BoroIndian, Bodo From the name of the Boro (or Bodo) people, itself either meaning "great people" or derived from the name of the Hindu god Varaha.
BoroumandPersian Means "exuberant, fertile, fruitful" in Persian.
BorromeoSpanish (Philippines) Nickname derived from Italian buon romeo meaning "good pilgrim", from buono meaning "good" and Romeo meaning "pilgrim (to Rome)".
BorzykhRussian Derived from Russian борзый (borzy) meaning "swift, brisk".
BošnjakCroatian, Serbian Derived from "Bošnjak", for someone who has their roots in Bosnia. This surname is rare in Bosnian Muslims.
BosoyRussian Derived from Russian босой (bosoy) meaning "barefoot". This may have been a nickname for a low-class person.
BoucharebArabic (Maghrebi) Means "father of the moustache" or "father of the drinker" from Arabic أَبُو (ʾabū) meaning "father" and شَارِب (šārib) meaning "moustache" or "drinker".
BouphaLao Means "flower" in Lao, ultimately from Sanskrit पुष्प (pushpa).
BourgetFrench Possibly meaning "from the city, town" or given to wealthy families, (from bourgeois)
BouteflikaArabic (Maghrebi) Possibly means "one who makes things explode" in Algerian Arabic. A famous bearer is Abdelaziz Bouteflika (1937-), who served as president of Algeria from 1999 to 2019.
BowserEnglish Nickname from the Norman term of address beu sire ‘fine sir’, given either to a fine gentleman or to someone who made frequent use of this term of address.
BozanTurkish Means "witherer, expunger, spoiler" in Turkish.
BozkurtTurkish Means "grey wolf" from Turkish boz meaning "grey" and kurt meaning "wolf".
BraafheidDutch, Dutch (Surinamese) Means "braveness" in Dutch, derived from braaf meaning "brave, well-behaved, obedient" and the suffix -heid denoting a condition or state of being. This was originally a nickname for a strong or brave person... [more]
BraccoItalian Either a nickname derived from Calabrian braccu meaning "small, chubby", or probably for someone thought to resemble a hunting dog, from Italian bracco literally meaning "hunting dog, bloodhound"... [more]
BraggEnglish, Welsh From a nickname for a cheerful or lively person, derived from Middle English bragge meaning "lively, cheerful, active", also "brave, proud, arrogant".
BrancoPortuguese, Central African from the the portuguese word Branco meaning "white", referring to someone with light skin and/or hair
BrasDutch, Low German Dutch and North German: from Old French and Middle Dutch bras ‘arm’. This was probably a descriptive nickname for someone with some peculiarity of the arm, but the word was also used as a measure of length, and may also have denoted a surveyor.
BrassardFrench Derivative of bras "arm" most likely applied as a nickname denoting a person with strong arms or perhaps a pugilist.
BratovRussian Derived either from Russian брат (brat) meaning "brother" or from a short form Brat of various Old Russian given names.
BrauItalian Meaning uncertain, possibly from the dialectical term brau, meaning "wild, untamed" in Sardinian and "brave, fierce" or "bull" in Catalan, or from blau "blue, turquoise".
BrauchGerman From Middle High German bruchen "to enjoy".
BräunlichGerman Originally a nickname for a person who had brown hair or skin, meaning "brownish" in German.
BreakspearEnglish From a medieval nickname for someone who had achieved notable success in jousts or in battle. Nicholas Breakspear (?1100-1159) was the original name of Pope Hadrian IV, the only English pope.
BreedloveEnglish Probably from a medieval nickname for a likable or popular person (from Middle English breden "to produce" + love). This surname is borne by Craig Breedlove (1937-), US land-speed record holder.
BreithauptGerman Nickname for someone with a broad head, from Middle High German breit "broad" and houbet or houpt "head".
