CianciItalian The surname Cianci is a name for a person of small financial means. The surname Cianfari is derived from the Italian words cianfrone and cianferone, which referred to a type of medieval coin.
VolkovskyRussian Habitational name for someone who lives in a multiplicity named Volikovski. Derived from волк (volk) meaning "wolf" in Russian.
BevierFrench (Germanized) From Old French bevier, meaning "a measure of land". This was probably a nickname for someone who owned or worked such a piece of land. This surname was first found in Austria, where the name Bevier came from humble beginnings but gained a significant reputation for its contribution to the emerging medieval society.
TanejaIndian This surname was apparently derived from tən‘blade of grass’ (from Sanskrit tṛna).
KidamuraJapanese 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".
KıvrakTurkish Means "lithe, agile, active" in Turkish.
BattelloItalian Though it coincides with Italian battello "boat, dinghy", it probably derives from the given name Bathyllus, a latinized form of a Greek name... [more]
BeerGerman, Dutch From Middle Low German bare, Middle Dutch bere "bear". Given as a nickname to someone who was thought to resemble a bear, a metonymic occupational name for someone who kept a performing bear, or a habitational name for someone who lived near a sign depicting a bear... [more]
JourdemayneMedieval English Likely from Old French jor de main meaning "day labourer". This was borne by Margery Jourdemayne, an English woman known as the "Witch of Eye" who was burned at the stake in 1441 for conspiring to kill the king with witchcraft... [more]
PortocarreroSpanish, Spanish (Latin American) Possibly a Spanish form of Porto Carreiro, an old municipality in Galicia, from Galician porto "port, harbour" and carreiro "path, pathway".
NokoJapanese From 野 (no) meaning "field, plain" and 古 (ko) meaning "old, antique, ancient".
NiinEstonian Niin is an Estonian surname meaning "bast" and "phloem" (the fibrous material from the phloem of a plant, used as fiber in matting, cord, etc.)
SügisEstonian Sügis is an Estonian surname meaning "Autumn".
CasellaItalian From casa "house" (Latin casa "hut, cottage, cabin"), perhaps originally denoting the occupier of the most distinguished house in a village. Italian chef Cesare Casella (1960 - ) is one such bearer of this name.
CattonEnglish Habitational name derived from any of several places in England, probably derived from the Old English given name Catta "cat" and tun "town, yard, enclosure"... [more]
CardoSpanish, Italian From cardo "thistle, cardoon" (from Latin carduus) either a topographic or occupational name for using wool carder thistles, or from the given name Cardo a short form of given names Accardo, Biancardo, or Riccardo.
EichenbergGerman Derived from Middle High German eih "oak" and berg "mountain hill" meaning "oak hill, oak mountain"; a topographic name for someone who lived on an oak-covered hillside or a habitational name from any of the places so named... [more]
TsiolkovskyPolish (Russified) Russified form of Ziółkowski. Konstantin Eduardovich Tsiolkovsky (1857-1935) was a Russian rocket scientist who pioneered astronautics, whose father was of Polish origin.
HotzGerman (Swiss), German, Hungarian Of debated origin and meaning; theories include a habitional name for someone from the Hotzenwald, a derivation from any given name containing the Germanic name element hadu "battle, combat" and a derivation from the verb hotzen "to swing, to sway, to tremble".
ChiarenzaItalian From Clarence, a medieval Frankish town in Greece, called Chiarenza or Clarenza in Italian, rendered Γλαρέντζα (Glarentza) in contemporary Greek documents.
KostraCzech, Slovak Unusual surname found in Slovakia and the Czech Republic meaning "skeleton" from the word kostra, ultimately from the word kost meaning "bone". In Czech in particular, kostra refers only to the biological meaning of "skeleton" - a skeleton as an independent entity is known as a kostlivec.
PardonFrench A nickname for someone who had received the royal clemency.
WrytaNorman Old Norse Men Normans Wryta brothers fought with William The Conqueror at Battle of Hastings onto King Henry VIII granting landed, gentry, coat of arms, baronetcy, and lord title to Sir John Wright 1 of Kelvedon Hall ESsex on 6/20/1509
KanKorean (Russified) Russified form of Kang used by ethnic Koreans living in parts of the former Soviet Union.
OrtuzarBasque Derived from Basque ortu "garden, orchard" and the suffix -zar meaning "old".
CoadyIrish Coady or Cody originated in the Southern Counties of Ireland. The Norman family Odo le Ercedekne acquired land in Kilkenny, Ireland in early 1300's. In medieval records it was spelled Lerceddkne and then Archdeken and then Archdeacon... [more]
HaginagaJapanese (Rare) From Japanese 脛永 (Haginaga) meaning "Haginaga", a division in the town of Ibigawa in the district of Ibi in the prefecture of Gifu in Japan, or it being a variant spelling of 脛長 (Haginaga) meaning "Haginaga", a former large village in the same location, in the district of Ikeda in the former Japanese province of Mino in parts of present-day Gifu in Japan.
