JenksEnglish, Welsh English (also found in Wales) patronymic from the Middle English personal name Jenk, a back-formation from Jenkin with the removal of the supposed Anglo-Norman French diminutive suffix -in.
JeschkeGerman Germanized form of Czech and Slovakian Ješko and Polish Jeszka, pet forms of given names beginning with Ja- or Je- such as Jan 1 or Jarosław, as well as various cognates or similar-sounding names, such as Ježek ("hedgehog").
JesselEnglish From a pet-form of Jessop (a medieval male personal name - a different form of Joseph). A literary bearer is Miss Jessel, the governess who has charge of the two troubled and enigmatic children in Henry James's ghost story 'The Turn of the Screw' (1898).
JessieEnglish Possibly a variant of Jessey, an occupational name for someone making jesses (a short strap fastened around the leg of a bird used in falconry).
JeterFrench (Huguenot), German Jeter is a French and German surname. It is the last name of former New York Yankees baseball player, Derek Jeter. It's also the last name of Carmelita Jeter, an American sprinter who specializes in the 100 meter sprint.
JewsonEnglish (British) A patronymic (also potentially matronymic) surname that means "the son of Jull", coming from the element Jull, a diminutive form of the personal name Julian or Juette from Iovis, the Roman god of thunder and the sky combined with the suffix of son.
JobEnglish, French, German, Hungarian English, French, German, and Hungarian from the personal name Iyov or Job, borne by a Biblical character, the central figure in the Book of Job, who was tormented by God and yet refused to forswear Him... [more]
JocelynEnglish Another of the names brought to England in the eleventh century by the Normans, and mentioned in the Domesday Book. Originally a masculine name only.
JollyEnglish From the English word jolly, which is ultimately from Old French joli# ("merry, happy"). Originally a nickname for someone of a cheerful or attractive disposition.
JongbloedDutch Nickname for a young person, derived from Middle Dutch jonc meaning "young" and bloet meaning "blood". A famous bearer of this surname was the Dutch soccer goalkeeper Jan Jongbloed (1940-2023).
JoplinEnglish Possibly derived from a Middle English diminutive of Geoffrey, a nickname from Middle English joppe "fool", or from the Biblical name Job... [more]
JordisonEnglish Possibly meaning son of Jordan. This name is surname of American drummer Joey Jordison.
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]
JowettEnglish From the medieval male personal name Jowet or the female personal name Jowette, both literally "little Jowe", a pet-form of Julian... [more]
JoyEnglish Either derived directly from the word, indicating a nickname for a joyous person, or a variant of Joyce.
JoysonEnglish Metronymic of the name Joy from the female given name Joia, deriving from the Middle English, Old French "joie, joye" meaning "joy". It may also be a nickname for a person of a cheerful disposition.
JudgeEnglish, Irish occupational name for an officer of justice or a nickname for a solemn and authoritative person thought to behave like a judge from Middle English Old French juge "judge" (from Latin iudex from ius "law" and dicere "to say") which replaced the Old English term dema... [more]
JuhlDanish, Norwegian (Rare), Low German Likely originating as a nickname for people born around Christmas or who had a connection with that time of year, from the Old Norse jól, which was the name of the Nordic pagan midwinter festival, or modern Danish jul meaning "Christmas" (cf... [more]
JukesEnglish Either a variant of Duke, or patronymic from a short form of the Medieval Breton given name Iudicael (see Jewell).
JungbluthGerman Means "young blossom" in German, from German jung "young" and blüte "blossom, flower", possibly denoting a person who blossomed early in their life.
JüngerGerman, Jewish German (Jünger) distinguishing name, from Middle High German jünger ‘younger’, for the younger of two bearers of the same personal name, usually a son who bore the same name as his father... [more]
JungmannGerman Means "young man" from German Jung and Mann.
JuniorMedieval English Junior or Jr. is used for a baby boy who has the same name as his father. The name is derived from the Middle English word junior, meaning the young or child.
JunkinsEnglish Derived from the Middle English given name Jenkin, which was in turn created from a diminutive of the name John, with the suffix "kin," added to the name.
JupeEnglish A kind of cloak or cape. It is possible that an ancestor of an individual with this surname was known for their association with these kinds of clothing.
JuskoUkrainian, English (American), Polish, Slovak The surname Jusko is both Polish and Ukrainian, but likely has Slavic Slovak origins. It may have come from the word "jus," which means "law" or "justice". It may come from a pet form of the names Just or Julian... [more]
KackleyGerman Probably an Americanized spelling of German Kächele (see Kachel).
KadGerman 1 German: habitational name for someone from a place called Kade near Magdeburg, Kaaden (German name of Kadeň in North Bohemia), or Kaden in Westerwald.... [more]
KaeserGerman, German (Swiss) Occupational name for a cheesemaker or a cheese merchant from an agent derivative of Middle High German kæse "cheese". Variant of Käser.
KallmeyerGerman from a Germanized form of Slavic kal "marshland bog" or from Middle High German Middle Low German kalc "lime" and Middle High German meier "tenant farmer" (see Meyer 1) hence a distinguishing nickname for a farmer whose farm lay on marshy land or near a lime pit.
