Browse Submitted Surnames

Schiazza Italian
From chiazza "stain, blot", perhaps given to someone with a prominent birthmark. Might also from a regional dialect, meaning "piazza, town square".

Schink Dutch
Variant of Schenk.

Schoen Dutch
Means "shoe" in Dutch, an occupational name for a shoemaker.

Schoenmakers Dutch
Variant of Schoenmaker.

Schrijver Dutch
Means "scribe, clerk, writer" in Dutch, cognate to German Schreiber.

Schut Dutch
Variant of Schutte.

Schut Jewish
Occupational name from East Slavic šut "jester, fool".

Schütte German
From schutter "marksman, shooter", an occupational name for an archer. Compare Schutz.

Schuurman Dutch
Derived from Dutch schuur "barn, shed" and man "person, man".

Scime Italian
Possibly from the given name Simone 2, from Shimei or Shemesh, or from the Arabic root word شمس (shams or sams) "sun".

Scimia Italian
From an archaic form of Italian scimmia "monkey", from Ancient Greek σιμός (simos) "snub-nosed". Has figurative meanings of "drunk" and "imitator, mimic, aper".

Scorrano Italian
Denotes someone from Scorrano, Italy. Coincides with scorrano "to run, to flow".

Scurti Italian
Possibly from Neapolitan curto "short".

Scuteri Italian
Variant of Scuderi.

Scutti Italian
From Sicilian scutu, "shield".

Secchi Italian
Probably related to Italian secco "thin, dry". May alternately derive from secare "to cut", Sardinian seghi "sixteen", segete "harvest, harvest fodder", or a shortened form of seneche "old, aged".

Sedda Italian
From a place name in Sardinia, meaning "top of a mountain". May alternately derive from Sardinian sedda "saddle", indicating the bearer's occupation.

Serrao Italian
Probably from a dialectical term meaning "closed, shut".

Sette Italian
Means "seven". Probably a nickname for the seventh child of a family, though it could derive from a place name containing the element.

Seward English
Derived from the given name Sæweard.

Shade English
From Old English sceadu "shadow, wraith", possibly a nickname for a very thin man.

Shewell English
Variant of Sewell, possibly influenced by the Middle English word shewel "scarecrow".

Siddi Italian
From the name of a municipality in Sardinia, possibly deriving from Vulgar Latin casilli "huts, farmhouses".

Siddu Italian
From Sardinian siddu "seal, brand", or the related siddai/re "to seal, to tighten", from which come the phrases 'siddai is dentis' "to grit one's teeth" and 'siddàu siast ingùnis' "may you be sealed there", the latter of which would have been affectionately said to a child that wouldn't stay still.

Silesu Sardinian
Meaning unknown.

Sillen Dutch
Derived from a diminutive form of a given name, either Marcelis/Marcilia or Cecilia.

Single English
Topographic name derived from Old English sengel meaning "burnt clearing" or "brushwood".

Single English
From Middle English sengle meaning "alone, solitary, unmarried" or "simple, honest, sincere".

Single German
Derived from a pet form of a Germanic given name beginning with sing-.

Sipala Italian
From Sicilian sipala "hedge".

Sirota Russian
From Russian сирота (sirota) "orphan", perhaps given to a foundling, or a nickname for someone who was poorly-dressed.

Slaats Dutch
Possibly a contracted form of Dutch des laats meaning "the serf", from Middle Dutch laets "serf, bondsman, freedman".

Slack English
Means "small valley, shallow dell", derived from Old Norse slakki "a slope", a topographic name for someone who lived by such a landform, or a habitational name from one of the places named with this word, for example near Stainland and near Hebden Bridge in West Yorkshire.

Slongo Italian
Variant of Longo.

Slot Dutch
Means "lock, clasp" in Dutch, an occupational name for a locksmith.

Smid Dutch
Means "smith" in Dutch, cognate to English Smith.

Smout Dutch, Flemish
Means "oil, lard, melted animal fat" in Dutch, an occupational name for someone who sold fat or lard, or a nickname for someone who ate – or who could afford to eat – large amounts of food containing it.

Snoek Dutch
Means "pike (fish)" in Dutch.

