Submitted names are contributed by users of this website. The accuracy of these name definitions cannot be guaranteed.
Pranno EstonianPranno is an Estonian surname derived from the masculine nickname/given name "Pranno".
Prants EstonianPrants is an Estonian surname possibly derived from "prantsuse" meaning French, or "prantsti/prantsatus" meaning to "slam" and "bang". Could also derived from "prints" meaning "prince".
Prasad Indian, Hindi, Bengali, Marathi, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Tamil, Odia, Assamese, PunjabiFrom the given name
Prasad.
Prather IrishThe name Prather derives from the word Praetor which means leader or each of two ancient Roman magistrates ranking below consul.
Prati ItalianMeaning "meadows" in Italian, derived from Italian
prato "feild, meadow" (see
Prato 1)
Pratley EnglishOriginates from a now "lost" medieval village believed to have been in the south east of England.
Prato ItalianMeaning "feild, meadow" in Italian, likely detonating to someone who lived on a meadow.
Prats CatalanHabitational name from any of the numerous places in Catalonia called Prats, from the plural of prat ‘meadow’
Preciado SpanishPast participle of the infinitive
preciar meaning "excellent, precious, of great estimation".
Pregler GermanNickname for a chatterer or grumbler, from an agent derivative of Middle High German breglen ‘to chatter’, ‘complain’, ‘yell’, ‘roar’.
Préjano SpanishIt indicates familial origin within the eponymous La Riojan municipality.
Premasiri SinhaleseDerived from Sanskrit प्रेम
(prema) meaning "love, affection" and श्री
(shri) meaning "diffusing light, radiance, splendour, beauty".
Premathilaka SinhaleseDerived from Sanskrit प्रेम
(prema) meaning "love, affection" and तिलक
(tilaka) meaning "mark, dot, ornament".
Premawardana SinhaleseDerived from Sanskrit प्रेम
(prema) meaning "love, affection" and वर्धन
(vardhana) meaning "increasing, growing".
Preminger JewishMeaning unknown, possibly a nickname for a person deported to Spain, derived from the name of a location in Portugal.
Preobrazhensky m RussianDerived from Russian преображение (
preobrazenije) meaning "transformation, transfiguration", referring to the Transfiguration of Jesus. A famous bearer of the name was Russian revolutionary Yevgeni Preobrazhensky (1886-1937).
Prepon JewishThis is the surname of American actress Laura Prepon (born March 7, 1980).
Presbitero FilipinoBorrowed from Spanish
presbítero meaning "presbyter", an elder or priest in various Christian Churches. A notable bearer of this name is Filipino singer Thaddeus Presbitero
Durano Jr... [
more]
Preshaw English (British, Rare)This surname is a habitational name from a locality near Upham on the slopes of the South Downs. It is entirely within a private estate and has its own chapel.
Presley ScottishFrom Persley, a small Scottish hamlet on the River Don, Aberdeenshire, now a suburb of the much larger city of Aberdeen, named perhaps with the Pictish word
*pres-, meaning 'bushes' or 'undergrowth'.... [
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Press English, JewishA nickname for a pious individual from the Middle English form of "priest" or possibly someone employed by a priest. In the Jewish sense, one whose occupation was to iron clothes.
Prestwich English, Irishhabitational name from a place in Lancashire (now Greater Manchester) so called
Prestwick from Old English
preost "priest" and
wic "outlying settlement" or from other places with the same derivation.
Preto Portuguesecomes from the Portuguese word
preto meaning "black" or "dark". referring to someone with dark skin and/or hair. possibly a cognate of the spanish surname
Prieto Preus German/NorwegianUnknown, but may have come from Prussia or be Jewish. It could mean to jabber. Maybe the same as Preuss, but eliminated the S when immigrating to America.
Preve ItalianDerives from the Latin "presbyter" with the meaning of "Older". Abundant in the Piedmont region.
Preve ItalianFrom Greek "πρεσβύτερος" (presbyteros), via Latin "presbyter" with the meaning of "The Old One".... [
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Prevedoros GreekFrom the Italian rank of provveditore "he who sees to things" (overseer) was the style of various local district governors in the extensive, mainly maritime empire of the Republic of Venice.
Prévost FrenchFrom Old French
prevost meaning "provost", a status name for officials in a position of responsibility.
Prevot FrenchA prevot was a govenment position during the Ancient Régime
Prewett EnglishThe surname Prewett is derived from the Middle English word
prou, meaning "brave," or "valiant," with the addition of either of two common diminutive suffixes:
-et or
-ot. As such, this name is thought to have originally been a nickname for someone small but brave.
Prezioso ItalianMeans "precious, valuable" in Italian, derived from a nickname or from a medieval given name (masculine form of
Preziosa).
