Submitted names are contributed by users of this website. The accuracy of these name definitions cannot be guaranteed.
ValdoviñoGalician This indicates familial origin within the eponymous municipality.
ValdovinosSpanish Spanish: from a personal name of ancient Germanic origin composed of the elements bald 'bold brave' + win 'friend'.
ValdreEstonian Valdre is an Estonian surname possibly derived from the masculine given name "Valter", or relating to a "parish" or "borough" ("vald").
ValeEnglish Topographic name for someone who lived in a valley, Middle English vale (Old French val, from Latin vallis). The surname is now also common in Ireland, where it has been Gaelicized as de Bhál.
ValeeGerman From French origin, denoting someone who lives or comes from a valley.
ValenEnglish, Scottish English and Scottish: from a medieval personal name, Latin Valentinus, a derivative of Valens (see also Valente), which was never common in England, but is occasionally found from the end of the 12th century, probably as the result of French influence... [more]
ValenzuelaSpanish Habitational name from places named Valenzuela in Córdoba and Ciudad Real. The place name is a diminutive of Valencia, literally "Little Valencia".
ValeraSpanish Habitational name from either of two places in Spain named Valera.
ValgañónSpanish This indicates familial within the eponymous Riojan municipality.
ValgeEstonian Valge is an Estonian surname meaning "white".
ValgemäeEstonian Valgemäe is an Estonian surname meaning "white hill".
ValgepeaEstonian Valgepea is an Estonian surname meaning "white head".
VäliEstonian Väli is an Estonian surname meaning "field".
ValiSpanish, Italian (Swiss), Arabic This Spanish and Italian surname of VALI was a locational name for someone OR A family who lived in a valley. In valle quiescit ( In the valley of our home, we find peace.)... [more]
VallanceEnglish Means "person from Valence", southeastern France (probably "place of the brave").
ValleSpanish, Filipino, Italian Habitational name from any of the many places named with valle "valley", or topographic name for someone who lived in a valley (Latin vallis).
ValléeFrench topographic name for someone who lived in a valley from Old French valee "valley" (from Latin vallis) or a habitational name from (La) Vallée the name of several places in various parts of France... [more]
VallejoSpanish Denoted someone who lived in a small valley.
ValleraFrench French: habitational name from Vallery in Yonne, once a Romano-Gallic estate, recorded in 1218 as Valerianus. The surname is also found in the British Isles and may be of Norman origin, from the same place.
ValletFrench, English French topographic name from a diminutive of Old French val "valley" (see Val ) or a habitational name from (Le) Vallet the name of several places mainly in the northern part of France and French and English occupational name for a manservant from Old French and Middle English vallet "manservant groom".
ValleyEnglish Topographic name for someone who lived in a valley, Middle English valeye.
VallieGerman Probably an altered spelling of German Valee, a fairly common surname of French origin denoting someone who lived in a valley. The name in Germany is also spelled Wallee.
ValmoridaFilipino, Cebuano Means "valley of the forest field" derived from Spanish val, a contraction of valle meaning "valley", combined with Japanese 森 (mori) meaning "forest, woods" and 田 (ta) "paddy, field" (see Morita).
ValoisFrench topographic name for someone who lived in a valley, or a habitational name from any of the various places called Val(l)ois, or regional name from the district in northern France so called, which was once an independent duchy... [more]
Van AgtDutch Means "from Acht", a small village within the city of Eindhoven in the province of Noord-Brabant in the Netherlands. It is derived from Middle Dutch acht, achte meaning either "eight" or "preserve, lordly possession, legal district"... [more]
VanajuurEstonian Vanajuur is an Estonian surname meaning "old roots/origins".
Van AmerongenDutch Means "from Amerongen", a town in the province of Utrecht in the Netherlands.
Van ArkDutch Habitational name from a place called Ark in Gelderland.
VanatoaEstonian Vanatoa is an Estonian surname meaning "old room".
VanaveskiEstonian Vanaveski is an Estonian surname meaning "old mill".
Van BeekDutch Like Verbeek and Van de(r) Beek, the family name Van Beek can indicate a place of residence on a certain stream, the name for a narrow and shallow (clear and sometimes erratic) water stream, or in a village or hamlet that leads to a stream... [more]
Van BeethovenFlemish Means "from the beet fields". A famous bearer of this name was German Clasical composer Ludwig Van Beethoven (1770-1827).
