Browse Submitted Surnames

Isotani Japanese
From 磯 (iso) meaning "beach, shore, seashore" and 谷 (tani) meaning "valley".

Isoyama Japanese
From Japanese 磯 (iso) meaning "seashore" and 山 (yama) meaning "mountain, hill".

İstanbullu Turkish
Originally indicated an inhabitant of the city of Istanbul in Turkey, literally meaning "Istanbulite, person from Istanbul" in Turkish.

Itamiya Japanese (Rare)
From Japanese 伊丹屋 (Itamiya) meaning "Itami Store", a name of a store that was in the city of Itami in the prefecture of Hyōgo in Japan.... [more]

Itamura Japanese
Ita means "plank, board" and mura means "village, hamlet".

Itaya Japanese
From Japanese 板 (ita) meaning "plank, board" and 谷 (ya) meaning "valley".

Itxasmendi Basque (Rare)
From the name of a neighborhood in Zarautz, Gipuzkoa, probably derived from Basque itxaso "sea" and mendi "mountain". Alternatively, the first element could be isats "gorse, broom (plant)".

Itzstein German
Topographic surname that originated from broad regions around the river Itz in Thuringia, Germany. The word "Stein" (German word for stone) historically was also used to describe castles on a hill or at a river, thus a possible meaning of the name is "castle at the river Itz".

Ivars Spanish, Basque (Hispanicized)
Etymology uncertain. Possibly related to Ibarra, derived from Basque ibar "meadow, riverbank, valley".

Iwamura Japanese
Iwa means "stone " and mura can mean "village, hamlet" or "town".

Iwatani Japanese
From Japanese 岩 (iwa) meaning "rock" and 谷 (tani) meaning "valley".

Iwatani Japanese
From Japanese 岩 (iwa) meaning "cliff, rocks" and 谷 (tani) meaning "valley".

Iwatate Japanese
From Japanese 岩館 (Iwatate) meaning "Iwatate", a former village in the former district of Tsugaru in parts of present-day Aomori, Japan, in the former Japanese province of Mutsu.

Iwayama Japanese
Means "rocky mountain" in Japanese, from 岩 (iwa) "rock" and 山 (yama) "mountain".

Iyama Japanese
I means "well, pit, minehaft" and yama means "mountain, hill".

Izarra Basque
Derived from either the village Izarra in Álava, or the town Lizarra in Navarre. The etymology of the former is uncertain, but it coincides with a form of the Basque word izar "star"; the latter derives from lizar "ash tree", but is called Estella ("star") in Spanish due to confusion with the aforementioned word izar.

Jaana Japanese (Rare)
From Japanese 蛇穴 (Jaana) meaning "Jaana", a former village in the former district of Katsujō in the former Japanese province of Yamato in present-day Nara, Japan, or it being a variant reading of 蛇穴 (Saragi) meaning "Saragi", an area in the same place, in the city of Gose in the prefecture of Nara in Japan.

Jaanimägi Estonian
Jaanimägi is an Estonian surname meaning "Jaan's (Jaan is a masculine give name) mountain".

Jaaniorg Estonian
Jaaniorg is an Estonian surname meaning "Jaan's valley".

Jachimi Okinawan (Rare, Archaic)
From Okinawan 座喜味 (Jachimi) meaning "Jachimi", a former area in the former district of Yuntanja in the former Ryūkyū kingdom of Chūzan in parts of present-day Okinawa, Japan, or it being the Okinawan form of Japanese 座喜味 (Zakimi) meaning "Zakimi", an area in the same place, in the village of Yomitan in the district of Nakagami in the prefecture of Okinawa in Japan.

Jackowski m Polish
Habitational surname for someone from a village called Jacków, derived from a diminutive of Jacenty.

Jaćmierski m Polish
Derived from the name of the village Jaćmierz in Subcarpathian Voivodeship, Poland. The first known bearer of the surname was Fryderyk Jaćmierski, who lived in the end of XIV century.

Janeway English
Derived from Middle English Janaways, the name for someone from the city of Genoa, Italy. A notable fictional bearer is Kathryn Janeway, the captain of starship USS Voyager on the TV-series 'Star Trek: Voyager' (1995-2001).

Japon Filipino, Spanish, French
Ethnic name or regional name for someone from Japan or who had connections with Japan.

Järvesaar Estonian
Järvesaar is an Estonian surname meaning "lake island".

Jazayeri Persian
Derived from Persian جزایر (jazâyir) meaning "islands", of Arabic origin.

Jeffrey English
From a Norman personal name that appears in Middle English as Geffrey and in Old French as Je(u)froi. Some authorities regard this as no more than a palatalized form of Godfrey, but early forms such as Galfridus and Gaufridus point to a first element from Germanic gala "to sing" or gawi "region, territory"... [more]

Jelušić Croatian
The first ever appearance recorded to this date was even before the Turkish men (Ottoman) broke into the Kingdom of Croatia (around 13. century).... [more]

Jendoubi Arabic (Maghrebi)
From Jendouba, the name of a large city in northwestern Tunisia. The name itself is derived from Berber (Tamazight) jen meaning "market" and douba meaning "wheat".

Jernberg Swedish
Combination of Swedish järn "iron" and berg "mountain".

Jõeorg Estonian
Jõeorg is an Estonian surname meaning "wash, or fluvial valley" and "dale".

Jõesaar Estonian
Jõesaar is an Estonian surname meaning "river island".

Jõgisaar Estonian
Jõgisaar is an Estonian surname meaning "river island".

Jonda Spanish (Latin American, Japanized), American (Hispanic)
Jondá means Slingshot and hole in Spanish and is a surname in some Latin American countries and Americans with Hispanic heritage. It is a Japanized form of the surname Honda... [more]

Joof Serer
The surname Joof (English spelling in Gambia) whit its derivatives Juuf / Juf (Seereer proper) or Diouf (French spelling in Senegal and Mauritania) is a Senegambian surname found amongst the Seereer people of Senegal, the Gambia and Mauritania... [more]

Jugasaar Estonian
Jugasaar is an Estonian surname meaning "waterfall island".

