SardEnglish, French, Spanish, Italian In the book surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary by Henry Harrison and Gyda (Pulling) Harrison 1912 - Reprinted 1996. The Sard surname (which has been in England, Italy and Europe for a long time) is defined thus on page 136.... [more]
SardaItalian From the feminine form of Sardo or from sarda "large sardine" either a nickname or occupational name for selling sardines.
SardarIndian, Bengali, Hindi, Urdu From a title meaning "chief, leader", derived from Persian سر (sar) meaning "head, authority" and the suffix دار (dar) meaning "possessor".
SardinaItalian, Spanish, Galician From sardina Galician sardiña "sardine" used for someone as a catcher or seller of the fish or a nickname for a thin person.
SarfatiJudeo-Spanish From Hebrew צרפתית (tsar'fatit) meaning "French". It was originally used to refer to the Biblical place name Tzarfat, which has come to be identified as modern-day France.
SarnaPolish IT COMES FROM POLAND FROM LONG-AGO ANCESTORS
SarnowskiPolish Habitational name for someone from any of the many places in Poland called Sarnowa, Sarnowo, or Sarnów, named with Polish sarna "roe deer".
SarracinoItalian From Neapolitan sarracino, meaning "Saracen", a term used to refer to a variety of ethnic and religious groups, including a nomadic people from Sinai, Muslims, and pirates from the Mediterranean.
SarrazinFrench Means "Saracen" in Old French, a name used to refer to Arab Muslims in the Middle Ages. It was probably used as a nickname for an unruly person, a person with a dark complexion, or for someone who had taken part in a Crusade.
SarriàCatalan Catalan habitational name from any of the places named Sarrià or Sàrria, in Catalonia.
SarrisGreek Derived from Turkish sari meaning "blond, fair-haired".
SarsourArabic Means "cockroach" or "roach" in Arabic.
SarverEnglish, Jewish English and Jewish (eastern Ashkenazic) occupational name from Old French serveur (an agent derivative of server ‘to serve’), Yiddish sarver ‘servant’.
SarwarUrdu, Bengali From the Persian title سرور (sarvar) meaning "lord, master".
SassanoJapanese (Rare) From Japanese 颯々 (sassa), sound- and script-changed from 颯爽 (sassō) meaning "gallant; jaunty" and 野 (no) meaning "field; plain", referring to a stately person who traveled to the fields.
SatherAnglo-Saxon Sather is a name of ancient Anglo-Saxon origin and comes from the family once having lived in the ancient chapelry of Satterthwaite found near Hawkeshead in Lancashire. This surname was originally derived from the Old English elements soetr meaning shield and pveit meaning pasture... [more]
SauerweinGerman Occupational nickname for someone who sold sour wine, or perhaps a nickname for someone with a sour disposition, from Middle High German sur "sour" + win "wine", i.e. vinegar.
SaulEstonian Saul is an Estonian surname derived from the biblical masculine given name "Saul".
SaulnierFrench In Middle French (the form of French spoken from 1340 to 1610), it literally means "salt merchant".
Sauve'French Sauve' from France to Canada. Changed probably due to an "a" and an "o" confusion in cursive. My granfather's was typo-ed on WW II old men's sign up in MA. or RI, USA.
SavelliItalian It could derive from the Sabelli (ancient Italic tribe), pre-Roman population, or from toponyms such as Savelli di Norcia (PG) and indicate the origin of the founder.
SavignacFrench Habitational name for someone from various communes by this name in France.
SavilleEnglish A habitational name from an uncertain place in Northern France. This is most likely Sainville, named from Old French saisne, 'Saxon' and ville, indicating a settlement.
SaviñónSpanish Probably of French origin, an altered form of Savignon which is from a pet form of the personal name Savin or a habitational name from place called Savignon in Ardèche.
SawickiPolish This indicates familial origin anywhere within a cluster of 3 Podlachian villages in Gmina Repki: Sawice-Dwór, Sawice-Wieś, or Sawice-Bronisze.
