RuegerGerman The name was likely first bestowed on someone thought to have the characteristics of a heron as a nickname, eventually becoming a hereditary surname.
RuelasFrench A last name common in Mexico which is believed to have derived from the French word ruelle (or Portuguese word ruela) meaning lane or alley.
RuettenGerman (Rütten): from a field name, here showing an inflected form from a full name like aus den Rütten ‘from the clearing(s)’ (see Rutten and Reuter 1
RuffySwiss From a either of two places so named in Marne only one of which (in Vertus) still exists. Known bearers of this surname include the Swiss politician Eugène Ruffy (1854-1919), and Swiss politician Victor Ruffy (1823-1869).
RugbyEnglish From Rugby, Warwickshire. Originally named *Rocheberie, from Old English *Hrocaburg, 'Hroca's fort', the name was altered due to influence fort Danish settlers, with the second element being replaced with Old Norse byr, 'farm'.... [more]
RugeGerman Nickname from Middle High German ruowe, ruge ‘quiet’, ‘calm’ or Low German rug ‘rough’, ‘crude’.... [more]
RugeleyEnglish From the name of a town in Staffordshire, England, derived from Old English hrycg "ridge" and leah "woodland clearing".
RuggEnglish Nickname for a person associated with the color red, whether through hair color, clothing, or complexion. Accordingly, the name is derived from the Old French word ruge, meaning red.
RuisardFrench (Rare, ?) Originated as a result of trade between France and the Persian Empires before the Iranian Revolution, probably during the Safavid Dynasty. The surname has its roots in the Persian Riahi surname and the Arabic word رِيح (rīḥ) meaning "wind" and the Persian word “sered” before it was altered to fit French spelling rules.... [more]
RuiterDutch Derived from the Dutch noun ruiter meaning "rider, horseman, knight".
RuleScottish, English Scottish name from the lands of Rule in the parish of Hobkirk, Roxburghshire. The derivation is from the River Rule which flows through the area, and is so called from the ancient Welsh word "rhull" meaning "hasty or rushing".... [more]
RumfeltGerman, Dutch Altered spelling of German Romfeld, derived from Middle Low German rüm- meaning "to clear (land)" and feld meaning "open country, field", hence a topographic name or possibly a metonymic occupational name for a person engaged in clearing woodland, or in some cases a habitational name for someone from Romfelt in the Ardennes... [more]
RumfordEnglish From the parish of Romford in Essex, England. The name means "the wide ford" from Old English rúm "wide".
RummelGerman Derived from a short form of names containing the element hruom "fame, glory". Alternatively, could be a nickname for a noisemaker, from Middle High German rummeln "to make noise, to move impetuously"... [more]
RummeniggeGerman Meaning uncertain. It could possibly be an occupational name for a viticulturist who grew grapes to make wine, a seller or producer of Romanian wine, or a nickname for a person who preferred to drink Romanian wine... [more]
RummoEstonian Rummo is an Estonian surname, derived from "rumm" ("rum").
RumpEstonian Rump is an Estonian surname meaning "dugout" and "punt".
RumpleGerman It is derived from Rumbald, an Old German personal name.
RumpoleEnglish A different form of Rumbold (from the Norman personal name Rumbald, of Germanic origin and probably meaning literally "fame-bold"). A fictional bearer of the surname is Horace Rumpole, the eccentric QC created by John Mortimer (originally for a 1975 television play).
RumschlagGerman This name is possibly a derivative of the German word for "envelope" which is spelled 'Umschlag'.
RumsfeldGerman Variant spelling of Rumfelt. A notable bearer was the American politician, businessman and Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld (1932-2021).
RunaiJapanese Japanese: written 船井 'boat' and 'well'
RuncieEnglish, Scottish Derived from Latin runcinus, and related to the Old French "roncin", for a horse of little value. Middle English, Rouncy, as in Chaucer's Cantebury Tales.... [more]
RundellEnglish Nickname derived from a diminutive of Middle English and Old French rond, rund meaning "fat, round" (see Rounds), or derived from Rundale, a local place in the village and civil parish of Shoreham in Kent, England, named with Old English rum(ig) meaning "roomy, spacious" and dæl meaning "valley".
