Submitted names are contributed by users of this website. The accuracy of these name definitions cannot be guaranteed.
UzhakhovIngush (Russified) Russified form of an Ingush surname derived the name of an Ingush teip (clan). The clan's name is possibly derived from a given name, in turn possibly from an Ingush word meaning "bold, strong".
VaderGerman (Rare) From Middle Low German vader meaning ‘father’, ‘senior’; in the Middle Ages this was used a term of address for someone who was senior in rank or age.
VähiEstonian Vähi is an Estonian surname, derived from "vähim", meaning "smallest" or "lightest".
VaillantFrench From a medieval nickname for a brave person (from Old French vaillant "brave, sturdy").
VangHmong From the clan name Vaj or Vaaj associated with the Chinese character 王 (wáng) (see Wang 1).
Van MolDutch, Flemish Derived from Middle Dutch mol, meaning "mole." This surname can either derive from the nickname mol, meaning "mole", perhaps given to someone with dark hair or blindness, or from a house with the sign of a mole.
VannaKhmer Means "golden" in Khmer, ultimately from Sanskrit.
VascoSpanish Originally denoted a Basque person or someone from the Basque Country in Spain, from Latin Vascones of uncertain etymology.
VaseyEnglish Derived from the Norman french word enveisie "playful, merry"
VasseurFrench From Old French vavasour meaning "subvassal", a historical term used to refer to a tenant of a baron or lord who also had tenants under him.
VatatzisGreek This surname is a diminutive form of the word βάτος, "bramble, briar", perhaps signifying a harsh character. Another possible origin is βατάκι, "ray fish".
VecchioItalian Means "old, aged" in Italian, originally used as a nickname for an older or oldest son or for someone who was prematurely grey or wrinkled.
VeitchScottish Derived from the Latin word vacca which means "cow". This was either an occupational name for a cowherd or a nickname for a gentle person.
VelichkoRussian Derived from Russian великий (velikiy), meaning "great, large".
VengerovmRussian From Russian венгерский (vengerskiy), meaning "Hungarian".
VenierisGreek The Greek version of the Venetian surname Venier attested in Kythera, where the Venier family ruled on behalf of the Republic of Venice. Originally is thought that the surname derives from Venus.
VenkateshIndian, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada Means "lord of Venkata", from Venkata, the name of a hill in southern India (see Venkata), combined with Sanskrit ईश (īśa) meaning "lord, master, husband" (see Isha).
VentrisEnglish Probably from a medieval nickname for a bold or slightly reckless person (from a reduced form of Middle English aventurous "venturesome"). It was borne by British architect and scholar Michael Ventris (1922-1956), decipherer of the Mycenaean Greek Linear B script.
VerdeItalian, Spanish, Portuguese From Spanish verde "green" (Latin viridis), presumably a nickname for someone who habitually dressed in this color or had green eyes, etc. This is also a common element of place names.
VergeCatalan Nickname from Catalan meaning "virgin, maiden".
VernikovmRussian From Russian верник (vernik), meaning "believer", usually in the context of religion due to the term вера (vera) "faith, belief, trust" which is often associated with religion.
VerroneItalian Italian: probably a nickname from an augmentative form of verro ‘boar’.
VeselovmRussian Derived from Russian word "весело (veselo)" meaning fun.
VesperGerman Either a nickname from Latin vesper "6 o’clock in the evening evening time" originally the second to last canonical hour or a habitational name from a place so called on the Ruhr river.
VetterGerman from a nickname from Middle High German veter(e) ‘uncle’, ‘nephew’. The word is from Old High German fetiro (a derivative of fater ‘father’), which was used more generally to denote various male relatives; the meaning of modern German Vetter is ‘cousin’.
VidlerEnglish Either (i) from a medieval nickname based on Anglo-Norman vis de leu, literally "wolf-face"; or (ii) "violinist, fiddle player" (cf. Fiedler).
VierlingGerman Derived from Middle High German vierlinc meaning "one-fourth of a measure", hence a status name or nickname for someone who had an annual tax liability of this amount.
VigHungarian Derived from Hungarian víg "happy, cheerful".
VighHungarian Variant of Vig, a surname derived from Hungarian víg "happy, cheerful".
VinkDutch Means "finch, chaffinch" in Dutch, a metonymic occupational name for someone who caught finches and other small birds. It could also be a nickname for someone cheerful, or who was known for whistling.
VirtueEnglish Used as a name for someone who had played the part of Virtue in a medieval mystery play, or as a nickname for someone noted for their virtuousness or (sarcastically) for someone who parades their supposed moral superiority.
ViscusoItalian From Sicilian viscusu "tough, tenacious, vicious".
VisitorEnglish Likely from someone who was a stranger in a place.
VislaEstonian Visla is an Estonian surname possibly derived from "visa" meaning "tough" and "tenacious".