ErmatingerGerman (Swiss) The surname Ermatinger derives from the village of Ermatingen on the Swiss shore of Lake Constance. It simply means "from Ermatingen".... [more]
ForteItalian Means "strong" in Italian, either given as a nickname, or taken from the medieval given name Forte, derived from Latin fortis "strong, steadfast, brave"... [more]
HoholUkrainian Means "garrot, goldeneye (duck)" in Ukrainian.
ShippEnglish nickname for a mariner or perhaps a boatbuilder from Middle English schip "ship". Compare Shipman . in addition the name may occasionally also have been topographic or habitational referring to a house or inn distinguished by the sign of a ship.
CastriItalian Derived from Latin castrum "camp, fortress".
InglisEnglish (British), Scottish Originates from the Scots word for English as in a person of English origin. Around 1395 after a dual, the family name became connected to the Scottish clan Douglas as a sept, or a follower, of the clan... [more]
PadleyEnglish A habitational name from a place named Padley, which was probably named with the Old English personal name Padda and lēah meaning ‘glade, woodland clearing’. Alternatively, the first element may have been padde, meaning ‘toad’.
CavaItalian, Catalan, Spanish, Portuguese From cava ‘cave’, ‘cellar’ (from Latin cavea), hence a metonymic occupational name for someone employed in the wine cellars of a great house, a topographic name for someone who lived in or near a cave, or a habitational name from any of numerous places named with this word.
MakepeaceEnglish From a nickname for a professional arbitrator or someone known for fixing hostilities. It may have also been used ironically. A famous bearer of the name was English novelist and illustrator William Makepeace Thackeray (1811-1863).
TrellesAsturian This indicates familial origin within the eponymous parish of the municipality of Cuaña.
BittakerEnglish Possibly an altered spelling of Whitaker. An infamous bearer was the American serial killer and rapist Lawrence Bittaker (1940-2019).
BolithoCornish Habitational name for someone originally from the locality of Bolitho in western Cornwall, derived from Old Cornish bod or bos meaning "dwelling" combined with an unknown personal name.
NiehChinese Alternate transcription of Chinese 聂 (see Nie).
DefilippoItalian The Italian surname De Filippo is a patronymic name created from the first name of a male ancestor. As a first name, it is derived from the Latin "Philippus,". This name is composed of the element "philos" which means "friend," and "hippos," meaning "horse.
ZechesEnglish The surname Zeches was first found in Silesia, where the name was closely identified in early mediaeval times with the feudal society which would become prominent throughout European history. The name would later be associated with noble family with great influence, having many distinguished branches, and become noted for its involvement in social, economic and political affairs.
BonnellScottish From Bonhill, a town in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland.
NagamatsuJapanese This surname is used as 永松, 長松 or 永末 with 永 (ei, naga.i) meaning "eternity, lengthy, long," 長 (chou, osa, naga.i) meaning "leader, long," 松 (shou, matsu) meaning "pine tree" and 末 (batsu, matsu, sue) meaning "close, end, posterity, powder, tip."
SusiloChinese (Indonesian) Indonesianized form of Chinese surnames such as Lin (林) or Luo (羅). Surnames like these were instituted during the New Order era (1966–1998) in Indonesia due to social and political pressure toward Chinese Indonesians.
KivisaarEstonian Kivisaar is an Estonian surname meaning "stone island".
SandhurstEnglish (Rare) From Sandhurst, the name of places in the English counties of Kent, Gloucestershire and Berkshire, all of which come from the Old English elements sand "sand" and hyrst "hillock, copse".
BenfieldEnglish habitational name from one or more of the numerous places in England called Benfield or Binfield which are named from Middle English bent "bent-grass" and feld "open country" or "land converted to arable use" (Old English beonet and feld)... [more]
WurdemannGerman (Rare) This is a German surname, also spelled WÜRDEMANN (original) and often rendered as WUERDEMANN in English. It come from the German "würde", "dignity" or "honor" and "mann", meaning "man" or "person".... [more]
FaradayIrish From Irish Gaelic Ó Fearadaigh "descendant of Fearadach", a personal name probably based on fear "man", perhaps meaning literally "man of the wood". A famous bearer was British chemist and physicist Michael Faraday (1791-1867).
BarbeauFrench Derived from barbeau meaning "barbel", a type of fish, hence a metonymic occupational name for a fisherman, or a nickname for a man with a sparse beard, the fish being distinguished by beardlike growths on either side of its mouth... [more]
TsouTaiwanese Tsou is a last name commonly found in Taiwan among its Chinese community. It is the transliteration of a Chinese surname meaning: vassal state during the Zhou Dynasty (1046-256 BC) in the southeast of Shandong Province.
AkaedaJapanese Aka means "red" and eda means "branch, bough, twig."