NiedermeierGerman, German (Austrian) Occupational name for a farmer who had a farm lower than the neighboring one(s). This surname and its variant spellings are common to Austria and the state of Bavaria in Germany.
NiedermeyerGerman Means "lower farmer", a distinguishing name for a farmer who worked further south or in a low-lying location.
NightingaleEnglish Nickname for someone with a good voice from Middle English nightegale "nightingale" (Old English nihtegale, ultimately from niht "night" and galan "to sing").
Nihon'yanagiJapanese Means "2 salix trees", from Japanese 二本 (nihon) meaning "2 (cylindrical objects)" and 柳 (yanagi) meaning "salix". This is the name of a few places in Japan (in the city of Goshogawara and the city of Gonohe).
NijibayashiJapanese (Rare) From Japanese 虹 (Niji) meaning "Rainbow" and 林 (Bayashi) meaning "Forest". A notable bearer of this surname was academic author Kei Nijibayashi.
NishinoharaJapanese From Japanese 西 (nishi) meaning "west" and 野原 (nohara) meaning "grass field".
NostradamusHistory, French (Latinized) Latinized form of de Nostredame. This surname was borne by the French physician and writer Michel de Nostredame (1503-1566), famous for his collection of prophecies Les Prophéties (1555) allegedly predicting the apocalypse and danger from the Arab world.
OakenshieldEnglish (British), Literature In J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Hobbit", the surname of Thorin Oakenshield, the leader of the Company of Dwarves and the King of Durin's Folk.
Ó DuibhidhirIrish Means "descendant of Duibhuidhir". Duibhuidhir is a personal name composed of the elements dubh "dark, black" and odhar "sallow, tawny".
OosterwegelDutch From Dutch ooster meaning "eastern, east" and weg meaning "way, path, road". Dutch track and field athlete Emma Oosterwegel (1998-) bears this name.
OtodanketsuJapanese 音 (oto) means sound, 団 (Dan) means group, and 結 (ketsu) means conclusion, 団結 (danketsu) means Unity, making the full name 音団結(Otodanketsu) mean sound unity. the name was borne from Yasuhito Otodanketsu, a character in a Danganronpa fan series called Danganronpa endless: Hope Convalescence.
OxenstiernaSwedish (Rare) A notable surname used by an ancient Swedish noble family from Småland dating back to the 13th century. The name means "the ox's forehead". It is a combination of Swedish oxen, a cognate to the English plural of 'ox', and stierna, which is likely derived from German Stirn "forehead", though it is often mistaken for Swedish stjärna "star"... [more]
PagdangananFilipino, Tagalog Means "to be respected" in Tagalog, from Tagalog dangan "respect, consideration" with object trigger prefix and suffix pag- -an. This surname is mostly found in Bulacan.
PahlevanyanArmenian Means "son of the wrestler" or "son of the champion", ultimately from Persian پهلوان (pahlevân) meaning "strong man, champion, wrestler".
PaikashviliGeorgian Likely means "child of Paik", derived from the archaic masculine given name Paik (ultimately of Arabic origin) combined with Georgian შვილი (shvili) meaning "child".
PalaiologosGreek From the Greek words palaios logos, lit. "old word", most likely signifying an "antique collector".The surname of the last ruling Byzantine family.
PallaviciniItalian Near the pales; and they carry a palisade in their Arms.
PaluchowskiPolish This indicates familial origin within the Lesser Polish village of Paluchów.
PessegueiroPortuguese Means "peach tree" in Portuguese, ultimately from Latin persicum. It indicated a person who lived near or worked with peach trees.
PetraliphasGreek The surname is composed of the name Petros and the city Alifa in Campania, Italy. The surname was held by a Byzantine-Italian family in Epirus.
PfotenhauerGerman High German, carpenter's and woodworker's main occupation. Actual old German translation is "paw slapper" or "large paw" as in an animal (bear).
PhanthavongLao From Lao ພັນທະ (phantha) meaning "connect, join, tie" or "obligation" and ວົງ (vong) meaning "lineage, family".
PhilliskirkEnglish (Rare) From a 'lost' medieval parish in England or Scotland, named with the Old Norse element kirk meaning 'church' or 'place of worship'.... [more]
PhommachackLao From Lao ພົມມະ (phomma) referring to the Hindu god Brahma and ຈັກ (chack) meaning "disk, circle, wheel".
PhommachanhLao From Lao ພົມມະ (phomma) referring to the Hindu god Brahma combined with ຈັນ (chanh) meaning "moon".