VitryanyukUkrainian Derived from Ukrainian вітряний (vitryanyy), meaning "windy".
VõigemastEstonian Võigemast is an Estonian surname meaning "ghastly/horrid structure".
VoisinFrench From Old French voisin "neighbor" (Anglo-Norman French veisin) . The application is uncertain; it may either be a nickname for a "good neighbor", or for someone who used this word as a frequent term of address, or it might be a topographic name for someone who lived on a neighboring property... [more]
VolevakhaRussian Derived from dialectal Russian волеваха (volevakha) meaning "wilful, stubborn person".
VolkmannGerman Probably denoted for a speaker or a people's person, derived from German volk "people" and mann "man". Alfred Wilhelm Volkmann (1801-1877) was a German physiologist, anatomist, and philosopher... [more]
VrátilCzech Derived from the past participle of the verb vrátit "to return". The name was perhaps used to denote a person who came back to his home following a long absence.
VrielinkDutch Etymology uncertain. Possibly from the name of a farmstead, itself perhaps derived from a given name such as Frigilo or Friedel... [more]
VriezeDutch From Middle Dutch Vrieze "Frisian", an ethnic name for a someone from Friesland.
VtorakUkrainian, Russian Derived either from Russian второй (vtoroy) meaning "second, other" or directly from dialectal Ukrainian вторак (vtorak) meaning "secondborn".
VybornovmRussian From Russian выборный (vybornyy), meaning "elective, electoral".
WackerGerman From a nickname for a bold or energetic person, from Middle High German wacker meaning ‘fresh’, ‘lively’, ‘brave’, or ‘valiant’.
WackermanEnglish (American), German From the Americanized spelling of German Wackermann, a variant of Wacker, with the addition of Middle High German man, meaning ‘man’.
WacoIndigenous American, Comanche Is believed to have a Native American origin and may mean "the chosen ones" in the language of a tribe. However, the exact meaning of the name and the tribe's connection to the modern-day surname is not entirely clear.
WaffelDutch (Anglicized, ?) Possibly an Anglicized form of a hypothetical Dutch surname derived from wafel "waffle, wafer".
WagameseOjibwe Comes from an Ojibway phrase meaning ‘man walking by the crooked water.’
WaghmareIndian, Marathi Means "tiger killer" from Marathi वाघ (vagh) meaning "tiger" and मारणे (marne) meaning "to kill".
WahbaArabic Means "gift" in Arabic, derived from the word وَهَبَ (wahaba) meaning "to grant, to gift".
WahlGerman, Jewish From Middle High German Walhe, Walch "foreigner from a Romance country", hence a nickname for someone from Italy or France, etc. This surname is also established in Sweden.
WaititiMaori Meaning uncertain. It could derive from Maori waitī both meaning "sweet, melodious", denoting a sweet person, or "sap of the cabbage tree", possibly denoting an occupation. Taika David Cohen, known professionally as Taika Waititi (1975-), is a New Zealand filmmaker, actor and comedian.
WaldronMedieval German, Old Norman, Scottish Gaelic, English (British) Derived from the German compound wala-hran, literally "wall raven", but originally meaning "strong bird". Also derived from the Gaelic wealdærn, meaning "forest dwelling", thought to be derived from the Sussex village of Waldron... [more]
WałęsaPolish From old Polish wałęsa, meaning "vagabond"
WaliUrdu, Pashto, Bengali, Arabic Derived from Arabic وَلِيّ (waliyy) meaning "helper, friend, protector", used in Islam to describe a saint.
WallachScottish Variant of Wallace, meaning 'foreigner' that is found chiefly in Dumfries.
WanhataloFinnish From the Finnish "vanha talo." With the "vanha" meaning old or aged and "talo" being a place of living mostly a house. The most common translation is "old house".
WanlessEnglish From a medieval nickname for an ineffectual person (from Middle English wanles "hopeless, luckless").
WannScottish WANN. Surname or Family name. Origin Scottish and English: nickname from Middle English wann ‘wan’, ‘pale’ (the meaning of the word in Old English was, conversely, ‘dark’).
WantonEnglish, Scottish From Middle English wanton, meaning "unruly", "thoughtless" or "promiscuous".
WelschGerman From Middle High German welsch, walsch "person from a Romance country (especially Italy), foreigner", hence an ethnic name or in some cases perhaps a nickname for someone who had trading or other connections with the Romance countries.
WendtGerman, Danish Ethnic name for a Wend, Middle High German wind(e). The Wends (also known as Sorbians) once occupied a large area of northeastern Germany (extending as far west as Lüneburg, with an area called Wendland), and many German place names and surnames are of Wendish origin... [more]
WengChinese From Chinese 翁 (wēng) meaning "elderly man".
