HeritageEnglish (Rare) English status name for someone who inherited land from an ancestor, rather than by feudal gift from an overlord, from Middle English, Old French (h)eritage ‘inherited property’ (Late Latin heritagium, from heres ‘heir’).
HerlihyIrish From Irish Gaelic Ó hIarfhlatha "descendant of Iarfhlaith", a personal name meaning literally "lord of the west".
HermèsFrench Either a topographic name for someone who lived in a deserted spot or on a patch of waste land from Occitan erm "desert waste" (from Greek erēmia) and the topographic suffix -ès, or from the given name Hermès.
HerndonEnglish From Herne, a cottage, and den, a valley. The cottage in the valley.
HerndonMedieval English The surname Herndon was first found in Bedfordshire (Old English: Bedanfordscir), located in Southeast-central England, formerly part of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Mercia, where they held a family seat from ancient times... [more]
HernerGerman Denoted someone hailing from the city Herne in Germany.
HernesEstonian Hernes is an Estonian surname meaning "pea".
HeroldEnglish, Dutch, German From the given name Herold. This was the surname of David Herold, one of the conspirators in the Abraham Lincoln assassination plot.
HeronFrench, Caribbean Either derived from the given name Heron, or given to someone who resembled a heron bird.
HerrickDutch From a Germanic personal name composed of the elements heri, hari 'army' + ric 'power', or from an assimilated form of Henrick, a Dutch form of Henry.
HerridgeEnglish habitational name from Herridges in Pauntley (Gloucestershire) or Highridge in King's Nympton (Devon). The Gloucestershire placename may derive from Old English hæg "fence enclosure" and hrycg "ridge" or while the Devon placename comes from an uncertain initial element and Old English hrycg.
HerringtonEnglish habitational name from Herrington in County Durham, England
HerrmanGerman Herrman is of ancient German origin. It is derived from a Germanic personal name made up of the elements heri meaning "army," and man meaning "man." Herrman was first found in Prussia, where the name emerged in medieval times as one of the notable families of the region.
HerschbachGerman 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-).
HertzelGerman The ancestral home of the Hertzel family is in the German province of Bavaria. Hertzel is a German nickname surname. Such names came from eke-names, or added names, that described their initial bearer through reference to a physical characteristic or other attribute... [more]
HessGerman (?) 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'
HestonEnglish, Irish Derived from Heston, a suburban area in West London (historically in Middlesex), or Histon, a village and civil parish in Cambridgeshire, England. It is either named with Old English hǣs meaning "brushwood" and tūn meaning "farmstead, settlement, estate", or from hyse "shoot, tendril, son, youth" and tūn... [more]
HettiarachchiSinhalese From Sinhala හෙට්ටි (hetti) referring to the Chetty caste (primarily composed of merchants and traders) combined with the colonial-era title ආරච්චි (arachchi) used to denote a village headman or leader.
HeuerGerman The name comes from the German word "Heu" meaning "hay."
HeuermannGerman Occupational name for (a freshly hired hand, a day laborer) from Middle High German huren "to hire" and man "man".
HeviaAsturian This indicates familial origin within the eponymous parish of the municipality of Siero.
HewEnglish English: variant of the name Hugh. This was at one time the usual form of the personal name in Scotland. English: occupational name from Middle English hewe ‘domestic servant’
HibbsEnglish This possibly derived from a medieval diminutive, similar to Hobbs for Robert.
HickEnglish From the medieval personal name Hicke. The substitution of H- as the initial resulted from the inability of the English to cope with the velar Norman R-.
HickDutch From a pet form of a Germanic personal name, such as Icco or Hikke (a Frisian derivative of a compound name with the first element hild "strife", "battle").
HigginbothamEnglish Habitational name from a place in Lancashire now known as Oakenbottom. The history of the place name is somewhat confused, but it is probably composed of the Old English elements ǣcen or ācen "oaken" and botme "broad valley"... [more]
HigginsEnglish Patronymic from the medieval personal name Higgin, a pet form of Hick.
HiguchiJapanese From Japanese 樋 (hi) meaning "gutter, trough" and 口 (kuchi) meaning "mouth, entrance".
HigueraSpanish Higuera is a local surname; that is, the name was derived from the village or estate where the original bearer of the name once lived or held land. The Higuera family originally lived in the area of Figueroa.
HijaziArabic Denotes someone who was originally from the region of Hejaz in western Saudi Arabia.
HikeEnglish To hike or move, to walk, someone who hikes.
HilbertEnglish, French, Dutch, German English, French, Dutch, and German: from a Germanic personal name composed of the elements hild ‘strife’, ‘battle’ + berht ‘bright’, ‘famous’.
HilderEnglish English (mainly Sussex and Kent): topographic name from the Middle English hilder “dweller on a slope” (from Old English hylde “slope”).
HildrethNorman English (Durham): of Norman origin, a variant of the male personal name Hildred (ancient Germanic Hild(i)rad, from hild 'battle' and rād 'counsel'). German: from the ancient Germanic personal name composed of hild 'fight, battle' + rāt 'counsel'.
