Submitted Surnames on the List of Nobel Prize Winners

This is a list of submitted surnames in which the name appears on the list of Nobel Prize Winners.
usage
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Submitted names are contributed by users of this website. The accuracy of these name definitions cannot be guaranteed.
Addams English
Variant of Adams.
Adrian Various
From the given name Adrian.
Ahtisaari Finnish (Rare)
A notable bearer is Martti Ahtisaari (b. 1937), the tenth president of Finland (1994-2000), a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, and a United Nations diplomat and mediator noted for his international peace work... [more]
Akasaki Japanese
From Japanese 赤 (aka) meaning "red" and 崎 or 﨑 (saki) meaning "cape, peninsula".
Aleixandre Aragonese
From the given name Aleixandre.
Alfvén Swedish (Rare)
Perhaps derived from Swedish älv "river".
Altman German
Said to mean "Wise man" of German origin
Altman German, Jewish
Variant of Alt and Alterman.
Amano Japanese (Rare)
Variant of Ama, added Japanese 野 (no) meaning "field; plain".
Anderson Scottish, Irish
Anglicized form of the Gaelic Mac Ghille Andrais meaning 'Son of the devotee of St. Andrew'. ... [more]
Annan Western African, Akan
Means "fourth-born child" in Akan.
Annan Scottish
'The earliest reference of Annan used as a surname is found in the 13th century Ragman Rolls during which Scots pledged homage to nobles. It is likely that the inhabitants of Annan, Dumfries and Galloway, Annandale, River Annan, Annanhead Hill, and Annan Castle adopted Annan as their surname.' (wikipedia)
Arafat Arabic, Bengali
From the given name Arafat.
Arrhenius Swedish (Rare)
The name of two separate family linages with no relation between each other. One family originates from Linköping, Östergötland and probably got its name from Ancient Greek ᾰ̓́ρρην (árrhēn) "male" (taken from the last syllable of ancestor's last name, Kapfelman)... [more]
Axel Dutch, Flemish
Habitational name for someone from either of two places, Aksel in East Flanders or Axel in Zeeland.
Axelrod Jewish (Americanized)
Derived from the Yiddish given name Akslrod.
Balch Welsh
From the Welsh adjective balch, which has a range of meanings—"fine", "splendid", "proud", "arrogant", "glad"—but the predominant meaning is "proud" and from this the family name probably derives.
Baltimore English (American)
From the name of the American city of Baltimore, and an anglicisation of Irish Gaelic Baile an Tí Mhóir meaning "town of the big house".
Becker English
Occupational name for a maker or user of mattocks or pickaxes, from an agent derivative of Old English becca "mattock".
Beckett English
An Old English name simply meaning "beehive". Famous Irish playwrite Samuel Beckett bears this name.
Becquerel French
A notable bearer was French scientist Henri Becquerel (1852-1908) who discovered radioactivity. A becquerel (Bq), the SI unit for radioactivity, is named after him.
Bloch Jewish, German, French
Regional name for someone in Central Europe originating from Italy or France, from Polish "Włoch" meaning "Italian" (originally "stranger / of foreign stock"), ultimately derived – like many names and words in various European languages – from the Germanic Walhaz.
Bohr Danish (Rare)
Variant of Bähr or Baar. A notable bearer was Danish physicist Niels Bohr (1885-1962).
Bojaxhiu Albanian
Derived from Albanian bojaxhi meaning "painter". This was the surname of Saint Teresa of Calcutta, better known as Mother Teresa (1910-1997), who was born Anjezë Gonxhe Bojiaxhiu.
Borlaug Norwegian
From a farm Borlaug in Sogn.... [more]
Born Maltese
Not to be confused with the German surname Born.
Born German, English
A topographical name indicating someone who lived near a stream, from the Old English "burna, burne". Alternatively, it could be contemporarily derived from the modern English word "born". Possible variants include Bourne, Burns 1 and Boren.
Bosch American
The surname Bosch originates from the Old Norse word "buski," meaning "bush," or "woods” thus it is classed at a toponymic surname and was most likely used by a man who lived near a prominent bush... [more]
Bourgeois French
from bourgeois "burgher" (from Old French burgeis from burc "fortified town") a status name for an inhabitant and (usually) freeman of a fortified town (see Bourg)... [more]
Bragg English, Welsh
From a nickname for a cheerful or lively person, derived from Middle English bragge meaning "lively, cheerful, active", also "brave, proud, arrogant".