Soderini Italian
Possibly related to French soudoyer "to bribe", referring to paid mercenaries. Alternately, an elaborate form of Sodero.

Sodero Italian
Probably related to the Greek name Soter, from Ancient Greek σωτήρ (sōtḗr) meaning "saviour".

Solinas Italian
Meaning uncertain; could be related to Latin solum, from which comes Italian suolo "earth, ground, soil" and suola "sole (of the foot or shoe)", or from Italian salina "salt pan, salt marsh".

Sollai Italian
Habitational name from Mount Sollai.

Sørbø Norwegian
Habitational name from any of several places in Norway, derived from Old Norse Saurbœr, composed of saurr "mire, mud, dirt" and bœr "farm, settlement". Cognate to Sowerby.

Sorella Italian
Means "sister". Nickname for someone known for behaving in a sisterly manner, or perhaps like a nun.

Sorgato Italian
From Italian sorgo "sorghum".

Sorgente Italian
From sorgente "spring, rising water".

Spaans Dutch
Either a patronymic from the archaic given name Spaan, of uncertain etymology, or an occupational name derived from Middle Dutch spaen "wood chip, piece of wood; spoon, spatula".

Spalla Italian
Means "shoulder".

Spallone Italian
From spalla "shoulder, back", indicating someone who carried things on their shoulders. The modern translation is "smuggler". Alternately, may be an elaboration of Spalla.

Spann German
Possibly derived from Middle High German spenne "disagreement, dispute, quarrel".

Speca Italian
From a variant of spiga "spike, ear (of grain)"

Spellini Italian
Possibly derived from Old Germanic spellą meaning "news, message" or "story, legend", perhaps a nickname for a storyteller or messenger.

Spijk Dutch
Possibly a habitational name from any of several locations called Spijk, derived from Old Dutch spich "headland, spit".

Splendente Italian
From Italian splendente "bright, shining", supposedly given to an infants abandoned at orphanages on sunny days.

Spoor English, Dutch
From Middle Dutch and Middle English spoor "spur", an occupational name for a maker or seller of spurs.

Springer English
An occupational name for a dancer, or perhaps a hunter, from either Old English springen "to leap" or Middle English springe "snare, trap".

Squitieri Italian
Variant of Scuteri.

Staffieri Italian
Means "footman, groom", ultimately from staffa "stirrup".

Stam Dutch
Means "trunk (of a tree), stem" in Dutch, a nickname for a blocky or heavily built man.

Stampone Italian
Meaning uncertain. Possibly from Italian stampare "to print, to stamp", or from Tuscan stampo "tree stump".

Star Slovene
From Slovenian star "old, aged" (see Stare).

Star English
Variant of Starr.

Stasi Italian
From the Roman pranomen Statius.

Stater English
Variant of Stather.

Stather English
Habitational name derived from a place in England by the River Trent 1, derived from Old Norse stǫðvar "jetties, wharfs, landing stage".

Stegeman Dutch
Derived from Middle Dutch stēge "lane, alleyway; steep path, slope" and man "person, man".

Sticca Italian
Possibly from a dialectical word meaning "long shovel".

Stockard German (Americanized)
Americanized form of Stockhardt.

Stockhardt German
Nickname for a stiff person, from Stock "stick, staff, trunk" and hart "hard".

Stoker Scottish, Irish
Means "trumpeter", from Scottish Gaelic and Irish stoc "trumpet, bugle, horn".

Stolk Dutch
Contracted form of Stolwijk, a town in South Holland, Netherlands, probably derived from Middle Dutch stolle "lump, chunk" and wijc "farmstead, village".

Storm Dutch, Flemish
Occupational name for someone who rang an alarm bell warning of oncoming storms.

Stornelli Italian
Meaning uncertain; may be from storno "starling", or directly from stornelli, an Italian lyric or folk song.

Stronach Scottish
From Gaelic srónach meaning "nosy" or "sharp-nosed".

Stuifzand Dutch
Means "drift-sand, quicksand" in Dutch, from the name of a town in the Netherlands.

Sullen English
Means "gloomy, ill-tempered, moody" in English, with the archaic meanings "lonely, desolate" and "mischievous, malignant, obstinate", derived from Anglo-Norman soleyn "solitary, alone".

