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.
KatsavHebrew Occupational name for a butcher, derived from Hebrew קַצָּב (qatzav) meaning "butcher, purveyor of meat". A famous bearer is former Israeli president Moshe Katsav (1945-), born Musa Qassab.
KatzinJewish Jewish: nickname from Hebrew katsin ‘rich man’. ... [more]
KatzirHebrew Occupational name derived from Hebrew קָצִיר (qatsiyr) meaning ""harvesting, reaping", ultimately from קָצַר (qatsar). A famous bearer was the Israeli president and scientist Ephraim Katzir (1916-2009), born Efraim Katchalski.
KaunasLithuanian From Kaunas, the name of a city in Lithuania, itself most likely derived from a given name.
KaunisEstonian Kaunis is an Estonian surname meaning "beautiful".
KayanoJapanese (Rare), Brazilian Kaya means "yew tree",and No means "field,meadow,wilderness".People with this last name are Kayano Gonbei (a samurai),Ai Kayano(a voice actress of MANY characters /more than 30),and Shigeru Kayano(an Ainu politician who lived well up to 2006)... [more]
KeedusEstonian Keedus is an Estonian surname meaning "brew".
KeelerEnglish English: occupational name for a boatman or boatbuilder, from an agent derivative of Middle English kele ‘ship’, ‘barge’ (from Middle Dutch kiel). Americanized spelling of German Kühler, from a variant of an old personal name (see Keeling) or a variant of Kühl.
KeetonEnglish Habitational name from a place called Ketton in Durham or one in Rutland or from Keaton in Ermington, Devon. The first is named from the Old English personal name Catta or the Old Norse personal name Káti and Old English tūn "settlement"; the second is probably from an old river name or tribal name Cētan (possibly a derivative of Celtic cēd "wood") and Old English ēa "river"; and the last possibly from Cornish kee "hedge, bank" and Old English tūn.
KeglerGerman Nickname for a skilled or enthusiastic skittles player, from an agent derivative of Middle High German kegel meaning "skittle", "pin".
KehlerGerman Habitational name from various places called Kehl, notably the town across the Rhine from Strasbourg. In some cases it may be a variant of Köhler.
KeidarHebrew Keidar is an ancient nickname given to the descendants of Ishmael.
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".
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]
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".
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.
KentelEstonian Kentel is an Estonian surname meaning "pendant".
KentieDutch Origin and meaning unknown. Possibly derived from a Scottish surname such as MacKenzie.
KentonEnglish habitational name from any of various places so named Kenton, for example in Devon, Greater London (formerly Middlesex), Northumberland, and Suffolk... [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).
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".
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.
KestelEnglish Habitational name from Kestle, a place in Cornwall, so named from Cornish castell "castle, village, rock".
KevadeEstonian Kevade is an Estonian surname meaning "Spring (season)".
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]
KhanumBengali, Urdu From an aristocratic title traditionally used as an honorific for Muslim women in the Middle East and South Asia. It is derived from a feminine form of the title khan meaning "king, ruler", which is probably of Mongolian origin.
KhatriIndian, Gujarati, Marathi, Hindi, Punjabi, Nepali Name for a member of the Kshatriya caste, derived from Sanskrit क्षत्रिय (kshatriya) referring to the Hindu caste consisting of kings, warriors and soldiers, ultimately from क्षत्र (kshatra) meaning "power, might, dominion".
KidateJapanese (Rare) From Japanese 木 (ki) meaning "tree" and 建 (date), the joining continuative form of 建てる (tateru) meaning "to build; to construct".
KidderEnglish English: possibly an occupational name from early modern English kidd(i)er ‘badger’, a licensed middleman who bought provisions from farmers and took them to market for resale at a profit, or alternatively a variant of Kidman... [more]
KidmanEnglish English: occupational name, probably for a goatherd (from Middle English kid(e) ‘young goat’ + man ‘man’), but possibly also for a cutter of wood used for fuel. (from Middle English kidde ‘faggot’ (an archaic English unit for a bundle of sticks)).
KidneyIrish Surname translated from Irish surname Duane to English Kidney Mainly found in County Cork. Original Irish clan name is Ó Dubháin.
KilroyEnglish "Kilroy was here" was a phrase widely written up on walls by American service personnel in the UK during World War II. The identity of the probably mythical Kilroy has been much debated (one theory is that he was a shipyard inspector of Quincy, Massachusetts, who chalked the phrase on material he had checked).
KimmelGerman, Jewish Derived from Middle High German kumin and German kümmel meaning "caraway" (related to Latin cuminum, a word of Oriental origin, like the plant itself), hence a metonymic occupational name for a spicer, literally a supplier of caraway seeds... [more]
KimotoJapanese Derived from the Japanese kanji 木 (ki) or 樹 (ki) both meaning "tree, wood, plant" combined with 本 (moto) or 元 (moto) both meaning "base, root, origin".... [more]
KindemEnglish 1 English: habitational name from a place in Derbyshire, of unknown etymology (probably a pre-English hill name, but the form is obscure).... [more]
KinderEnglish Habitational name derived from a place in Derbyshire, of unknown etymology.
KinkleGerman Derived from the Middle High German word "kunkel," which meant "spindle." It is thus supposed that the first bearers of this surname were spindle makers in occupation.
KiplinEnglish A locational surname that takes its name from the hamlet of Kiplin in the English county of North Yorkshire. In turn, the hamlet is said to derive its name from Old English Cyppelingas, which means "the people of Cyppel", as it consists of the Old English personal name Cyppel with the Old English word ingas meaning "people".
KirrinLiterature Used by Enid Blyton in the Famous Five book series (first published 1942) for the main character George Kirrin. It is also used as a place name for the fictional village where she lives and the nearby island.
KirschGerman Means 'cherry' in German, short form of Kirschstein or other surnames starting with Kirsch.
KirtonEnglish Family name for someone who resides near a church. From Old English kirk meaning "church" and ton meaning "town, settlement".
KirvesEstonian Kirves is an Estonian surname meaning "axe".
KirwanIrish From Gaelic Ó Ciardhubháin meaning "descendant of Ciardhubhán", a given name composed of the elements ciar "dark" and dubh "black" combined with a diminutive suffix.