LiebermannGerman, Jewish Derived from German lieb or Yiddish lib meaning "dear, beloved". Many Liebermann families originally spelled the name in Hebrew or Cyrillic characters, so variations in the spelling occurred during transliteration to the Latin alphabet.
LieblingGerman, Yiddish, Jewish Derived from German lieb meaning "dear, beloved" or German liebling meaning "darling".
LillicrapEnglish From a medieval nickname for someone with very fair hair (literally "lily-head").
LillyEnglish Derived from Lilly, a pet name for Elizabeth. It was also used as a nickname for someone with fair skin or hair, and is derived from Old English lilie meaning "lily (the flower)"... [more]
LillywhiteEnglish From a medieval nickname for someone with very fair hair or complexion. It was borne by English cricketers James Lillywhite (1842-1929), first captain of England, and William Lillywhite (1792-1854), pioneer of overarm bowling, uncle of James... [more]
LilyEnglish Derived from Lily, a pet name for Elizabeth. It was also used as a nickname for someone with fair skin or hair, and is derived from Old English lilie meaning "lily (the flower)"... [more]
LimaPortuguese Topographic name for someone living on the banks of the river of this name (of pre-Roman origin, probably akin to a Celtic element lemos, limos 'elm').
LimboItalian It comes from latin word "limbus". It has religious origin.... [more]
LindeSpanish From Spanish linde "boundary" or a habitational name from places called La Linde in Spain.
LindemannGerman Means "soft man" in German, from the elements lind meaning "soft, flexible", and man meaning "man".
LindtGerman, Dutch The Lindt surname comes from an Upper German word "lind," which meant "tender" or "gentle hearted." In some instances, especially in Saxony, the surname evolved from the personal name Lindemuth. In general, the similar phonetic name Linde comes from "Linden," which was a type of tree.... [more]
LivelyEnglish Nickname from Middle English lifly, "lively", "nimble".
LiwoszPolish It comes from the name "liswoze" which means to be a all around "good person". Even though it is a nickname, It may have been derived from occupation because of the name's meaning to be a "Funny man".
LobatoSpanish, Portuguese nickname from lobato "wolf cub" (from Latin lupus "wolf") or from a medieval personal name based on this word.
LöbeGerman Variant of Löwe from Middle High German lēwelöuwe "lion" hence a nickname for a brave or regal person. In some cases the surname may have been a topographic or habitational name referring to a house or inn distinguished by the sign of a lion.
Lo GuastaItalian Variant of Guasti, literally "the broken". Probably used as a nickname for someone with a twisted or deformed limb, used in at least one case for a foundling.
LoidEstonian Loid is an Estonian surname meaning "languid" and "inert".
LoiselFrench Derived from Old French oisel "bird" with fused definite article l' used as a nickname for a flighty individual or perhaps for a small birdlike person but possibly also as a metonymic occupational name for a bird-catcher.
LokhandeIndian, Marathi Derived from Marathi लोखंड (lokhanda) meaning "iron", either a nickname for a person who was strong and well-built or an occupational name for a blacksmith.
LokkEstonian Lokk is an Estonian surname meaning "crimp" or "curl".
LomishviliGeorgian Basically means "child of a lion” in Georgian, from Georgian ლომი (lomi) meaning "lion" combined with an Eastern Georgian surname suffix -შვილი (-shvili) meaning "child".
LopataRussian, Ukrainian Derived either from Russian лопата (lopata) or Ukrainian лопата (lopata) both meaning "spade, shovel". This may have been a nickname for a digger or a truck farmer.
LorHmong From the clan name Lauj associated with either the Chinese character 劉 (liú) (see Liu) or 羅 (luó) (see Luo).
LordFrench Nickname from Old French l'ord "the dirty one".
LoudEnglish from the English word "loud", given to a loud or, in jest, quiet person
LouganisGreek Variant of Loukanis. A famous bearer is American former olympic diver Greg Louganis (1960-).
LoukanisGreek Means "sausage" in Greek, nickname for a butcher or sausage maker.