Jürimäe Estonian
Jürimäe is an Estonian surname meaninh "Jüri's (masculine given name) hill/mountain".

Kaag Dutch
Denotes someone from the Dutch village Kaag, derived from Middle Dutch kaghe "land next to water, land outside of a dyke or levee".

Kaba Western African, Manding
From a Mandinka clan name perhaps derived from the name of a village in southern Mali.

Kabashima Japanese
From Japanese 樺 (kaba) meaning "birch tree" and 島 (shima) meaning "island".

Kabayama Japanese (Rare)
Kaba (樺) means "birch", yama (山) means "mountain"

Kabeya Japanese
From Japanese 壁 (kabe) meaning "wall, barrier" and 谷 (ya) meaning "valley".

Kabu Japanese (Rare)
From Japanese 蕪 (Kabu), a clipping of 蕪 (Kabumon) meaning "Kabu Gate", a name of a group of several households, that was in the division of Kami in the area of Noda in the city of Izumi in the prefecture of Kagoshima in Japan, for the Kadowari System that took place in the Edo Period in the former Japanese province of Satsuma in parts of present-day Kagoshima, Japan.... [more]

Kabura Japanese (Rare)
From Japanese 鏑 (Kabura) meaning "Kabura", a division in the division of Tsuchizawa in the area of Towa in the city of Hanamaki in the prefecture of Iwate in Japan.

Kadenokōji Japanese (Rare)
From Japanese 勘解由小路 (Kadenokōji) meaning "Kadeno Alley" or its other name 勘解由小路 (Kageyukōji) meaning "Kageyu Alley", a former alley in the city of Kyōto in the prefecture of Kyōto in Japan.... [more]

Kadoshima Japanese (Rare)
I don't want to assume it's rare but it's definitely uncommon. Kado means "Gate" and Shima means "Island".

Kagaya Japanese
From Japanese 加 (ka) meaning "add, increase", 賀 (ka) meaning "congratulate, greet, celebrate" and 谷 (ya) meaning "valley".

Kageyama Japanese
From Japanese 影 or 景 (kage) meaning "shadow" or 蔭 (kage) meaning "shade, shelter" and 山 (yama) meaning "mountain, hill".

Kagiyama Japanese
Means "key mountain".... [more]

Kaihatsu Japanese
From Japanese 開発 (Kaihatsu) meaning "Kaihatsu", a former village in the former district of Imizu in the former Japanese province of Etchū in present-day Toyama, Japan.

Kakimura Japanese
Kaki means "persimmon" and mura means "village, hamlet".

Kakutani Japanese
From Japanese 角 (kaku) meaning "corner" and 谷 (tani) meaning "valley".

Kalahasthi Sanskrit
It is derived from the Sanskrit words “kala,” which mean “time”, and “hasthi,” which means “elephant”. Together, the name means “the elephant of time,” which is a reference to the goddess Kali, who is often depicted riding on the back of an elephant... [more]

Kalchenko Ukrainian
Possibly from the river Kalchyk (Кальчик), a Ukrainian river in Zaporizhzhya and Donetsk regions.

Kalleske Polish (Germanized, Rare)
The surname Kalleske can be found among 40 telephone subscribers in Germany, in addition to the spelling Kaleske (about 39 times), with at least six namesake. Assuming that the normal spread of a family name is between 400 and 500 times this name is very rare... [more]

Kallweit German (East Prussian)
East Prussian German (and thus heavily Lithuanian influenced) name meaning "smith; blacksmith; farrier", derived from Old Prussian kalt "to forge; to hammer" and Old Prussian kalweitis "the village smith".

Kalnieks Latvian
Derived from the word kalns meaning "mountain".

Kalviste Estonian
Kalviste is an Estonian surname possibly derived from "Kalvi", a village in Lääne-Viru County.

Kamban Faroese, Old Norse, Old Celtic, Old Irish
Likely from Old Irish cambán "crooked one". This was the surname of Grímur Kamban, the legendary first settler in the Faroe Islands according to the Færeyinga saga. This name is still borne by a handful of people in the Faroe Islands today.

Kamchatsky Russian
Refers to a region in Eastern Russia named "Kamchatka."

Kamegai Japanese
"Turtle valley".

Kamegaya Japanese
"Turtle valley".

Kametani Japanese
"Turtle valley."

Kameya Japanese
"Turtle valley".

Kameyama Japanese
From Japanese 亀 (kame) meaning "turtle, tortoise" and 山 (yama) meaning "mountain".

Kamimura Japanese
Kami means "god" or "top, upper" and mura means "village, hamlet "

Kamio Japanese
From 神 (kami) meaning "god, deity" and 尾 (o) meaning "tail, end, foot of a mountain".

Kamiyama Japanese
From Japanese 神 (kami) meaning "god" or 上 (kami) meaning "above, upper" and 山 (yama) meaning "mountain".

Kamm German, Estonian
Means "comb" in German, an occupational name for a wool comber or fuller, or perhaps a maker of combs. In some cases it might have been used in the sense of "ridge of mountains, hills", making it a topographic name... [more]

Kämmerer German
from Middle High German kamerære "chamberlain" (from kamere "chamber") a status name for the treasurer of a court monastery a great household or a city and in Switzerland for the manager of a church property a so-called Widem... [more]

Kampū Japanese (Rare)
From Japanese 寒風 (Kampū) meaning "Kampū", a former division in the former large village of Kamiminamiaosawa in the former district of Akumi in the former Japanese province of Ugo in parts of present-day Akita and Yamagata in Japan.