Branting Swedish
A combination of Swedish brant "steep hill" and the suffix -ing. A famous bearer was Hjalmar Branting (1860–1925), Prime Minister of Sweden in the 1920s.
Brenner German, German (Austrian), Jewish
Derived from Middle High German brennen "to burn". Both as a German and a Jewish name, this was an occupational name for a distiller of spirits. As a German surname, however, it also occasionally referred to a charcoal or lime burner or to someone who cleared forests by burning.
Briand French
Variant of Brian.
Brodsky Czech
Habitational name derived from a number of places, including Bohemia.
Buck English
From the given name Buck.
Buisson French, Haitian Creole (Rare)
Topographic name for someone who lived in an area of scrub land or by a prominent clump of bushes from (Old) French buisson "bush scrub" (a diminutive of bois "wood"); or a habitational name from (Le) Buisson the name of several places in various parts of France named with this word.
Camus Basque
Camus is a Basque surname from Bermeo, Vizcaya. Part passed to Cantabria and Chile.
Camus French
Means "flat-nosed" in French.
Capecchi Italian
Probably from Old Italian capecchio, either denoting a type of cheap batting and, by extension, upholsterers, who worked with it, or as a nickname for a person with bristly hair or beard.... [more]
Card English
English: metonymic occupational name for someone who carded wool (i.e. disentangled it), preparatory to spinning, from Middle English, Old French card(e) ‘carder’, an implement used for this purpose... [more]
Carducci Italian
From Riccarduccio, an affectionate form of the given name Riccardo. A famous bearer of this surname is Italian poet Giosuè Carducci (1835-1907), winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1906.
Carrel French
French: from Old French quar(r)el ‘bolt (for a crossbow)’, hence a metonymic occupational name for a maker of crossbow bolts or a nickname for a short, stout man. The word also meant ‘paving slab’, and so it could also have been a metonymic occupational name for a street layer... [more]
Çela Albanian
Meaning Unknown.
Çela Albanian
From an old nickname for a brother-in-law, derived from a shortened form of the Turkish title çelebi meaning "gentleman".
Chu Japanese
Variant transcription of Japanese Kanji 中 or 仲 (see Chū).
Chū Japanese
Variant reading of Japanese Kanji 中 or 仲 (see Naka).
Ciechanover Polish, Jewish
Variant of Ciechanower. It is borne by the Israeli biologist Aaron Ciechanover (1947-), who is known for characterising the method that cells use to degrade and recycle proteins using ubiquitin.
Claude French
From the first name Claude.
Cohen Irish
Either a version of Cowan or Coyne, not related with the jewish surname.
Compton English
Habitational name from any of the numerous places throughout England (but especially in the south) named Compton, from Old English cumb meaning "short, straight valley" + tūn meaning "enclosure", "settlement".
Corrigan English
Traditionally an Irish surname meaning "spear". From the Irish Gaelic corragán which is a double diminutive of corr 'pointed'.
Cram English
From the the Scottish place name Crambeth (now Crombie), a village and ancient parish in Torryburn, Fife.
Dale Irish (Anglicized)
Anglicized form of Gaelic Dall.
Dale Norwegian, Danish
Habitational name from any of the various farmsteads called Dale in Norway. Derived from Old Norse dalr "valley".
Đàm Vietnamese
Vietnamese form of Tan, from Sino-Vietnamese 譚 (đàm).
Dawes Irish
The surname Dawes means ‘Irish Guard’
Deaton English
Means "farmstead surrounded by a ditch", from the Old English dic + tun.
Deledda Italian, Sardinian
Variant of Ledda. A famous bearer of this surname is Nobel Prize for Literature recipient Grazia Deledda (1871–1936).
Diamond Jewish
Americanized form of a Jewish surname, spelled in various ways, derived from modern German Diamant, Demant "diamond", or Yiddish dimet or diment, from the Middle High German diemant (via Latin from Greek adamas ‘unconquerable’, genitive adamantos, a reference to the hardness of the stone)... [more]
Diamond Irish
Anglicized form of Gaelic Ó Diamáin "descendant of Diamán", earlier Díomá or Déamán, a diminutive of Díoma, itself a pet form of Diarmaid.