LoveEnglish, Scottish From Anglo-Norman French lo(u)ve meaning "female wolf."
LovedayEnglish Means either (i) "person particularly associated with a 'loveday'" (a day when, by custom, old differences were settled and reconciliations were made); or (ii) from the medieval female personal name Loveday, a descendant of Old English Leofdæg, literally "beloved day"... [more]
LovejoyEnglish Combination of Middle English love(n), luve(n) "to love" and joie "joy".
LovelaceEnglish From a medieval nickname for a woman-chaser or lothario (from Old English lufulēas, literally "without love", hence "fancy-free"). The English poet Richard Lovelace (1618-1657) was a famous bearer.
LovelockEnglish From a medieval nickname for a dandy or a man conceited about his appearance (from lovelock, a term for an elaborately curled lock of hair). This surname is borne by British scientist James Lovelock (1919-), formulator of the "Gaia" concept.
LovettEnglish, French From Ango-Norman French "louvet" meaning "young wolf".
LysakJewish Nickname for a bald man, Ukrainian lysak.
LyskinBelarusian, Russian, Ukrainian Derived either from Belarusian лысы (lysy) or Russian лысый (lysy) or Ukrainian лисий (lysyi) all meaning "bald, bald-headed, hairless".
LysýCzech, Slovak Derived from Czech and Slovak lysý "bald".
MabiniFilipino, Tagalog Means "modest, prudent, civil" in Tagalog. A notable bearer was Apolinario Mabini y Maranan (1864-1903), a Filipino revolutionary.
MacriItalian Italian variant of Magro. It could also be a southern Italian nickname for a person who had long limbs or who was tall, derived from Greek μακρύς (makrýs) literally meaning "long, tall" (see Makris)... [more]
MacronScottish The surname MacRon is a nickname for someone with blond hair. The Scottish name Crone was originally derived from the Gaelic word “cron”, which means saffron, yellow-colored or dark, and refers to the complexion or hair coloring of the original bearing.
MacRoyScots The ancient Dalriadan-Scottish name MacRoy is a nickname for a person with red hair. MacRoy is a nickname, which belongs to the category of hereditary surnames. Nicknames form a broad and miscellaneous class of surnames, and can refer directly or indirectly to one's personality, physical attributes, mannerisms, or even their habits of dress... [more]
MaggioItalian From a nickname or personal name from the month of May, maggio, from Latin Maius (mensis), from Maia, a rather obscure goddess of fertility, whose name is derived from the same root as maius "larger" and maiestas "greatness"... [more]
MaggioriItalian Recorded in many spelling forms including the 'base' form of Maggi, and the diminutives and double diminutives Maggiore, Maggiori, Di Maggio, Maggorini, and many others, this is an Italian surname of Roman (Latin) origins... [more]
MaglasangFilipino, Cebuano Denotes a forest dweller or a person originally from a forest, derived from Cebuano lasang meaning "forest".
MagnerIrish, Germanic Irish from a pet form of the Scandinavian name Magnus, in Ireland borne by both Vikings and Normans.... [more]
MaharanaIndian, Odia Derived from the Sanskrit title महाराणा (maharana) meaning "king of kings", from महा (maha) meaning "great" and राणा (rana) meaning "king".
MaharjanNepali Either from Sanskrit महाजन (mahajana) meaning "great, distinguished, eminent" or महा (maha) meaning "great" combined with अर्जन (arjana) meaning "acquisition, earning".
MahatoIndian, Bengali, Hindi, Assamese, Odia, Nepali From a title given to the head of a village or a well-to-do peasant, possibly derived from Sanskrit महत् (mahat) meaning "great, large, big".
MahlanguSouthern African, Ndebele, Zulu Derived from Ndebele hlangula meaning "assist, help, remove (from danger)" or Zulu isihlangu meaning "shield".
MahrezArabic (Maghrebi) From Arabic مُحْرَز (maḥraz) meaning "accomplished, achieved, attained". A notable bearer is Riyad Mahrez (1991-), an Algerian footballer.
