Submitted names are contributed by users of this website. The accuracy of these name definitions cannot be guaranteed.
Bolling English, Germannickname for someone with close-cropped hair or a large head, Middle English bolling 'pollard', or for a heavy drinker, from Middle English bolling 'excessive drinking'. German (Bölling): from a personal name
Baldwin Bollinger German (Swiss)Habitational name for someone from any of three places called Bollingen, in Schwyz, Württemberg, and Oldenburg, or from Bohlingen near Lake Constance (which is pronounced and was formerly written as Bollingen).
Bolloré BretonBolloré derives from bod which means bush and lore which means laurel in Breton
Bölöni HungarianFrom the place name
Bölön, a village located in what is now Covasna County in Romania. This surname is used mainly among the Székelys.
Bolsonaro Portuguese (Brazilian)Brazilian Portuguese cognate of
Bolzonaro; in the case of former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro (1955-), his Italian great-grandfather had the spelling changed from
Bolzonaro upon emigrating to Brazil in the late 19th century.
Bolt EnglishFrom Middle English
bolt meaning "bolt", "bar" (Old English
bolt meaning "arrow"). In part this may have originated as a nickname or byname for a short but powerfully built person, in part as a metonymic occupational name for a maker of bolts... [
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Boltz GermanMay designate a creator of bolts for crossbows or bowmen. May also be a short form of
Baldwin.
Bolzonaro ItalianOccupational name for a person who operated a battering ram, derived from Italian
bolzone literally meaning "battering ram".
Boman SwedishCombination of Swedish
bo (noun) "nest, farm, dwelling" and
man "man".
Bombadil LiteratureIn J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings", the surname of Tom Bombadil, an enigmatic character not present in Peter Jackson's movie adaptation.
Bompadre ItalianFrom a medieval given name Bonuspater, meaning "good father", given in hopes that the "eternal father (god)" would look kindly on the child. Was often given to abandoned infants as a surname.
Bon French, HungarianAs a French surname, it is derived from Old French
bon meaning "good", or occasionally from the Latin given name
Bonus (borne by a minor 3rd-century Christian saint martyred at Rome with eleven companions under the Emperor Vespasian... [
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Bonacci Italian"Bona" comes from the Italian for good, "Buona" and "cci" is ancient Latin form for "man." Thus, "the good man." A derivation of FiBonacci, or "son of Bonacci." Was the name of the famous mathematician, Leondardo de Pisa: Leonardo of Pisa is now known as Fibonacci short for filius Bonacci... [
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Bonaduce ItalianFrom the Latin phrase
bona duce fortuna, "with good luck as your guide".
Bonal FrenchThis is a surname formed from the Latin root "bonus" (= good) and the Germanic "wald" (waldan = govern). Bonwald meaning good governor.
Bonamici ItalianMeans "good friend", originating as a nickname or from a given name of the same meaning.
Bonanno ItalianFrom the medieval personal name
Bonanno, an omen name meaning "good year". Mainly found throughout southern Italy.
Bonar Scottish, Northern IrishFrom a medieval nickname for a courteous or good-looking person (from Middle English
boner "gentle, courteous, handsome"). A notable bearer of the surname was Canadian-born British Conservative politician Andrew Bonar Law (1858-1923), prime minister 1922-23.
Bonar IrishA "translation" of Irish Gaelic
Ó Cnáimhsighe "descendant of
Cnáimhseach", a nickname meaning literally "midwife" and ostensibly a derivative of Gaelic
cnámh "bone".
Bonasera SicilianDerived from the expression
bona sera "good evening". This name was applied as a nickname either for someone who made frequent use of this salutation or as a personal name bestowed on a child as an expression of gratitude in the sense "it was a good evening when you were born".
Bonatti ItalianComes from the pesonal name '
Bona' which is derived from Latin '
bonus', which means
'great'.
Bonba Basque, SpanishFrom Basque
bonba meaning "bomb", (Latin
bombus), hence probably a nickname for someone with an explosive temperament, or a metonymic occupational name for an artilleryman.
Bondia CatalanBondia is a Catalan surname. It means 'good day' or 'good morning'.
Bonfiglio ItalianFrom the given name
Bonfiglio an omen or well-wishing name meaning "good son" from
bono "good" and
figlio "child, son"... [
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Bongiorno ItalianItalian from the medieval personal name
Bongiorno (composed of
bono ‘good’ +
giorno ‘day’), bestowed on a child as an expression of the parents’ satisfaction at the birth (‘it was a good day when you were born’).
Bongiovanni ItalianComes from the personal name
Giovanni composed of the elements
bon ‘good’ +
Giovanni, Italian equivalent of John
Boniadi Persian (Rare)Probably indicated a person from the Iranian village of Boniad, possibly derived from Persian بنیاد
(bonyad) meaning "foundation, base". A notable bearer is Iranian-English actress
Nazanin Boniadi (1980-).