Diamond English
English variant of Dayman (see Day). Forms with the excrescent d are not found before the 17th century; they are at least in part the result of folk etymology.
Dylan English
From the given name Dylan.
Ebadi Persian
Derived from Arabic عِبَاد (ʿibād), the plural of عَبْد (ʿabd) meaning “servant, slave”.
Eccles English
From the name of a town in Greater Manchester, England or another town or village named Eccles, derived from Latin ecclesia via Romano-British ecles meaning "church".
Ehrlich Yiddish
From the German meaning "honest" or "honorable"
Eigen German
Either a status name from Middle High German aigen "unfree; serf" denoting (in the Middle Ages) someone with service obligations to a secular or ecclesiastical authority (also in Switzerland); or from eigen "inherited property" denoting a free landowner (without feudal obligations)... [more]
Enders German
Variant of Anders.
Esaki Japanese
E means "river, inlet" and saki means "cape, peninsula".
Esquivel Spanish
A name for someone who lives behind lime trees.
Feynman Russian, Yiddish
Russian and Yiddish form of Feinman. This name was borne by the American theoretical physicist Richard Feynman (1918-1988).
Fitch Scottish
The name fitch is of anglo-saxon decent, it refers to a person of iron point inrefrence to a soldier or worrior it is derived from an english word (Fiche) which means iron point the name started in county suffolk
Flory French
Southern French surname derived from the given name Florius.
Fogel German
Variant of Vogel
France French
Ethnic name for an inhabitant of France, a country in Europe.
France Czech
Variant of Franc.
France Slovene
Derived from the given name France 2, a vernacular form of Frančišek, which is ultimately from Latin Franciscus.
Franck English, French
From the given name Franck.
Friedman English (American), Jewish
Americanized form of Friedmann as well as a Jewish cognate of this name.
Frisch German
Nickname for someone who was handsome, cheerful, or energetic, from Middle High German vrisch.
Frisch Jewish
Ornamental name or nickname from modern German frisch, Yiddish frish "fresh".
Gascoyne English
Variant of Gascoigne, which was originally a regional name for someone from the province of Gascony, via Old French Gascogne.
Gasser German (Swiss)
Occupational name for a goat herd from Middle High German geiz meaning "Goat" and (n)er an agent suffix.
Glauber Jewish
Derived from German glauben "to believe" and the suffix -er. It was originally given either to an elder of the tribe, one renowned for his counsel, or to a layman who kept 'the faith'.
Goldstein Jewish
Means "gold stone" in German.
Goodenough English
From a medieval nickname probably applied either to someone of average abilities or to an easily satisfied person; also, perhaps from a medieval nickname meaning "good servant".
Gorbachev Russian
From Russian горбач (gorbach) meaning "hunchback, humpback". A notable bearer is Mikhail Gorbachev (1931-), a former Soviet politician.
Grass Romansh
Derived from Romansh grass "fat".
Grass English, German
Topographic name for someone who owned or lived by a meadow, or a metonymic occupational name for someone who made or sold hay, from Middle English gras, Middle High German gras "grass, pasture, grazing".
Grass Scottish
Occupational name, reduced from Gaelic greusaiche "shoemaker". A certain John Grasse alias Cordonar (Middle English cordewaner "shoemaker") is recorded in Scotland in 1539.
Haber Maltese
Not to be confused with the German surname of the same spelling.
Haldane English, Scottish
From an old personal name, Old Norse Halfdanr, Old Danish Halfdan, Anglo-Scandinavian Healfdene, meaning ‘half-Dane’.
Häll Estonian
Häll is an Estonian surname meaning "cradle" and "birthplace".
Hall Estonian
Hall is an Estonian surname meaning both "grey" and "frost".
Hammarskjöld Swedish (Rare)
Combination of Swedish hammare "hammer" and sköld "shield". A notable bearer was diplomat and Secretary-General of the United Nations Dag Hammarskjöld (1905-1961).