Swinkels Dutch
Contracted form of Dutch des winkels meaning "from the corner". Compare Winkler.

Szálas Hungarian
Derived from Hungarian szál "thread, stick, straw", a nickname for a tall, thin person.

Tacconi Italian
Possibly from Italian taccone "patch".

Tamburini Italian
Means "drummer", from Italian tamburo "drum".

Taris Italian
Meaning unknown, probably from Sardinian.

Tartaglia Italian
From Italian tartagliare "to stutter".

Tassi Italian
Could be a patronymic form of the given name Tasso, indicate the bearer is from one of several municipalities called Tasso, or be a nickname from Italian tasso meaning "badger (animal)" or "yew".

Tellinghusen East Frisian
Habitational name from a lost or unidentified location in Lower Saxony.

Tenaglia Italian
From tenaglia "pincers".

Ten Have Dutch
Variant form of Hof.

Ter Haar Dutch
Habitational name meaning "at the sandy ridge".

Ter Horst Dutch, Low German
Variant of Horst.

Terpstra West Frisian, Dutch
Derived from terp, a kind of artificial hill used as shelter during floods or high tide, and the Frisian habitational suffix -stra.

Tetta Italian
Means "boob, tit" in Italian.

Tewes German
Derived from a short form of the given name Matthäus.

Ticozzi Italian
Possibly derived from the given name Ardito or its diminutive forms Ardizzo or Ardizzone.

Timmer Dutch, Low German
Means "timber" in Dutch and Low German, an occupational name for a carpenter.

Tizzoni Italian
From Italian tizzone "embers, live coal; firebrand", probably a nickname for a troublemaker or revolutionary.

Todde Italian
From a modification of Latin tollere "to lift, to raise; to destroy". Alternately, may derive from the medieval Sardinian name Totolle.

Todeschini Italian
From Italian tedesco "German, of Germany".

Tol Dutch

Tola Italian, Albanian

Tolfree English
From the Middle English given name Thorferth or Torfrey, the English and Norman forms of Old Norse Þórfreðr meaning "Thor’s peace".

Tontodonati Italian
From Italian tonto "foolish, stupid" and the given name Donato.

Torta Italian
Probably from Italian torto "twisted, bent, crooked", or the related French tort "wrong, deviated".

Tostado Spanish
Means "toasted; tanned" or "brown, dark" in Spanish, a nickname for someone with dark skin, or who tanned easily.

Trémont French
Habitational name from any of several locations in France, derived from Latin trans "across, beyond" and mons "mountain", making it a cognate of Italian Tremonti... [more]

Tremonti Italian
Pluralised form of Tremonte, a habitational name meaning "over the mountain".

Trevino Spanish (Anglicized)
Anglicized form of Treviño.

Triarico Italian
Possibly an altered form of Tricarico.

Tricarico Italian
Denoting someone from the province of Tricarico, in Basilicata.

Troia Italian
Could derive from the name of a town in Foggia, or be a nickname derived from Italian troia "sow, female pig", which has a slang meaning of "slut".

Troost Dutch, Low German
Means "comfort, consolation" in Dutch, a nickname for someone who was particularly encouraging or helpful, or perhaps a byname for a child born after the death of an older sibling.

Troth English
From a nickname meaning "truth" or "oath, pledge, promise", given to someone known to be truthful or loyal, or perhaps known for swearing oaths.

Trovatelli Italian
Means "foundling" in Italian, literally trovato "found" and the diminutive suffix -ello.

Trovato Italian
Given to a foundling or abandoned child, literally "found" in Italian.

Troy Dutch
From a short form of the personal names Geertrui and Geertruida, Dutch forms of Gertrude... [more]

Turba Italian
Possibly from Italian turbare, "to disturb, to trouble", itself from Latin turba, "turmoil, disturbance; mob, crowd". Alternately, it could be from the German surname Turba, of uncertain meaning.

Tuttoilmondo Italian
Possibly derived from the French given name Toulemonde, which is either itself derived from the Germanic names Thurmond or Tedmond, or from the phrase tout le monde, literally "all the world", or "everybody"... [more]

Tuveri Italian
Possibly from Sardinian Campidanese tuvera, meaning "pipe of the bellows", indicating someone who worked at a forge.