Prideaux CornishMeans "person from Prideaux, earlier Pridias", Cornwall (perhaps based on Cornish
prȳ "clay"). The modern Frenchified spelling is based on the idea that the name comes from French
près d'eaux "near waters" or
pré d'eaux "meadow of waters".
Pridmore Englishunexplained; perhaps a habitational name from a lost or unidentified place. Pridmore has long been a Leicestershire name.
Pridonov RussianThe surname Pridonov is derived from a nickname. It contains an indication of the place of residence of the ancestor: "at the Don, i.e. on the Don River". The river named Don flows not only in the European part of Russia, but also in Scotland (the city of Aberdon is located on it) and in France (a tributary of the Vilena).
Prieskorn GermanPossibly either a derisive nickname for a grain merchant from pries a variant of Middle High German
brüsch or Middle Low German
bross "brittle crumbly" and
korn "grain" or alternatively for a grain seller from
prisekorn "(I) determine the price of grain".
Priest EnglishDerived from the occupation
priest, which is a minister of a church. It could also be a nickname for a person who is / was a priest.
Prieur Frenchfrom
prieur Old French
prior "prior" a monastic official immediately subordinate to an abbot (from Latin
prior "superior") hence an occupational name for a servant of a prior or an ironic nickname... [
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Prigozhin m RussianFrom Russian
пригожий (prigozhiy), meaning "beautiful, pretty". Prigozhin was the last name of
Yevgeniy Prigozhin, the leader of the Wagner PMC until 2023 when he died in a plane crash... [
more]
Priidel EstonianPriidel is an Estonian surname derived from "prii" meaning "free".
Prikk EstonianPrikk is an Estonian surname meaning "(ship's) brig".
Primrose ScottishFrom the name of Primrose in Fife, Scotland, a place originally named
Prenrhos, literally "tree-moor" in Welsh. This is the family name of the Earls of Rosebery.
Prince English, FrenchNickname from Middle English, Old French
prince (Latin
princeps), presumably denoting someone who behaved in a regal manner or who had won the title in some contest of skill.
Princip Bosnian, SerbianProbably derived from Latin
princeps "leader, initiator, prince", which itself was ultimately derived from
primus "first" and
capere "to take". The surname may thus have originated as a nickname for someone with a princely appearance, or for someone who was the illegitimate offspring of a prince... [
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Príncipe Italian, SpanishFrom
principe "prince, heir" (Latin
princeps, genitive
principis, from
primus "first" and
capere "to take"), applied probably as a nickname for someone who gave himself airs and graces or for someone in the service of a prince.
Prins Dutch, JewishMeans "prince" in Dutch, a doublet of
Prince. Often a habitational name for someone who lived or worked near a location named
Prins, such as an inn or windmill, or sign depicting the Prince of Orange... [
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Prinsloo AfrikaansPrinsloo is an Afrikaans surname. The name is derived from the dutch word Prins (meaning prince), and a loo suffix meaning clearing in the forest. Variant spellings include Prinzloo and Prinslo.
Prior EnglishOccupational surname for a prior (a high-ranking official in a monastery), ultimately from Latin
prior meaning "superior, first".
Prior IrishAnglicized form of Irish Gaelic
Mac an Phríora meaning "son of the prior".
Priore Italianfrom Italian
priore "prior" either a nickname or occupational name which probably most often originated as a metonymic occupational name for a servant of a prior or some important lay dignitary... [
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Privett French, English, Welsh (?)French, from the given name Privat (see
Privatus). Also an English habitational name from a place so named in Hampshire, derived from Old English
pryfet "privet".
Procida ItalianHabitational name from
Procida, one of the Flegrean Islands off the coast of Naples in southern Italy. Derived from Ancient Greek Προχύτη
(Prokhútē) via Latin
Prochyta, of uncertain etymology.
Procopio ItalianItalian (Calabria) and Greek (Prokopios): from the personal name Procopio, Greek Prokopios, from pro ‘before’, ‘in front’ + kopē ‘cut’, actually an omen name meaning ‘success’, ‘prosperity’ but as a Church name taken to mean ‘pioneer’ as it was the name of the first victim of Diocletian's persecutions in Palestine in AD 303... [
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Proctor EnglishOccupational name for a legal practitioner in an ecclesiastical court or a person appointed to collect alms for those who could not go out to beg for themselves (i.e., lepers and the bedridden), from Middle English
proctour "steward", ultimately a contracted form derived from Latin
procurator "agent, manager"... [
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Proia ItalianFrom the name of a place in Italy. The meaning is uncertain, but it might be derived from Greek
πρωία (proía) "morning".
Proietti ItalianFrom Latin
proiecto "abandoned, thrown away", given to foundlings and children abandoned at orphanages. The name may have been taken from
la ruota dei proietti, or "foundling wheel", that some orphanages and religious institutes in Italy installed for infants to be anonymously abandoned in.
