This is a list of submitted surnames in which the description contains the keywords ruler or of or water.
Submitted names are contributed by users of this website. The accuracy of these name definitions cannot be guaranteed.
MarlerEnglish (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.
MarlockGerman (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]
MarmionEnglish, French, Irish 1. English (of Norman origin) and French: nickname from old French marmion “monkey”, “brat”. ... [more]
MarnerEnglish, German Occupational name for a sailor from Anglo-Norman French mariner Middle, High German marnære "seaman". English variant of Mariner.
MaroniItalian Can 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]
MarquisFrench, English for someone who behaved like a marquis or an occupational name for a servant in the household of a marquis, from Old Northern French marquis... [more]
MarschallGerman, English occupational 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]
MarselliCatalan Catalan family that appears in the feudal list of 1355 with a Francis, lord of Chia.
MarshamAnglo-Saxon This name originated from the Norfolk location of Marsham. The first family to use this name adopted it by living in that area.
MarslandEnglish Probably 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.
MarsmanDutch Derived from Middle Dutch marsch, mersch (Southern Dutch meers), meaning "marsh". In some cases, however, it can also be a variant of Meersman.
MarstellerGerman Occupational 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.
MartaOld 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).
MártirSpanish from 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.
MartiranoItalian Likely a habitational surname from a place in Catanzaro province in the Calabria region of Italy.
MartireItalian from 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.
MarttinenFinnish Derived 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.
MaruggRomansh Derived 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).
MarvelEnglish Either (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]
MarwoodEnglish From 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".
MarxGerman From 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.
MaryFrench Habitational name from places in Saône-et-Loire, Seine-et-Marne, and Nièvre, named in Latin as Mariacum meaning "estate of Marius".
MarzonSpanish Is a portmanteau of the words mar, meaning sea, and corazon, meaning heart.
MarzoukiArabic (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.
MasakiJapanese Surname of Japanese origin meaning "true blossoms" which comes from combing 真 (ma) meaning "true, genuine" with 咲 (saki) meaning "blossom".
MasalisGreek (Cypriot) Cypriot surname, often used in rural parts of Cyprus. Died out in Greece, there are no more living people with it anymore.
MasamizuJapanese From Japanese 正 (masa) meaning "right, proper" combined with 水 (mizu) meaning "water".
MasatoJapanese From Japanese 正 (masa) meaning "right, proper", 雅 (masa) meaning "elegant, graceful" or 真 (masa) meaning "real, genuine, true" combined with 人 (to) meaning "person". Other combinations of kanji that have the same pronunciation can also form this name... [more]
MascarenhasPortuguese Possibly from the place Mascarenhas in the city Mirandela. Originated by Estêvão Rodrigues, Lord of Mascarenhas.
MaschPolish Possibly a rough translation of marsh, given to people who lived near marshes.
MascheranoItalian Occupational name for maker of masks, derived from Italian mascherare meaning "to mask". The Argentine former soccer player Javier Mascherano (1984-) is a famous bearer of this name.
MaseyEnglish, Scottish, French, Norman English and Scottish (of Norman origin) and French: habitational name from any of various places in northern France which get their names from the Gallo-Roman personal name Maccius + the locative suffix -acum.... [more]
MashhadiPersian Indicated a person from the city of Mashhad in Iran, itself derived from Arabic مشهد (mashhad) meaning "place of martyrdom".
MashinRussian Matronymic surname derived from a diminutive Masha of the Russian given name Mariya.
MasihuddinArab The name Masih Uddin combines Masih, meaning “Messiah” (a title for Jesus Christ in Christian and Islamic traditions), and Uddin, meaning “of the faith” or “of the religion.” The name can be understood as “Messiah of the Faith”.
MaslinEnglish Derived from the Middle English and Old French given names Mazelin and Mazelin, double diminutives of names containing the Germanic element mahal "meeting, assembly; speech, court"... [more]
MasnickUkrainian I believe it is Ukranian. I have been told it was spelled a little different and could be of Russian Jewish origin
MassaItalian A habitational name from any of the various places named Massa (for example, Massa Lubrense or Massa di Somma, both in the Metropolitan City of Naples, or Massa d’Albe in the Province of L'Aquila), which were all named from the medieval Latin word massa, meaning ‘holding’ or ‘estate’.