Uccheddu Italian
From Sardinian uccheddu, "eyelet, buttonhole".

Uitterdijk Dutch
From the toponym Uiterdijk, derived from uiter "outer" and dijk "dike, levee".

Urbino Sicilian, Italian
Possibly from the name of an Italian town. Could also be from Sicilian urbu or orbu, meaning "blind", in which case it may refer to literal blindness, or a more metaphorical "blind to one's sins", especially in the case of foundlings.

Urgu Italian
From an ancient toponym.

Usai Italian
Possibly from the name of the former village Usani, or alternately, from Sardinian uscare "to burn, to scorch".

Vadalà Italian
Derived from the Arabic given name Abd Allah, meaning "servant of God".

Valsecchi Italian
Denoting someone from the former municipality of Valsecca in Lombardy.

Van Berkel Dutch
Means "from Berkel", the name of several villages derived from berk "birch tree" and lo "forest clearing".

Van Coevorden Dutch
Means "from Coevorden", the name of a city in the Netherlands derived from Middle Dutch coe "cow" and voorde "ford, crossing".

Van Delft Dutch
Means "from Delft" in Dutch, a city in South Holland, Netherlands, named for the nearby Delf canal, which derives from Middle Dutch delven "to dig, delve, excavate; to bury".

Van den Bos Dutch
Means "from the forest" in Dutch, a variant form of Van Den Bosch.

Van den Hurk Dutch
From any of several place names derived from the element hornik "corner".

Van Den Oever Dutch
Means "from the riverbank" in Dutch, derived from oever "bank, riverbank, shore". Den Oever is also the name of a village in North Holland.

Van Der Aa Dutch, Flemish
Means "from the Aa" in Dutch, a common name for rivers and streams derived from Old Germanic *ahwō "stream, river; water".

Van Der Bruggen Dutch
Means "from the bridges" in Dutch.

Van Der Eijk Dutch
Means "from the oak", derived from Middle Dutch eike "oak (tree)".

Van Der Geer Dutch
Means "from the headland", derived from Dutch geer "pointed piece of land, headland; spear".

Van Der Heiden Dutch
Variant spelling of Van Der Heijden.

Van der Kerk Dutch
Means "from the church" in Dutch.

Van Der Laan Dutch
Means "from the lane" in Dutch.

Van Der Meijden Dutch

Van der Plas Dutch
Means "from the pool" in Dutch, derived from plas "pool, puddle, pond; body of stagnant water".

Van der Ploeg Dutch
Means "of the plough" in Dutch, an occupational name for a farmer or a bookbinder (a ploeg also being a tool used in binding books), or a habitational name for someone who lived by a sign depicting a plough.

Van Der Poel Dutch
Means "from the pool".

Van Der Spek Dutch
Habitational name derived from Middle Dutch specke "log dam, bridge of tree trunks, road through a marshy area".

Van Der Valk Dutch
Means "of the falcon" or "from De Valk" in Dutch. Compare Valk.

Van Der Vest Dutch (Archaic)
Means "from the city wall, of the fort", derived from Middle Dutch veste "fortification, stronghold, castle; reliability".

Van der Weide Dutch
Means "from the pasture" in Dutch, either a topographic name for someone who lived by a meadow, or a metonymic occupational name for a butcher.

Van der Werf Dutch
Means "from the wharf" or "from the shipyard" in Dutch, derived from werf meaning "quay, wharf, shipyard", or from the older form werve "dyke, quay, bank". Can be a topographic name for someone who lived near such a place, or an occupational name for someone who worked at a shipyard, such as a carpenter.

Van Deursen Dutch
Toponymic surname derived from Deursen, Deurne (also Deurse) or Deurzen, all derived from Middle Dutch dorn "thorn, thornbush".

Van De Wetering Dutch
Means "from the drainage channel", from Dutch wetering "canal, waterway, drainage channel" or the name of a town using it as an element.

Van Dongen Dutch
Means "from Dongen", a village in North Brabant, Netherlands, derived from donk "sandy hill (in marshy area)".

Van Doorn Dutch
Means "of the thorns", a topographic name for someone who lived near thorn bushes, or in a settlement named after them.