MalatestaItalian Means "bad head" in Italian, a nickname for a stubborn or perhaps malicious person. It could have also indicated the bearer had a misshapen head. ... [more]
MalatestasGreek Means "bad head" in Italian, from the Italian surname Malatesta, also found in Greece.
MalayaRussian, Ukrainian From Russian малый (maliy) or Ukrainian малий (malyy) both meaning "small, little", used as a nickname for a small child or a person who was thin or short in stature. Alternately, it may have come from Tatar малай (malay) meaning "boy, son" or "apprentice".
MaleEnglish Nickname for a virile man, from Middle English male meaning "masculine".
MalenkovRussian Patronymic derived from Russian маленький (malen'kiy) meaning "little, small". The Soviet leader Georgy Malenkov (1902-1988) was a notable bearer of this name.
MalfaitFrench Derived from French mal fait, which literally means "poorly done, badly done". In the context of the surname, it refers to the first bearer being "malformed" or "deformed" (as it was in the eyes of people from older times), which means that he either was physically disabled or able-bodied but with a physical trait that deviated from the norm.
MalfattoItalian Means "badly made, shoddy; deformed" in Italian, possibly originating with the nickname Malefactus "ugly, injured". Cognate to French Malfait.
MalfeytDutch, Flemish Generally a Dutch form (or "dutchization", if you will) of Malfait, with the spelling reflecting the surname's origin from older times (as -eyt is an exclusively archaic spelling that has not survived into modern times like its counterparts -eit and -ijt did)... [more]
MalletAnglo-Norman, Medieval English, French, Catalan Originated in Norman France and spread to England following the Norman conquest of 1066. The surname comes from the given name Malle, an Old English diminutive of Mary or from the given name Malo, a popular form of the name of Saint Maclovius, a 6th-century Welsh monk who the church of Saint Maclou in Rouen is named for.... [more]
MallochScottish Reduced Anglicized form of Gaelic MacIain Mhalaich "son of Ian of the bushy eyebrows", which was the family name of the MacGregors of Balhaldie. The Ian from whom the name is derived died in the early 16th century.
MaloItalian Possibly from Italian mano "hand", a nickname for a skillful person, or a short form of a given name such as Romano.
ManganIrish Anglicized form of Gaelic Ó Mongáin ‘descendant of Mongán’, originally a byname for someone with a luxuriant head of hair (from mong ‘hair’, ‘mane’), borne by families from Connacht, County Limerick, and Tyrone... [more]
MangialaglioItalian Means "eats garlic" in Italian, from mangia "to eat" and aglio "garlic". Possibly a nickname for someone known for heavily seasoning their food, or for having bad breath.
MangiaracinaItalian The Sicilian name for salpa, a kind of fish, from mangia "to eat" and racina "grapes".
MangiarottiItalian From an Italian nickname, possibly meaning "rat eater".
MangrioUrdu, Sindhi Originally denoted a person who came from the Mangrio tribe in Sindh, Pakistan and Rajasthan, India. The meaning of the tribe's name is unknown.
MangudadatuFilipino, Maguindanao From Maguindanao manguda meaning "young" and the Philippine title datu meaning "chief, leader".
Mannay-oolTuvan (Rare) Derived from Tuvan маңнаар (mañnar) meaning "to run" combined with оол (ool) "son, boy".
ManocchioItalian Meaning uncertain, possibly from Italian mano "hand" and occhio "eye", an elaboration of the surname Mano, or an altered form of malocchio meaning "evil eye".
ManolasGreek Derived from the word "magnolia" denoting a flower named after French botanist Pierre Magnol.
MarcheseItalian From the title of rank marchése "marquis" (in Italy the rank immediately below that of duke), probably applied as a nickname for someone who behaved like a marquis, or an occupational name for a servant in the household of a marquis... [more]
MarchioneItalian Nickname from marchione ‘marquis’, from medieval Latin marchio, genitive marchionis, from Germanic marka ‘borderland’
MarkerGerman Status name for someone who lived on an area of land that was marked off from the village land or woodland, Middle High German merkære.
