YelleyEnglish (British) The surname Yelley was first found in Oxfordshire where they held a family seat as Lords of the Manor. The Saxon influence of English history diminished after the Battle of Hastings in 1066. The language of the courts was French for the next three centuries and the Norman ambience prevailed... [more]
YellowEnglish Nickname for someone who has yellow hair; wore yellow clothing or has a yellow complexion
YeukaiShona Yeukai means "Remember". This name is given as a call to remember a particular event or to remember one's origins.
YezhovmRussian Derived from Russian word "ёж (yozh)" meaning hedgehog. Yezhov was the last name of Nikolay Yezhov, the leader of the Soviet NKVD from 1936-38 who is known for Yezhovshchina.
YoichiJapanese (Rare) This surname is used as 与市 with 与 (yo, ata.eru, azuka.ru, kumi.suru, tomoni) meaning "bestow, participate in, give, award, impart, provide, cause, gift, godsend" and 市 (shi, ichi) meaning "city, market, town."... [more]
YokobeJapanese From Japanese 横 (yoko) meaning "beside, next to" and 部 (be) meaning "part, section".
YokonoJapanese Yoko means "beside" and no means "field, plain, wilderness".
YokoseJapanese Yoko means "beside next to" and se means "current, ripple".
YokoteJapanese Yoko ("Beside") + Te , this is the Japanese word for hand. This surname means "Beside a Hand". Michiko Yokote is an example. She wrote the Pichi Pichi Pitch manga and did screenwriting for Masamune-kun's Revenge.
YouensScottish comes from the Gaelic personal name Eógan, which comes from the Latin name, Eugenius, which means well born. Youens is a patronymic surname, which belongs to the category of hereditary surnames.
ZacharJewish, Hungarian, Russian, Slovak, Belarusian Derived from the Hebrew word זָכַר (zakhar) meaning "to remember". As a surname it can also derive from the given name Zakhar (Zechariah) that shares this etymology.
ZacherEnglish A reference to Sacheverell, a location in Normandy. May also refer to the given name Zacharias, meaning "to remember God," or "the Lord recalled."
ZachowGerman Meaning unknown. A notable bearer of this name is Friedrich Wilhelm Zachow, a organist, musician, and composer who lived from 1663 to 1712. Zachow, Wisconsin is an unincorporated community named after a local landowner, William Zachow.
ZachryEnglish A reference to Sacheverell, a location in Normandy. May also refer to the given name Zacharias, meaning "to remember God," or "the Lord recalled."
ZadranPashto Meaning unknown. This is the name of a Pashtun tribe inhabiting Afghanistan and Waziristan (Pakistan).
ZahaviHebrew, Jewish From Hebrew זהב (zahav) meaning "gold", commonly used as a replacement for Ashkenazi surnames containing the element gold, such as Goldman, Goldstein or Goldberg.
ZakuroJapanese (Rare) From Japanese 柘榴 (Zakuro) meaning "Zakuro", an area in the town of Seika in the district of Sōraku in the prefecture of Kyōto in Japan.
ZalickEnglish Comes from the Greek surname Tsalikis.
ZamoraSpanish Habitational name from Zamora, a city in northwestern Spain, of uncertain etymology. Possibly derived from Berber azemur "wild olive tree".
ZaniniItalian The surname Zanini or Zanin was given to the descendants of Giovanni (John). It originates from the diminutive of the Venetian variant of Zani, being Zanino.
ZanuggRomansh Derived from a diminutive form of the given name Gian.
ZapataSpanish Occupational surname for a shoemaker, from Spanish zapato meaning "shoe". It can also be considered a habitational name for someone originally from any of the various locations in Spain called Zapata.
ZayasuJapanese From Japanese 座 (Za) meaning "squat; seat; cushion; gathering; sit" and 安 (Yasu) meaning "relax; cheap; low; quiet; rested; contented; peaceful".
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.
ZegamaBasque From the name of a town and municipality in Basque Country, Spain, of uncertain etymology.
ZehnerGerman (chiefly Bavaria, Austria, Switzerland, and Württemberg): occupational name for an official responsible for collecting, on behalf of the lord of the manor, tithes of agricultural produce owed as rent.... [more]
ZehrenGerman (Swiss) From a prepositional phrase from Middle High German ze hērren, an occupational name for someone was in service of a lord.
ZeimetGerman, Luxembourgish Western German and Luxembourgeois: probably a variant spelling of Zeimert, a variant of Zeumer, an occupational name for a harness maker, from an agent derivative of Middle High German zoum ‘bridle’.
ZelayaBasque From Basque Zelaia, a habitational or topographic name derived from zelai "field, meadow, prairie".
ZeldesYiddish An eastern Ashkenazic matronymic surname derived from the Yiddish female personal name Zelde (from the Middle High German word sælde meaning either 'fortunate', 'blessed', or 'happiness'.)
ZeldinJewish Means "son of Zelde", a Yiddish female personal name based on Middle High German sælde "fortunate, blessed".
ZellerGerman, Dutch, Jewish Originally denoted someone from Celle, Germany or someone living near a hermit's cell from German zelle "cell". It is also occupational for someone employed at a zelle, for example a small workshop.
ZennerUpper German South German: unflattering nickname for a surly, snarling person, from an agent derivative of Middle High German zannen 'to growl or howl' or 'to bare one's teeth'.
ZingerGerman The surname Zinger was first found in Saxony, where this family name became a prominent contributor to the development of the district from ancient times. ... In Old German the name meant "lively" and "spritely," or more literally, "a biting, sharp taste."
ZlodejSlovene (Rare) It is the euphemism (an innocuous word or expression used in place of one that is deemed offensive or suggests something unpleasant) for the word "devil". Another variant of the surname is Slodej.
ZororoShona Zororo means "rest". It may be given to mean that the parent has rested after the birth of this child. Zimbabwean politician Zororo Duri was a well known bearer of this name.
ZoubekCzech According to my translator, it means "tooth", so my guess is that it's an occupational surname for someone who's a dentist; the word for dentist is 'zubař.'
ZrnčićCroatian Possibly derived from the Slavic element zrn, of unknown meaning.... [more]
ZrobokUkrainian Zrobok is a Cossack name from the area near Brody in Ukraine. My ancestors came from the village of Bordulaki on the river Styr. Other Zroboks came from the village of Sokolivka. The name means; Someone who has worked to exhaustion.
ZsirosHungarian Hungarian surname derived from the Serbo-croation word žȋr meaning "acorn".
ZuckerJewish Occupational name for a confectioner or a nickname for someone with a sweet tooth, from German zucker or Yiddish צוקער (tsuker) both meaning "sugar". It is also used as an ornamental name.
ZufallMedieval German A German name from the Middle High German "zuoval," meaning "benefit," "coincidence" or "windfall." It was a nickname for a lucky person, most likely a person to whom a plot of land had been given. It could also be an occupational name for a tax collector.
ZuletaSpanish, Basque Variant of Zulueta, which comes from the Basque topographic name 'zulo' meaning ‘hole hollow’ + the collective suffix '-eta' meaning "place or group of."