Hartwell English
Habitational name from places in Buckinghamshire, Northamptonshire, and Staffordshire called Hartwell, from Old English heorot ‘stag’, ‘hart’ + wella ‘spring’, ‘stream’... [more]
Hassel Swedish, Norwegian
Means "hazel" in Swedish and Norwegian.
Hauptman German
Variant spelling of Hauptmann.
Hauptmann German
Derived from German hauptmann, a word used for a German military rank meaning "Captain".
Haworth English
Literally means "enclosure with a hedge," from the Old English words haga + worth.
Hayek Arabic
Means "weaver" in Arabic.
Heisenberg German
Made up of German words heis and berg, ultimately meaning “hot mountain.” This was the name of theoretical physicist Werner Heisenberg and the alias of Walter White in Breaking Bad.
Hemingway English
Probably from the name of an unidentified minor place near the village of Southowram in West Yorkshire, England, derived from the Old English given name Hemma combined with weg meaning "way, road, path"... [more]
Herschbach German
From the name of two municipalities in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate in Germany. A notable bearer is the American chemist Dudley R. Herschbach (1932-).
Hess German (?)
It is arguably both tribal and residential, originating from the pre 10th century A.D. It is believed to have originally described people who came from the region known as Hesse. The translation of this name is the 'hooded people'
Heß German, Jewish
Variant spelling of Hess.
Hinshelwood Scottish, English
Denoted a person from a lost place called Henshilwood near the village of Carnwath on the southern edge of the Pentland Hills of South Lanarkshire, Scotland. It is derived from Scots hainchil obscurely meaning "haunch" and Old English wudu meaning "wood"... [more]
Hofstadter Jewish
Derived from the German towns of Hofstetten, Franconia and Hofstaedt, Pomerania. In German, the suffix -er means "from".... [more]
Holley English
English (chiefly Yorkshire) topographic name from Middle English holing, holi(e) ‘holly tree’. Compare Hollen.
Holmstrøm Norwegian, Danish
Norwegian and Danish form of Holmström.
Honjo Japanese
Alternate transcription of Japanese 本庄 (see Honjō).
Honjō Japanese
From Japanese 本 (hon) meaning "root, origin, source" and 庄 (shō) meaning "manor, villa".
Horta Catalan, Portuguese
Means "garden" (Latin hortus), hence a topographic name for someone who lived by an enclosed garden or an occupational name for one who was a gardener.
Horvitz English (American)
Surname of Richard Steven Horvitz, a voice actor in Angry Beavers, The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy, and Invader Zim.
Houghton English
English habitational name from any of the various places so called. The majority, with examples in at least fourteen counties, get the name from Old English hoh ‘ridge’, ‘spur’ (literally ‘heel’) + tun ‘enclosure’, ‘settlement’... [more]
Huber Maltese
Not to be confused with the German surname.
Huber French
Derived from the given name Hubert.
Hull Estonian
Hull is an Estonian surname meaning "loon" (Gavia).
Hulse German
derived from Holtz, means "a wood"
Hunt Estonian
Hunt is an Estonian surname meaning "wolf".
Ishiguro Japanese
Ishi means "Stone" and Guro is just a form of Kuro, meaning "Black". Hiroshi Ishiguro was the director of the Intelligent Robotics Laboratory.
Ishiguro Japanese
From Japanese 石 (ishi) meaning "stone" and 黒 (kuro) meaning "black".
Kajita Japanese
From Japanese 梶 (kaji) meaning "mulberry" and 田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".
Kandel Nepali
Habitational name from a village called Kanda.
Kandel Arabic (Egyptian)
Alternate transcription of Arabic قنديل (see Qandil).
Käo Estonian
Käo is an Estonian surname meaning "cuckoo".
Katz Jewish
An abbreviation of the phrase kohen tsedek "righteous priest".
Kawabata Japanese
'Side or bank of the river'; written two ways, with two different characters for kawa ‘river’. One family is descended from the northern Fujiwara through the Saionji family; the other from the Sasaki family... [more]
Kawabata Japanese
From Japanese 川 (kawa) meaning "river, stream" and 畑 (hata) meaning "farm, cropfield".
Kawabata Japanese
From Japanese 川 (kawa) or 河 (kawa) both meaning "river, stream" and 端 (hata) meaning "edge, end, tip".