MassaraItalian, Greek Either a feminine form of Massaro or from the equivalent occupational or status name in medieval Greek, (massaras meaning ‘peasant’ or ‘share cropper’) which is from the word massaria meaning ‘small farm’.
MassaroItalian Regional or archaic form of Italian massaio meaning "tenant farmer, share cropper".
MasseDutch Derived from Middle Dutch masse "clog; cudgel", this name might have been a metonymic occupational name for someone who wielded a club. In some cases, however, it may also have been a patronymic of Maas.
MasseterEnglish Perhaps means "brewery worker" (from Middle English mash "fermentable mixture of hot water and grain" + rudder "rudder-shaped stirrer").
MassinghamEnglish From the name of either of two villages in Norfolk, England, meaning "Mæssa’s village", composed of the personal name Mæssa and possessive suffix ing combined with ham "home, settlement".
MastGerman, Dutch Derived from Middle High German and Middle Dutch mast "mast (fodder made of acorns and beechnuts); the process of fattening livestock", an occupational name for a pig farmer or a swineherd. In some cases, however, the German name may also have been derived from Middle High German mast, mastic "fat, stout".
MastenEnglish This surname came from when a family lived in the settlements named Marsden in Lancashire and the West Riding of Yorkshire.
MastenbroekDutch Originally indicated a person from the polder area of Mastenbroek in the Dutch province of Overijssel, as well as a small village built around a church in the middle of that polder area. The place names derive from Middle Dutch mast meaning "pole, mast" or "pig feed, fodder" combined with broek meaning "marsh, wetland".
MastermanEnglish occupational name meaning "servant of the master" from Middle English maister "master" (Latin magister "teacher, master, leader") and mann "man".
MastertonScottish (Rare) From English Masterton, an area in the city of Dunfermline in the council area of Fife in Scotland.
MastinFrench, Flemish, Walloon occupational name for a household servant or guard from Old French mastin "watchdog, manservant" (from Latin mansuetudinus "domestic"). The Old French word had the further sense of a bad-tempered dog and was used as an adjective in the sense of "bad cruel".
MasukoJapanese From 益 (masu) meaning "profit, benefit" and 子 (ko) meaning "child, sign of the rat".
MasumizuJapanese From 升 (masu) meaning "measuring box, ascend, rise" or 増 (masu) meaning "increase" combined with 水 (mizu) meaning "water".
MasvidalSpanish surname formed by the union of the word, mas, meaning a house from rural zones that is appart from the village and is surrounded by farming land and forests; and another word relating to the owner of the mas.
MatamalaCatalan Town of the Capcir district, in the Northern Catalonia, now part of the Pyrénées-Orientales department in France.
MataplanaCatalan It indicates familial origin within the eponymous farmhouse in the municipality of La Coma i la Pedra.
MatareseItalian habitational name for someone from Matera (see Matera ) from materräisë a local adjectival form of the placename (in standard Italian materano).
MatarranzSpanish Originated in northern Spain, probably from mat- which means to kill and the surname Arranz. It is currently a very rare surname and is found mainly in the province of Segovia.
MatassaItalian Occupational name for a producer of silk, from Sicilian matassa "hank", "skein", also the name of a type of silk (cf. Metaxas).
MatcottAustralian Australian/UK variant of Marcotte, a surname of French origin, which means ‘vineshoot forming a layer’ or vine-grower in Old French. This surname is most commonly found in Australia and England.
MatéHungarian Hungarian (Máté): from the ecclesiastical personal name Máté, Hungarian form of Matthew.
MateerNorthern Irish (Anglicized) A variant of Mcateer used chiefly by Northern Irish Protestants. The change in spelling of the element Mac or Mc, meaning "son" in Irish, removed its bearers' connections to Irish-speaking Catholics during a time when it would have been socially beneficial to be seen as Protestant Unionists.
