Submitted names are contributed by users of this website. The accuracy of these name definitions cannot be guaranteed.
AlkaiagaBasque This indicates familial origin within the eponymous neighborhood of the Navarrese municipality of Lesaka.
al-KashgariUyghur, Arabic Alternate transcription of Uyghur كاشغەرىي and Arabic كاشغري (see Kashgari). A famous bearer was Mahmud al-Kashgari (1005-1102), an 11th-century Kara-Khanid scholar and lexicographer of the Turkic languages from the city of Kashgar in Xinjiang, China.
Al-khwārizmīMedieval Arabic This is the name of 9th century mathematician and astronomer Muhammad ibn Mūsā al-Khwārizmi, derived from the region of Khwarazm
AlkizaBasque It indicates familial origin within the eponymous municipality.
AllEstonian All is an Estonian surname meaning "below" or "beneath".
AllaireMedieval French, French (Quebec), French (Huguenot) Allaire is the name of a village in Northwestern France(Brittany) near Vannes. The name may have Breton origins. At least two separate branches of the family came to the New World in the 17th Century... [more]
AllemanFrench (Cajun), Spanish (Canarian), German From the French and Spanish word for "German". Believed to have originated in the Alsace-Lorraine region. Some holders of the name migrated to the Canary Islands and are part of the larger Isleños population that settled throughout the Americas... [more]
al-LogariPashto, Persian Denoted a person from Logar, one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan.
AllowayEnglish Means (i) "person from Alloway, Alloa or Alva", the name of various places in Scotland ("rocky plain"); or (ii) from the medieval male personal name Ailwi (from Old English Æthelwīg, literally "noble battle").
AlmadaPortuguese This indicates familial origin within the eponymous city.
AlmaguerCatalan Habitational name from a place in Valencia named Almaguer.
AlmandozBasque It indicates familial origin within the eponymous neighborhood of the Navarrese municipality of Baztan.
AlmanzaSpanish Originally indicated a person from Almanza, a city in northern Spain. The city's name itself is derived from Arabic المنزل (al-manzil) meaning "the house".
AlmánzarSpanish (Caribbean) Derived from Arabic المنظر (al manẓar) meaning "the view" or "the lookout". This surname is primarily used in the Dominican Republic.
AlmarzaSpanish This indicates familial origin within either of 2 localities: the Castilian municipality of Almarza, Comarca of El Valle or the Riojan municipality of Almarza de Cameros.
AlmásiHungarian Habitational name for someone from any of various places called Almás, derived from Hungarian alma meaning "apple".
AlmazánSpanish Habitational name demoting someone originally from the municipality of Almazán in Castile and León, Spain. The name itself is derived from Arabic المكان المحصن (al-makān al-ḥiṣn) meaning "the fortified place" or "the stronghold".
AlmendingerUpper German, German (Swiss) Habitational name for someone from a place called Allmendingen, of which there are two examples in Switzerland, in the canton of Bern, and one in Baden-Württemberg in Germany.
al-RumaithiArabic Originally indicated a person who came from the city of Al-Rumaitha in Iraq, or the Rumaithiya area in Kuwait City, Kuwait. The place names are derived from either the Arabic words الرمث (al-ramth) or حافة (rimth), both the names of a type of flowering plant (genus Haloxylon), called saxaul in English... [more]
AlsamoraCatalan It indicates familial origin within the eponymous locality of the municipality of Sant Esteve de la Sarga.
AlšėniškisLithuanian This indicates familial origin within the Belarusian village of Hal’šány, which was originally Lithuanian & named Alšėnai.
AlsopEnglish Habitational name, now chiefly found in the Midlands, for a person from Alsop-en-le-Dale, a chapelry in the parish of Ashborne, Derbyshire. The place name itself meant "Ælle's valley" from the genitive of the Old English personal name Ælle and Old English hōp meaning "enclosed valley" (compare Hope).
AlstonEnglish A locational surname, derived from the many townships in England of the same name, meaning 'of the old manor or of the hillside'
AlthamEnglish Altham is a surname of English origin, based on the placename Altham, Lancashire.
AlthoffGerman A surname predominantly found in Westphalia and the Rhineland region of Germany which is derived from German alt "old" and Hof (Hoff in the local dialects) "farmstead; farm; manor".
