PechtoldGerman, Dutch, Jewish From the Old German given name Pechtholt, which is composed of the elements pecht "rotation" and holdt "hero". As a Dutch-language surname, it is derived from the Middle Dutch given name Pechte combined with Old High German walt "power, authority"... [more]
PedreiraPortuguese, Galician Means "quarry, rocky place" in Portuguese and Galician, originally a habitational name from any of various places called Pedreira or A Pedreira.
PelisaarEstonian Pelisaar is an Estonian surname meaning "capstan/windlass island".
PellerinFrench From Old French pellerinpelegrin "pilgrim" (from Latin peregrinus "traveler") applied as a nickname for a person who had been on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land or to a famous holy site elsewhere... [more]
PengellyCornish Habitational name for someone from any of various locations in Cornwall named Pengelly, from Cornish penn meaning "head, top, end" and gelli or gilly meaning "copse, grove".
PercevalEnglish, Norman Derived from either the Old French given name Perceval, or from one of two places called Perceval in the department of Calvados in Normandy, France... [more]
PerdikisGreek A surname derived from the Greek word "πέρδικα", meaning partridge or grouse. It appeared first time in the Byzantine Empire during the 11th century.
PettiferEnglish Nickname for a good infantryman, an old soldier who had lost a foot, or a person who was never tired of walking, derived from Old French pedefer, pied de fer meaning "iron foot".
PeuckertGerman (Silesian) from Lower Silesia, Great-Grandfather Richard Peuckert, came from Grosse Peterwitz, Silesia, to the United States in 1871.
PevensieLiterature Rarely used as a female given name, Pevensie is possibly an invented surname by C.S. Lewis for the Narnia series. It's most famous bearers are- of course- Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy Pevensie from said series.
PickfordEnglish This surnames origins lie with the Anglo-Saxons. It is a product of their having lived in the parish of Pitchford in Shropshire. ... [more]
PierahudBelarusian Derived from Belarusian перагуд (pierahud) meaning "prolonged rumble". This may have been a nickname for a gossip.
PierpontEnglish English (of Norman origin): habitational name from any of various places, for example in Aisne and Calvados, so called from Old French pierre ‘stone’ + pont ‘bridge’.
PilarskiPolish Occupational name for a sawyer, Polish pilarz + -ski, common ending of surnames.
PilengisLatvian (Rare) This was my mother's maiden name. She and the rest of my family were born in Latvia. I am the first American born. I do not know what Pilengis means.
PimentelPortuguese, Spanish Derived from Portuguese pimenta meaning "pepper", used as an occupational name for someone who grew or sold peppers.
PinckneyEnglish The surname Pinckney originally denoted someone from Picquigny, France, which derives from a Germanic personal name, Pincino (of obscure derivation) and the Latin locative suffix -acum... [more]
PinochetBasque, French, Spanish Derived from Basque pinoche meaning "pine cone". Alternately, it could be derived from the name of the hamlet of Pinouchet, located in the Gironde department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of France... [more]
PiovascoItalian, Literature Means "shower, brief fall of rain" in Italian, from Italian piovere or piova, both meaning "rain" with an added suffix. Cosimo Piovasco di Rondò is the protagonist in the Italian novel The Baron in the Trees by Italo Calvino, who inherited this surname from his father, Arminio Piovasco.
PirnipuuEstonian Pirnipuu is an Estonian surname meaning "pear tree".
PironkovBulgarian A professional Bulgarian tennis player, Tsvetana Pironkova, bears this surname.
PirovanoItalian Probably from a place in Lombardy, itself possibly deriving from Ancient Greek πυρο- (pyro-) "fire" and -γενής (-genes) "born of".
PirzadehPersian Means "born of the pir", from the Persian title پیر (pir) denoting a Sufi spiritual guide (literally meaning "elder, old"). This name was traditionally used by owners or custodians of Sufi mausoleums and shrines.
PistarioEnglish (American, Rare) Uncertain etymology, possibly an altered spelling of an Italian or Spanish surname derived from Latin pisto "to pound, to beat", perhaps as an occupational name for a baker.
PitschenRomansh Derived from Romansh pitschen "small, little".
PlayfairEnglish From a medieval nickname for an enthusiastic competitor in sports and games (from Middle English pleyfere "companion in play, playmate"), or else a different form of Playford (from a Suffolk place-name meaning "ford where sports are held")... [more]
PleasantAmerican Means being a very bright man in the near future. Also can be used as a alias.
PlimsollFrench (Acadian) I don't know the meaning, but it is my maiden name, and I understand it to be French. Samuel Plimsoll is my ancestor. He was born in Bristol, UK. He was an MP who spoke up in parliament and subsequently the Plimsoll or loading line was introduced on ships... [more]
PlumtreeEnglish From any of the locations called Plumtree for anyone who lived near a plum tree derived from Old English plume "plum" and treow "tree".