Kanarek Jewish (Anglicized, Modern)
Originally from Canary, as in the Canary Islands.

Kanaya Japanese
From Japanese 金 (kana) meaning "metal, money" and 谷 (ya) meaning "valley".

Kanayama Japanese
From Japanese 金 (kana) meaning "metal, money" and 山 (yama) meaning "mountain".

Kandel Nepali
Habitational name from a village called Kanda.

Kang Chinese, Korean
From Chinese 康 (kāng), derived from Kangju (康居), the Chinese name for an ancient kingdom in Central Asia (now known as Sogdiana). It may also refer to the city of Samarkand in present-day Uzbekistan, which was called 康 in Chinese.

Käosaar Estonian
Possibly means "cuckoo island" in Estonian, from a genitive form of kägu "cuckoo" combined with saar "island". It could also indicate someone from the village Käo in Saare county, on the island Saaremaa.

Karadağ Turkish
From Turkish kara meaning "black" and dağ meaning "mountain".

Karamanlis m Greek
Originally indicated a person who came from Karaman, a city located in south-central Turkey, itself is derived from Karaman Bey, a Turkoman chieftain who ruled the Karamanids in the 13th century... [more]

Karamanyan Armenian
From Ottoman Turkish قرامان (Karaman), a city in south-central Turkey, or قرامان (karaman) "swarthy, black, dark-skinned".

Kari Finnish, German (Austrian), Slovene (?), Hungarian, Indian, Marathi
As a Finnish name, it is a topographic and ornamental name from kari "small island", "stony rapids", "sandbar", or "rocky place in a field". This name is found throughout Finland.... [more]

Karlin Polish
Polish habitational name from a village in Poland.

Karlsberg German
Means "Carl's Mountain" in German language, it is also used in other Germanic languages

Karmazinas Lithuanian
Perhaps a habitational name taken from the Lithuanian village Karmazinai. The name of the village is allegedly derived from Polish karmazyn "crimson". See also Karmazsin, a Hungarian occupational name for a dyer or for someone making dyestuff (taken directly from Hungarian karmazsin "crimson").

Kaseorg Estonian
Kaseorg is an Estonian surname meaning "birch valley".

Kashani Persian
Indicated a person from the city of Kashan in Isfahan province, Iran. The name may be derived from the Kasian, the original inhabitants of the area.

Kashgari Uyghur, Arabic
Originally denoted someone who came from the city of Kashgar, located in the Xinjiang region of western China. The city's name is of Persian origin probably meaning "rock mountain".

Kashima Japanese
From Japanese 鹿 (ka) meaning "deer" and 島 (shima) meaning "island".

Kashimura Japanese
From Japanese 樫 (kashi) meaning "oak" and 村 (mura) meaning "town, village".

Kashio Japanese
Derived from 柏 ka meaning oak, cypress./ 尾 shio meaning tail-end, a counter for fish, the lower slope of a mountain.

Kashmanian Armenian
this name is believed to be a version of the name of a city called kashman

Kasimov Russian
From the city of Kasimov, located in Ryazan district, Russia.

Kastrati Albanian
Derived from the name of the Kastrati tribe inhabiting the region of Malësia in northern Albania.

Kasuya Japanese
From Japanese 粕 (kasu) meaning "dregs, sediment, scrap" and 谷 (ya) meaning "valley".

Katayama Japanese
From Japanese 片 (kata) meaning "partial, one-sided" and 山 (yama) meaning "mountain".

Katopodis Greek
It cames only from the greek island lefkada, its by the word meaning is "Downfoot" nut actually it means The guy who run away

Katsuyama Japanese
Katsu means "victory" and yama means "mountain, hill".

Katzenberg Jewish
Elaboration of Katz with the old German word berg meaning "mountain".

Kau German
From Middle High German gehau "(mountain) clearing" hence a topographic name for a mountain dweller or possibly an occupational name for a logger.

Kaunas Lithuanian
From Kaunas, the name of a city in Lithuania, itself most likely derived from a given name.

Kaunissaare Estonian
Kaunissaare is an Estonian surname meaning "beautiful/fair island".

Kaus German
From a regional (Hessian) variant of the habitational name Kues, from a place on the Mosel river, probably so named from Late Latin covis "field barn", "rack" and earlier recorded as Couese, Cobesa.

Kauten Hungarian
Nickolas Kauten was born July 15, 1890, in Austria - Hungary, ... [more]

Kavakami Japanese (Russified)
Alternate transcription of Kawakami more commonly used by ethnic Japanese living in parts of the former Soviet Union and Sakhalin Japanese residing on Sakhalin Island in Russia.

Kavasaki Japanese (Russified)
Alternate transcription of Kawasaki more commonly used by ethnic Japanese living in parts of the former Soviet Union and Sakhalin Japanese residing on Sakhalin Island in Russia.

Kawabata Japanese
'Side or bank of the river'; written two ways, with two different characters for kawa ‘river’. One family is descended from the northern Fujiwara through the Saionji family; the other from the Sasaki family... [more]

Kawamura Japanese
From Japanese 川 or 河 (kawa) meaning "river, stream" and 村 (mura) meaning "town, village".

Kawashima Japanese
From Japanese 川 (kawa) meaning "river, stream, brook" and 島 (shima) or 嶋 (shima) both meaning "island".

Kawatani Japanese
Kawa means "river, stream" and tani means "valley".

Kayama Japanese
From Japanese 加 (ka) meaning "increase, add" and 山 (yama) meaning "mountain".

Kayashima Japanese
From Japanese 萱 (kaya) meaning "miscanthus reed" and 島 (shima) meaning "island".

Kazamatsuri Japanese
From Japanese 風祭 (Kazamatsuri) meaning "Kazamatsuri", an area in the city of Odawara in the prefecture of Kanagawa in Japan.