RundgrenSwedish Swedish surname with somewhat unclear etymology. The first element is possibly taken from a place named with either of the elements rund and/or run. Rund coincides with the Swedish word for "round", but it is not clear if the element used in this name is derived from that word... [more]
RundlettFrench this is a french word for little wine barrels.
RundqvistSwedish Combination of Swedish rund "round" and qvist, an archaic spelling of kvist, "twig".
RundsGermanic (Rare) The Runds surname most likely originated near the Rhine river. It comes from the Proto-Celtic word, rūnā, meaning mystery/mystic. The coat of arms dates back to the middle ages and consists of a black shield with three gold crescent moons... [more]
RüngasEstonian Rüngas is an Estonian surname meaning "rock" and "cliff".
RungeGerman From the old word "runga", meaning stick or whip
RunnerEnglish (American) Probably an altered spelling of German Ronner, annoccupational name for a runner or messenger, a lightly armed mounted soldier. Compare Renner. UK The surname Runner was first found in Lancashire. One of the first records of the family was found in the year 1246 when Alan de Runacres held estates in that shire... [more]
RusakovaRussian Julia Rusakova-Harper was a Russian astronaut for NASA and former wife to Jack Harper in the movie Oblivion (2013). She was played by Olga Kurylenko alongside Jack Harper’s character played by Tom Cruise... [more]
RusalkinmRussian Derived from русалка (rusalka), a creature in Slavic folklore.
RusbyScottish, English Alternative spelling of Busby, a parish in Renfrewshire. A name well represented in the Penistone, and Cawthorne districts of the West Riding of Yorkshire.
RuschLow German Derived from Middle Low German rusch "quick, rash, hasty; unkempt", this was a nickname for a quick or unkempt, unrefined person.
RusconiItalian From Italian rusca, "splinter, sliver of wood".
RushIrish Reduced Anglicized form of Gaelic Ó Ruis "descendant of Ros", a personal name perhaps derived from ros "wood". In Connacht it has also been used as a translation of Ó Luachra (see Loughrey).
RushdieKashmiri (Rare) Derived from Arabic رَشَدَ (rašada) meaning "to go the right way, to follow the right course" or "to be well guided" (related to the given names Rashad and Rashid)... [more]
RushenEnglish Originally denoted a person who lived near a marsh, noted for its rushes (see Rush). A famous bearer of this surname is the American singer Patrice Rushen (b. 1954).
RusherGerman (Americanized) Americanized version of the German surname Rüscher or Roshcer. Either a topographic name for someone who lived among rushes or an occupational name for someone who created things out of rushes.
RuskykhUkrainian, Russian (Ukrainianized) Means "a Russian", from Ukrainian руський (rus'kyy) "Russian". It can also derived from the Russian word русский (russkiy), with the same meaning.
RusskikhRussian Means "Russian" in Russian, probably used as a nickname for a person who lived in a village where the majority of residents were non-Russian.
RustEnglish, Scottish A nickname to someone with reddish hair or a ruddy complexion.
RüsterGerman Means "elm (tree)" in German. Could alternatively derive from rüsten to "to equip, to arm", an occupational name for someone who provided weapons to an army.
RuszczakPolish From the verb ruszać with numerous potential meanings—"to move; to set out", "to shake; to waver", "to bother; to harass" or "to disturb someone else's belongings"—or from Rus meaning either "reddish-haired person" or "Ruthenian; Rusyn".
RuthEnglish, German (Swiss) English: from Middle English reuthe ‘pity’ (a derivative of rewen to pity, Old English hreowan) nickname for a charitable person or for a pitiable one. Not related to the given name in this case.... [more]
RutteDutch Derived from the given name Rutger. This surname is borne by the former Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte (1967-).
RutterEnglish Either (i) "player of the rote (a medieval stringed instrument played by plucking)"; or (ii) from a medieval nickname for a dishonest or untrustworthy person (from Old French routier "robber, mugger")... [more]
RutulanteItalian Uncertain etymology, probably originates from Capestrano, Italy.