Bonnar IrishTranslation of the Gaelic "O'Cnaimhsighe", descendant of Cnaimhseach, a byname meaning "Midwife
Bonnefoy FrenchThe name is derived from the French words
bonne, meaning good, and
foi meaning faith.
Bonnemaison FrenchLiterally means "good house", derived from French
bonne "good" and French
maison "house". As such, this surname is most likely a locational surname, in that it originally either referred to someone who lived in a good house (probably more like a mansion) or to someone who was born in (or lived in) the place Bonnemaison, which is nowadays located in the Calvados department of France... [
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Bonnin FrenchDerived from a diminutive of
Bon, it is also found in the island of Mallorca and Turin, Italy.
Bonsall English (British)This is a locational name which originally derived from the village of Bonsall, near Matlock in Derbyshire. The name is Norse-Viking, pre 10th Century and translates as 'Beorns-Halh' - with 'Beorn' being a personal name meaning 'Hero' and 'Halh' a piece of cultivated land - a farm.
Bonsor FrenchBonsor is from French origin mean good day
Bon soir Bontrager GermanComing from the Old German, Bonträger or Bornträger, meaning 'water carrier'.
Bonus French, German, DutchHumanistic Latinization of vernacular names meaning ‘good’, for example French Lebon or Dutch de Goede
Bonuš CzechFrom a pet form of the personal name Bonifác, Czech form of Bonifacio.
Boo KoreanFrom Sino-Korean 富 (Bu) meaning "Fortune".
Booke AmericanAmerican variant of the German name
Buche meaning "beech" in reference to the beech tree. Notable bearer is the actor
Sorrell Booke (1930-1994).
Booker EnglishOccupational name for a maker of books, a scribe or a binder of books, from Old English
bocere.
Bool EnglishThis surname derives from the Old English pre 7th Century
bula, or the Medieval English
bulle,
bolle, meaning "bull", and was given as a nickname to one with great physical strength.
Boomgarden German, Dutch (?)Either an occupational name for an orchard worker or a topographic name for someone who lives in or by an orchard.
Boomhouwer German, DutchBoomhouwer, means "Cutter of Trees", or "The one who hews trees", having Boom translating into "tree", houw meaning to "hew" or to "cut", and er meaning "the one who".... [
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Boorman EnglishThis surname is of Anglo-Saxon origin, and may be either a topographical name for someone who lived in a particularly noteworthy or conspicuous cottage, from the Old English
bur "bower, cottage, inner room" with
mann "man", or a locational name from any of the various places called Bower(s) in Somerset and Essex, which appear variously as
Bur,
Bure and
Bura in the Domesday Book of 1086.
Boot English, Dutch, GermanEnglish: metonymic occupational name for a maker or seller of boots, from Middle English, Old French bote (of unknown origin).... [
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Boothroyd EnglishPossibly from the Old English booth meaning "hut, shack" and royd meaning "clearing (in the woods)".
Booty EnglishMeans butt. Usually big and round.There are also two of them.
Bootz DutchA Dutch surname meaning a "nickname for a ridiculous person" or a variant of
Boot Bora Indian, AssameseFrom a military title used during the Ahom Kingdom that indicated an official who commanded 20 soldiers.
Borák CzechHabitational name for someone from one of many places named with bor meaning "pine forest"; alternatively from a short form of the personal names Dalibor or Bořivoj, containing the element -bor meaning "battle".
Borbak-ool TuvanDerived from Tuvan борбак
(borbak) meaning "round, rounded, spherical" combined with оол
(ool) "son, boy".
Borberg DanishBorberg is derived from the location Borbjerg in Western Jutland in Denmark.
Borcha AragoneseProper, non-Castilianized form of
Borja; it indicates familial origin within the eponymous municipality.
Bordner GermanA variant spelling of Bartner, a job name for a battle axe maker.
Borecki EnglishHabitational name for someone from a place called Borek or Borki, from
bór "pine forest".
Borén SwedishCombination of an unknown first element and the common surname suffix
-én (originally from Latin
-enius "descendant of"). Also possible habitational name derived from places named with
Bor-, such as Borås, Borensberg, and Borlänge... [
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Boren GermanOf unclear origin, most likely a variant of the German surname
Born.
Borg MalteseDerived from Arabic برج
(burj) meaning "castle, citadel".
Borges Portuguese, SpanishPossibly from Old French
burgeis meaning "town-dweller" (see
Burgess). Alternately, it may have denoted someone originally from the city of Bourges in France.
Borgo ItalianBorgo is an Italian surname, which means 'village' or 'borough'.
Borisow UkrainianThe origin of this name comes from Ukraine, the original name being Borisov.
Borkowski PolishHabitational name for someone from any of various locations called Borki, Borkowice or Borek, all derived from Polish
bór meaning "conifer forest, pine forest".
Bormann GermanThis surname is presumed to be a variant of
Bornemann, which is made up of Middle Low German
born meaning "spring" and
man meaning "man," denoting someone who lived by a spring or a well.