Kazanov Russian
Means "of Kazan", either referring to the city of Kazan in Tatarstan, Russia, or from a given name. The name is most likely of Turkic origin, possibly from Bulgar qazan meaning "cauldron, pot", which would have been used to denote someone who made pots.

Kazetani Japanese (Rare)
From Japanese 風 (kaze) meaning "wind, style" and 谷 (tani) meaning "valley".

Kelham English
Derived from the village of Kelham, near Newark-upon-Trent, Nottingham.

Kelm German
Germanized form of Polish Chelm ‘peak’, ‘hill’, a topographic name for someone who lived by a hill with a pointed summit, or habitational name from a city in eastern Poland or any of various other places named with this word.

Kelton Scottish
Scottish habitational name from the village of Kelton in the parish of the same name in Kirkcudbrightshire.

Kelty Scottish
From the name of a village in Fife, Scotland, which was derived from Scottish Gaelic coillte "wooded area, grove".

Kennerk English
The surname Kennerk was first found in Westphalia, where the name emerged in mediaeval times as one of the notable families in the western region. From the 13th century onwards the surname was identified with the great social and economic evolution which made this territory a landmark contributor to the development of the nation.

Kensit English
A surname of Old English, pre-7th-century origins. It derives from a locality, probably either Kingsettle in Somerset, which translates as "the seat of the King", and is believed to relate to Alfred the Great, or possibly Kingside in Cumberland, or to some now lost village or town with a similar spelling.

Kent English (?)
Region in England

Kerch Russian, Ukrainian
Denotes to a person from the city of Kerch.

Kergoat Breton, French
From Breton ker "Village" or "Area" and koad "Woods".

Kerhervé Breton
From Breton ker "Village" or "Area" and the name Hervé.

Kerjean Breton
Possibly derived from a Breton place name, apparently composed of Breton kêr "city" and the name Jean 1.

Kermani Persian
Indicated a person from the city of Kerman in Iran, derived from Middle Persian klmʾn of uncertain meaning.

Kesküla Estonian
Kesküla is an Estonian name, derived from "kesk" ("central") and "küla" ("village").

Kestel English
Habitational name from Kestle, a place in Cornwall, so named from Cornish castell "castle, village, rock".

Keville English
Denoted someone from Keevil (recorded in the Domesday book as Chivele), a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, probably derived from Old English c¯f meaning "hollow" and leah meaning "woodland clearing".

Keyser Ukrainian, Russian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Serbian, Macedonian, Jewish (Sephardic), Judeo-Spanish
Slavic and Sephardic surname from Sephardic Jews in Eastern Europe. Surname is derived from village of кизя (Kizya) in Galacia (Ukraine). Common throughout entire former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR/CCCP)... [more]

Khaibri Kashmiri (Rare)
Hindus who were sent to the Khyber region by the Afghans

Khalji Afghan, Iranian
Meaning ‘From the city of Khalaj’, in Khalaj, a Common Turkic Language.

Khamenei Persian
Originally denoted someone who came from the village of Khamaneh, located in the East Azerbaijan province of Iran. A famous bearer is Ali Khamenei (1939-), a former president and the current Supreme Leader of Iran.

Kharkov m Russian
From Харьков (Kharkov), the city (see Kharkiv).

Khatiwada Nepali
From the name of a village in the Doti District of Nepal.

Khayasi Japanese (Russified)
Alternate transcription of Hayashi more commonly used by ethnic Japanese living in parts of the former Soviet Union and Sakhalin Japanese residing on Sakhalin Island in Russia.

Khomeini Persian
Originally indicated a person who came from the city of Khomeyn in the Markazi province of Iran. A notable bearer of this surname was the Islamic revolutionary, politician and religious leader Ruhollah Khomeini (1900 or 1902-1989), who founded the Islamic Republic of Iran following the Iranian Revolution in 1979... [more]

Kidamura Japanese
From 木 (ki) meaning "tree, wood", 貴 (ki) meaning "valuable", or 喜 (ki) meaning "rejoice", combined with 田 (da) meaning rice paddy, field" and 村 (mura) means "hamlet, village".

Kiel German
German surname of several possible origins and meanings.... [more]

Kiel Dutch
From Middle Dutch kidel, kedel "smock", hence a metonymic occupational name for someone who make such garments or perhaps a nickname for someone who habitually wore one. Also a Dutch habitational name from a place so named in Antwerp or from the German city Kiel in Schleswig-Holstein.

Kihlberg Swedish
Combination of Swedish kil "wedge" and berg "mountain".

Kiigemägi Estonian
Kiigemägi is an Estonian surname meaning "swaying mountain".

Kiire Japanese (Rare)
From Japanese 喜入 (Kiire) meaning "Kiire", a former village in the former district of Kiire in the former Japanese province of Satsuma in parts of present-day Kagoshima, Japan, or it being a variant spelling of 給黎 (Kiire) meaning "Kiire", the name of the district which the village was located in.

Kikkamägi Estonian
Kikkamägi is an Estonian surname meaning "spindle (tree: Euonymus) mountain".

Kikuichi Japanese
Means "chrysanthemum pond" in Japanese. (also read Kikuike). It is found mostly in western Japan. Another version, substituting the character 地 ‘ground’ for ‘pond’ (both chi), is found in northeastern Japan and the island of Kyūshū... [more]

Kikutani Japanese
Kiku means "chrysanthemum" and tani means "valley".

Kikuya Japanese
"Chrysanthemum valley."

Kilburg German, Luxembourgish
"Kyll castle," from German burg (castle) near the Kyll river in Germany. Also "wedge mountain" in Swedish: kil (wedge) and berg (mountain).