RutzLow German Derived from Middle Low German rūtze or ruce "cobbler".
RuugeEstonian Ruuge is an Estonian surname meaning "pale brown" or "dark blonde" or "sorrel" colored.
RuusEstonian Ruus is an Estonian surname possibly derived from "kruus" meaning "mug", "shingle" and "ballast". Possibly derived from "rüüs" meaning "frilled".
RuutikainenFinnish A rare Finnish surname combining the word for gunpowder, "ruuti", and the common surname ending -nen. The 2017 Finnish population register indicates there are 106 Ruutikainens alive in Finland, and some sites estimate there are another ten abroad... [more]
RuwanpathiranaSinhalese From Sinhala රුවන (ruvana) meaning "gem" combined with Sanskrit पति (pati) meaning "husband, lord" and राणा (rana) meaning "king".
RuwanpuraSinhalese From Sinhala රුවන (ruvana) meaning "gem" combined with Sanskrit पुर (pura) meaning "city".
RuyintanIranian Ruyintan means "Invulnerable". It is a Persian-origin surname, which is written as رویین تن in Persian. It consists of ruyin, meaning "strong", and tan meaning "body, person" ultimately defining immortality... [more]
RuzickiPolish Ruzicki was first found in Polesie, inhabited by Ruthenians, called Polesians, of Ukrainian descent. One of the principal names of the area was the royal Clan of Poraj, of which the family name Ruzycki is a branch.
RybackiPolish Habitational name for someone from any of various places called Rybaki, derived from Polish ryba meaning "fish".
RybakPolish, Russian, Belarusian, Ukrainian, Jewish Means "fisherman" in some Slavic languages. Derived from the word ryba "fish". A famous bearer is Byelarusian-Norwegian artist Alexander Rybak (b. 1986) who won the Eurovision Song Contest in 2009.
RybakinmRussian Derived from Russian рыба (ryba) meaning "fish".
RybakinafRussian Feminine form of Rybakin. A notable bearer is the Russian-born Kazakhstani tennis player Elena Rybakina (1999-).
RybakovRussian Means "son of the fisher" from Russian рыбак (rybak) meaning "fisherman".
RycroftEnglish Derived from Rycroft, in the parish of Birstall, Yorkshire
RydbergSwedish Combination of Swedish ryd "woodland clearing" and berg "mountain". Notable bearers are author and poet Viktor Rydberg (1828-1895) and physicist Johannes Rydberg (1854-1919).
RydénSwedish Combination of Swedish ryd "woodland clearing" and the common surname suffix -én.
RydingerSwedish (Rare) Either a combination of Swedish ryd "woodland clearing" and the common surname suffix -ing "belonging to, coming from" (compare Norling), a variant of Ryding, or a Swedish form of German Rüdinger.
RyenNorwegian Habitational name from any of more than ten farmsteads, originally named with Old Norse rugr ‘rye’ + vin ‘meadow’.
RyeoKorean The surname traces its roots from China. It is commonly found in Korea among its Chinese community and is a transliteration of Chinese surname meaning pitch-pipe
RyslinkCzech (Rare) Czech spelling or interpretation of an Irish (I think) name. First introduced in 1620 at the beginning of the 30 Years War at White Mountain near Prague, CZ when an Irish (I think) soldier fathered a Czech son... [more]
RyuenJapanese (Rare) 龍 (Ryuu) means "Dragon" and 円 (En) means "Circle, Round". En also can also mean "Garden" in this surname. ... [more]
RyūfukuJapanese (Rare) From Japanese 竜福 (Ryūfuku), a clipping of 竜福寺 (Ryūfukuji), a former temple that was located possibly somewhere in the prefecture of Tochigi in Japan. It is also a clipping of 龍福寺 (Ryūfukuji), former temple in the division of Shiji in the area of Shiraki in the ward of Asakita in the city of Hiroshima in the prefecture of Hiroshima in Japan.... [more]