Submitted names are contributed by users of this website. The accuracy of these name definitions cannot be guaranteed.
Helsing SwedishDenoted a person who came from the Swedish province Hälsingland.
Helstrom ScandinavianFrom a place called Helstrom, meaning a house (or shelter) by a river, from the pre 7th century Olde Norse "hiamlr- straumr".
Helthon Gothic"Unique" in Norse Mythology, German variant of Hilton
Helton English (American)Habitational name from Helton in Cumbria, named in Old English probably with
helde "slope" and
tun "farmstead, settlement", or possibly a variant of
Hilton... [
more]
Hem KhmerFrom Khmer ហេម
(hem) meaning "gold", ultimately from Sanskrit हेम
(hema).
Heman IndianThe name 'Heman' is a Jewish name, meaning 'Faithfull'.... [
more]
Hemati PersianDerived from Persian همت
(hemat) meaning "aspiration, ambition, zeal".
Hemingway EnglishProbably from the name of an unidentified minor place near the village of Southowram in West Yorkshire, England, derived from the Old English given name
Hemma combined with
weg meaning "way, road, path"... [
more]
Hemmings EnglishDerived from the given name
Hemming. It is the last name of the band member of Five Seconds of Summer (5sos), Luke Hemmings.
Hemsley EnglishEnglish: habitational name from either of two places in North Yorkshire called Helmsley. The names are of different etymologies: the one near Rievaulx Abbey is from the Old English personal name
Helm + Old English
leah ‘wood’, ‘clearing’, whereas Upper Helmsley, near York, is from the Old English personal name
Hemele + Old English
eg ‘island’, and had the form Hemelsey till at least the 14th century
Henares SpanishDerived from the Celtic form of "brave". Also is the name of many towns (Alcala de Henares, Espinosa de Henares, Tortola de Henares...) and a river
Hence German, English, WelshAn American spelling variant of
Hentz derived from a German nickname for
Hans or
Heinrich or from an English habitation name found in Staffordshire or Shropshire and meaning "road or path" in Welsh.
Hendaia Basque (Rare)From the name of a commune (
Hendaye in French) in southwestern France, of uncertain etymology. Possibly from Basque
handi "big, large, great" and
ibi "ford" or
ibai "river", though this structure would not be grammatically correct... [
more]
Hendrickson GermanDerivative of the Old German personnel “Heimric” meaning “home rule”.
Hendryx EnglishThis name was derived from
Hendrix and means "home ruler". This name is the 25841st most popular surname in the US.
Heng KhmerMeans "lucky, successful" in Khmer.
Hengst German, Dutchmetonymic occupational name for someone who worked with or bred horses or a nickname for a brave strong man from Middle High German and Middle Dutch
hengest "stallion" also "gelding" derived from Old Germanic
hangist "stallion"... [
more]
Henker GermanOccupational name for an Executioner, from the German word "Henker" meaning Hangman.
Henley English, Irish, German (Anglicized)English: habitational name from any of the various places so called. Most, for example those in Oxfordshire, Suffolk, and Warwickshire, are named with Old English
héan (the weak dative case of
heah ‘high’, originally used after a preposition and article) + Old English
leah ‘wood’, ‘clearing’... [
more]
Hennah CornishFrom a Cornish place name which possibly means "easeful valley" from Middle Cornish *
hueth "easeful" and *
tnou "valley".
Hennard FrenchFrom the ancient Germanic personal name
Haginhard composed of the elements
hag "enclosure protected place" and
hard "strong hardy".
Hennayake SinhaleseDerived from Sanskrit संनद्ध
(sannaddha) meaning "armoured, ready, prepared" and नयक
(nayaka) meaning "hero, leader".
Hennelly IrishFrom the Irish
Ó'hIonnghaile, itself "descendant of (a variation of)
Fionnghal" (
fionn, "white, fair";
gall, "stranger")... [
more]
Hennessee IrishA variant of the traditionally Irish surname
Hennessey or
Hennessy, an Anglicization of
Ó hAonghusa meaning "descendant of
Aonghus".
Henni EnglishA name coined by the contributor of this name, to describe himself Hensley EnglishProbably a habitational name from either of two places in Devon: Hensley in East Worlington, which is named with the Old English personal name
Heahmund and Old English
leah "(woodland) clearing", or Hensleigh in Tiverton, which is named from Old English
hengest "stallion" (or the Old English personal name
Hengest) and
leah... [
more]
Henville WelshDerived from the name of an ancestor meaning "Son of Anwyl"
Henwood EnglishHabitational name from any of various places so named, as for example Henwood in Cornwall, in Linkinhorne parish, which is named from Old English henn 'hen', 'wild bird' + wudu 'wood', or Hen Wood in Wootton, Oxfordshire
Henza Okinawan (Rare)From Okinawan 平安座 (
Henza) meaning "Henza", an island in the city of Uruma in the prefecture of Okinawa in Japan.
