AventEnglish From a shortened form of the Anglo-Norman personal name or nickname Avenant or Avaunt, derived from Old French avenant meaning "beautiful, agreeable, fitting".
AvidzbaAbkhaz Derived from Georgian ავი (avi) meaning "currish, severe, sullen" combined with ძე (dze) "son" and Abkhaz аԥа (āpā) "son". The name was most likely borne by Georgians under the spelling Avidze, which was modified with the Abkhaz suffix -ba after migration to Abkhazia.
AvitovHebrew (Modern, Rare) Means "my father is good", from Hebrew ’av meaning "father" and tov meaning "good".
AzuekwuIgbo In Igbo culture, Azuekwu means 'back of the word' or 'the unfailing word,' signifying reliability and truthfulness.
AzzopardiMaltese Possibly derived from the Hebrew term סְפָרַדִּי (s'faradí) used to refer to Jews originating from Iberia (called Sephardim or Sephardic Jews). It may also be of Greek origin from a word meaning "black, Mauritanian" or "soldier" with a connection to Middle Persian spʿh "army" used to refer to a person of African descent or someone who worked as a mercenary... [more]
BaManding From the Mandinka word ba(a) meaning "big, great".
BabinecCzech Nickname from Old Czech babinec meaning "coward".
BabuIndian, Hindi, Telugu, Malayalam, Tamil, Kannada Derived from Hindi बाबू (babu) meaning "father, sir", used as a respectful term of address for a man as well as a term of endearment for a young boy.
BachaPashto Means "king" in Pashto, ultimately from Persian پادشاه (padeshah).
BachledaumPolish, Slovak From Romanian băchlit meaning "grumpy". In Poland, this surname is typically borne by Gorals, often as part of double surnames like Bachleda-Curuś or Bachleda-Księdzularz.
BacigalupoItalian From Ligurian bacigare "to beat with a stick" and lupo "wolf", or from Genoese basigâ "to swing, to tease" and lupo "wolf". Possibly a nickname for someone considered courageous or cowardly, or an occupational name for a hunter.
BackKorean Alternate transcription of Korean Hangul 백 (see Baek).
BacriJudeo-Spanish Possibly derived from Arabic بكر (bikr) meaning "firstborn, eldest". Alternately it may be an occupational name for a cowherd or cattle merchant from بقر (baqar) meaning "cattle".
BaikKorean Alternate transcription of Korean Hangul 백 (see Baek).
BainEnglish, Scottish Nickname for a hospitable person, derived from northern Middle English bayn meaning "welcoming, friendly" or "straight, direct".
BainScottish, Irish Derived from Scottish Gaelic bàn "white, pale, fair", a nickname for a person with fair hair.
BaioItalian From a nickname for someone with light brown or reddish-brown hair or beard, from baio meaning "bay horse", ultimately derived from Late Latin badius meaning "red-brown".
BairnsfatherEnglish From a medieval nickname in Scotland and northern England for the (alleged) father of an illegitimate child (from northern Middle English bairnes "child's" + father). This surname was borne by British cartoonist and author Bruce Bairnsfather (1888-1959).
BajwaPunjabi Derived from Persian باز والا (bâz vâlâ) meaning "great hawk, great falcon".
BąkowskimPolish Habitational name for someone from any of various places called Bąkowa, Bąkowice, Bąkowiec or Bąkowo, all derived from Polish bąk meaning "horsefly", "bumblebee" or "bittern" (a type of bird), or directly from bąk suffixed with -owski based on habitational surnames.
BakunPolish Possibly from bak "screaming" or bakać "to scold", from bakun "low-quality tobacco", or from the Hebrew personal name Bakum, possibly related to Habakkuk.
BakuninRussian derived from Russian words "бакуня" (bakunya) and "бакуля" (bakulya) meaning chatterbox, talkative person or agile, business-like person.... [more]
BalDutch Means "ball, sphere" in Dutch, a nickname for a ball player or someone who made balls, or a habitational name for someone who lived by a landmark shaped like a ball. Cognate to English Ball.
BalageSinhalese Means "military, forces, cavalry", derived from Sanskrit बल (bala) meaning "strength, might" combined with the Sinhala suffix ගේ (ge) meaning "of, home, house".
BaldoniItalian From the Germanic word "baltha", which means "gallant" or "bold."
BalfeIrish Anglicized form of Gaelic Balbh meaning 'stammering dumb' itself probably a translation of a Norman surname of similar meaning ultimately derived from Latin balbus 'stammering'.
BalochBalochi From the name of the Baloch people who primarily reside in Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan, itself of uncertain meaning.