Kimigafukuro Japanese (Rare)
From Japanese 君ケ袋 (Kimigafukuro) meaning "Kimigafukuro", a former large village in the district of Kami in the former Japanese province of Rikuzen in parts of present-day Miyagi, Japan and Iwate, Japan.

Kinutani Japanese
Kinu means "silk" and tani means "valley".

Kio Japanese
From Japanese 木 (ki) meaning “tree, wood”, 城 (ki) meaning “castle, city”, combined with 大 (o) meaning “big, great, vast, high”, or 小 (o) meaning “small”.

Kirigaya Japanese
From 桐 (kiri), referring to the tree known commonly as the empress or foxglove tree, combined with 谷 (ya) meaning "valley," sometimes with the infixation of the historical possessive particle が (ga) (written as ヶ) that is most often used in place names and surnames... [more]

Kirimura Japanese
Kiri means "paulownia" and mura means "hamlet, village".

Kirishima Japanese (Rare)
From 桐 (kiri), referring to the tree known commonly as the empress or foxglove tree, 霧 (kiri) meaning "fog, mist" or 切 (kiri) meaning "end, finish; bounds, limits" combined with 島/嶋 (shima) meaning "island."

Kiritani Japanese
From 桐 (kiri) meaning "paulownia" and 谷 (tani) meaning "valley".

Kiriyama Japanese
From Japanese 桐 (kiri) meaning "paulownia tree" and 山 (yama) meaning "mountain".

Kirrin Literature
Used by Enid Blyton in the Famous Five book series (first published 1942) for the main character George Kirrin. It is also used as a place name for the fictional village where she lives and the nearby island.

Kishiyama Japanese
From Japanese 岸 (kishi) meaning "beach, shore, bank" and 山 (yama) meaning "mountain, hill".

Kitajima Japanese
From Japanese 北 (kita) meaning "north" and 島 (shima) meaning "island".

Kitamura Japanese
From Japanese 北 (kita) meaning "north" and 村 (mura) meaning "town, village".

Kitani Japanese
From the Japanese 木 (ki or moku) "tree," "wood" and 谷 (tani or ya) "valley."

Kitasawa Japanese
Kita means "north" and shima means "island".

Kitashima Japanese
Kita means "north" and shima means "island".

Kitaya Japanese
From 北 (kita) meaning "north" and 谷 (ya) meaning "valley".

Kitayama Japanese
From Japanese 北 (kita) meaning "north" and 山 (yama) meaning "mountain, hill".

Kivimägi Estonian
Kivimägi is an Estonian name meaning "stone mountain/hill".

Kivisaar Estonian
Kivisaar is an Estonian surname meaning "stone island".

Kiya Japanese
Means "tree valley" in Japanese, from 木 (ki) "tree" and 谷 (ya) "valley".

Kjellberg Swedish, Norwegian (Rare)
Combination of Old Norse kelda or Swedish källa both meaning "spring, source (of water)", and berg "mountain".

Kluczewski m Polish
Habititional surname for someone from a village called Klucze or Kluczewo.

Klug German (Austrian)
First recorded in the early 14th century in present-day Austria (southeastern region of the Holy Roman Empire at that time). The surname was derived from the ancient Germanic word kluoc meaning "noble" or "refined".... [more]

Kmet Slovene, Serbian, Croatian, Slovak
Slovenian, Serbian, Croatian, and Slovak status name for a type of peasant. In Slovenia this denoted a peasant who had his own landed property. In Serbia and elsewhere it was a status name for a feudal peasant farmer who cultivated the land of his lord instead of paying rent or doing military service... [more]

Knoll English, German, Jewish
English and German topographic name for someone living near a hilltop or mountain peak, from Middle English knolle ‘hilltop’, ‘hillock’ (Old English cnoll), Middle High German knol ‘peak’... [more]

Ko Korean
There is only one Chinese character for the surname Ko. There are ten different Ko clans, but they are all descended from the Ko clan of Cheju Island. There is no historical information regarding the founder of this clan, but there is a legend which tells of three men who appeared from a cave on the north side of Cheju Island’s Halla Mountain... [more]

Kobe Japanese
From the Japanese city of Kobe.

Kobiyama Japanese
From Japanese 小 (ko) meaning "small", 檜 (hi) meaning "Japanese cypress" and 山 (yama) meaning "mountain".

Kobrinsky Belarusian
Refers to a city named "Kobryn" in Belarus.

Kochiyama Japanese
From 河 (ko) meaning "river, stream", 内 (chi) meaning "inside" and 山 (yama) meaning "mountain".

Kodajima Japanese
From Japanese 古 (Ko) meaning "Old" and 田 (Ta, Da) meaning "Rice Field" and 島 (Shima) meaning "Island"

Koefoed Danish
Probably a Danish form of Dutch Koevoets. The name arrived on the Danish island Bornholm via Lübeck, Germany.

Kohlstedt Medieval German (Modern)
Likely derived from the German word Kohl, meaning “Cabbage,” and a Variation of the word Stadt, meaning “City, town, and/or place.”

Koirala Nepali
From the name of the village of Koirali in Nepal.

Kojima Japanese
From Japanese 小 (ko) meaning "small" or 児 (ko) meaning "young" and 島 (shima) meaning "island".

Kokamägi Estonian
Kokamägi is an Estonian surname meaning "cookery mountain".

Kolden German, Norwegian
From Middle Low German kolt, kolde ‘cold’, a nickname for an unfriendly person; alternatively, it may be a habitational name, a shortened form of Koldenhof ‘cold farm’ in Mecklenburg (standardized form: Kaltenhof, a frequent place name in northern Germany, East Prussia, Bavaria, and Württemberg).Norwegian: habitational name from a farm called Kolden, from Old Norse kollr ‘rounded mountain top’.

Kolesar Czech (Modern, Rare), German (Modern, Rare), German (Austrian, Modern, Rare)
Means either 'wheelwright' or 'coleminer' depending on the region.