WenigGerman From the German word “wenig”, meaning little.
WhangKorean Alternate transcription of Korean Hangul 황 (see Hwang).
WhippetEnglish Possibly used as a nickname from the early 17th century English word whippet, meaning "to move briskly". A type of sighthound bears this name.
WhitingEnglish Derived from a patronymic surname, created from the Old English personal name Hwit, meaning "the white one."
WhitlamEnglish From a medieval nickname for a mild-mannered person (from Middle English whit "white" + lam "lamb"). This surname is borne by Australian Labour politician Gough Whitlam (1916-), prime minister 1972-75.
WhitlockEnglish Nickname for someone with white or fair hair, from Middle English whit ‘white’ + lock ‘tress’, ‘curl’. Compare Sherlock. ... [more]
WhitmanEnglish From Middle English whit ‘white’ + man ‘man’, either a nickname with the same sense as White, or else an occupational name for a servant of a bearer of the nickname White.... [more]
WhittumFrench (Rare) Altered form of French Vieuxtemps: apparently a nickname meaning literally ‘old-time’. The surname Vieuxtemps is very rare in France; it is, however, also found in Belgium.
WickramanayakeSinhalese From Sanskrit विक्रम (vikrama) meaning "stride, pace" or "valour" and नायक (nayaka) meaning "hero, leader".
WickramarachchiSinhalese Derived from Sanskrit विक्रम (vikrama) meaning "stride, pace" or "valour" combined with the Sinhala colonial-era title ආරච්චි (arachchi) denoting a native headman.
WickramaratneSinhalese From Sanskrit विक्रम (vikrama) meaning "stride, pace" or "valour" and रत्न (ratna) meaning "jewel, treasure".
WickramasuriyaSinhalese From Sanskrit विक्रम (vikrama) meaning "stride, pace" or "valour" and सूर्य (surya) meaning "sun".
WildfongGerman An Americanized form of German Wildfang. A nickname from Middle High German Wiltvanc "Wildman Stranger", denoting a person who was not a member of the community.
WinchelEnglish from Old English wencel ‘child’, perhaps used to distinguish a son from his father with the same forename or perhaps a nickname for a person with a baby face or childlike manner
WindEnglish, German, Danish Nickname for a swift runner, from Middle English wind "wind", Middle High German wint "wind", also "greyhound".
WiseEnglish Nickname for a wise or learned person, or in some cases a nickname for someone suspected of being acquainted with the occult arts, from Middle English wys "wise, thoughtful, knowledgeable; alert, aware"... [more]
WowereitGerman (East Prussian) East Prussian German (and thus heavily Lithuanian influenced) name meaning "squirrel", from Old Prussian wowere and Lithuanian voveraite (which, apart from "squirrel", also means "chanterelle").... [more]
WrenEnglish Nickname from the bird, Middle English wrenne, probably in reference to its small size.
WriedtGerman, Danish From Old Germanic *wraiþ meaning "twisted, bent, uneven" or "angry, furious; hostile, violent". Could be a habitational name from an area with rough terrain or overgrown roots, or a nickname for someone with a bad temper.
WunderlichGerman A nickname for an eccentric or moody person, derived from the word wunderlich meaning "whimsical" in German.
WürdemannGerman From the German "Würde"-honour or dignity, and "Mann"-man or person. "Man of Honour" or "Person of Dignity".
WyldeEnglish (British) It is a nickname for a person who was of wild or undisciplined character. Looking back even further, the name was originally derived from the Old English word "wilde," meaning "untamed" or "uncivilized."... [more]
WynnEnglish From Old English wine "friend", which could be used as a byname or personal name (see Wine).
XenakismGreek From Greek ξένος (xénos) "foreigner", or a patronymic from the given name Xenos, combined with the diminutive suffix -άκις (-ákis).
XenosAncient Greek From Greek xenos ‘stranger’, ‘newcomer’ (equivalent to English Newman), or short for a composite name such as Xenocostas ‘Costas the newcomer’.
XomperoItalian Meaning uncertain, possibly from Cimbrian somerousch "pack horse", indicating the bearer's strength or occupation. Alternately, may mean "son of Piero".
XuerebMaltese Possibly means "noble", of Semitic origin transmitted to Central Europe. Alternatively, it may be derived from Arabic شَارِب (šārib) meaning "drinker, drinking" or "moustache", used as a nickname for an alcoholic or someone with distinctive facial hair.
YaoChinese From Chinese 姚 (yáo) meaning "handsome, elegant".
YappEnglish (British) Derives from Old English ġēap meaning "crooked, bent" and could either refer to a cunning person or someone with crooked features (e.g. curved nose). Famous bearers of this name include English botanist Richard Henry Yapp and Sir Stanley Graham Yapp, Labour politician and first leader of West Midlands County Council.