Van Driel Dutch
Means "from Driel" in Dutch, referring to either the village Driel or any of several other settlements containing driel as an element... [more]

Van Duijn Dutch
Means "from the dune" in Dutch.

Van Duijne Dutch
Variant of Van Duijn.

Van Dyke Dutch
Variant form of Van Dijk.

Van Eck Dutch
Means "from Eck", a town in the province of Gelderland in the Netherlands. Derived from hek "fence".

Van Egmond Dutch
Means "from Egmond" in Dutch, the name of a town and former municipality in North Holland. The toponym is possibly derived from heeg-munde (or hecmunda) meaning "enclosed fortress".

Van Erp Dutch
Means "from Erp" in Dutch, a town in North Brabant, Netherlands, possibly derived from Old Dutch *apa "watercourse" and an unclear first element.

Van Es Dutch
Means "from the ash tree", denoting someone who lived by an ash tree or who came from a place named for them, such as Esch.

Van Gemert Dutch
Means "from Gemert" in Dutch, the name of a village in North Brabant, Netherlands, possibly derived from Old Germanic mari "lake" (compare Old Dutch meri) combined with the collectivising prefix ga-.

Van Gent Dutch
Means "from Ghent" in Dutch, the name of a city in Belgium possibly derived from Celtic ganda "confluence; place where two rivers meet", or from the name of the Celtic goddess Gontia, tutelary deity of the river Günz#.

Van Gestel Dutch
Means "from Gestel" in Dutch, a settlement in North Brabant, Netherlands derived from either gestel "height between two river valleys" or gestel "guest house, inn" (compare Gastel).

Van Gils Dutch
Means "from Gilze" in Dutch, a village in North Brabant, Netherlands. Possibly derived from a cognate of Old Norse gil "gap, ravine, gully".

Van Ginkel Dutch
Means "from Ginkel" in Dutch, the name of a settlement in Gelderland, Netherlands, possibly derived from Old Dutch gengi "accessible, passable" and lo "light forest, forest clearing".

Van Gool Dutch
Means "from Goirle" in Dutch, the name of a town in North Brabant, Netherlands, derived from Middle Dutch goor "filth, dirty; swampy forest floor" and lo "forest clearing, light forest".

Van Grieken Dutch
Means "of Greeks", derived from Dutch Griek "Greek (person)".

Van Haren Dutch
Means "from Haren" in Dutch, the name of several settlements derived from haar "sandy ridge".

Van Helden Dutch
Means "from Helden" in Dutch, the name of a village in Limburg, Netherlands, derived from Old Dutch helde "slope, incline".

Van Iersel Dutch
Habitational name from the town of Eersel in North Brabant, Netherlands, derived from the Old Dutch personal name *Ari combined with lo "forest clearing, light forest".

Van Ingen Dutch
Means "from Ingen" in Dutch, the name of a village in Gelderland, Netherlands, of uncertain etymology.

Vanini Italian
Possibly from the given name Giovanni.

Van Keulen Dutch
Means "from Cologne" in Dutch, the name of a city in western Germany.

Van Kooten Dutch
Habitational name from any of several places called Koten or Kooten, derived from Middle Dutch cote "cottage, hut, barn".

Van Leuven Dutch, Flemish
Means "from Leuven" (English and French Louvain), the capital city of Flemish Brabant, Belgium.

Van Lier Dutch
More common form of van Lieren.

Van Loon Dutch
Means "from Loon", the name of several locations, derived from Middle Dutch lo "forest clearing, light forest".

Van Noort Dutch
Means "from the north", derived from Middle Dutch nort "north, northwards". Alternatively, can be an altered form of Van Oort.

Van Ooijen Dutch
Means "from Ooijen" in Dutch, the name of a hamlet in Limburg, Netherlands, as well as several other settlements derived from Middle Dutch ooy "floodplain, wetland, meadow in the bend of a river".

Van Oort Dutch
Means "from the edge (of town)", derived from Middle Dutch ort "edge, corner, outermost point of a region". Sometimes altered to or from the surname Van Noort.

Van Putten Dutch
Means "from Putten" in Dutch, a toponym derived from Old Dutch putti "well (water)".

