sea, and corazon, meaning heart.
Marzouki Arabic (Maghrebi)From the given name
Marzouq (chiefly Tunisian and Moroccan). A notable bearer is Moncef Marzouki (1945-), who was the fourth President of Tunisia from 2011 to 2014.
Masai JapaneseFrom 正 (
masa) meaning "right, correct, proper, justice" and 井 (
i) meaning "well, pit, mineshaft".
Masaki JapaneseSurname of Japanese origin meaning "true blossoms" which comes from combing 真 (ma) meaning "true, genuine" with 咲 (saki) meaning "blossom".
Masalis Greek (Cypriot)Cypriot surname, often used in rural parts of Cyprus. Died out in Greece, there are no more living people with it anymore.
Masamizu JapaneseFrom Japanese 正 (
masa) meaning "right, proper" combined with 水 (
mizu) meaning "water".