DesaiIndian, Marathi, Gujarati From a feudal title derived from Sanskrit देश (desha) meaning "country, kingdom" and स्वामिन् (svamin) meaning "owner, master, lord".
De SaussureFrench (Swiss) Referred to a person who came from various places named Saussure, Saulxures or Saussay in northern France. Their names are derived from Medieval Latin salcetum, a derivative of Latin salix meaning "willow"... [more]
DesmoulinsFrench A French surname meaning “of the windmills.” A famous bearer of this surname is Camille Desmoulins, a journalist and politician during the French Revolution who was guillotined.
DessiItalian Denoting someone from Sini, Sardinia, formerly called Sinu or Sii.
De VignerotFrench, French (Belgian) The surname Vignerot was first found in Belgium, where the name became noted for its many branches in the region, each house acquiring a status and influence which was envied by the princes of the region... [more]
De VilPopular Culture Cruella de Vil is fictional character appearing as the antagonist of the novel 'One Hundred and One Dalmatians' (1956) by Dodie Smith, as well as in the 1961 animated movie '101 Dalmatians' and the 1996 live-action movie with the same name... [more]
DevonEnglish Regional name for someone from the county of Devon. In origin, this is from an ancient British tribal name, Latin Dumnonii, perhaps meaning "worshipers of the god Dumnonos".
DevonJamaican Patois (Modern, Rare) The name Devon is of English and Irish origin and means "Warrior of God". This name is also very common in the British West Indies, especially Jamaica.
DevoyEnglish Anglicized form of Gaelic surname Ó Dubhuidhe ‘descendant of Dubhuidhe’, a name probably derived from dubh "dark, black" and buidhe "sallow".
DewanIndian, Pakistani Status name for a treasurer or court official, from Arabic diwan "royal court", "tribunal of justice", or "treasury". Under the Mughal administration in India the dewan was usually the highest official in a state.
DewanIndian, Bengali, Hindi, Urdu, Nepali From a title for a high-ranking government official or minister, derived from Persian دیوان (divan) meaning "royal court, tribunal, ministry, assembly".
DharmadasaSinhalese Derived from Sanskrit धर्म (dharma) meaning "that which is established, law, duty, virtue" and दास (dasa) meaning "servant, slave".
DharmapalaSinhalese Derived from Sanskrit धर्म (dharma) meaning "that which is established, law, duty, virtue" and पाल (pala) meaning "guard, protector".
DharmasenaSinhalese From Sanskrit धर्म (dharma) meaning "that which is established, law, duty, virtue" and सेना (senā) meaning "army".
DharmasiriSinhalese Derived from Sanskrit धर्म (dharma) meaning "that which is established, law, duty, virtue" and श्री (shri) meaning "diffusing light, radiance, splendour, beauty".
DiasamidzeGeorgian Means "son of Diasami", from a Georgian given name of unknown meaning, perhaps meaning "master" or derived from Abkhaz дәаӡа (dwaʒa) meaning "uncultivated land, virgin soil" (thus used to refer to someone who plowed land)... [more]
DigbyEnglish Derived from the name of an English town, itself derived from a combination of Old English dic "dyke, ditch" and Old Norse býr "farm, town".
DigneFrench From French digne "dignified, worthy" perhaps a nickname for a hardworking person.
DijkhuizenDutch Means "houses in the dike" in Dutch, derived from dijk meaning "dike, ditch, levee" and huizen meaning "houses, settlement", and so indicated a person who lived in a house close to a dyke or embankment.
DillinghamEnglish (British) Habitational name that probably derives from Dullingham in Cambridgeshire which was recorded as Dolingeham in 1214 and Dillyngham in 1298, named in Old English as ‘homestead (Old English hām) of the people (-inga-) of Dull(a)’.
DimaunahanFilipino, Tagalog Means "champion" (literally "cannot be outdone") from Tagalog di meaning "no, not" and unahan meaning "front, head, first".
DimayacyacFilipino, Tagalog Means "cannot be crushed (in a fight)" from Tagalog di meaning "no, not" and yakyak meaning "crushed, trampled".
DimerGerman (Portuguese-style) Brazilian adaptation of the German surname Diemer; altered for easier comprehension by the Portuguese-speaking population of Brazil.
DingfelderMedieval German (Rare, Archaic) When surnames were finally adopted, family heads who originated from Thungfeld in the Steigerwald area of Mittelfranken, took the name of their traditional home area.
DiolaSpanish Derived from the given masculine name Andrea
DiotalleviItalian Means "god raise you", from Italian dio "god, deity" and allevi "to raise (children)". Often given to abandoned or orphaned children.
DoaneIrish Irish: reduced Anglicized form of Gaelic Ó Dubháin ‘descendant of Dubhán’, meaning ‘the little black one’, a common name in the 16th century in southern Ireland, or Ó Damháin ‘descendant of Damhán’ meaning ‘fawn’, ‘little stag’, a rare Ulster name... [more]
DobbeEnglish From the medieval personal name Dobbe, one of several pet forms of Robert in which the initial letter was altered. Compare Hobbs.
