Submitted names are contributed by users of this website. The accuracy of these name definitions cannot be guaranteed.
NewhouseEnglish Either a habitational name for someone who lived at a "new house" (from Middle English niwe "new" and hus "new house") or a habitational name from any of various minor places so called especially perhaps Newhouses in Horton Yorkshire near the border with Lancashire... [more]
NieChinese From Chinese 聂 (niè) referring to either of two ancient fiefs named Nie. One existed in the state of Wei (Wey) in what is now Henan province, while the other was part of the state of Qi in what is now Shandong province.
NiedUpper German South German: habitational name from Nied in Hesse.
NiederhäuserGerman, Swiss Habitational name from any of numerous places named Niederhaus or Niederhausen, denoting the lower of two dwellings or settlements or one in a low-lying position.
NiedermeyerGerman Means "lower farmer", a distinguishing name for a farmer who worked further south or in a low-lying location.
NiedfeldtGerman Topographic name for a person who lived by a lower area of open land, derived from Middle Low German nider meaning "lower" and feld meaning "open country".
NiehChinese Alternate transcription of Chinese 聂 (see Nie).
NiehausGerman North German: topographic name from Middle Low German nie ‘new’ + hus ‘house’; or a habitational name from a common North German and Westphalian farm name with the same meaning.
NieuwenhuisDutch Means "new house" in Dutch. Indicated that the bearer lived in a new house or lived in a village of the same name
NihonJapanese (Rare) Means "Japan" in Japanese, though originally from 日本 (nihon), a clipping of 日本晴れ (nihombare) meaning "no clouds in the sky". It is a reference to an event in the Edo Period, of a weather forecaster who was asked for the weather and answered 日本晴れ... [more]
Nihon'yanagiJapanese Means "2 salix trees", from Japanese 二本 (nihon) meaning "2 (cylindrical objects)" and 柳 (yanagi) meaning "salix". This is the name of a few places in Japan (in the city of Goshogawara and the city of Gonohe).
NimuraJapanese From Japanese 二 (ni) meaning "two" and 村 (mura) meaning "town, village".
NingChinese From Chinese 宁 (níng) meaning "peaceful, tranquil", also referring to the ancient county of Ningyi, which existed during the Zhou dynasty in what is now Henan province.
NireharaJapanese (Rare) From Japanese 楡原 (Nirehara), an variant reading of 楡原 (Nirebara) meaning "Nirebara", a former large village in the district of Koshi in the former Japanese province of Echigo in parts of present-day Niigata, Japan or an area in the same place, in the city of Nagaoka in the prefecture of Niigata in Japan.
NizińskimPolish Might be derived from a Polish village called Niziny. It comes from Polish nizina, meaning "plain, lowland."
NoKorean Korean form of Lu 2, from Sino-Korean 盧 (no).
NoarEnglish This surname is thought to be derived from nore which could mean "shore, cliff." This could denote that someone might have lived in a shore or cliff. It may also be used as a surname for someone who lived in the now 'diminished' village of Nore in Surrey.
NobelSwedish Habitational name from Östra Nöbbelöv in Scania, Southern Sweden. The name was originally spelled Nobelius but was later shortened to Nobel. A famous bearer was Alfred Nobel (1833-1896), a Swedish engineer, chemist, and inventor.
NobiraJapanese From the Japanese 野 (no) "field," "area" and 平 (hira) "peace."
NocedaSpanish Spanish surname derived from the word "nocedal" meaning "field of walnut trees" it denoted a person who lived or came from such place.
NocitoItalian from Latin nucetum (Italian noceto) "walnut orchard" applied as either a topographic name for someone who lived by such a place or as a metonymic occupational name for someone who worked in one.
NockCeltic, English Dweller at the oak tree; originally spelt as "Noake" evolved into "Nock".
NōdaJapanese Variant of Osame but adding Japanese 田 (da), the joining form of 田 (ta) meaning "rice paddy, cultivated field", possibly referring to a place with rice paddies or cultivated fields.