PlunkettEnglish, Irish habitational name from a metathesized form of Plouquenet in Ille-et-Villaine, Brittany, so named from Breton plou "parish... [more]
PolańskimPolish, Rusyn, Jewish Topographic name for someone who lived in a clearing or a habitational name for someone from any of various places called Polana or Polany, all derived from Polish polana meaning "glade, clearing".
PolanskimPolish, Rusyn, Jewish Unaccented form of Polański. A famous bearer of the name is French film director Raymond Roman Thierry Polański (1933-), who was born to a Polish-Jewish father.
PolidoriItalian Means "son of Polidoro". Famous bearers include John William Polidori (1795-1821), a physician to Lord Byron and author of 'The Vampyre' (1819), and his sister Frances Polidori (1800-1886), the mother of painter and poet Dante Gabriel Rossetti, poet Christina Rossetti, critic William Michael Rossetti, and author Maria Francesca Rossetti.
PolitzerHungarian, German, Jewish Habitational name derived from any one of several places called Police (known as Pölitz in German) in the Czech Republic. Hugh David Politzer (1949-) is an American theoretical physicist who, along with David Gross and Frank Wilczek, discovered asymptotic freedom.
PolkanovmRussian From Russian полк (polk), meaning "battalion, brigade".
PõlluäärEstonian Põlluäär is an Estonian surname meaning "arable (land) side".
PõlluaasEstonian Põlluaas is an Estonian surname meaning "arable meadow".
PõllumaaEstonian Põllumaa is an Estonian surname meaning "farmland".
PõllupüüEstonian Põllupüü is an Estonian surname meaning "field grouse".
PoloskinRussian Derived from полоска (poloska), a diminutive of полоса (polosa) meaning "stripe, strip, streak". This may have been a nickname for a tall and thin person.
PolovetsUkrainian From Ukrainian половець (polovets), meaning "a Polovtsian (Cuman, Kipchak)". Polovtsians are an old ethnic group from Central Asia.
PompiliiItalian, Medieval Latin The surname Pompilii is of Italian origin and is likely derived from the Latin name Pompilius, which is historically linked to NumaPompilius, the legendary second king of Rome known for his wisdom and religious reforms... [more]
PoortmanDutch Occupational name for a gatekeeper or topographic name for someone who lived near the gates of a fortified town, from Dutch poort "gate" and man "man, person".
PopalzaiPashto Meaning unknown, possibly derived from Persian پوپل (pupal) meaning "betel nut". The Popalzai are a Pashtun sub-tribe of the Durrani in Afghanistan and parts of Pakistan.
PorcelliItalian From Italian porcello, meaning "piglet". Used to denote someone who worked as a swineherd, or perhaps a nickname for someone who resembled a piglet in some way.
PorteousScottish A topographic surname for someone who lived in the lodge at the entrance to a manor house, derived from Middle English port, meaning "gateway" or "entrance", and hous meaning "house". It can also be an occupational name with similar meaning, derived from Latin portarius meaning "porter"... [more]
PortmannGerman Occupational name for a gatekeeper, derived from Middle Low German port(e) meaning "gate" and man, or a topographic name for someone who lived near the gates of a fortified town.
PortugalSpanish, Portuguese, English, Catalan, French, Jewish Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, English, French, and Jewish surname meaning ethnic name or regional name for someone from Portugal or who had connections with Portugal. The name of the country derives from Late Latin Portucale, originally denoting the district around Oporto (Portus Cales, named with Latin portus ‘port’, ‘harbor’ + Cales, the ancient name of the city)... [more]
PostgateEnglish From Postgate in Danby (NR Yorks) which is recorded as Postgate in the 12th century. The place-name derives from Old English post "post pillar" and Old Scandinavian gata ‘way path road" or Old English gæt "gate".
PotemkinRussian A Russian surname which derives from the word "Потёмка" (Potyomka) meaning "dark". People bearing the name Potemkin rose to prominence in Muscovy from the 16th century onwards.
PozsonyiHungarian Means "Bratislavan, relating to Bratislava" in Hungarian. Bratislava is now the capital city of Slovakia, which was once the capital of the Kingdom of Hungary and was once called Pozsony (or Pressburg in German).
PreziosoItalian Means "precious, valuable" in Italian, derived from a nickname or from a medieval given name (masculine form of Preziosa).
PrideauxCornish Means "person from Prideaux, earlier Pridias", Cornwall (perhaps based on Cornish prȳ "clay"). The modern Frenchified spelling is based on the idea that the name comes from French près d'eaux "near waters" or pré d'eaux "meadow of waters".
PridmoreEnglish unexplained; perhaps a habitational name from a lost or unidentified place. Pridmore has long been a Leicestershire name.
PridonovRussian The surname Pridonov is derived from a nickname. It contains an indication of the place of residence of the ancestor: "at the Don, i.e. on the Don River". The river named Don flows not only in the European part of Russia, but also in Scotland (the city of Aberdon is located on it) and in France (a tributary of the Vilena).
PrimroseScottish From the name of Primrose in Fife, Scotland, a place originally named Prenrhos, literally "tree-moor" in Welsh. This is the family name of the Earls of Rosebery.