Kolomiyets Ukrainian
Means "a person from Kolomyya". Kolomyya is a city and rayon in the Ivano-Frankivsk region of Ukraine.

Kolyvanov Russian
Uncertain meaning. Possibly derived from Old Russian Колывань (Kolyvan), an Old Russian name of the city of Tallinn.

Komaru Japanese
From Japanese 小丸 (Komaru) meaning "Komaru", a former village in the former district of Mikumi in the former Japanese province of Tajima in parts of present-day Hyōgo, Japan.

Kometani Japanese
From 米 (kome) meaning "rice, America" and 谷 (tani) meaning "valley".

Komiyama Japanese
From Japanese 小 (ko) meaning "small", 宮 (miya) meaning "temple, shrine, palace" and 山 (yama) meaning "mountain".

Komnenos Greek
From the village Komne in Thrace. The surname of one of the imperial families of Byzantium.

Kōmura Japanese
From Japanese 高 (kō) meaning "tall, high" and 村 (mura) meaning "town, village".

Komura Japanese
From Japanese 小 (ko) meaning "small, Little" and 村 (mura) meaning "town, hamlet, village".

Konagawa Japanese
The Japanese surname "Konagawa" (小長川) consists of three kanji characters: "小" meaning "small," "長" meaning "long," and "川" meaning "river." So, "Konagawa" could be interpreted as "small long river." However, as with many Japanese surnames, there may be variations in meaning and interpretation depending on the family's history and region.

Koničanin Serbian
Habitational name for someone from the village of Koniče, Serbia.

Konieczny Polish
Originally meant "final, last" in Polish, used to refer to a person who lived at the end of a village.

Koniński m Polish
Derived from Polish koń, meaning "horse." It can also refer to the city of Konin in Poland.

Kõnnusaar Estonian
Kõnnusaar is an Estonian surname meaning "wilderness island".

Konvalinka Czech
Means "lily-of-the-valley" in Czech.

Koretskiy Russian
Name for a person originally from the Ukrainian city of Korets, derived from Russian корец (korets) or корчик (korchik) both referring to a type of ladle.

Kõrgemäe Estonian
Kõrgemäe is an Estonian surname meaning "high hill/mountain".

Koriyama Japanese
Possibly from 氷 (kori, hyou) meaning "ice" and 山 (yama) meaning "mountain, hill".

Kösen Jewish (Ashkenazi)
Habitational name from the city of Poznań (German Posen) in west-central Poland.

Koshima Japanese
From Japanese 小 (ko) meaning "small" or 児 (ko) meaning "young" and 島 (shima) meaning "island".

Kosuge Japanese
From Japanese 小 (ko) meaning "small; little; short" and 菅 (suge) meaning "sedge".... [more]

Kotani Japanese
Ko means "Small" and Tani means "Valley".

Kotomura Japanese
Koto means "flute" and mura means "village".

Kowerski Polish
This indicates familial origin within the Lesser Polish village of Kowersk.

Koyajima Japanese (Rare)
From Japanese 紺屋島 (Koyajima) meaning "Koyajima", a division in the area of Gomajima in the city of Oyabe in the prefecture of Toyama in Japan.... [more]

Koyama Japanese
From the Japanese 小 (ko) meaning "small" and 山 (yama) meaning "mountain."

Koyano Japanese
From Japanese 小 (ko) meaning "small", 谷 (ya) meaning "valley" and 野 (no) meaning "field, wilderness".

Köylü Turkish
Means "villager, peasant" in Turkish.

Kozamurai Japanese (Rare)
From Japanese 小侍 (Kozamurai) meaning "Kozamurai", a division in the area of Kitataku in the city of Taku in the prefecture of Saga in Japan.

Krasiński Polish
This indicates familial origin within the Masovian village of Krasne, Przasnysz County.

Krasowski Polish, Jewish
Habitational name for someone from the villages of Krasowa, Krasów, or Krasowa.

Krayev m Russian
From Russian край (kray), meaning "border, edge, region, land" or in some dialects "country".

Kritikos Greek
Means "Cretan" in Greek, from Κρήτη (Kriti) referring to the island of Crete.

Kriváň Slovak
Taken from the name of the mountain Kriváň, ultimately from kriv- meaning "bent, crooked".

Kronberg German, Swedish
German habitational name from any of the places called Kronberg near Frankfurt in Hesse and in Bavaria from the elements krone "crown" and berg "mountain, hill". Swedish ornamental name from kron "crown" and berg "mountain hill".

Kronenberg German, German (Swiss)
Habitational name from a place called Kronenberg (there is one near Wuppertal) or possibly from any of the places called Kronberg (see Kronberg ) from German Krone "crown" and German Berg "mountain, hill".

Kronstadt German
Means "crown city (e. g. capital city)" in German

Kruchowski Polish
This indicates familial origin within the Greater Polish village of Kruchowo.

Krumholz Jewish, German
German and Jewish (Ashkenazic) from Krumbholz ‘bent timber’, ‘mountain pine’, hence probably a metonymic occupational name for a cartwright or wheelwright. As a Jewish surname it is ornamental.

Kruusmägi Estonian
Kruusmägi is an Estonian surname meaning "gravel mountain/hill".

Kryčaŭski Belarusian
This indicates familial origin within the city of Krýčaŭ.

Krzyżewski Polish
Derived from the name of any of the villages called Krzyżewo in Poland. A notable bearer is American basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski (b. 1947).

Kuba Japanese
From 久 (ku) meaning "long time ago" and 場 (ba) meaning "place".... [more]

Kubitschek German
Germanized form of Kubíček. This name was borne by Juscelino Kubitschek (1902-1976), the Brazilian president who founded the city of Brasília in 1960, replacing Rio de Janeiro as the capital city of Brazil... [more]

Kublashvili Georgian
Last name originates from Imereti region of Georgia .