DoddsEnglish From dod, meaning "something rounded" in German.
DodgeEnglish Possibly a nickname from Middle English dogge "dog" (Old English docga, dogga).
DodieScottish (Modern) Dodie is a Scottish shortening of the name "Dorothy" it is quite rare and one of the only famous people with this name is the singer/songwrite Dodie Clark.
DolićBosnian, Serbian, Croatian, Turkish Patronymic from Bosnian, Serbian, and Croatian delija, an occupational name for a cavalryman of the Ottoman Turkish army and also a nickname for a hero, from Turkish deli meaning "mad, brave".
DolinRussian From Russian долой (doloy), meaning "away (with), off (with)".
DomanCzech, Slovak, Polish Derivative of the personal name Tomas, or Slavic, Polish name formed with 'doma' meaning home or domestic such as Domasław or Domarad, also shortened from the surname Domański.
DondoJapanese (Rare) From Japanese 闐々 (dondo), from ドンド (dondo), an onomatopoeic word for sounds of thuds and bangs, referring to a water gate; to a person working at one.... [more]
DonnaItalian Probably a matronymic, from the given name Donna meaning "lady, mistress" in classical Italian and "woman" in modern Italian. May alternately derive from a place name.
DonnarummaItalian Composed of Italian donna "lady" (from Latin domina "lady, mistress") and a short form of Rummeneca, a Neapolitan variant of the feminine given name Domenica, meaning "Sunday" and also deriving from Latin dominus "lord"... [more]
DorchesterEnglish Derived from either the village in Oxfordshire, or the county town of Dorset, England (both of which have the same name). Both are named with a Celtic name, respectively Dorcic and Durnovaria combined with Old English ceaster meaning "Roman fort, walled city".
DorjiBhutanese Means "diamond"; derived from Tibetan. The Dorji are a prominent and powerful family in Bhutan, with some members having been monarchs or holders of government positions. In 2014, this was the most common surname in Bhutan.
DorsaItalian Derived from the Albanian placename Durrës.
DorsainvilHaitian Creole Ornamental name derived from French d'or meaning "of gold" combined with saint "holy" and vil "settlement" (the Haitian Creole spelling of French ville).
DorstGerman, Dutch Either a topographic name for someone who lived on dry hard ground from dörr "dry" or a habitational name from any of the places called Dorst near Cologne or Helmstedt or Dorste in the Harz Mountains... [more]
DoschGerman Topographic name for someone living near bushes or brush, from Middle High German doste, toste ‘leafy branch’, or a habitational name from a house with a sign depicting a bush. Also an altered spelling of Dasch.
DōuneJapanese (Rare) From Japanese 堂 (dō) meaning "temple, shrine, hall" and 畝 (une) meaning "raised ridge of earth in a field; furrow", referring to possibly a place with a hall and a field.
DovalGalician From 'do val' meaning 'of the valley. Galician origins.
DovelEnglish A English name that originated from the french surname Duval in 1725 in England, the Dovels are historically farmers and are mostly found in the USA.
DownsEnglish This surname is derived from the Old English element dun meaning "hill, mountain, moor." This denotes someone who lives in a down (in other words, a ridge of chalk hills or elevated rolling grassland).
DragonettiItalian Diminutive of Drago or Dragone meaning "dragon". Can also derive from a toponym, which may have been named after a person with the given name Dragonetti, or perhaps for the sulphur springs in the area.
DrostDutch, German, Danish Means "reeve, steward; sheriff, bailiff" in German and Dutch, a title for the administrative head of a court or district.
DrouillardFrench Probably a derogatory nickname, from a derivative of the regional term drouiller "to defecate", which also has various figurative senses.
DrownEnglish Derived from drone meaning "honey bee"
DrozdowskiPolish Habitational name for someone from any of various places called Drozdowo or Drozdów, for example.
DruryEnglish, French, Irish Originally a Norman French nickname, derived from druerie "love, friendship" (itself a derivative of dru "lover, favourite, friend" - originally an adjective, apparently from a Gaulish word meaning "strong, vigourous, lively", but influenced by the sense of the Old High German element trut, drut "dear, beloved").... [more]
DryerEnglish From an agent derivative of Old English dr̄gean "to dry"; possibly an occupational name for a drier of cloth. In the Middle Ages, after cloth had been dyed and fulled, it was stretched out in tenterfields to dry.
DucasFrench Habitational name, with fused preposition and definite article du meaning “from the,” for someone from any of various minor places called with cas, an Old Occitan variant of Old French chas meaning “house.”
DudinRussian Derived from Russian дудка (dudka), which denotes a wind-blown instrument similar to a flute or pipe. It was probably used to denote a musician or shepherd who played the flute or pipe, as well as someone who made pipes... [more]
DufauFrench The name DUFAU come from two French words DU which means « of the » and FAU which is old French for a beech tree. Surnames in France were given later so the person with this name meant he/she had a beech tree in his property... [more]