BalsanoGerman (Austrian), Italian The roots of the distinguished surname Balzano lie in Austria. The name derives itself from "Balthasar," the name of one of the three Magi who followed the star to Bethlehem, and was popular as both a first name and a family name during the 18th century.... [more]
BaltakisLithuanian Means “white-eyed” in Lithuanian, from balta meaning “white” and akis meaning “eye”.
BandaranayakeSinhalese From the Sinhala title බණ්ඩාර (baṇḍāra) meaning "chief's son, prince" combined with Sanskrit नायक (nāyaka) meaning "hero, leader".
BangDanish Originally a nickname denoting a loud or brash person, from Old Danish bang "noise" (from Old Norse banga "to pound, hammer" of echoic origin). A literary bearer was Danish author Herman Bang (1857-1912).... [more]
BanglaBengali From বাংলা (Bangla), the endonym of the Bengali people, the region of Bengal (including Bangladesh), and the Bengali language. The word itself is derived either from Vanga, the name of an ancient kingdom on the Indian subcontinent, or from an Austric word meaning "sun god".
BanjarArabic From the name of the Banjar people, itself derived from Javanese mbanjarke meaning "separate, rearrange, organize". This surname is borne by people of Indonesian ancestry in Saudi Arabia.
BankovafRussian Bankova (Банкова) and its male counterpart Bankov (Банкова) is a Russian surname that came from the Russian word Банковское which means directly translates to Banking. It is a common surname in Russia, Ukraine and Belorussia.
BanoIndian, Hindi, Urdu Alternate transcription of Hindi बानो (see Banu) as well as the Urdu form.
BanogonFilipino, Cebuano Means "hawklike" in Cebuano, ultimately from banog meaning "hawk".
BantamEnglish (African), South African Possibly a variant of Bentham. In an alternate interpretation, it could also be from the word "bantam" which denotes someone who's small but mighty.
BaranesJudeo-Spanish From the name of the Baranis tribe of the Amazigh (Berber) people, derived from an Arabic plural form of the name of the tribe's founder, Burnus. His name has been connected to the Arabic word برنس (burnus) meaning "burnoose, cloak".
BarnoItalian, Ukrainian, French, Ancient Aramaic, Russian The surname Barno was first found in the north of Italy, especially in Tuscany. The name occasionally appears in the south, usually in forms which end in "o," but the northern forms ending in "i" are much more common... [more]
BarónSpanish nickname from the title barón "baron" applied as a nickname or as an occupational name for a member of the household of a baron; or from an old personal name of the same origin in the sense "free man"... [more]
BarracoItalian Meaning uncertain, possibly from Arabic بَرَّاق (barraq) "shining, lustrous".
BartleyEnglish, American 1. English: habitational name from Bartley in Hampshire, or from Bartley Green in the West Midlands, both of which are named with Old English be(o)rc ‘birch’ + leah ‘woodland clearing’; compare Barclay... [more]
BatacPampangan From Pampangan batak meaning "to pull" or "to extend help or aid".
BatailleFrench nickname for a bellicose man from bataille "battle" (from Latin battalia) or a habitational name from (La) Bataille the name of several places in France all named as the site of a battle in former times... [more]
BattelloItalian Though it coincides with Italian battello "boat, dinghy", it probably derives from the given name Bathyllus, a latinized form of a Greek name... [more]
BayEnglish, French, Dutch Derived from Middle English and Old French bay, bai and Middle Dutch bay, all meaning "reddish brown". It was originally a nickname for someone with a hair color similar to that.
BaygentsEnglish (American) Possibly derived from Old French bezant, a kind of silver or gold coin minted in Byzantium, ultimately derived from Latin byzantius "of Byzantium"... [more]
BayındırTurkish Means "prosperous, rich, developed" in Turkish.
Baz-oolTuvan (Rare) Means "another boy" from Tuvan база (baza) meaning "also, too, another" combined with оол (ool) "son, boy".
BazzatyOssetian Derived from Georgian ბაზი (bazi) meaning "falcon" or from a given name derived from Tatar базу (bazu) meaning "to dare" (given in hopes that a son would become a warrior).
BazziArabic Perhaps derived from an Arabic word meaning "foster brother(s)".
BeaberEnglish (American) Americanized spelling of German Bieber or Biber, from Middle High German biber ‘beaver’, hence a nickname for someone thought to resemble the animal in some way, a topographic name for someone who lived in a place frequented by beavers or by a field named with this word, or a habitational name from any of various place names in Hesse containing this element.
BeakleyEnglish The surname Beakley is a nickname for a person with a prominent nose. Looking back further, we find the name Beakley was originally from the Old English word beke or the Old French word bec, each of which referred to the beak of a bird.