MarmionEnglish, French, Irish 1. English (of Norman origin) and French: nickname from old French marmion “monkey”, “brat”. ... [more]
MarohomFilipino, Maranao From an honorific title bestowed upon deceased sultans, derived from Arabic مرحوم (marhum) meaning "late, deceased".
MarquisFrench, English for someone who behaved like a marquis or an occupational name for a servant in the household of a marquis, from Old Northern French marquis... [more]
MarrufoSpanish nickname from marrufo a Portuguese word meaning literally 'lay brother' and figuratively 'cunning sly'
MartaOld Celtic (Latinized, Archaic) It is a small animal from the variety of mammals living in Spain and is prized for its skin has great finesse. Also known like Beech Marten (Stone Marten or White Breasted Marten).
MartelloItalian Southern Italian: nickname for someone with a forceful personality, from Italian martèllo ‘hammer’ (Late Latin martellus), or a metonymic occupational name for someone who used a hammer in their work.
MártirSpanish from mártir "martyr" probably a nickname for someone devoted to the religious cult of a Christian martyr or perhaps one who had played the part of a Christian martyr in a religious play.
MartireItalian from martire "martyr" probably a nickname for someone who had played the part of a Christian martyr in a religious play. However there was a Saint Martire and so the surname may be derived from a personal name.
MarvelEnglish Either (i) from a medieval nickname (often ironic) for someone regarded as a prodigy; or (ii) "person from Merville", the name of two places in northern France ("smaller settlement" and "settlement belonging to a man with a Germanic name beginning with Meri-, literally 'famous'")... [more]
MasihUrdu, Indian (Christian), Hindi From Urdu مسیح (masih) or Hindi मसीह (masih) referring to the Christian messiah (Jesus Christ), both ultimately from Arabic مسيح (masih). This name is common among Pakistani and North Indian Christians.
MavrogiannisGreek Literally means "black Giannis", derived from Greek μαύρος (mavros) "black, Moorish" and Giannis.
MavromichalisGreek Means "black Michalis (Michael)" in Greek. In Mani, it is said to derive from an orphan named Μιχάλης (Michalis). Because of the dark clothing worn during times of mourning, orphans were often called μαύρος (mavros) meaning "black".
MavrosGreek Means "black, dark" in Greek, originally used as a nickname for a person with a dark complexion.
MazighArabic (Maghrebi), Berber Derived from Arabic أَمَازِيغ (ʾamāzīḡ) the Arabic designation for the Berber (Amazigh) people of North Africa. The word itself is ultimately of Tamazight origin, from Central Atlas Tamazight ⴰⵎⴰⵣⵉⵖ (Amaziɣ) of disputed meaning; in modern Central Atlas Tamazight, it means “free-man”.
MazzolaItalian From a diminutive of Italian mazza meaning "maul, mallet".
M'BareckWestern African Derived from Arabic مُبَارَك (mubārak) meaning "blessed, fortunate, lucky" (chiefly Mauritanian).
McAulayIrish Derived from the Irish "Mac Amhalghaidh" from the prefix Mac- (son of-) and Amhalghaidh, Old Irish form of the name Aulay/ Auley... [more]
McgrawIrish, Scottish Anglicized form of the Old Gaelic Mac Craith (the earlier form of Mac Raith) meaning "son of Craith", composed of the Gaelic elements mac "son of" and Rath, an old byname meaning "grace, prosperity".
MchaleIrish, Welsh From the Irish Mac Céile, a patronymic from the byname Céile, meaning "companion." This was the surname of a Mayo family, tenants of church lands. ... [more]
MedranoSpanish This indicates familial origin within the eponymous Riojan municipality.
MeesterDutch, Flemish, German Occupational name for a teacher, lecturer or a master craftsman, or a nickname for someone who had a bossy demeanor, derived from Dutch meester meaning "master". A famous bearer of this surname is the American actress, singer and model Leighton Meester (1986-).