Van BlankenbergDutch, Belgian Habitational name from any of various places so called, in particular in Hennef and Gelderland, or from Blankenberge in West Flanders, Belgium.
Van BoxtelDutch The family name Van Boxtel indicates origin from the North Brabant place Boxtel, written around 1110 Buchestelle, and later in the Middle Ages, among others, Bucstelle and Boextel.... [more]
Van BreukelenDutch Means "from Breukelen", a town in the province of Utrecht in the Netherlands, itself derived from Old Dutch bruoc meaning "marsh, marshland, wetland" and lētha meaning "excavated, canalised watercourse"... [more]
Van BronckhorstDutch Means "from Bronckhorst", a town in the province of Gelderland in the Netherlands, itself derived from Dutch brink meaning "edge, slope, village green" and horst meaning "overgrown hillock" or "higher located brushwood"... [more]
Van BurgenDutch Comes from the Middle Dutch word "burch," or "burg," meaning a fortified town. The prefixes "Van" and "den" mean "from" and "the" respectively. Thus this surname means "from the hill". As such, it may have been topographic name for someone who lived by a citadel or walled city; or, it may have been a habitational name
Van BuskirkDutch The name is made up of two Dutch words: "bos," meaning "woods," and "kerk," meaning "church." The characteristic Dutch prefix "van" literally means "from," and thus the surname indicates "one from the church in the woods."
Van De KerkhofDutch Means "from the churchyard", derived from Middle Dutch kerke meaning "church" and hof meaning "court, garden, yard". Famous bearers of this surname include twin brothers René and Willy Van De Kerkhof (1951-), both retired Dutch soccer players.
Van De LeestDutch Possibly an allusion to the shoemaker's profession, whether or not through a house name 'De Leest', which may have been the name of a shoemaker's building. A last is a (wooden) shape over which shoes are formed.
Van De MarkDutch Topographic name for someone who lived by a border or boundary, from Middle Dutch marke, merke meaning "boundary", "borderland".
Van Den BroekDutch The family name Van den Broek is derived from a toponym with the component Broek, for example a farm name that owes its name to its location near a Broek, a name for a swampy terrain.
Van Den VondelDutch Means "from the small wooden bridge", derived from a dialectal variant of Dutch vonder meaning either "narrow bridge" or "plank bridge". This name was borne by the Dutch playwright, poet, literary translator and writer Joost van den Vondel (1587-1679).
Van Der GraafDutch Dutch toponymic surname. Although graaf is a Dutch noble title similar to "count", here it refers to an old term for a canal with the same origin in the verb graven ("to dig") as gracht and grave.
Van Der HeijdenDutch The family name Van der Heijden indicates that the original name bearers inhabited a settlement or a farm located near an area or a heathland that was known as 'de Heide'.
Van Der KooiDutch name for someone from either of two places, De Kooi in South Holland or De Kooy in North Holland.
VanderleiBrazilian It derives from the Dutch surname Van der Leij/Ley. The surname arrived in Brazil by Kaspar Nieuwhoff Van Der Leij by 1630, a cavalry captain from the Dutch army.
Van Der LeijDutch Derived from Dutch lei meaning "slate" (effectively meaning "from the slate"), indicating that the original bearer of this name may have come from a place where slate was produced.
Van Der LoopDutch Topographical name for someone who lived by a waterway, Middle Dutch lo(e)pe, in particular a waterway called De Loop in North Brabant.
VandermastDutch Topographic name for someone from a place rich in animal fodder, for example acorns.
Van Der MerweDutch, South African While the name is currently very common in South Africa, it originates in Holland, literally meaning "From the Merwe". The first van der Merwes hail from the Merwede river. The name went to South Africa with the Dutch settlers in 1652.
van der MostDutch Topographic name for someone who lived in a place where moss grew.
VanderpanDutch Means "of the bannner" meaning most likely indicates ancestry of high-ranking occupation.
VanderpoolDutch Means, from the pool. It was a topographic name for someone who lived by a pool or pond, derived from the Dutch word POL. The name is also spelt POHL, POL, POLL, POLS, Van den POLL and POLMAN.
Van Der SteenDutch, Belgian Habitational name for someone from any of various minor places called Steen or Ten Stene (from steen meaning "stone"), for example in the Belgian provinces of East Flanders and Brabant.