AltonEnglish From a place name meaning "town at the source of the river" in Old English.
AltosaarEstonian Altosaar is an Estonian surname, possibly derived from the masculine given name "Alto" and "saar", meaning "island"; "Alto's island".
AltringerGerman Habitational name for someone from a place called Altringen or Aldingen, of which there are two in Württemberg.
AltschulerJewish It is derived from the Altschul, Old Synagogue in Prague.
AlvarengaPortuguese This indicates familial origin within either of 2 eponymous parishes.
AmaJapanese From Japanese 阿万 (Ama) meaning "Ama", a former villa in the former district of Mihara in the former Japanese province of Awaji in parts of present-day Hyōgo, Japan.... [more]
AmadaJapanese From Japanese 天 (ama) meaning "heaven" and 田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".
AmagawaJapanese From the Japanese 天 (ama or ten) "heaven," 塰 (ama) the title of a Noh play or 余 (ama) "complimentary" and 川 or 河 (gawa or kawa) "river."
AmajiJapanese Ama means "heaven, sky" and ji means "soil, ground".
AmakiJapanese Ama can mean "heaven" and ki means "wood, tree."... [more]
AmamiyaJapanese From Japanese 雨 (ama) meaning "rain" and 宮 (miya) meaning "temple, shrine, palace". A notable bearer of this surname is voice actress and singer Sora Amamiya (雨宮 天 Amamiya Sora, 1993–).
AmataJapanese (Rare) Variant of Ama, added Japanese 田 (ta) meaning "rice paddy, cultivated field".
AmataniJapanese 天 (Ama) means "heaven" and 谷 (tani) meaning "valley". This is the pronunciation of it in western Japan.
AmatsuboJapanese (Rare) Means "rainy atrium, rainy courtyards". From Japanese 雨 meaning "rain", and "坪" meaning "(inner)garden, atrium, courtyard". A famous bearer is Mitsumasa Amatsubo.
AmayaJapanese From Japanese 天 (ama) meaning "heaven" and 谷 (ya) meaning "valley".
AmbedkarIndian, Hindi, Marathi Derived from the name of the village of Ambadawe (also called Ambavade) in Maharashtra, India. A notable bearer was B. R. Ambedkar (1891-1956), one of the authors of the Indian constitution.
AmberEnglish This surname may be derived from the River Amber, located in Derbyshire in England.... [more]
AmbergGerman, Jewish German and possibly Jewish (Ashkenazic) habitational name from any of several settlements called Amberg (literally ‘by the mountain’), including a city in Bavaria. It could also be a topographic name of identical etymology... [more]
AmenomiyaJapanese (Rare) From Japanese 雨宮 (Amenomiya) meaning "Amenomiya", a former area in the district of Hanishina in the former Japanese province of Shinano in parts of present-day Nagano in Japan or an area in the same location in the city of Chikuma in the prefecture of Nagano in Japan.... [more]
AmetxazurraBasque This indicates familial origin within the eponymous neighborhood of the municipality of Gordexola.
AmetzagaBasque This indicates familial origin within any of 3 eponymous neighborhoods: the one in the municipality of Asparrena, the one in the municipality of Meñaka, or the one in the municipality of Zuia.
AmézquitaSpanish (Mexican) The surname Amézquita is of Basque origin and it is derived from the Basque words "amezti" which means "meadow" and "keta" which means "house". Therefore, the name roughly translates to "house in the meadow".
AmherstEnglish It comes from when the family lived in the locality of Amherst, in the parish of Pembury in Kent.
AmmerGerman, English (Rare) This surname may be derived from Middle High German amer which means "bunting (as in the bird)." As such, it is used as a nickname for someone with a fine voice or someone who is a flamboyant dresser.... [more]
AmstutzGerman (Swiss), German (Austrian) Topographic name for someone living near or at the foot of a steep mountainside, German am Stutz ‘at the escarpment’.
AndaluzSpanish Means "from Andalusia" or "from Spain", derived from the region of Spain called Andalucía, once called Al-Ándalus (a classical Arab name for the Iberian Peninsula)... [more]
AndikoetxeaBasque This indicates familial origin within the eponymous neighborhood of the municipality of Kortezubi.