Kuboyama Japanese
From Japanese 久 (ku) meaning "long time ago", 保 (ho) meaning "protect" and 山 (yama) meaning "mountain".

Kucha Okinawan (Rare, Archaic)
From Okinawan 古知屋 (Kucha) meaning "Kucha", a former village in the former district of Kin in the former Ryūkyū Kingdom.

Kuchler German (Rare)
Often confused with Küchler a name for a cookie baker, Kuchler is a noble name for an old german family. Kuchler is origined in a city named Kuchl at the border of todays german bavaria... [more]

Kujawski Polish
Regional name for someone from Kujawy (see Kujawa) or from a village called Kujawy, for example in Sielce voivodeship.

Kuka Albanian
From the old personal name Kukë (definite form Kuka), which is most likely of South Slavic origin... [more]

Küla Estonian
Küla is an Estonian surname meaning "village".

Külaots Estonian
Külaots is an Estonian surname meaning "village end".

Kullamäe Estonian
Kullamäe is an Estonian surname meaning "aurous hill/mountain".

Kullberg Swedish
Combination of Swedish kulle "hill" and berg "mountain".

Kunimura Japanese
From Japanese 国 (kuni) meaning "country" and 村 (mura) meaning "village, hamlet".

Kunnathuparambil Malayalam (Rare)
Elamkunnapuzha-Kunnathuparambil Family has a rich history of around 200 years and traces its origins to a small village called Elamkunnapuzha in Ernakulam District. It was at that time one of our ancestors migrated from Elamkunnapuzha to a small village called Vennoor, near Mala in Thrissur District for his livelihood... [more]

Kunt Turkish
Means "Solid", also the old Turkish name of a mountain range in Asia where Turks supposedly originated from.

Kunugiza Japanese (Rare)
From Japanese 椚座 (Kunugiza) meaning "Kunugiza", a former division in the former village of Kusaka in the former district of Tsuna in the former Japanese province of Awaji in parts of present-day Hyōgo, Japan.

Kurakhov m Russian
Possibly from the city Kurakhovo (Курахово) in the Donetsk region.

Kuramura Japanese
Kura means "storehouse" and mura means "village, hamlet".

Kurisu Japanese
This surname is used as 栗栖, 栗須, 栗洲 with 栗 (ri, ritsu, ononoku, kuri) meaning "chestnut", 栖 (sei, su.mu) meaning "cobweb, den, hive, nest, rookery", 須 (shu, su, subekara.ku, subeshi, hige, matsu, mochi.iru, moto.meru) meaning "by all means, necessarily, ought" and 洲 (shuu, su, shima) meaning "continent, country, island, sandbar."... [more]

Kuriyama Japanese
From Japanese 栗 (kuri) meaning "chestnut" and 山 (yama) meaning "mountain".

Kurnatowski Polish
This indicates familial origin within the Greater Polish village of Kurnatowice.

Kuromusha Japanese (Rare)
From Japanese 黒武者 (Kuromusha) meaning "Kuromusha", a division in the division of Urano in the area of Iriki in the city of Satsumasendai in the prefecture of Kagoshima in Japan or a name of a group of several households in the Kadowari System that took place in the Edo Period in the former Japanese province of Satsuma in parts of present-day Kagoshima, Japan.

Kuroshima Japanese
From Japanese 黒 (kuro) meaning "black" and 島 (shima) meaning "island".

Kuru Japanese
Japanese: though written with the character for ‘give’ or ‘present’, the original meaning may actually be ‘sunset’. The name is listed in the Shinsen shōjiroku and is no longer common in Japan, but there is a city by that name in Hiroshima prefecture and the area may have ancient connections with the family.

Kurushima Japanese
From 栗 (kuru) meaning "chestnut" and 島 (shima) meaning "island".

Kurzberg German, Yiddish, Jewish
From a location name meaning "short mountain" in German, from Middle High German kurz meaning "short" and berg meaning "mountain". As a Jewish surname it is ornamental.

Kushige Japanese (Rare)
From Japanese 櫛笥 (Kushige) meaning "Kushige", a former alley in the area of Kushige in the ward of Kamigyō in the city of Kyōto in the prefecture of Kyōto in Japan.... [more]

Kutz German
Habitational name for someone from Kuhz, a small village near Prenzlau, Germany.

Kuwajima Japanese
From 桑 (kuwa) meaning "mulberry" and 島 (shima) meaning "island". Shima changes to jima because of rendaku.

Kuwashima Japanese (Rare)
Kuwa (桑) means "mulberry", shima (島) means "island". It is also possible to be spelled as Kuwajima

Kuwatani Japanese
From Japanese 桑 (kuwa) meaning "mulberry" combined with 谷 (tani) meaning "valley". A notable bearer of this surname is Natsuko Kuwatani (桑谷 夏子), a Japanese voice-actress who is best known for voicing Ryōko Asakura from the Haruhi Suzumiya series and Alph from Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha.

Kuwayama Japanese
From Japanese 桑 (kuwa) meaning "mulberry" and 山 (yama) meaning "mountain".

Kuyon Hungarian, Romanian
Largely unknown, but may have origins in a village in Poland, called Kujan. There’s records on the name at Ellis Island in New York where it was anglicized to the phonetic, Kuyon. There’s also a split in the main families with the name in the US to another diminutive, Kenyon.... [more]

Kvitka Ukrainian
Means "flower" in Ukrainian. It is an ornamental surname, but it could also denote to someone from a village called Kvitka.

Kwak Korean
From Sino-Korean 郭 (gwak) meaning "outer city" (making it the Korean form of Guo) or 霍 (gwak) meaning "quickly, suddenly".

Kyōō Japanese (Rare)
From Japanese 京 (kyō) meaning "capital city" and 応 (ō) meaning "to comply; to respond; to accord".