Kellogg Irish
Anglicised form of Ó Ceallaigh
Kendrew English
Variant of Andrew, possibly influenced by Mcandrew. Notable namesake is Nobel Prize winning chemist John Kendrew (1917-1997).
Kim Khmer
Khmer variation of the chinese name "Jin"
Kim Korean (Americanized, Rare)
Surname of North Korean leaders and also means rock
Kissinger German
HouseofNames.com: The Kissinger surname derives from the Old High German word "kisil," meaning "pebble," or "gravel." The name may have been a topographic name for someone who lived in an area of pebbles or gravel; or it may have evolved from any of several places named with this word.
Klug German (Austrian)
First recorded in the early 14th century in present-day Austria (southeastern region of the Holy Roman Empire at that time). The surname was derived from the ancient Germanic word kluoc meaning "noble" or "refined".... [more]
Knowles Irish
As an Irish surname it is an anglicized form of Gaelic Ó Tnúthghail meaning "descendant of Tnúthgal", a given name composed of the elements tnúth "desire, envy" and gal "valor".
Koch Jewish
Koch - which also has the meaning of Cook in German's origin was however not from that meaning. It origins are to be traced in the Jewish ancestory. The original meaning came from the word Star. Amongst the related surnames (with or without bar in front or a ba or similar appended) are: Koch, Kochba, Kok, Kock, Kuk, Coq, Coqui, Cook (as a translation from the perceived meaning of cook) and a host of others... [more]
Köcher German
It literally means "quiver".
Køhler Danish
Danish form of Kohler.
Köhn German
From the given name Köhn.
Kohn Jewish
Variant of Cohen.
Koshiba Japanese (Rare)
Variant of Shiba but written 小斯波, by adding Japanese 小 (ko) meaning "small; little".
Kremer German
Variant of Krämer.
Kuznets Russian
The Russian variation of Smith.
Lafontaine French
Means" The fountain" in French.
Lagerlöf Swedish
A notable bearer was Swedish author Selma Lagerlöf (1858-1940), the first female writer to win the Nobel Prize in literature (1909).
Laxness Icelandic (Rare)
Derived from the name of a farm in Mosfellsbær parish in southwest Iceland. A notable bearer was author and Nobel Prize winner Halldór Laxness (1902-1998).
Le Vietnamese
Simplified variant of Lê.
Lee Vietnamese, Hmong, Thai, Khmer, Lao, Burmese, Filipino, Tagalog, Malay, Indonesian, Hawaiian, Japanese, Korean, Chinese
Korean, Vietnamese, Hmong, Thai, Khmer, Lao, Burmese, Filipino, Malay, Indonesian, Hawaiian, and Japanese form of Li 1 or Li 2... [more]
Libby English
From the given name Libby.
Lindahl Swedish
Combination of Swedish lind "lime tree" and dal "valley".
List Hungarian
Variant of Liszt.
Liu Chinese (Cantonese)
Cantonese form of Liao.
Mahfouz Arabic
From the given name Mahfuz.
Manabe Japanese
From Japanese 真 (ma) meaning "real, genuine" or 間 (ma) meaning "among, between" and 鍋 (nabe) meaning "pot, pan" or 部 (be) meaning "part, section".
Mandela Xhosa, Jewish, German
“District” in Xhosa... [more]
Mann Sanskrit (Anglicized)
Originally Sanskrit, now in Punjabi and Hindi - used by Jats predominantly in Punjab area of NW India. Well represented in Sikhs. Also spelled as {!Maan} when anglicized. Belonged to landholding nobility of warrior caste (knights) that at one time held a strong and established kingdom.... [more]
Mansfield English
Means "open land by the River Maun," from the Celtic river name + the Old English word "feld."
Marcus English
Marcus is a surname derived from the given name of Ancient Roman pre-Christian origin derived either from Etruscan Marce of unknown meaning (possibly from the Etruscan "mar" which means "to harvest"), or referring to the god Mars... [more]
Marquez Spanish
Unaccented variant of Márquez.