BearEnglish From the Middle English nickname Bere meaning "bear" (Old English bera, which is also found as a byname), or possibly from a personal name derived from a short form of the various Germanic compound names with this first element... [more]
BeardEnglish From a nickname for a bearded person.
BeatonEnglish As an English surname, it is derived from either the French town of Béthune, or from the medieval diminutive Beaton, short for Bartholomew or Beatrice... [more]
BeauFrench Nickname for a handsome man (perhaps also ironically for an ugly one) from Old French beubel "beautiful, handsome" (from Late Latin bellus)... [more]
BeaubienFrench (Quebec), English From French beau meaning "beautiful" and bien meaning "well, good". The name referred to someone with physical beauty.
BeavesEnglish An English surname of Norman origin, meaning fine son or dear son.
BecciItalian Possibly derived from a dialectic form of vecchio "old", or from Celtic becci "beaks", perhaps indicating someone with a large nose.
BecerraSpanish, Galician Nickname probably for a high-spirited person from becerra "young cow, heifer". It may also have been a metonymic occupational name for a cowherd.
BeckemeyerGerman Beckemeyer is a surname of German origin. The name likely traces back to a place named Beckum, located in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The "-eyer" suffix could potentially mean "from" or "of" in this context, so " Beckemeyer " could translate to "from Beckum".
BediIndian, Punjabi, Hindi Derived from Sanskrit वेदिन् (vedin) meaning "knowing, learned", used as a name for someone who was familiar with the Vedas.
BedwaniArabic (Egyptian) Possibly derived from bedouin, the term for a wandering tribe of arabs.
BeendersDutch Possibly an occupational name for a bookbinder or barrel maker, from Middle Dutch binden "to bind, to tie". Alternatively, could be related to been "bone".
BeerGerman, Dutch From Middle Low German bare, Middle Dutch bere "bear". Given as a nickname to someone who was thought to resemble a bear, a metonymic occupational name for someone who kept a performing bear, or a habitational name for someone who lived near a sign depicting a bear... [more]
BeginBelarusian, Jewish Nickname for a runner, derived from Belarusian бегун (begun) meaning "one who walks quickly". A noteworthy bearer was Israeli prime minister Menachem Begin (1913-1992), who is best remembered for signing a peace treaty with Egypt in 1979, for which he and Anwar Sadat were both awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
BégonFrench Probably from French béguin "(male) Beguin", referring to a member of a particular religious order active in the 13th century, and derived from the surname of Lambert le Bègue, the mid-12th-century priest responsible for starting it... [more]
BègueFrench Means "stutterer, stammerer" in French, used as a nickname for someone with a stutter.
BéguinFrench Nickname from beguin, a member of a medieval Christian male religious community (ultimately named after a priest called Lambert le Bègue) that followed a monastic rule without making perpetual vows and was quickly considered heretic; by extension the term came to mean "sanctimonious person".
BelikovRussian From Russian белый (beliy) meaning "white, fair".
BéliveauFrench (Rare), French (Quebec) Derived from Old French besliver meaning "to stagger along", originally a nickname referring to a drunkard. It could also denote a person who lived in a beautiful, lovely valley, derived from French beau "beautiful" or Old French beu, bel "fair, lovely", combined with val meaning "valley"... [more]
BelkinRussian Patronymic from the nickname Belka meaning "squirrel" (a derivative of bely "white", referring to the animal's white stomach).
BellaïcheJudeo-Spanish Derived from Arabic بن (bin) meaning "son of" and عايش ('aysh) meaning "living, alive".
BellancaSicilian Originally a nickname derived from Italian bella "beautiful" and anca "hip".
BellanteItalian Derived from the medieval name Bellante meaning "belligerent, combative", ultimately from Latin bellum "war", or perhaps from a derivative of the nickname Bello.
BellefleurFrench, Literature Means "beautiful flower" in French. This is the surname of the notable family in the 2001 to 2013 novel series The Southern Vampire Mysteries and the 2008-2014 TV series that inspired it, True Blood.
BelletFrench Comes from a derivative of bel ‘handsome’.
BellinoItalian Means "pretty, sweet, cute" in Italian, a diminutive of Bello. It can originate as a nickname, or derive from the medieval given names Bellina or Bellinus... [more]
BellocchioItalian Means "beautiful eyes", from bello "beautiful" and occhio "eyes", or perhaps from belloccio "good-looking, attractive".
BellockEnglish, Irish Meaning "young bull". It was a nickname for energetic people, or those who owned bulls.
BelovRussian From Russian белый (beliy) meaning "white".