MatharuIndian (Sikh, Modern) Matharus were fierce warriors especially during, the time when the Matharu tribe, had converted to Sikhism; they fought numbers of wars for Guru Gobind Singh, Banda Singh Bahadur and Jassa Singh Ramgarhia.... [more]
MathemaNdebele The Mathema people mostly inhabit the Northern Matebeleland in Zimbabwe, however their clan names are linked and related of those other Nguni clans. These are as follows: ... [more]
MathenyFrench (Anglicized) Of French origin. According to Matheny family tradition, this surname comes from the name of a village in France named Mathenay. This may also have been a French Huguenot surname.
MathewIndian (Christian) Named based of off a Biblical character named St. Matthew. The way the name is pronounced as a first name in the native language is different. However, the last name "Mathew" is pronounced the same.
MathrafalMedieval Welsh Named for Castle Mathrafal (Castell-Mathrafal) in Powys, Mid Wales. The House of Mathrafal ruled over Powys for much of the Mediaeval period. Notable members of the family included Owain Glyn Dŵr, who led a rebellion against English rule in 1400.
MatlockEnglish From the name of a town in Derbyshire, England, meaning "moot oak, oak where meetings were held", derived from Old English mæðel "meeting, gathering, council" (see mahal) and ac "oak (tree)".
MatskevichBelarusian From the given name Maciek, a variant of Maciej, which is the Polish variant of Matthias.
MatsubayashiJapanese Matsu means "Pine Tree" and Bayashi is a variant pronunciation of "Hayashi" meaning "Forest". This surname means "Pine Tree Forest". Matsubayashi-ryu is a kind of martial arts.
MatsukazeJapanese From Japanese 松 (matsu) meaning "pine" and 風 (kaze) meaning "wind". A notable bearer of this surname is Japanese actor Masaya Matsukaze (松風 雅也).
MatsupaUkrainian (Anglicized, ?) Ukrainian; although may also have found in other forms in other countries such as Galicia (Western Ukraine), Poland and Hungary; due to the changing borders and occupation of land at various points in history.
MattenFlemish Could derive from a short form of a given name such as Matthias or Mathilde, or be a toponym derived from either Middle High German mata "meadow" or French motte "clod, mound of earth".
MattilaFinnish Means "Matti's farm". A combination of Matti and the suffix -la "farm, place".
MattinglyEnglish (British) This name dates all the way back to the 1200s and research shows that Mattingly families began immigrating to the United States in the 1600s and continued until the 1900s. However, the place name (Mattingley, England) dates back to the year 1086, but spelled as Matingelege... [more]
MattoxmWelsh (Rare, Archaic), English (Modern, Rare) The name Mattox originated in England and is derived from the Welsh personal name Madoc, meaning fortunate. It traces its roots back to the Middle Ages when names began to be adopted to differentiate individuals... [more]
MaturanaBasque It indicates familial origin within the eponymous council of the municipality of Barrundia.
MaturinFrench From the French male personal name Maturin, from Latin Mātūrīnus, a derivative of Mātūrus, literally "timely". It was borne by the Irish "Gothic" novelist Charles Maturin (1782-1824).
MâuVietnamese Vietnamese form of Mou, from Sino-Vietnamese 牟 (mâu).
MauKhmer From Chinese 毛 (máo) meaning "Mao", an ancient region in parts of present-day Henan, China, during the Zhou Dynasty.
MaudlingEnglish From the medieval female personal name Maudeleyn, the English form of Greek Magdalene, the sobriquet in the New Testament of the woman Mary who was cured of evil spirits by Jesus... [more]
MaughanIrish, English Anglicized from the original Irish Gaelic form Ò Mocháin meaning 'descendant of Mochain'. This name was one of the earliest known Irish surnames brought to England and remains a fairly common surname in the North East of the country.
MauhayTagalog From Tagalog uhay meaning "blade of grain, spike".