Van Reenen Dutch, South African
Means "from Rhenen", the name of a city in Utrecht, Netherlands. Possibly derived from Proto-Germanic *hraini "clean, pure", or from Rijn "the Rhine (river)" combined with Old Dutch hem "home, settlement".

Van Riel Dutch
Means "from Riel" in Dutch, a toponym of uncertain origin.

Van Rooijen Dutch
Derived from any of several places named using the suffix rooien, denoting an area cleared of trees.

Van Schaik Dutch
Derived from any of several places called Schaik, Schaijk, or Schadijk, derived from the original form Schadewijk possibly meaning "shaded place" or "inhospitable place" from Middle Dutch scade meaning either "shadow, shade" or "damage" combined with wijk "village, settlement".

Van Schie Dutch
Means "from Schie" in Dutch, the name of a canalised river that lends its name to several nearby toponyms. Possibly related to Middle Dutch scheiden "to separate, to part".

Van Schijndel Dutch
Means "from Schijndel" in Dutch, the name of a village in North Brabant, Netherlands, derived from lo "forest clearing, light forest" and an uncertain first element.

Van Soest Dutch
Means "from Soest" in Dutch, a town in Utrecht, Netherlands.

Van Tilburg Dutch
Means "from Tilburg" in Dutch, the name of a city in North Brabant, Netherlands, derived from Old Dutch tilli "newly cultivated land" and burg "fortress, fortified settlement, citadel".

Van Tol Dutch
Means "of (the) toll" or "from Tol" in Dutch, derived from tol "toll (fee); toll booth, toll house", a habitational name for someone who lived near or in a toll house or a place named for one, or a metonymic occupational name for a toll collector... [more]

Van Tongeren Dutch
Means "from Tongeren" in Dutch.

Van Uden Dutch
Means "from Uden" in Dutch, a town in North Brabant, Netherlands.

Van Wanrooij Dutch
Means "from Wanroij" in Dutch, the name of a town in North Brabant, Netherlands, probably derived from Middle Dutch wan "bad, insufficient, lacking; un-" and rode "land cleared of trees".

Van Wijngaarden Dutch
Means "from Wijngaarden", a village in South Holland, Netherlands, meaning "vineyards" in Dutch. It’s uncertain if there was ever actually a vineyard in or near the village.

Van Zant Dutch
Variant of Van Zandt.

Van Zon Dutch
Variant of van Son. In some cases, it could denote someone who lived or worked in a building named De Zon "the sun", probably named for a sign depicting the sun.

Vargiu Italian
From the name of a former settlement. Possibly from Latin varius, "many colours, variegated".

Veen Dutch
Means "peat bog, fen, swamp" in Dutch.

Velden Dutch
Means "fields" in Dutch.

Veldhuis Dutch
Means "field house" in Dutch.

Veltman Dutch
Variant of Veldman.

Venier Venetian
From the medieval name Venerius, meaning "of Venus, dedicated to Venus".

Venini Italian
Possibly a patronymic from the medieval name Bene, meaning "good".

Venn German
Derived from Middle High German venne "mire, bog, fen".

Verdonk Dutch
Contraction of van der Donk meaning "from the donk", a donk being a kind of sandy hill found in a swamp.

Verheij Dutch
Contracted form of Van Der Heijden.

Verheul Dutch
Contracted form of van der Heul, derived from Dutch heul "culvert, stone bridge, sewer, floodgate".

Verkerk Dutch
Contracted form of Van der Kerk "from the church".

Vernay French
See Varney.

Verschoor Dutch
Contracted form of Van der Schoor, roughly meaning "from the shore".

Verschuren Dutch
Contracted form of Van der Schuren meaning "from the barns".

Versteeg Dutch
Contracted form of Van der Steeg "from the lane".

Vian Venetian
Derives from the given name Viviano, or perhaps Ottaviano.

Villani Italian
Derives from Latin villa "village, farm, settlement", related to Italian villano "peasant" or "rude, bad-mannered".

Vinagro Italian
Cognate to Vinagre, meaning "bitter wine, vinegar". Possibly given to foundlings.

Vis Dutch
Means "fish" in Dutch, a metonymic occupational name for a fisherman or fishmonger.