Martin Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Gaelic Mac Giolla Mhartain
Mcclintock Scottish, Irish, Scottish Gaelic
Deriving from an Anglicization of a Gaelic name variously recorded as M'Ilandick, M'Illandag, M'Illandick, M'Lentick, McGellentak, Macilluntud, McClintoun, Mac Illiuntaig from the 14th century onward... [more]
Mcfadden Scottish, Irish
Anglicized form of Gaelic Mac Phaid(e)in (Scottish) and Mac Pháidín (Irish) - both patronymics of Patrick (via Gaelic diminutives of the given name).
Merrifield English
English habitational name from any of various places, such as Merryfield in Devon and Cornwall or Mirfield in West Yorkshire, all named with the Old English elements myrige 'pleasant' + feld 'pasture', 'open country.' See also Merivale.
Merton English
From a place name meaning "town on a lake" in Old English.
Michelson French
This surname means son of Michelle.
Miłosz Polish
From the given name Miłosz.
Mo Chinese
According to a study of Mu Ying's Name record, the surname came to be when descendants of the antediluvian ruler Zhuanxu abbreviated the name of his city, Moyangcheng (莫陽城; in modern-day Pingxiang County, Hebei) and took it as their surname... [more]
Modigliani Italian
Used by Sepharditic Jews, this surname comes from the Italian town of Modigliana, in Romagna. Famous bearers of this surname include painter Amedeo Modigliani (1884–1920) and Nobel Prize in Economics recipient Franco Modigliani (1918–2003).
Moneta Italian
from moneta "money" probably applied as either a nickname for a rich man or as a metonymic occupational name for a moneyer or money lender.
Moneta Italian
Possibly originating from a nickname given to those who lived near a temple dedicated to Juno Moneta. A famous bearer of this surname is Nobel Prize for Peace recipient Ernesto Teodoro Moneta (1833–1918).
Moniz Portuguese
From the medieval Portuguese first name Muhno.... [more]
Moniz Portuguese
Means "son of Munho".
Montale Italian
From Latin mons ("mountain"), this surname was originally given as a nickname to people who lived on hills and mountains. A famous bearer of this surname is Italian poet and writer Eugenio Montale (1896-1981), winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1975.
Mott English
The surname Mott was first found in Essex, where the family held a family seat from very early times, having been granted lands by Duke William of Normandy, their liege Lord, for their distinguished assistance at the Battle of Hastings in 1066 A.D. Moate (Irish: An Móta) is a town in County Westmeath, Ireland... [more]
Mullis English
As either Mulles and Mullis, the surname first found in Parish Registers in Cornwall Co. by 1548 in Michaelstow. Manorial tenement rolls trace that particular family to 1483. Between 1337 and 1453 random tenants were recorded between Tintagel and Altarnun as Molys and Mollys... [more]
Murad Arabic, Urdu, Bengali
From the given name Murad.
Nansen Danish (Rare), Norwegian (Rare)
Patronymic name derived from an unknown given name.
Nash Circassian
Shapsug name derived from Adyghe нэ (nă) meaning "eye" combined with щэ (š̍ă) meaning "milk" or "crooked, wry, bent".
Neel English
A variant of Neal
Negishi Japanese
From Japanese 根 (ne) meaning "root, source, foundation" and 岸 (kishi) meaning "beach, shore, bank".
Neher German
An occupational name for a tailor from a deritive of Middle Low German, 'nehen' which means 'to sew' or 'to embroider'
Noël French
Means "Christmas".
Nurse English
Variant of Norris 2, from Old French norice "nurse".
Obama Japanese
From Japanese 小 (o) meaning "small" and 浜 (hama) meaning "beach, seashore".
Ōe Japanese
From Japanese 大 (ō) meaning "big, great" and 江 (e) meaning "bay, inlet".
Oe Japanese
O means "big, great" and e means "inlet, shore".
Oe Japanese
Alternate transcription of Japanese 大江 (see Ōe).
Olah Hungarian
Oláh (Olah) is a Hungarian surname that means Vlach/Romanian. A similar word is Olasz, meaning "Italian".Hungarian (Oláh): ethnic name from Hungarian oláh ‘Romanian’, old form volách, from vlach ‘Italian’, ‘speaker of a Romance language’.
Ōmura Japanese
From Japanese 大 (ō) meaning "big, great" and 村 (mura) meaning "town, village".
Omura Japanese
O means "big, huge, great" and mura means "bamlet, village". ... [more]
Omura Japanese
Alternate transcription of Japanese Kanji 大村 (see Ōmura).