SawtellEnglish (British) A dialectal variant of Sewell, which was first recorded in early 13th-century England. The later addition of the 't' was for easier pronunciation.... [more]
SaxenaIndian, Hindi Traditionally believed to be derived from Sanskrit सखिसेना (sakhisena) meaning "friend of the army", from सखा (sakha) meaning "friend, companion" and सेना (sena) meaning "army"... [more]
SaxonEnglish Derived from the tribe of the Saxons from the Anglo-Saxon element seaxa "a Saxon" derived Germanic elements sahso and sahsaz derived from sahsą "knife"... [more]
SaxtonEnglish Habitational name from a place in West Yorkshire, possibly also one in Cambridgeshire, both so named from Old English Seaxe "Saxons" and tūn "enclosure, settlement".
ScaggsEnglish Variant of Skaggs both of English origin and unknown meaning. Famous bearer is singer Boz Scaggs (1944-) of the SteveMiller Band and the band Toto.
ScaglioneItalian Derived from scaglione meaning "stallion’s canine tooth" (an augmentative form of scaglie meaning "canine tooth", from Old French escaillon meaning "horse’s tooth"), presumably a nickname for someone with exceptionally large teeth.
ScarboroughEnglish Habitational name from Scarborough on the coast of North Yorkshire, so named from the Old Norse byname Skarði + Old Norse borg "fortress", "fortified town".
ScarcellaItalian From Italian "scarcella", a dessert enjoyed during Easter from the Italian region of Apulia.
ScarduzioItalian From the Italian verb scardare, meaning to husk a hazelnut or chestnut. Possibly a metaphor for a sculptor who 'husked' a sculpture from stone.
ScarlatoItalian Occupational name for a dyer, or as a nickname for someone who habitually wore scarlet or who had bright red hair, From Sicilian scarlatu "scarlet".
ScerriMaltese Meaning disputed; it could be derived from Sicilian sciarra meaning "fight, brawl", Arabic شَرّ (šarr) meaning "evil, cruel", or a word meaning "anger".
SchaafGerman Metonymic occupational name for a shepherd, from Middle High German schāf ‘sheep’. In some cases it may have been a nickname for someone thought to resemble a sheep, or a habitational name for someone living at a house distinguished by the sign of a sheep... [more]
SchaalGerman, Dutch, French, Spanish, Jewish Either a nickname for a braggart or a market crier, (derived from Middle High German schal meaning "noise, bragging"), an occupational name for someone who made dishes for scales and vessels for drinking, (from Middle Low German and Dutch schale "dish"), a habitational name from Schaala in Thuringia or the Schaalsee lake near Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, or a topographic name for someone living on marshy land, (from Dutch schald "shallow")... [more]
SchabenGerman Describes an inhabitant of the region Swabia
SchachnerGerman German origins (as told to me by my family); popular in Austria and also has Jewish and Slavic origins, according to the internet/ancestry.com.
SchachtGerman, Dutch North German and Dutch: metonymic occupational name for someone who prepared shafts for tools or weapons, a turner, from Middle Low German schacht, Middle Dutch scacht ‘shaft’.
SchadeGerman, Dutch From schade "damage, injury", a derivative of schaden "to do damage, harm, hurt", generally a nickname for a thug or clumsy person, or, more particularly, a robber knight, who raided others’ lands.
SchadenGerman, Dutch From schade 'damage', a derivative of schaden 'to do damage', generally a nickname for a thug or clumsy person, or, more particularly, a robber knight, who raided others' lands.
SchallGerman Nickname for a braggart or for a market crier from Middle High German schal "noise" "bragging".
SchallerUpper German From Middle High German word "schal," which means "noise," or "bragging," and as such is was thought to have originally been a nickname for a braggart, or for a market crier.
SchankweilerGerman From the name of a German municipality, derived from Schank "bar, pub, tavern" and Weiler "hamlet".
SchattnerGerman, Jewish Habitational name for someone from any of several places named Schaten or Schatten, or a topographic name for someone living in a shady location, from Middle High German schate "shade", "protection".