Heo KoreanOften spelled as ‘Huh,’ this Korean surname means ‘to permit’ or ‘advocate’.
Heo KoreanFrom Sino-Korean 許 (
heo) meaning "to approve", making it the Korean form of
Xu 2.
Her HmongFrom the clan name
Hawj associated with the Chinese character 侯
(hóu) (see
Hou).
Herbarth German, NormanReferences Old Norse Deity "Odin" being one of the "Son's of Odin". Remember that the Geats became the Ostrogoths through the Denmark pass--referenced in Beowulf. Or, it means "Warrior of the Bearded One", perhaps a King... [
more]
Herbolsheimer GermanHabitational name for someone from either of two places called Herbolzheim, in Baden and Bavaria.
Herbst German, JewishNickname from Middle High German
herbest "harvest". The modern German word
herbst has come to mean "fall" the time of year when the harvest takes place... [
more]
Herbster GermanOccupational name for a grape picker or vintner from Middle High German
herbest "(grape) harvest".
Herd DutchComes from Middle Dutch hert, herte ‘hart’, ‘stag’; probably a nickname for someone who was fleet of foot, or a habitational name for someone who lived at a house distinguished by the sign of a deer; variant of
Heard.
Herder GermanAn occupational surname in reference to herding animals. The anglicized pronounciation is "Her-der", but is Germanically pronounced, "Herr-der".
Heredia SpanishHabitational name from any of various places in Basque Country called Heredia, probably derived from Latin
heredium meaning "hereditary estate".
Hereford EnglishHabitational name from Hereford in Herefordshire, or Harford in Devon and Goucestershire, all named from Old English
here "army" +
ford "ford".
Hergenöther GermanHabitational name for someone from Hergenroth near Limburg or from Hergenrode near Darmstadt, both in Hessen.
Heringh SlovakHeringh, no history known, people having these surnames in Slovakia belong to the same family, very untypical for this region - Slovakia in the middle of Europe.
Heritage English (Rare)English status name for someone who inherited land from an ancestor, rather than by feudal gift from an overlord, from Middle English, Old French
(h)eritage ‘inherited property’ (Late Latin
heritagium, from
heres ‘heir’).
Herkül EstonianHerkül is an Estonian surname, possibly derived as a nickname from "Herkules (Hercules)".
Herlihy IrishFrom Irish Gaelic
Ó hIarfhlatha "descendant of
Iarfhlaith", a personal name meaning literally "lord of the west".
Hermaküla EstonianHermaküla is an Estonian surname possibly derived from "Herman's village".
Hermès FrenchEither a topographic name for someone who lived in a deserted spot or on a patch of waste land from Occitan
erm "desert waste" (from Greek
erēmia) and the topographic suffix -
ès, or from the given name
Hermès.
Hermida GalicianA surname of Galician origin, in Northern Spain. Derived from the Spanish word 'hermano', meaning brother.
Hermosillo SpanishNickname for a dandy, from a diminutive of
hermoso "finely formed, handsome". From Latin
formosus, from
forma "shape, form, beauty".
Herndon EnglishFrom Herne, a cottage, and den, a valley. The cottage in the valley.
Herndon Medieval EnglishThe surname Herndon was first found in Bedfordshire (Old English: Bedanfordscir), located in Southeast-central England, formerly part of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Mercia, where they held a family seat from ancient times... [
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Herner GermanDenoted someone hailing from the city
Herne in Germany.
Herold English, Dutch, GermanFrom the given name
Herold. This was the surname of David Herold, one of the conspirators in the Abraham Lincoln assassination plot.
Herridge Englishhabitational name from Herridges in Pauntley (Gloucestershire) or Highridge in King's Nympton (Devon). The Gloucestershire placename may derive from Old English
hæg "fence enclosure" and
hrycg "ridge" or while the Devon placename comes from an uncertain initial element and Old English
hrycg.
Herring German, English, Dutch, ScottishOccupational name for a fisherman, someone who caught or sold herring, or perhaps someone known for eating herring. It could have also been a nickname from the medieval phrase "to like neither herring nor barrel", meaning something of little value.