AndoJapanese From the Japanese 安 (an or yasu) "relax," "inexpensive," "low," and 藤 (to or fuji) "wisteria." The second character may indicate historical or familial links to the formerly powerful Fujiwara (藤原) clan.
AndradePortuguese, Galician, Jewish (?) Denoted a person hailing from one of the many areas that bear this name in Portugal and Galicia, Spain, derived from Latin andreas meaning "manly, masculine".
AndújarSpanish This indicates familial origin within the eponymous Andalusian municipality.
AneddaItalian Possibly from Sardinian anedda "ring", referring to a walled ring in which animals were tied. May alternately be a diminutive form of the given name Ana.
AnkjærDanish From a place name meaning 'water-hole with ducks.'
AnnEnglish Habitational name from Abbots Ann in Hampshire, named for the stream that runs through it, which is most probably named with an ancient Welsh word meaning ‘water’.
AnnanScottish '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)
AnnoJapanese From Japanese 阿武 (Anno) meaning "Anno", a district in the former Japanese province of Nagatono in parts of present-day Yamaguchi, Japan.... [more]
AnsteadEnglish Possibly derived from places named with Old English ham-stede meaning "homestead".
AnstedEnglish Variant of Anstead, possibly derived from places named with Old English ham-stede meaning "homestead".
AnsteyEnglish Means "person from Anstey or Ansty", the name of numerous places in England (either "single track" or "steep track"). F. Anstey was the pen-name of British barrister and author Thomas Anstey Guthrie (1856-1934).
AntillónAragonese This indicates familial origin within the eponymous municipality.
AntoñanzasSpanish It indicates familial origin within the eponymous neighborhood of the Riojan municipality of Munilla.
AntrimIrish Meaning "lone ridge". This is the name of an Irish county and was among some of Billy the Kid’s other known names (ie: Henry "Kid" Antrim).
AntrobusEnglish This very unusual name is of Old Norse origin and is a locational surname from the place in Cheshire called "Antrobus". The placename is recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 as "Entrebus", and in the Pipe Rolls of Cheshire of 1282 as "Anterbus"... [more]
AppenzellGerman Habitational name for someone from Appenzell (village or canton) in northeastern Switzerland. The placename derives from Latin abbatis cella, "cell (i.e., estate) of the abbot".
ApplegarthEnglish, Scottish Topographic name from northern Middle English applegarth meaning "apple orchard" (Old Norse apaldr meaning "apple tree" + gar{dh}r meaning "enclosure"), or a habitational name from a place so named, of which there are examples in Cumbria and North and East Yorkshire, as well as in the county of Dumfries.
ApplegateEnglish Extremely common variant of Applegarth, in which the less familiar final element has been assimilated to the northern Middle English word gate meaning "road" or to modern English gate.
ApplewhiteEnglish Habitational name from a place named Applethwaite, from Old Norse apaldr ‘apple tree’ and þveit ‘meadow’. There are two or three such places in Cumbria; Applethwaite is also recorded as a surname from the 13th century in Suffolk, England, pointing to a possible lost place name there... [more]
AquilaItalian Habitational name from L'Aquila in Abruzzo or from any of various smaller places called Aquila.
AquinasItalian Aquinas indicates ancestral origins from the Italian county "Aquino." Aquino comes from the latin word "Aquinum" which itself probably comes from the latin word aqua. Aqua means water in English.
AraJapanese From the Japanese 荒 (ara) "primitive," "rude," "crude."
ArabikiJapanese (Rare) From Japanese 荒 (ara) meaning "rough; harsh; intense", referring to rough land, and 引 (biki), from 引き (biki), the joining continuative form of 引く (hiku) meaning "to pull".
ArafukaJapanese From Japanese 荒 (ara) meaning "uncultivated, desolate" and 深 (fuka) meaning "deep; profound". It may have been derived from Ara 2.
AragónSpanish Habitational name from Aragon Spain which was an independent kingdom from 1035 to 1479. It took its name from the river Aragón which arises in its northwestern corner... [more]
ArahiJapanese (Rare) From Japanese 荒 (ara) meaning "rough; harsh; intense", referring to rough land, and 樋 (hi) meaning "gutter".
