KelchGerman nickname from Middle High German kelch "double chin", "goiter". from another meaning of Middle High German kelch "glass", "chalice", hence a metonymic occupational name for a chalice maker or a habitational name for someone living at a house distinguished by the sign of a chalice.
KellenGerman From the name of a place in Rhineland, which is derived from Middle Low German kel (a field name denoting swampy land) or from the dialect word kelle meaning "steep path, ravine".
KellnerGerman, Dutch, Jewish, Czech, Slovak, Polish, Hungarian, French German, Dutch and Jewish (Ashkenazic) occupational or status name from the Middle Low German kelner, the Middle High German kelnære, the Middle Dutch kel(le)nare and the German kellner#, all meaning "cellarman"... [more]
KelloEstonian Kello is an Estonian surname possibly derived from "kell" meaning "clock", or "kellu" meaning "trowel".
KelmGerman 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.
KemererGerman From the Old German word "kämmerer," which means "chamberlain." A chamberlain was the person in charge of the noble household; to him would fall the duty of ensuring that the castle and court of the noble ran smoothly.
KemmerGerman Kemmer is a surname. The surname Kemmer is an occupational surname. Further research revealed that the name is derived from the Old German word "kämmerer," which means "chamberlain." A chamberlain was the person in charge of the noble household; to him would fall the duty of ensuring that the castle and court of the noble ran smoothly... [more]
KemperGerman, Dutch From Kamp "field, piece of land", an occupational name denoting a peasant farmer. It could also indicate someone from a place named using the element. Alternatively, a variant of Kempf meaning "fighter".
KempesGerman, Dutch German and Dutch variant of Kemp or Kamp. It could also be a habitational name for a person from any of the various places named Kempen on the border between Germany and the Netherlands (for example the town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, close to the Dutch border), a status name for a peasant farmer or serf, or an occupational name for an official calibrator who marked the correct weight and measures for verification, derived from Middle Low German kempen... [more]
KemptonEnglish From the name of a place in Shropshire meaning "Cempa's town" or "warrior town", from a combination of either the Old English word cempa "warrior" or the byname derived from it and tun "farmstead, settlement".
KennerkEnglish 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.
KenobiPopular Culture Obi-Wan Kenobi is a fictional character in the 'Star Wars' saga, created by George Lucas. The meaning of the name is not known, but as Lucas was very much influenced by Japanese samurai movies, it is possible that the name is a combination of Japanese 剣 (ken) "sword" and 帯 (obi) "belt".
KensingtonEnglish English surname meaning "Cynesige's town", from the Old English personal name Cynesige and ton 'town'.
KensitEnglish 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.
KensleyEnglish This surname might derive from the surname Kinsley or from the locational surname Kelsey (denoting someone who is from either North or South Kelsey in Lincolnshire).
KentonEnglish habitational name from any of various places so named Kenton, for example in Devon, Greater London (formerly Middlesex), Northumberland, and Suffolk... [more]
KenwoodEnglish From the settlement of Kenwood in the parish of Kenton, county of Devon, England. ... [more]
KenworthyEnglish (British, Anglicized, Rare) his interesting surname of English origin is a locational name from a place so called in Cheshire, deriving from the Old English pre 7th Century personal name Cyna, a short from of the various compound names with the first element "cyne" meaning "Royal", or, Cena, a byname meaning "Keon", "Bold" or a short form of various compound personal names with this first element plus the Old English pre 7th Century "worthing" "enclosure"... [more]
KenwynCornish (Rare) This surname is derived from the name of a town and river in Cornwall, England (called Keynwynn in Cornish). It is said that the name is derived from Cornish keyn meaning "back, keel, ridge" and gwynn meaning "white, fair, blessed."
KenyonEnglish, Welsh Kenyon is a surname from Wales meaning "a person from Ennion's Mound"
KeplerGerman From Middle High German kappe meaning "hooded cloak". This was an occupational name for someone who made these kind of garments. A notable bearer was German astronomer and mathematician Johannes Kepler (1571–1630).
KeränenFinnish Possibly from Keräpää, a nickname for a bald person or someone with a round head and/or with closely cropped hair, combined with the common surname suffix -nen. In eastern Finland the name dates back to the 16th century.