BenArabic (Maghrebi) Maghrebi variant of Arabic بْن (bn), a form of اِبْن (ibn) meaning "son (of), offspring". It is often used as a prefix for other Maghrebi patronymic names (such as Benali "son of Ali 1" or Ben Amor "son of Amor").
BenallyNavajo From Navajo binálí meaning "his grandchild", derived from análí meaning "(paternal) grandchild". It was commonly adopted when Native Americans were required to take surnames for record purposes.
Ben-GurionHebrew Means "son of the lion cub", from Hebrew גוּר (gur) meaning "lion cub, young lion". A notable bearer was the Polish-born David Ben-Gurion (1886-1973; real name David Grün), the founding father of the State of Israel who also served as the country's first prime minister.
Ben HadjArabic (Maghrebi) Means "son of the pilgrim"; the title Hadj refers to a Muslim who has successfully completed the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia. This surname is mainly found in Tunisia.
BenkiraneArabic (Maghrebi) From Arabic بْن (bn) meaning "son" combined with كِيرَان (kīrān) meaning "forges, furnaces", possibly denoting descent of a blacksmith or metalworker (chiefly Moroccan).
BennaniArabic (Maghrebi) Means "my son" in Hebrew, from בן (ben) meaning "son" and אני (ani) meaning "I, me". This is the name of a Moroccan family of Jewish origin that converted to Islam.
BennounaArabic (Maghrebi) Most likely from Arabic بن (bin) meaning "son" and the given name Nouna, which may have been derived from an Arabic word meaning "whale, big fish" or "sabre, sword". Alternately, it may be from an Arabic name for a variety of melon... [more]
BermejoSpanish Originally a nickname for a man with red hair or a ruddy complexion, from Spanish bermejo "reddish, ruddy" (itself from Latin vermiculus "little worm", from vermis "worm", since a crimson dye was obtained from the bodies of worms).
BernellEnglish From the Old French word brunel, a diminutive of brun, describing someone who had brown hair. It was occasionally also used as a descriptive first name during the middle ages in England.
BerniniItalian Bernini was the surname of famous sculptor and architect Gian Lorenzo Bernini (1598-1680).
BerongoyFilipino, Cebuano From Cebuano barungoy meaning "black-finned flying fish" (genus Cypselurus).
BerrugueteSpanish From Catalan berruga "wart", possibly denoting a person who has warts or lives in a warty place.
BeskrovnyymRussian Means "bloodless, without blood" in Russian, probably denoting to a peaceful or innocent person.
BessonFrench, Provençal, Occitan Southern French nickname from Occitan besson "twin" (from Latin bis) or from the various places (Le) Besson in southern France.
BesteFrench, English Nickname from Middle English beste Old French beste "beast animal" (especially those used for food or work) applied either as a metonymic occupational name for someone who looked after beasts such as a herdsman or as a nickname for someone thought to resemble an animal... [more]
BeverGerman Nickname from bever ‘beaver’, possibly referring to a hard worker, or from some other fancied resemblance to the animal.
BeveridgeEnglish Derived from the town of Beverege or from the Old French beivre "drink", a nickname for a person who sealed contracts with a drink
BevierFrench (Germanized) From Old French bevier, meaning "a measure of land". This was probably a nickname for someone who owned or worked such a piece of land. This surname was first found in Austria, where the name Bevier came from humble beginnings but gained a significant reputation for its contribution to the emerging medieval society.
BevilacquaItalian From Italian bevi l'acqua "drinks water", a nickname likely applied ironically to an alcoholic.
BezdenezhnykhRussian Means "without money", from Russian денежных (denezhnykh) meaning money and prefix без (bez) meaning without. Denoted to a very very poor person.
BezshtankoUkrainian From Ukrainian без (bez), meaning "without" and a diminutive form of штанів (shtaniv), meaning "pants". Compare the surname Shtanko.
BhaerGerman Likely a variant of German Baer, meaning "bear". A notable bearer is character Friedrich Bhaer, Jo's husband in Little Women by Louisa May Alcott.
BialikPolish, Czech, Jewish Derived from Polish biały meaning "white", originally a nickname for a person with blond hair or a pale complexion. A famous bearer of this name is American actress Mayim Bialik (1975-).
BiałyPolish Means "white" in Polish, denoting a person who had blond or white hair or a pale complexion.
BibyltyOssetian Derived from Georgian ბიბილო (bibilo) meaning "scar" or "crest", used to refer to a person with a distinctive scar on their face.
BicanCzech, Slovak, Romanian Nickname for a tall, gangling person, from Old Czech bočan ‘stork’. Compare Bocian. Also a nickname from bocan ‘hammer’ or a derivative of Boc.