Orr Scottish
This is an old name of Renfrewshire area of Scotland. The origins could be French or Norwegian (Viking) from more man 1000 years ago. What is known is that Orr is a place name and a sept of the Campbell clan... [more]
Öström Swedish
Combination of Swedish ö "island" and ström "stream, river".
Ostrom English (Anglicized)
Anglicized form of Swedish Öström.
Ostwald German
from the ancient Germanic personal name Ostold composed of the elements ōst "east" (see Oest ) and Old High German walt(an) "to rule". Variant of Oswald.
Paz Hebrew (Rare)
From the given name Paz 2, means "gold" in Hebrew. ... [more]
Peebles Scottish, Spanish (?)
Habitational name from places so named in Scotland. The place names are cognate with Welsh pebyll "tent, pavilion".
Penrose Cornish, Welsh
Originally meant "person from Penrose", Cornwall, Herefordshire and Wales ("highest part of the heath or moorland"). It is borne by the British mathematician Sir Roger Penrose (1931-).... [more]
Peres Spanish, Catalan, Portuguese, Gascon, Breton, Central African
Means "son of Pedro" in Spanish and Portuguese. Means "son of Pere" in Catalan... [more]
Perlmutter Jewish
Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name from German Perlmutter ‘mother-of-pearl'.
Politzer Hungarian, 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.
Prudhomme French, English, Norman, Medieval French
French (Prud’homme) and English (of Norman origin): nickname from Old French prud’homme ‘wise’, ‘sensible man’, a cliché term of approbation from the chivalric romances. It is a compound of Old French proz, prod ‘good’, with the vowel influenced by crossing with prudent ‘wise’ + homme ‘man’... [more]
Rainwater English (American)
Americanized form of the German family name Reinwasser, possibly a topographic name for someone who lived by a source of fresh water, from Middle High German reine ‘pure’ + wazzer ‘water’.
Ramakrishnan Indian, Tamil
From the given name Ramakrishna. A notable bearer is Tamil-American structural biologist Venkatraman Ramakrishnan (1952-).
Ramón Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan
From the given name Ramón.
Reichstein German
Habitational name from places named Reichstein (in Saxony) or Reichenstein (in Rhineland, Schleswig-Holstein, and Württemberg).
Roblès French
French form of Robles.
Röntgen German
Meaning uncertain. This was the name of German physicist Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen (1845-1923) who discovered and studied x-rays. Röntgen called the radiation "X" because it was an unknown type of radiation.
Root English, Dutch
English: nickname for a cheerful person, from Middle English rote ‘glad’ (Old English rot). ... [more]
Rothman German, Jewish
German (Rothmann) and Jewish (Ashkenazic): nickname for a person with red hair, from an elaborated form of Roth 1. ... [more]
Ryle English
Habitational name from Royle in Lancashire (see Royle).
Saavedra Spanish
Derived from the place-name Saavedra and therefore signifies "descendant or son of one from Saavedra". The place-name Saavedra is located in the north western province of Lugo in Galicia, Spain and is believed to be derived from the elements "Saa" meaning "Hall" and "Vedra" (feminine) meaning "Old".
Sabatier French
Meaning "cobbler, shoemaker".
Sadat German (Rare)
The last name Sadat means "master" and "gentleman," and is originally a religious last name which was popular in the west, more precisely in Germany.
Salam Arabic, Urdu, Bengali
From the given name Salam.
Saramago Portuguese
It's the name of a plant.
Sato Japanese (Rare)
Variant transcription of Japanese Kanji 砂糖 (see Satō).
Satō Japanese (Rare)
Means "sugar" in Japanese, possibly referring to a sugar house owner.
Scholes English
A name for a person who lives in a shed.
Schrock German
Some think that the last name Schrock comes from the German word which meant something along the lines of "Jump" or "Leaps" and was probably a nickname to someone who was a great jumper, or someone who was easily startled.
Schrödinger German
Denoted a person from Schröding, a old placename in Bavaria.
Seifert German (East Prussian)
German/Russian/Ashkenazi Jewish this surname derived from the very popular personal name siegfried, introduced for the first time inglaterra in the Anglo-Saxon period, and again as a surname thousand years later... [more]
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