PhonesavanhLao From Lao ພອນ (phone) meaning "blessing" and ສະຫວັນ (savanh) meaning "heaven".
PhongsavanhLao From Lao ພົງ (phong) meaning "family, lineage" and ສະຫວັນ (savanh) meaning "heaven".
PhongsavathLao From Lao ພົງ (phong) meaning "family, lineage" and ສະຫວາດ (sawat) meaning "sincere, open, beautiful".
PickenpaughGerman The surname Pickenpaugh is an Americanized version of the German name Beckenbach, meaning "from the river basin"... [more]
PickersgillEnglish This famous Yorkshire name is of early medieval English origin, and is a locational surname deriving from the place in West Yorkshire called Pickersgill, or "Robber's Ravine". The placename is derived from the Middle English "pyker", thief, robber, and "gill", gully, ravine, deep glen.
PikrammenosGreek From Greek πικρός (pikrós) meaning "bitter, acrid, embittered". A famous bearer is the Greek judge and politician Panagiotis Pikrammenos (1945-), who was Deputy Prime Minister of Greece... [more]
PininfarinaItalian A combination of "pinin", Piedmontese for youngest/smallest brother, and Farina, the Italian variant of Miller. This is the name of the Italian coachbuilder, founded by Battista "Pinin" Farina, later Battista Pininfarina.
PittendrighScottish From various place names possibly derived from pett "holding farm" and drech "face, countenance (of a hill)".
PlantagenetMedieval English, Medieval French Borne by the House of Plantagenet, a royal house which originated from the lands of Anjou in France. It also originated as a nickname for Geoffrey V, Count of Anjou (1113-1151), father of King Henry II of England (1133-1189), who ascended the English throne in 1154... [more]
PlasschaertFlemish Probably derived from Middle Dutch plasch "puddle, pool of water" and the suffix -aert.
PrusinowskiPolish (Rare) Habitational name for someone from any of various Polish places called Prusinow, Prusinowo, or Prusinowice, named with the ethnic name Prus, meaning 'village of the Prussians'.
QuadrillionObscure From English 'quadrillion' which means ten to the power of fifteen.
QuartermainEnglish From a medieval nickname for a very dextrous person, or for someone who habitually wore gloves (from Old French quatremains, literally "four hands"). A fictional bearer of the surname is Allan Quartermain, the hero of 'King Solomon's Mines' (1886) and other adventure novels by H. Rider Haggard... [more]
RaatikainenFinnish A family name first registered in the form Radikain in the 16th or 17th century. Derives from the German man's name Konrad which in Finland was shortened to Radi.
RabenschlagGerman Means "wing beat of a raven" in German, from German Rabe meaning "raven" and Schlag meaning "flap" or "wing beat" in this context.
RakhmaninovRussian From a nickname derived from Russian рахманный (rakhmannyy) meaning "lazy". A notable bearer was Russian composer, pianist and conductor Sergei Rakhmaninov (1873-1943).
RanganathanHinduism Means ‘lord of mirth’. It is an epithet of Lord Krishna.
RaskolnikovLiterature The surname of Rodion Romanovich Raskolnikov, protagonist of Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky. It derives from the Russian word raskolnik, meaning "schismatic" or a member of the Old Believer sect.
RavenscroftEnglish, English (British) Habitational name from a minor place in Cheshire, England. The place name means "Hræfn's croft", from an Old English personal name Hræfn (itself from Old English hræfn meaning "raven", possibly a byname) and Old English croft meaning "enclosed field".
RavenswaaijDutch From the name of a village in Gelderland, Netherlands, meaning "Raven’s ford", derived from the personal name Raven combined with Old Dutch wade "ford, shallows", later reinterpreted as Middle Dutch way "pool, kolk lake".
RecktenwaldGerman habitational name from Recktenwald, near Saarbrücken.
RedenbacherGerman (Americanized) Habitational name for someone from any of several places in Bavaria and Austria called Rettenbach, derived from German bach "stream" and an uncertain first element; possibly Old Germanic retten "swamp, moor", reudan "to clear (land), clearing", or roden "to redden, become red".
ReichenbergGerman, Jewish Habitational name from various places named Reichenberg in several different areas of Germany. As an ornamental name, it is composed of German reich(en) meaning "rich" and berg meaning "mountain, hill".
RickardssonSwedish Means "son of Rickard". A notable bearer of the surname is the Swedish cross country skier, Daniel Rickardsson.
RijlaarsdamDutch Derived from Reguliersdam, a dam named for a nearby monastery from Old French reguler "ecclesiastical, subject to religious or monastic rule".