ArahiraJapanese From Japanese 荒 (ara) meaning "rough; harsh; intense" and 平 (hira) meaning "flat; flattened" or, in a dialect, "cliff", referring to a rough flatland or a rough cliff.... [more]
AraiJapanese From Japanese 新 (ara) meaning "new, natural" or 荒 (ara) meaning "rough, sparse, wild" and 井 (i) meaning "well".
AranaBasque This indicates familial origin within either of 3 eponymous localities: the hamlet in the County of Trebiñu, the neighborhood in Gasteiz, or the neighborhood in Bermeo.
AranburuBasque Proper, non-Castilianized form of Aramburú, literally meaning the peak of a valley.
ArancedoAsturian It indicates familial origin within the eponymous parish of the municipality of El Franco.
AravenaCorsican This indicates familial origin within the eponymous neighborhood of the commune of Fuzzà.
ArayaJapanese From Japanese 荒 (ara) meaning "rough, wild" and 谷 (ya) meaning "valley".
ArbizuBasque It indicates familial origin within the eponymous Navarrese municipality.
ArboledaSpanish From arboleda meaning "grove of trees". This is the name of a prominent Colombian family, in which case it is derived from their region of origin in Arboleya, Spain.
ArciniegaBasque Castilianized form. Name for someone from the Spanish town of Artziniega. The town's name likely comes from the Basque artzain meaning "shepherd" and -aga, a suffix for place names.
ArdScottish Habitational name from any of several places called Aird, including one near Hurlford in Ayrshire, another near Stranraer in Galloway, and the Aird, the higher part of the Vale of Beauly, near Inverness... [more]
ArdaghIrish A rare Irish surname named after Ardagh, in County Longford.
ArdehiPersian, Kurdish, Old Persian House Ardehis of Zagors or Ardahvans (Persian: اردهیان) were one of the Persian Sassanid royal families, who occupied the Mounts of Zagros before the Islamic conquest of Persia in 650 CE. Ardahvans in Shahnameh and Persian mythology are mentioned to be the first settlers of Zagros mountains, and the constructors of Forts Of Zagros.
ArdenEnglish From various English place names, which were derived from a Celtic word meaning "high".... [more]
ArdernEnglish Means "eagle valley" or "gravel valley". From Old English ear "gravel" or eran "eagle" and denu "valley". Also a variant of Arden.
ArellanoBasque, Spanish This indicates familial origin within the eponymous Navarrese municipality.
ArencibiaSpanish Castilianized combination of the basque words of aranz meaning "thorn"; "hawthorn" + ibi meaning "ford" + a (basque article suffix); meaning someone living by a thorny ford. A "ford" is a body of water shallow enough to walk through; In this context topographically referring to a some places in Spain
ArensbergGerman From Old High German arn 'eagle' and berg, 'mountain'.
ArenzanaSpanish It indicates familial origin within either of 2 La Riojan municipalities: Arenzana de Abajo or Arenzana de Arriba.
AretxagaBasque It indicates familial origin within the eponymous ghost town within the council of Murgia in the municipality of Zuia.
AretxederraBasque This indicates familial origin within the eponymous neighborhood of the municipality of Gordexola.
ArévaloSpanish Habitational name from any of the places called Arévalo in the provinces of Ávila and Soria of pre-Roman origin.
ArgandoñaBasque This indicates familial origin within the eponymous neighborhood of the municipality of Gasteiz.
ArgaoVisayan Named after Argao, a municipality in southern Cebu. Argao, in turn is said to have derived from "sali-argaw", a tree that flourished in the coastal areas of the town.
ArgyleScottish, Scottish Gaelic From the regional name Argyll, a county of southwestern Scotland, named in Gaelic as Earre Ghàidheal ‘coast of the Gaels’. Argyll was the earliest part of Scotland to be settled by Gaelic speakers from Ireland from the 6th century onwards... [more]
ArgyllScottish, Scottish Gaelic From the regional name Argyll, a county of southwestern Scotland, named in Gaelic as Earre Ghàidheal ‘coast of the Gaels’. Argyll was the earliest part of Scotland to be settled by Gaelic speakers from Ireland from the 6th century onwards... [more]
ArichiJapanese Ari means "have, possess, exist" and chi means "ground, soil".
ArigaJapanese From Japanese 有 (ari) meaning "have, possess" and 賀 (ka) meaning "congratulation".