KerbelEnglish, German, Russian (Rare) Means "chervil" in German, a parsley-related herb. The surname probably came into England via Germanic relations between the two languages, hence it being most common in German & English countries.
KerbowFrench Possibly derived from the French word 'corbeau', meaning "raven".
KernGerman, Dutch, Jewish from Middle High German kerne "kernel, seed pip"; Middle Dutch kern(e)keerne; German Kern or Yiddish kern "grain" hence a metonymic occupational name for a farmer or a nickname for a physically small person... [more]
KerouacFrench (Quebec) Variant form of Kirouac. This name was borne by the American novelist and poet Jack Kerouac (1922-1969), who was a pioneer of the Beat Generation, alongside William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg.
KerslakeEnglish Topographic name for someone who lived by a stream where cress grew, derived from Old English cærse meaning "watercress" and lacu meaning "stream".
KesselGerman Occupational name for a maker of cooking vessels from Middle High German kezzel meaning "kettle, cauldron, boiler".
KesselDutch Habitational name for someone originally from any of the various locations in the Netherlands named Kessel, ultimately derived from Latin castellum "fortress, stronghold, castle". Could possibly also be a variant of German Kexel.
KesselbergGerman Habitational name for someone from any of various places in Rhineland, Bavaria and Baden called Kesselberg.
KesslerGerman, Jewish Means "kettle-maker, tinker", denoting a maker of copper or tin cooking vessels, derived from Middle High German kezzel meaning "kettle, cauldron". In some instances, it could have referred to the shape of a landform.
KestelEnglish Habitational name from Kestle, a place in Cornwall, so named from Cornish castell "castle, village, rock".
KestelootBelgian (Modern) No idea whatsoever as to the origin of the surname other than it is of Belgian origin.
KetaAlbanian Meaning as of yet unknown. Known Albanian bearers of this surname include the colonel Myslym Keta (1925-1966) and the politician Roland Keta (b. 1971).
KetayEnglish (British) It was first used by the great kin Richard skinner-ketay.He ruled over his land fairly and was well respected by his subjects.
KetayEnglish (British) It was first used by the great king Richard skinner-ketay wh ruled over his land fairly and wisely and his subjects respected and loved him.
KetchumPopular Culture The surname of Ash Ketchum in the English dub of the anime "Pokémon," and comes from the English localizations' catchphrase "Gotta Catch' em All!"
KettsEnglish (British) The proud Norman name of Ketts was developed in England soon after the Norman Conquest of England in 1066. It was a name for a person who has a fancied resemblance to a cat. The name stems from the Old Northern French cat, of the same meaning, which occurs in many languages in the same form from a very early period.
KevilleEnglish 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".
KewishScottish, Manx The surname Kewish was first found in on the Isle of Uist, in the Hebrides in Scotland, which is named for the Irish King, Colla Uais who was deposed in Ireland by Muedach Tireach and was banished with 300 of their principal chiefs to the Hebrides in 327 A.D. They became known as the kingdom of Ailech and gave birth to the kindred of St... [more]
KeyworthEnglish Habitational name from Keyworth in Nottinghamshire. The place name derives from an uncertain initial element (perhaps Old English ca "jackdaw") and Old English worþ "enclosure".
KhaVietnamese Vietnamese form of Ke, from Sino-Vietnamese 柯 (kha).
KhalafArabic Means "successor, descendant" in Arabic.
KhalajiPersian From the name of the Khalaj people who primarily reside in Iran. The name itself is said to be derived from Turkic kal aç meaning "stay hungry".
KhalifeLebanese (Gallicized) French version of the Arabic name Khalifa which means “successor of Mohammed” used by Lebanese Christians ever since the French occupation of Lebanon.
KhalimbekovKazakh This surname is derived from the Kazakh given name Khalimbek, which combines the elements Khalim ("generous") and Bek ("ruler" or "leader"). Therefore, Халимбеков (Khalimbekov) would roughly mean "descendant of Khalimbek" or "belonging to the family of Khalimbek".
KhameneiPersian 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.