Herrman GermanHerrman is of ancient German origin. It is derived from a Germanic personal name made up of the elements
heri meaning "army," and
man meaning "man." Herrman was first found in Prussia, where the name emerged in medieval times as one of the notable families of the region.
Herschbach GermanFrom the name of two municipalities in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate in Germany. A notable bearer is the American chemist Dudley R. Herschbach (1932-).
Hershlag Jewish, YiddishThis is the original surname of Israeli-born American actress Natalie Portman (1981-), birth name Neta-Lee Hershlag.
Hertig GermanHertig is associated with the popular German personal name
Hartwig, meaning "hard-battle."
Hertzel GermanThe ancestral home of the Hertzel family is in the German province of Bavaria. Hertzel is a German nickname surname. Such names came from eke-names, or added names, that described their initial bearer through reference to a physical characteristic or other attribute... [
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Herzfeld GermanDerived from the same name of a municipality in Bitburg-Prüm, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.
Herzl German, JewishVariant of
Hertz. It was notably borne by the Austro-Hungarian Jewish journalist, writer and political activist Theodor Herzl (1860-1904), who is considered the founder of the modern Zionist movement.
Hesketh EnglishCombination of Old Norse
hestr "horse" and
skeið "racecourse". This is the name of several paces in England.
Hessler GermanTopographic surname derived from Middle High German place name Hasel or Hesel (Meaning "Hazel)
Hester EnglishThis surname is derived from a given name, which is the Latin form of Esther.
Heston English, IrishDerived from
Heston, a suburban area in West London (historically in Middlesex), or
Histon, a village and civil parish in Cambridgeshire, England. It is either named with Old English
hǣs meaning "brushwood" and
tūn meaning "farmstead, settlement, estate", or from
hyse "shoot, tendril, son, youth" and
tūn... [
more]
Hettiarachchi SinhaleseFrom Sinhala හෙට්ටි
(hetti) referring to the Chetty caste (primarily composed of merchants and traders) combined with the colonial-era title ආරච්චි
(arachchi) used to denote a village headman or leader.
Hettige SinhaleseFrom Sinhala හෙට්ටි
(hetti) referring to the Chetty caste (primarily composed of merchants and traders) combined with the suffix -ගේ
(-ge) meaning "of, home, house".
Heuer GermanThe name comes from the German word "Heu" meaning "hay."
Heuermann GermanOccupational name for (a freshly hired hand, a day laborer) from Middle High German
huren "to hire" and
man "man".
Heureaux French (Caribbean)Possibly from French
heureux "happy, lucky, good", denoting a happy person.
Ulises Heureaux (1845-1899) was the 22nd, 26th, and 27th president of the Dominican Republic
Heuser GermanDeriving from one of several places named Hausen.
Heuvel DutchMeans "hill" in Dutch, the name of several locations.
Hevia AsturianThis indicates familial origin within the eponymous parish of the municipality of Siero.
Hew EnglishEnglish: variant of the name
Hugh. This was at one time the usual form of the personal name in Scotland. English: occupational name from Middle English hewe ‘domestic servant’
Hewage SinhaleseFrom Sinhala හේවායා
(hewaya) meaning "soldier" and ගේ
(ge) meaning "home, house".
Hewczak PolishHewczak is primarily a Polish surname of the Ukrainian surname of Hewczuk.... [
more]
Hewton IrishI can only date it back to Armagh County, Ireland in the early 1800s.
Hexenjäger GermanHexenjäger is a German last name meaning hunter of witches or witch Hunter.
Hexspoor DutchDerived from Middle Dutch
hicken "to pick, to chop" and
spoor "spur", a nickname for a rider who often spurred on their horse.
Heyer German, DutchOccupational name for a grower or reaper of grass for hay, from Middle High German
höu "grass, hay" and the agent suffix
-er. Could also be a variant spelling of
Heier.
Heyer DutchFrom Middle Dutch
heiger "heron", a nickname for someone with long legs. Alternatively, from a Germanic personal name composed of
hag "enclosure, hedge" and
heri "army".
Heygate EnglishFrom a location which is either "hay gate" (
hay + Old English
geat) or "high gate" (
heáh +
geat).
Hibbs EnglishThis possibly derived from a medieval diminutive, similar to Hobbs for Robert.
Hibino JapaneseFrom Japanese 日
(hi) meaning "sun, day", 比
(bi) meaning "comparison, match, equal" and 野
(no) meaning "field, wilderness".
Hibiya JapaneseIt consists of the Japanese Kanji meaning day/sun (日), ratio (比), and valley (谷). Chitose Hibiya from the manga and anime Chobits is a notable bearer of this surname.