SchatzGerman, Jewish German and Jewish (Ashkenazic) metonymic occupational name for a treasurer, from German Schatz ‘treasure’, Middle High German scha(t)z. It may also have been a nickname for a rich man (or ironically for a miser), or else for a well-liked person or a ladies’ favorite, from the use of the vocabulary word as a term of endearment... [more]
SchätzelGerman German diminutive of Schatz, or a nickname for a lover meaning "little sweetheart" (from the same word used as a term of endearment).
SchauerGerman The Schauer surname comes from the Middle High German word "schouwen" meaning "to inspect;" as such, the name is thought to have originally been occupational, for some kind of inspector, perhaps an official of a market.
SchaumburgGerman, Belgian Habitational name from any of the places called Schaumburg or Schauenburg in Germany, or Schauwberg in Brabant, Belgium. Derived from schūm "slag, cinder" and burg "mountain, hill".
SchausGerman, Luxembourgish A nickname for a simpleton, from schaus, a word in Rhenish Franconian and Lower Rhine dialects of German.
ScheeleGerman, Dutch, Swedish (Rare) From Middle Low German schele and Dutch scheel meaning "squinting, cross-eyed". A notable bearer was German-Swedish pharmaceutical chemist Carl Wilhelm Scheele (1742-1786) who discovered oxygen and identified several other elements.
ScheetzGerman Anglicized version of the German surname, Schütz, "archer," "yeoman," "protect."
ScheidGerman, Jewish Either a topographic name for someone who lived near a boundary (between two valleys etc.) or crossroads Middle High German scheide, a habitational name from any of various places called ScheidtScheiden... [more]
ScheideggerGerman, German (Swiss) Topographic name for someone who lived near a boundary or watershed. The name was derived from the Old German word SCHEIDE, meaning 'to part, to divide'. It may also have been a habitation name from any of the numerous places named with this word.
ScheinGerman, Jewish from Middle High German schīn German schein "shining brightness" hence a nickname for someone with either a radiant personality or possibly for someone living in a sunny location or a Jewish artificial name.
SchelinSwedish Combination of an unknown element (probably derived from a place name) and the common surname suffix -in.
SchellGerman Means "noisy" or "loud" from the German word "schel"
ScherfGerman from Middle High German and Middle Low German scherf a coin worth half a penny possibly applied as a nickname for a poor person.
ScherlGerman Derived from the Middle Low German word “scherl” or “scherle,” which means “small shield.” It may have been from a person known for carrying a small shield, a person who lived near a small shield-shaped sign or symbol, or a person who lived in a place named after the small shield.
SchermerhornDutch From Schermerhorn, the name of a village in the province of North Holland in the Netherlands, derived from Dutch schermer meaning "fencer" and hoorn meaning "horn". It was borne by the Dutch politician Willem "Wim" Schermerhorn (1894-1977), a Prime Minister of the Netherlands.
SchiazzaItalian From chiazza "stain, blot", perhaps given to someone with a prominent birthmark. Might also from a regional dialect, meaning "piazza, town square".
SchickGerman A nickname given to a person who's smart, stylish, and well-dressed.
SchiffGerman, Jewish From Middle High German Schif "ship", indicating the bearer was either a sailor, or lived in a house distinguished by a ship sign.
SchildGerman, Dutch Occupational name for a maker or painter of shields, from Middle High German, Middle Dutch schilt "shield".
SchildJewish From German Schild "shield" or "(house) sign", applied either as an ornamental name or as a habitational name for someone who lived in a house distinguished by a sign.
SchildhauerGerman First appeared during the Middle Ages in Central Europe/Germany. The name means "Shield-Maker" and suggests correlation to Blacksmiths or or other forms of metalwork in the time period.
SchildknechtGerman From the occupation of a page or squire for a knight derived from schilht "shield" and kneht "servant".
SchillerGerman Nickname for someone with a squint, from an agent derivative of Middle High German schilhen, schiln 'to squint'.
SchillingGerman, Dutch, Jewish Nickname for a serf who had paid his rent or fee to his lord for his freedom, derived from Middle High German schillinc, Middle Low German schillink and German schilling meaning "shilling"... [more]