Prokuski PolishPolish in origin with history in America since at least the early 1900s
Pronk DutchMeans "flamboyance" in Dutch, derived from
pronken "to show off, to display" or "to sulk, be sullen, be displeased".
Prontzos GreekOriginally cattle breeders located in the Parnon mountains, the name derives from its original form, Prountzos, which means red faced ancestor, or bronzed face. It eventually got its current form as the centuries went by.
Proode EstonianProode is an Estonian surname possibly derived from "pruudi", meaning "bridal".
Prööm EstonianPrööm is an Estonian surname possibly derived from "krööm" meaning "grain".
Prophet English, Scottish, French, GermanScottish, English, French, and German: nickname from Middle English and Old French
prophete, Middle High German
prophet ‘prophet’, ‘seer’, ultimately from Greek
prophetes ‘predictor’, from
pro ‘before’ +
a derivative of
phemi ‘to speak’... [
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Prorok PolishThe meaning of prorok is prophet. It was the maiden name of my maternal grandmother. It is not a common name. Her family was from the southeastern part of Poland.
Protopopescu RomanianDerived from Romanian
protopop meaning "archpriest", from Old Church Slavonic протопопъ (
protopopŭ), from Koine Greek πρωτοπαπάς (
prōtopapás). A famous bearer of this surname is
Dragoș Protopopescu, a Romanian writer, poet, critic, philosopher, and far-right politician.
Protzman GermanA habitational name for someone from any of various places in Lower Saxony, Brandenburg, and Luxembourg called Protz.
Proud EnglishFrom a nickname for a vain or haughty person, derived from Middle English
proud "haughty, arrogant".
Proust FrenchFrom a nickname derived from French
preux meaning "valiant, brave". A famous bearer was Marcel Proust (1871-1922), a French writer.
Provencher FrenchFrom the French word for the flower periwinkle. (pervenche) Brought to Canada from France in 1660 by Sebastien Provencher.
Providence EnglishFrom the name of the capital city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island, derived from Middle English
providence meaning "divine guidance, care", ultimately from Latin
providentia.
Provodnikov RussianFrom Russian проводник
(provodnik) meaning "conductor". Means "son of a conductor".
Provost English, FrenchDerived from the Middle English
provost; referring to the person who heads a religious chapter in a cathedral or educational establishment. It was also used as a nickname for a self-important person and is a French variant of
Prevost.
Prowse EnglishNickname for a person who was proud, haughty, brave or valiant, derived from Old French
prous, prou, preux, proz and
prouz meaning "proud, brave, valiant". A famous bearer was David Prowse (1935-2020), an English bodybuilder, weightlifter and character actor who portrayed the villain Darth Vader in the Star Wars movies.
Prowze Anglo-NormanAn Anglo-Norman occupational surname used for soldiers or a nickname for someone bold that is derived from the pre-10th-century Old French
proz or
prouz, meaning "proud" or "brave". It could also be a variant of the surname
Prue... [
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Prude English (American)This surname comes from the English word prude. The definition for the word prude is a person who is or claims to be easily shocked by matters relating to sex or nudity.
Prude African AmericanThis surname came from the English word prude. The definition of the word prude is a person who is or claims to be easily shocked by matters relating to sex or nudity.
Prudhomme French, English, Norman, Medieval FrenchFrench (Prud’homme) and English (of Norman origin): nickname from Old French prud’homme ‘wise’, ‘sensible man’, a cliché term of approbation from the chivalric romances. It is a compound of Old French proz, prod ‘good’, with the vowel influenced by crossing with prudent ‘wise’ + homme ‘man’... [
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Prue English, FrenchEnglish: nickname for a redoubtable warrior, from Middle English
prou(s) ‘brave’, ‘valiant’ (Old French
proux,
preux).... [
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Pruett EnglishDerived from the Middle English word "prou," meaning "brave," or "valiant," with the addition of either of two common diminutive suffixes: "-et" or "-ot." As such, this name is thought to have originally been a nickname for someone small, but brave.
Pruna Spanish (Rare)Possibly a habitational name from a place so named in Spain. It could also be derived from Catalan
pruna "plum".
Průša m Czechfrom a pet form of the personal name Prokop
Prusinowski Polish (Rare)Habitational name for someone from any of various Polish places called Prusinow, Prusinowo, or Prusinowice, named with the ethnic name Prus, meaning 'village of the Prussians'.
Průšova f Czechfrom a pet form of the personal name Prokop. Feminine name of Průša
Pruss EstonianPruss is an Estonian surname meaning "beam" and "rafter".
Pruus EstonianPruus is an Estonian surname, possibly a corruption of "pruss" meaning "beam" and "timber".
Prymak BelarusianDerived from Belarusian прымак
(prymak) meaning "live-in son-in-law (man who marries and lives with his wife's family)".