NodaJapanese Combination of the kanji 野 (no, "area, field, hidden part of a structure; wild, rustic") and 田 (ta, "rice paddy, field"). A famous bearer of this surname is Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda (野田 佳彦; b. 1957).
NodaJapanese Variant reading or transcription of Japanese Kanji 納田 (see Nōda).
NogalesSpanish Habitational name from either of two locations in Spain named Nogales, from the plural form of Spanish nogal meaning "walnut tree".
NogamiJapanese From Japanese 野 (no) meaning "field, wilderness" and 上 (kami) meaning "above, top, upper".
NomizuJapanese No means "field, wilderness" and mizu means "water".
NõmmeEstonian Nõmme is an Estonian surname, derived from "nõmm", meaning "heath". It is also the name of several locations of towns and villages in Estonia.
NõmmikEstonian Nõmmik is an Estonian surname meaning "heath forest" or "heath stand".
NordahlNorwegian, Swedish The surname derives from a place name in Sunnmøre, Norway. Meaning from Old Norse norðr ''north'' and dalr ''dale'', ''valley''. In Sweden, this name is mostly ornamental, rather than habitaional.
NordbyNorwegian, Danish The first half of the word nord is derived from the Old Norse word norþr which means "north", while the second half of the word by is derived from the Norwegian word byr or bo meaning "farmstead" or "settlement"... [more]
NordickEnglish Habitational name from a place so named near Bocholt, in the Lower Rhine area.
NordlanderSwedish Combination of Swedish nord "north" and the common surname suffix -lander (a combination of land "land" and the habitational suffix -er).
NordvikNorwegian Geographical/topographical name meaning north cove. There are several places in Norway by this name.
NoroJapanese From Japanese 野 (no) meaning "field, rice paddy" and 呂 (ro) meaning "spine, backbone".
NoronhaPortuguese Derived from Noreña, the name of a village in Asturias, northern Spain.
NorrbySwedish The first half of the word Norr is derived from the Old Norse word norþr which means "north", while the second half of the word by is derived from the Old Swedish word byr meaning "farmstead" or "settlement"... [more]
NorrellEnglish, German (?) A locational surname from the Germanic (Old English/Old Norse) term for the north. It either refers to someone who lived in a location called Northwell, lived north of a well, spring or stream (Old English weall)... [more]
NorrgårdFinnish, Swedish From Swedish norr meaning "north" combined with gård meaning "farm, estate".
NorringtonEnglish Norrington is the name given to a person from the eponymous place.
NørskovDanish Means "northern forest" from the Danish nord "north" and skov "forest".
NorsworthyEnglish Habitational name from Norseworthy in Walkhampton, Devon.
NorthamEnglish habitational namefrom Northam (Devon) Northam Farm in Brean (Somerset) Northam in Southampton (Hampshire) or a lost Northam in Redbridge Hundred Hampshire. The place names derive from Old English norþ "north northern" and ham "village homestead" or ham "water meadow".
NorthernEnglish Topographic name, from an adjectival form of North.
NortheyEnglish Habitational name from Northay in Hawkchurch Devon. The placename derives from Middle English north "north northern" and heie "fence enclosure hedge" (Old English norþ (ge)hæg)... [more]
NorthwayEnglish Habitational name from one or more of the minor places called with Middle English bi northe weie "(place) to the north of the way or road" from the elements norþ "north" and weg "way" including Northway in Monkleigh Widecombe in the Moor and Parkham Norway in Whitestone Narraway in Drewsteignton (all Devon) and Northway in Halse (Somerset)... [more]
NorzagaraiBasque (Rare) From the name of a house in the municipality of Álava, Spain, derived from Basque garai "high, tall, top" and an uncertain first element.
NottageEnglish Nickname referring to the nuthatch bird, derived from Middle English notehache meaning "nuthatch".