MaukCzech, Russian The word Mauk is the Eastern European meaning for night. In the early ages a small group of people in the area now known to be in or around Russia and the czech republic founded this word and made it their name... [more]
MauleonSpanish (Archaic) All I know is that there is a place in spain "Basque Country" that their town, apartments, holtes are named Mauleon. The language spoken is Basque a form of "Spanish and French"
MavromichalisGreek Means "black Michalis (Michael)" in Greek. In Mani, it is said to derive from an orphan named Μιχάλης (Michalis). Because of the dark clothing worn during times of mourning, orphans were often called μαύρος (mavros) meaning "black".
MaxsonPopular Culture, English Means son of Max. This is the surname of the hereditary leaders of the Brotherhood of Steel in the popular Fallout game. The first bearer of the name was Captain Roger Maxson, who founded the BOS, with the most recent bearer being Arthur Maxson, the current leader of the BOS in Fallout 4.
MayberryEnglish, Irish Of uncertain origin, probably an altered form of Mowbray. Alternatively, it could be derived from an unidentified English place name containing the Old English element burg "fortress, citadel" and an uncertain first element.
MayorEnglish, Spanish, Catalan English variant of Mayer 3 and Catalan variant of Major. Either a nickname for an older man or a distinguishing epithet for the elder of two bearers of the same personal name, from mayor "older", from Latin maior (natus), literally "greater (by birth)"... [more]
MayoralSpanish Occupational name for the foreman of a gang of agricultural workers or the leader of a group of herdsmen mayoral (from Late Latin maioralis originally an adjective derivative of maior 'greater').
MayorgaSpanish habitational name, taken on from the place name Mayorga in Valladolid province of Castile.
MayorquinSpanish variant of Mallorquín a habitational name for someone from Majorca the largest island in the Balearic Islands from an adjectival form of its Spanish name Mallorca.
MaysonetProvençal Deriving from the Old French word machun, which meant 'stone cutter.' Inferring the original bearer of the name worked in stone or mason.
MazakiJapanese A surname of Japanese origin meaning "cape of truth" which comes from combing 真 (ma) meaning "true, genuine" with 崎 (zaki) meaning "cape, peninsula". A notable bearer of this surname is Anzu Mazaki/Téa Gardner from Yu-Gi-Oh!
MazandaraniMazanderani Likely originated to denote someone from the modern-day Mazandaran Province in Iran or someone of Mazandarani descent. It is transliterated in many different ways. One notable bearer is Mírzá Asadu'lláh Fádil Mázandarání (1881–1957), who was an important scholar for the Baháʼí Faith.
MazarPolish Slovak occupational name for mortar, or an alternate spelling of Mazur
MazariegoSpanish Altered form of Mazariegos in singular for matching with the bearer.
MazighArabic (Maghrebi), Berber Derived from Arabic أَمَازِيغ (ʾamāzīḡ) the Arabic designation for the Berber (Amazigh) people of North Africa. The word itself is ultimately of Tamazight origin, from Central Atlas Tamazight ⴰⵎⴰⵣⵉⵖ (Amaziɣ) of disputed meaning; in modern Central Atlas Tamazight, it means “free-man”.
MbenguzanaHlubi (?), African Hlubi word referring to an old cat with grey beard but in this instance it means grey-bearded leopard. Originates from one of the Nkwali tribe's early head?king Lusulengwe(Leopard's face)
MbiliAfrican, Swahili, Zulu From Swahili and Zulu meaning "two" or "second". It is possible that an ancestor of an individual with this surname was the second child of their parents.
McadoryNorthern Irish (Rare) Anglicized form of Northern Irish Mac an Deoraidh meaning "son of the stranger", derived from Old Irish déorad "stranger, outlaw, exile, pilgrim".
McalindenIrish From Irish Gaelic Mac Giolla Fhiontáin "son of the servant of (St) Fiontán", a personal name derived from fionn "white".
McAllenScottish, Irish, Scottish Gaelic McAllen or MacAllen is a Scottish and Irish surname, originating from Scottish Gaelic. Historically, the name has migrated to Ireland, where the prefix of the name has been commonly transposed with "Mc".