Laanemäe Estonian
Laanemäe is an Estonian surname meaning "wintergreen hill/mountain".

Laaneviir Estonian
Laaneviir is an Estonian surname possibly derived from "Laaneveere", a village in Viimsi Municipality, Harju County.

Laasmägi Estonian
Laasmägi is an Estonian surname meaning "forest/woodland mountain".

Laayouni Arabic (Maghrebi)
From Laayoune, the name of a city in the Western Sahara (chiefly Moroccan).

Labossiere French
Norman habitational name from a common village name La Boissière, meaning 'wooded area', from bois 'wood'. possibly a metronymic, from a feminine derivative of Bossier 'cooper', denoting the 'wife of the cooper'.

LaBrie French
Referred to a person who came from various places named Brie in France, for example Brie-sous-Matha, a commune in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in southwestern France.

Lachowski Polish
Place name for someone from the Polish village of Lachow.

Lachtrup German
Probably from a place name using the suffix -trup, related to dorf meaning "village". The first element could be lach "laugh, smile", or a corruption of loch "hole, pit".

Læstadius Swedish
From the name of the village Lästa in Ångermanland, Sweden, whose name possibly means "Leiðulfr's home". Lars Levi Læstadius (1800-1861) was a Swedish priest who founded a Lutheran revival movement known as Laestadianism.

Lafriki African
The surname Lafriki most likely means “The African,” derived from the Arabic word “Afriki” (أفريقي) meaning “African.” It is most commonly found in Morocco and is believed to have originated as a descriptor for individuals or families identified by their African origin—particularly in historical contexts where such markers distinguished local populations from those influenced by or migrating from other regions.... [more]

Lagójskì Belarusian
This indicates familial origin within the city of Lagójsk.

Lahiri Bengali
Habitational name from either the village of Lohori in present-day Bangladesh or the village of Laheria in India.

Laisaar Estonian
Laisaar is an Estonian surname meaning "wide/expansive island".

Lamalfa Sicilian
Variant of Malfa, most probably a habitational name for someone from Malfa on the island of Salina (Messina), although the name has also been linked with Amalfi in Salerno and Melfi in Potenza.

Lamberg Finnish, Swedish
Perhaps combination of an unexplained first element (maybe taken from a place name) and Swedish berg "mountain". It could also be of German origin (see other submission).

Lammas English
Lammas is a surname from the village Lamarsh in Essex, England.

Lancaster English
From the name of a city in northwestern England derived from Middle English Loncastre, itself from Lon referring to an ancient Roman fort on the River Lune combined with Old English ceaster meaning "city, town".

Lanckoroński Polish
This denotes familial origin within the Lesser Polish village of Lanckorona.

Landibar Basque
From the name of a neighborhood in the village of Urdazubi, Navarre, derived from Basque landa "field, prairie, plain" and ibar "valley, riverbank".

Landschulz Medieval German (Germanized, Rare)
"Land" country side, rural area... [more]

Langwade English
From an English village Langmead, in the county of Devon. It was used to refer to those individuals who lived at the lang-mead, which literally means "the long meadow".

Lanphere English
From the Languedoc region of southern France, it came from the ancient Greek personal name, Petros and the Biblical name, Peter, meaning "rock."

Lapot Filipino
Linguitistic origins of the surname Lapot, which means "thick" pertaining to a consistency originated from Central Luzon region of the Philippines.

Lardinois French
Originally denoted a person from the Ardennes, a forest-covered region situated in Belgium and Luxembourg, extending into Germany and France. A notable bearer of this name was the Dutch politician and diplomat Pierre Lardinois (1924-1987).

Larivière French (Modern)
From the region of Bourgoigne, in France, meaning 'the river'. The name is likely a topographic reference to the physical location, likely a river in this case.

Larramendi Basque
Means "pastureland, mountain grassland", derived from Basque larre "pasture, meadow, prairie" and mendi "mountain".

Larrion Basque
From the name of a village in Navarre, Spain, derived from Basque larre "field, pasture, meadowland" and on "good".

Lasby English (Hellenized, Rare), French (Quebec)
Likely derived from a place in England. Associated with the Old English terms "laes" and "by", meaning pasture or village. Now rare in England, most people with this surname are American or Canadian, and are descended from a group of French Canadian furtrappers.

Latoszyński Polish
This indicates familial origin within the Lesser Polish village of Latoszyn.

Lättemäe Estonian
Lättemäe is an Estonian surname derived from "läte" meaning "spring" or "fountain" and "mäe" meaning "hill" and "mountain"; "spring mountain".

Lauder Scottish, Northern Irish
From a village in Berwickshire in the Scottish Borders. It derives from the Celtic Lauuedder, probably indicating a rapidly flowing river, cognate with Modern Welsh llifer meaning 'to gush'.

Laudrup Danish
Possibly from the name of homesteads in Denmark, most likely derived from Old Norse laut meaning "barn", combined with the Danish suffix -drup (itself from Old Norse thorp) meaning "outlying farmstead, village, settlement"... [more]

Laurel Spanish, Portuguese, Filipino, Tagalog, Cebuano
Topographic name for someone who lived by a laurel tree, Spanish laurel (Latin laurus), or a habitational name from Laurel in the Canary Islands.

Lauterbach German
From the name of various places in Germany, for example the village of Lauterbach in the district of Rottweil, Baden-Württemberg.

Lavalle French
means "of the valley" in english.

Lavelle French
From Old French val "valley".... [more]

Lavers English
English (chiefly Devon and Cornwall): Medieval English and occupational, from pre-10th century Old French "lavandier". Introduced by the Normans after 1066, originally described a worker in the wool industry, and was a metonymic or nickname for a person employed to wash raw wool or rinse the cloth after fulling... [more]