HilfikerGerman (Swiss) Altered spelling of Hilfinger, patronymic derivative of the personal name Hilfo, Helfo, a short form of a Germanic personal name based on helfe 'helper'.
HilgerGerman, Dutch From a Germanic personal name composed of the elements hild 'strife', 'battle' + gar, ger 'spear'.
HillegasGerman German: Variant of Hillegass from a variant of the Germanic personal name Hildegaud, composed of hild ‘strife’, ‘battle’ + got, of uncertain meaning (perhaps the same word as Goth).
HilleryEnglish, Irish Variant of Hillary. This surname has long been established in the county of Clare in Ireland. It was borne by the Irish president Patrick Hillery (1923-2008).
HilliardEnglish English: from the Norman female personal name Hildiarde, Hildegard, composed of the Germanic elements hild ‘strife’, ‘battle’ + gard ‘fortress’, ‘stronghold’... [more]
HillikerGerman The last name of Dance Moms star, Kalani Hilliker.
HimeJapanese (Rare) From Japanese 姫 (Hime) meaning "Hime", a former large village in the former district of Muro in the former Japanese province of Kii in parts of present-day Wakayama, Japan and Mie, Japan.... [more]
HimeJapanese (Rare) From Japanese 姫 (Hime) meaning "Hime", a former village in the district of Kani in the former Japanese province of Mino in parts of present-day Gifu, Japan.... [more]
HimmelreichGerman, Jewish humorous topographic name from a place so named as being at a high altitude from Middle High German himel "heaven" and riche "empire" meaning "kingdom of heaven, heavenly kingdom".
HimmelsteinGerman, Jewish topographic name for someone living by a feature so named from Middle High German himel "heaven, sky" and stein "rock, stone" meaning "stone in the sky, sky stone"
HimmlerGerman, History Derived from German Himmel "heaven, sky". This was a topographic name for someone living at a high altitude. ... [more]
HinckleyEnglish From the name of a place in Leicestershire meaning "Hynca's wood", from the Old English byname Hynca, derivative of hún "bear cub", and leah "woodland, clearing".
HindEnglish, Scottish English (central and northern): nickname for a gentle or timid person, from Middle English, Old English hind ‘female deer’.... [more]
HindleEnglish Habitational name from a place in the parish of Whalley, Lancashire, so called from the same first element + Old English hyll 'hill'.
HindleyEnglish English (Lancashire): habitational name from a place near Manchester, so named from Old English hind ‘female deer’ + leah ‘wood’, ‘clearing’.
HineEnglish occupational name from Middle English Old English hine "servant member of a household" also "farm laborer" (such as a herdsman or shepherd)... [more]
HingstonEnglish The distribution of the Hingston surname appears to be based around the South Hams area of Devon. The English Place Name Society volumes for Devon give the best indication of the source of the name... [more]
HinkebeinDutch, German Nickname for someone with a limp, from Middle Low German hinken meaning "to limp" + bein meaning "leg".
HinkelGerman Nickname for a timid, fearful person, from dialect hinkel ‘chicken’
HinkelmanGerman Elaborated variant of Hinkel, with the addition of Middle High German 'man'.
HintEstonian Hint is an Estonian surname, a diminutive of the masculine given name "Hindrek".
HintonEnglish (Archaic) Comes from Old English heah meaning "high" and tun meaning "enclosure" or "settlement." A notable person with the surname is female author S.E Hinton.
HiroseJapanese From Japanese 広 or 廣 (hiro) meaning "broad, wide, spacious" and 瀬 (se) meaning "rapids, current".
HirotaJapanese From Japanese 廣, 広 or 弘 (hiro) meaning "broad, wide, spacious" and 田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".
HirschbergGerman, Jewish Derived from many places named Hirschberg in the states of Thuringia and North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany, or the historic city of Jelenia Góra in southwestern Poland. It is composed of Middle High German hirz meaning "deer, stag" and berg meaning "hill, mountain"... [more]
HirschfeldGerman, Jewish, Yiddish Ornamental name composed of German hirsch or Yiddish hirsh meaning "deer" and feld meaning "field". It is also a topographic name for someone who lived in an area of land frequented by deer or where millets grew.
HitchensEnglish The name Hitchens has a rich and ancient history. It is an Anglo-Saxon name that was originally derived from the baptismal name Richard. As the naming tradition grew in Europe baptismal names began to be introduced in many countries.
HoadleyEnglish Habitational name from East or West Hoathly in Sussex, so named from Old English hað / Middle English hoath "heath" + leah "wood, clearing".
HoaglandAmerican American form of Scandinavian topographical surnames, such as Swedish Högland or Norwegian Haugland, both essentially meaning "high land".
HočevarSlovene Originally indicated a person from Kočevje (Gottschee County), a city and municipality in southern Slovenia.
HochsteinGerman Topographic name for someone who lived by a high rock or a castle of that name from Middle High German hoh "high" and stein "rock stone castle".
HockGerman Topographic name for someone living by a hedge, from a dialect variant of Heck.
HodappGerman 1 South German: probably a nickname for a clumsy person, from Middle High German hōh ‘high’, ‘tall’ + the dialect word dapp ‘fool’.... [more]