Born German, EnglishA topographical name indicating someone who lived near a stream, from the Old English "burna, burne". Alternatively, it could be contemporarily derived from the modern English word "born". Possible variants include
Bourne,
Burns and
Boren.
Bornemann Low GermanNorth German: topographic name denoting someone who lived by a well or spring, from Middle Low German born ‘spring’, ‘well’ + man ‘man’.
Boro Indian, BodoFrom the name of the Boro (or Bodo) people, itself either meaning "great people" or derived from the name of the Hindu god
Varaha.
Boronda American (Hispanic), BasqueBoronda is a Californio surname that is also of Basque origin. Boronda is the name of a place in Salinas California named after Jose Eusebio Boronda where he made his house out of Adobe. Today, It is a California national Historic landmark in Boronda road in Salinas.
Borowicz PolishPatronymic from a pet form of Borowy, or from Borzyslaw, Bolebor, or some other personal name formed with the element bor ‘to fight’.
Borrelli ItalianThere are three possible origins of this surname. It could derive from some place names located in Catania and Campania -two Italian southern regions. Another hypothesis is that it derives from the Celtic word
borro, meaning "proud" or maybe "ditch"... [
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Borresen DanishThe Danish surname Borresen has two origins. Boerresen is composed of -sen 'son' + the given name Boerre, the modern equivalent of Old Norse Byrgir 'the helper' (from proto-Indo-European root BHER- 'to carry, bear')... [
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Borromeo Spanish (Philippines)Nickname derived from Italian
buon romeo meaning "good pilgrim", from
buono meaning "good" and
Romeo meaning "pilgrim (to Rome)".
Borsheim Norwegian (Rare)Habitational name from either of two farmsteads in Norway: Borsheim in Rogaland and Børsheim in Hordaland. Borsheim is a combination of an unknown first element and Norwegian
heim "home", while Børsheim is a combination of Old Norse
byrgi "fence, enclosure" and
heim.
Bortnik RussianMeans "beekeeper" in Russian, used as an occupational name.
Borzykh RussianDerived from Russian борзый
(borzy) meaning "swift, brisk".
Bosch AmericanThe surname Bosch originates from the Old Norse word "buski," meaning "bush," or "woods” thus it is classed at a toponymic surname and was most likely used by a man who lived near a prominent bush... [
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Boscolo ItalianHabitational name for someone who lived by a forest, derived from Italian
bosco meaning "woods, forest".
Bosinney CornishDenotes the original bearer came from Bossiney, Cornwall. Bossiney comes from Cornish
Bod and
Cini, meaning "Cini's dwelling," with Cini being a Cornish name of unknown meaning.... [
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Bosley EnglishEnglish habitation surname derived from the Old English personal name
Bosa and the Old English
leah "clearing, field". It's also possibly a variant of the French surname Beausoleil meaning "beautiful sun" from the French
beau 'beautiful, fair' and
soleil 'sun'... [
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Boşnak TurkishMeans "Bosniak" in Turkish. One of the only major ethnic groups that adopted Islam during the Ottoman Empire. A huge diaspora of Bosniaks live in Turkey and many Turks have Bosniak heritage.
Bošnjak Croatian, SerbianDerived from "Bošnjak", for someone who has their roots in Bosnia. This surname is rare in Bosnian Muslims.
Boso ItalianFrom the medieval personal name Boso, from a Germanic personal name derived from a pejorative nickname meaning ‘leader’, ‘nobleman’, or ‘arrogant person’. Compare Dutch Boos.
Bosoy RussianDerived from Russian босой
(bosoy) meaning "barefoot". This may have been a nickname for a low-class person.
Boss EnglishFrom an originally French term meaning "hunchback".
Bossier FrenchOccupational name for a cooper, from an agent derivative of Old French
bosse 'barrel'.
Bosso ItalianDerived from Italian
bosso "box tree", probably applied as a topographic name but possibly also as a metonymic occupational name for a wood carver or turner.
Boston EnglishHabitational name from the town Boston in Lincolnshire, England. The name means "
Botwulf’s stone".... [
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Boström SwedishCombination of Swedish
bo "dwelling, home" and
ström "stream, river".
Bostwick EnglishFrom an English surname which was from a lost or unidentified place name. The second element is clearly Old English
wic "outlying (dairy) farm".
Boswell French (Anglicized)The name Boswell is an Anglicization of the name of a French village: Boseville (Beuzeville). This was a village of 1400 inhabitants near Yvetot, in Normandy. (from 'A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames', by Charles W. Bardsley, New York, 1901)... [
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Botelho Portuguese, Portuguese (Brazilian)From the Portuguese word
botelho, which can denote a measure of grain, a grain sack, or seaweed, and was probably applied as an occupational name for a grain dealer or a gatherer of kelp or seaweed.
Botkin RussianThis was the surname of
Evgeniy Botkin ( 1865 - 1918) who was the Russian court physician. He remained loyal to the family of Tsar Nicholas II Romanov when the revolution occurred and followed them into exile in Siberia... [
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