KallweitGerman (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".
KalpGerman, Jewish From Middle High German kalp ‘calf’, German Kalb, probably applied as a metonymic occupational name for someone who reared calves.
KaltGerman, German (Swiss) From Middle High German kalt "cold" probably applied as a nickname for someone who felt the cold or for someone with an unfriendly disposition.
KaltenbachGerman habitational name from any of various places with names meaning "(at the) cold stream" from Old High German kalt "cold" and bah "stream brook".
KalthoffGerman German (Westphalian): habitational name from a place named as 'the cold farm', from Middle High German kalt "cold" + hof "farmstead", "manor farm’, "court".
KammGerman, 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]
KämmererGerman 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]
KampGerman, Dutch, Danish From the Germanic element kamp "field", derived from Latin campus "open space, battlefield".
KämpfGerman, Jewish From middle high German kampf, German kamf "fight, struggle" an occupational name for a champion a professional fighter (see Kemp ) or a nickname for someone with a pugnacious temperament.
KamphuisDutch Topographic name for someone who lived near a field, derived from Dutch kamp "enclosed field" and huis "house, home, building".
KampradGerman, Swedish (Rare) Possibly a variant of the German surname Kamprath meaning ”cogwheel (in a mill)”. A notable bearer is Ingvar Kamprad (1926-2018), a Swedish business magnate and the founder of IKEA... [more]
KanDutch Means "jug, teapot, can" in Dutch, from Middle Dutch kanne "pitcher, tankard, flagon", a metonymic occupational name for a potter, pewterer, or tinsmith.
KandtGerman Probably from Middle High German kant meaning "jug" (from Latin olla cannata meaning "pot with one spout") and hence an occupational name for a maker or seller of jugs.
KantersDutch An occupational name for a singer, such as a precentor (someone who leads songs or prayers in a church, monastery, or synagogue) or choir member. Ultimately derived from Latin cantor "singer, leader of song at a ceremony; prayer leader in a Jewish ceremony".
KapelDutch, Dutch (Surinamese) Means "chapel" in Dutch, a habitational name for someone who lived near a chapel (or in a place named after one), or an occupational name for a chaplain.
KapellerGerman, German (Austrian) Derived from Middle High German kappelle, kapelle "chapel", this name denoted someone who lived near a chapel.
KaplanGerman, Czech, Jewish Means "chaplain, curate" in German and Czech, ultimately from Latin cappellanus. It is also sometimes used as a Jewish name, from a translation of Hebrew כֹּהֵן (kohen) meaning "priest" (see Cohen).
KariFinnish, 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]
KarkusEnglish Anyone with information about this last name please edit.
KärlinGerman German surname from the personal name Karl. Also an altered spelling of German Gerling.
KarlingGerman A habitational name from Karling in Bavaria.
KartmannGerman Derived from German karte meaning "card". Possibly an occupational name for someone who makes, sells or trades cards. In an alternative representation, it could be a nickname for someone who gambles.
KäsemannGerman Occupational name for someone who makes or sells cheese.
KäserGerman, German (Swiss) occupational name for a cheesemaker or a cheese merchant (see Kaeser ). topographic name for someone who lived by a summer dairy in the Alps from a Tyrolean dialect word derived from Ladin casura... [more]
KasselGerman habitational name mainly from a place of this name in northeastern Hesse so named from Frankish castellacassela "fortification" a military term from Late Latin castellum "fortified position fort" or a topographic name from the same word.
KasselmannGerman Combination of the German place name Kassel (or Cassel) and German Mann "man".
KatDutch, Frisian, South African, Jewish Means "cat", a habitational name for someone who lived by a sign depicting a cat, or a nickname for someone who somehow resembled a cat, perhaps in agility or an independent nature.
KauGerman From Middle High German gehau "(mountain) clearing" hence a topographic name for a mountain dweller or possibly an occupational name for a logger.
KauGerman Topographic name for someone who lived by a mineshaft, from Middle High German kouw(e) "mining hut".
KaukGerman probably a variant of Kauke from Middle Low German koke "cake" (dialect kauke) hence a metonymic occupational name for a baker or confectioner or a nickname for a cake lover.
KaukaLow German, Sorbian Best known as the surname of a certain Rolf. It is perhaps a Sorbian and Northeast Low German variant of Kafka and Kawa, both of which mean ‘Jackdaw’ in Czech and Polish.... [more]
KaukeGerman Variant of Kauk from Middle high German kauke "cake" hence a metonymic occupational name for a baker or confectioner or a nickname for a cake lover.
KausGerman 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.
KauschGerman Pet name derived from the Old High German personal name Gozwin, of uncertain origin.
KauschGerman From a medieval form of the Old High German personal name Chuzo.
KautGerman Netonymic occupational name for a flax grower or dealer, from Middle High German kute, from Kaut(e) "male dove", hence a metonymic occupational name for the owner or keeper of a dovecote.
KautGerman Topographic name from the Franconian dialect word Kaut(e) "hollow", "pit", "den".
KautzGerman Nickname for a shy or strange person, from Middle High German kuz "screech owl".