Viscuso Italian
From Sicilian viscusu "tough, tenacious, vicious".

Vonk Dutch
Means "spark" in Dutch, a metonymic occupational name for a smith, or possibly a nickname for a lively or fiery person.

Vrielink Dutch
Etymology uncertain. Possibly from the name of a farmstead, itself perhaps derived from a given name such as Frigilo or Friedel... [more]

Vrolijk Dutch
Means "cheerful, merry" in Dutch.

Waddell English
Possibly derived from Woodhill in Wiltshire, England, derived from Old English wad "woad" and hyll "hill". Alternatively, could be from the Middle English given name Wadel.

Waddell English
Variant of Odell, derived from the toponym’s older spelling Wadehelle.

Wagenaar Dutch
Occupational name for a cartwright, cognate to German Wagner.

Waitman English
From Middle English and Older Scots waithman meaning "hunter; outlaw", equivalent to Old English waþ "hunt, chase; wandering" and mann "person, man".

Wassink Dutch
Derived from the personal name Wazo and the suffix -ink denoting origin from a family or place.

Weetman English
Older form of Waitman.

Westhuis Dutch
Means "west house" in Dutch.

Westra Dutch, West Frisian
Means "from the west", derived from Dutch west "west, western, westwards" combined with the Frisian habitational suffix -stra.

Wever Dutch, Low German
Dutch cognate of Weaver 1.

Wiersma West Frisian
Can be a patronymic form of the given name Wier, a contracted form of Wieger (see also Wiro), or a toponymic surname from West Frisian wier "artificial hill, dwelling mound", a cognate of English weir and Dutch wierde.

Wijnands Dutch
Means "son of Wijnand".

Wijnen Dutch
Patronymic form of Wijn, a short form of personal names containing the element wini "friend", such as Boudewijn or Adalwin.

Wijs Dutch
Means "wise, learned, clever" in Dutch.

Win Burmese (Americanized)
From the given name Win, taken as a surname after emigrating.

Win Dutch
Variant of Winne.

Winkel Dutch, Belgian
Habitational name from any of numerous minor places named using the element winkel "corner".

Winne English
Variant spelling of Wynn.

Withiel Cornish (Anglicized, Rare)
From the name of a village and civil parish in Cornwall, England, derived from Cornish Gwydhyel "wooded place" (compare Old Welsh guid "trees").

Witteveen Dutch
From Dutch witte "white" and veen "peat bog, marsh", derived from any of several place names.

Woltering German, Dutch
Patronymic from the given name Wolter.

Wynn English
From Old English wine "friend", which could be used as a byname or personal name (see Wine).

Xompero Italian
Meaning uncertain, possibly from Cimbrian somerousch "pack horse", indicating the bearer's strength or occupation. Alternately, may mean "son of Piero".

Xotlanihua Nahuatl
Means "owner of flowering" or "there will be growing" in Nahuatl, probably originating as a personal name.

Zago Italian
Probably from Venetian zago "alter boy", or someone preparing to become a priest. Alternately, may derive from a toponym, such as Massanzago, Lorenzago, Cazzago, Vanzago, or Sozzago.

Zanda Italian
From Sardinian zanda "field poppy".

Zedda Italian
Possibly from Sardinian zedda "cellar" or cedda "herd of animals", indicating someone who was an innkeeper or shepherd.

Zilio Italian
From the given name Egidio, via the dialectic nicknames Gilio or Gilius (compare Giles).

Zonneveld Dutch
Means "sun field" in Dutch, a habitation always name.

Zorzi Venetian
From a Venetian form of the given name Giorgio.

Zuazo Basque
Habitational name derived from Basque zu(h)haitz "(wild) tree" and the collective suffix -zu.

Zuidema Dutch, West Frisian
Either derived from a toponym containing the element zuid "south, southern" (from Middle Dutch suid), or a patronymic form of a name beginning with the element swith "strong".

Zurru Italian
From Sardinian "gush, spring (of water)".

Zwaan Dutch
Means "swan" in Dutch. Could be a nickname for a person who resembled a swan in some way, an occupational name for a swan keeper, or a patronymic derived from a given name containing the element swan... [more]