Van Der WaalDutch Toponymic surname of Dutch origin. The original bearer of the name may have lived or worked at or near a "wal": a river embankment, quay, or rampage.
Van Der ZandenDutch Literally means 'From the sand', most likely given to someone who lived near sand grounds. It originated in the southeastern part of the Netherlands.
VandykeDutch Topographic name for someone living near a dyke or levee. Dykes are common structures for keeping lands dry in the low lying Netherlands. ... [more]
Van DyneDutch Habitational name for someone from Duinen in Gelderland.
Van HaitsmaDutch Habitational name for someone from Haitsma, a place in Friesland.
Van HalenDutch Habitational name for a person from the villages Hoog en Laaghalen in the Dutch province of Drenthe or Halen near Hasselt in Belgian Limburg. Famous bearers include Dutch-born American musicians Eddie Van Halen (1955-2020) and his brother Alex Van Halen (1953-) of the rock band Van Halen... [more]
Van HertrooijDutch Means "from Hertrooij", most likely a place name in the Netherlands. It could possibly derive from Middle Dutch hert meaning "deer" and rood meaning "red".
VankerEstonian Vanker is an Estonian surname meaning "carriage".
Van KleefDutch Van meaning 'of' Kleef is a variant spelling of Kleve: a town in the Lower Rhine region of northwestern Germany near the Dutch border and the River Rhine.
VannasEstonian Vannas is an Estonian surname derived from "vana", meaning "old".
VannavongLao From Lao ວັນນະ (vanna) meaning "color, caste" and ວົງ (vong) meaning "lineage, family".
VanneboNorwegian Taken from the farm Vanebu, spelled Vannebo in pre-1950 records. From the Norwegian words vann, meaning water, and bo, meaning to live or reside.
van NiekerkAfrikaans Topographic name for any of the various locations named Nieuwerkerk in The Netherlands or Nieuwerkerken in Belgium. The name itself means "of the new church" from Dutch van meaning "of" combined with nieuw meaning "new" and kerk meaning "church".
Van NistelrooijDutch Means "from Nistelrode", a small village in the province of Noord-Brabant in the Netherlands. It is derived from Middle Dutch nest meaning "nest, burrow, resting place" and lo meaning "light forest", combined with rode meaning "land cleared of trees"... [more]
Van RensselaerDutch From Soleur, one of the areas or regions of Switzerland.
Van RijnDutch Means "from the Rhine", the second-longest river in central and western Europe (after the Danube). This was the surname of the Dutch Baroque painter Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (1606-1669), usually known simply as Rembrandt.
Van RooyenAfrikaans van Rooyen related to van Rooijen, is an Afrikaans and Dutch toponymic surname. May be rooted from the Rhine area of the Netherlands, possibly having meant "from Rhine" originally... [more]
Van SmootDutch Americanized spelling of Dutch Smout, a metonymic occupational name for someone who sold fat or lard, Dutch smout, or a nickname for someone who had a taste for, and could afford, rich foods.
Van 't BoveneindDutch Means "from Boveneind", the name of various places in the Netherlands, itself meaning "from the top end" in Dutch. It is derived from boven meaning "upper, upstream" and eind meaning "edge, end".
Van TienhovenDutch Means "from Tienhoven", the name of several villages in the Netherlands. Their names are derived from Middle Dutch tien meaning "ten" and a plural form of huue meaning "piece of land of a certain size"... [more]
Van TristaanDutch From Julian Van Tristaan(1995-) professional footballer for Tottenham Hontspurs and Holland.
Van 't SchipDutch Means "from the ship", derived from Middle Dutch schip literally meaning "ship". It is borne by the Dutch-Canadian former soccer player John van 't Schip (1963-).
Van WertDutch (Americanized, Modern) From Dutch and Belgian: habitational name for someone from places in Belgium and the Netherlands called Weert, (De) Weerd, Weerde, or Waarde.
Van ZandtDutch, Belgian Habitational name for someone from any of the places called Zandt, in Gelderland, Friesland, South Holland, and Zeeland; or Zande in Belgium.
VaradkarIndian, Hindi, Marathi Derived from the name of the village of Varad in the Sindhudurg district in Maharashtra, India. A famous bearer is the Irish prime minister Leo Varadkar (1979-).