NottinghamEnglish (British) A habitational name from the city of Nottingham in the East Midlands. Comes from the Old English name, meaning "homestead (ham) of Snot’s people". The initial S- was lost in the 12th century, due to the influence of Anglo-Norman French.... [more]
NozakiJapanese From Japanese 野 (no) meaning "field, wilderness" and 崎 (saki) meaning "cape, peninsula".
NōzawaJapanese (Rare) Variant of Osame but adding Japanese 沢 (zawa), the joining form of 沢 (sawa) meaning "mountain stream, marsh; wetlands", possibly referring to a place with wet grounds or a mountain stream.
NugentEnglish, Irish, French An English, Irish (of Norman origin) and French habitational surname derived from any of several places in northern France (such as Nogent-sur-Oise), From Latin novientum and apparently an altered form of a Gaulish name meaning "new settlement".
NuiamäeEstonian Nuiamäe is an Estonian surname meaning "clubs hill."
NungesserGerman Apparently a variant spelling of German Nonnengasse, derived from a street name meaning "nuns, lane". It could also be a variant of Gnugesser, a nickname for a big eater, derived from g(e)nug meaning "enough" and esser meaning "eater" (which derived from essen meaning "to eat")... [more]
NurchisItalian Denoting someone from Nure or Nurra in Sardinia, which were possibly derived from the pre-Roman root words nur meaning "fire" or "stones, heap" and the suffix -ke meaning "earth" or "dwelling".
NurekiJapanese From 濡 (nu, nure) meaning "wet" and 木 (ki) meaning "tree, wood".
NuristaniAfghan Derived from the name of Nuristan (meaning "land of light"), a province in northern Afghanistan.
NurkEstonian Nurk is an Estonian surname meaning "corner".
NurmsaluEstonian Nurmsalu is an Estonian surname meaning "pasture/meadow grove".
NürnbergerGerman, Jewish Habitational name for someone from the city of Nürnberg in Bavaria.
NusukuOkinawan (Rare, Archaic) From Okinawan 野底 (Nusuku) meaning "Nosoko", an area in the city of Ishigaki in the prefecture of Okinawa in Japan.
NuttallEnglish English: habitational name from some place named with Old English hnutu ‘nut’ + h(e)alh ‘nook’, ‘recess’. In some cases this may be Nuthall in Nottinghamshire, but the surname is common mainly in Lancashire, and a Lancashire origin is therefore more likely... [more]
NyasiSwahili From Swahili meaning "grass, grassland".
NylanderSwedish Combination of Swedish ny "new" (possibly a habitational name from a place named with this element) and the common surname suffix -ander (a combination of land "land" and the habitational suffix -er).
OakEnglish Topographic surname for someone who lived near an oak tree or in an oak wood, from Middle English oke "oak".
OakdenEnglish A variant of Ogden, from a place name derived from Old English āc "oak" and denu "valley". Famous bearers include British diplomat Edward Oakden and English cricketer Patrick Oakden.
OaklandEnglish This surname is derived from Old English āc and land and it, obviously, means "oak land."
OakwellEnglish Probably either from the former village of Oakwell-in-the-Blean in the county of Kent, or Ockwell Manor, and again a former village, near Bray, in Berkshire
ObolenskyRussian Indicates familial origin within the village of Obolensk in the Kaluga Oblast, Russia. This was the name of a Russian aristocrat family of the Rurik Dynasty.
ObregónSpanish Spanish habitational name from Obregón in Santander province.
OcampoSpanish, Galician From the Galician toponym O Campo meaning "the field", also used as a habitational name from a town of the same name in Lugo, Galicia.
O'CoillIrish Meaning, "wood, forest, or shrub hazel tree."
OcónSpanish This indicates familial origin within either the eponymous Riojan municipality or the Ocón de Villafranca neighborhood of the Castilian municipality of Villafranca Montes de Oca.
Ó CuillIrish Meaning, "wood, forest, or shrub hazel tree."
OdaJapanese From the Japanese 小 (o) "small," 尾 (o) "tail" or 織 (o) "fabric," "material," "cloth" and 田 (ta or da) "rice paddy" or 多 (ta or da) "many."... [more]