BreitkreutzGerman probably a nickname for a person with a broad butt. Breitkreutz replaced an earlier more transparent form of the surname Breitarsch the use of kreuz (literally "cross") as a euphemism for "buttocks" first occurring in the 17th century... [more]
BrevardFrench French: nickname from Old French bref ‘small’ + the derogatory suffix -ard.... [more]
BrightEnglish From a Middle English nickname or personal name, meaning "bright, fair, pretty", from Old English beorht "bright, shining".
BrisbaneScottish Nickname derived from Old French bris(er) meaning "to break" and Old English ban meaning "bone". The sense of this hybrid name is not clear; it may have been used for someone crippled by a broken bone or for a violent man who broke other people’s bones.
BrückGerman Topographic name for someone who lived near a bridge, or an occupational name for a bridge keeper or toll collector on a bridge, from Middle High German bruck(e) "bridge".
BruneyEnglish First found in Languedoc, France, possibly meaning "brown."
BrunkeGerman Nickname for an ostentatious dresser, from Middle High German brunke "splendor".
BrunsFrench Bruns was first found in Poitou where this noble family held a family seat since ancient times. The Bruns surname derives from the French word "brun," meaning "brown"; possibly a nickname for someone who habitually dressed in the color brown.
BrushScottish (Rare) Quite literally means "brush". Might derive from the Scottish Gaelic word bhrus which means "brush", or the Latin root br which means "explained". Was a nickname for those described to 'look like a brush'(i.e. hair that sticks up, thin with a big head, etc.)
BudgeEnglish Nickname from Norman French buge "mouth" (Late Latin bucca), applied either to someone with a large or misshapen mouth or to someone who made excessive use of his mouth, i.e. a garrulous, indiscreet, or gluttonous person... [more]
BuffaItalian From Sicilian buffa, "toad". May alternately derive from Rebuffo.
BuffettFrench (Anglicized), English Americanised form or a variant of French Buffet, or probably an English variant of Bufford. Famous bearers of this name include the Americans Warren Buffett (1930-), a businessman, investor and philanthropist, and Jimmy Buffett (1946-), a musician.
BuġejaMaltese Possibly derived from Maltese abjad meaning "white", ultimately from Arabic أَبْيَض (ʾabyaḍ).
BuggEnglish From the Old Norse nickname Buggi, literally "fat man", or from a medieval nickname for an eccentric or strangely behaved person (from Middle English bugge "bogeyman, scarecrow").
BugiardiniItalian Means "little liar" in Italian, from bugiardo "lying, false, deceitful; liar" and the diminutive suffix -ino.
BugisIndonesian, Arabic From the name of the Bugis people, itself derived from the endonym Ugi' of uncertain meaning. This surname is common among people of Indonesian ancestry in Saudi Arabia.
BugtaiFilipino, Cebuano Means "Siamese rough bush" (a type of tree in the genus Streblus) in Cebuano.
BuhagiarMaltese Means "father of rocks" from Arabic أَبُو (ʾabū) meaning "father of" and حِجَارَة (ḥijāra) "stones, rocks".
BujalskiPolish Nickname for a storyteller, Polish bujała.
BulgariaItalian, Spanish Originally an ethnic name or regional name for someone from Bulgaria or a nickname for someone who had visited or traded with Bulgaria, which is named after the Turkic tribe of the Bulgars, itself possibly from a Turkic root meaning "mixed".
BullivantEnglish From a medieval nickname for a "good chap" or amiable companion (from Old French bon enfant, literally "good child").
BumpusEnglish (i) from a medieval nickname for a vigorous walker (from Old French bon "good" + pas "pace"); (ii) perhaps "person who lives by a place through which travel is easy" (from Old French bon "good" + pas "passage")
BunKhmer Possibly from a word derived from Thai บุญ (bun) meaning "merit".
BuntingEnglish Nickname derived from the name of the bird bunting (Emberiza).
BuonocoreItalian Nickname for a reliable or good-hearted person, derived from Italian buono meaning "good" and core meaning "heart" (ultimately from Latin cor).
BurnellAnglo-Saxon, Medieval English A name for a person with a brown complexion or dark brown hair. From the Old English burnel via the French brunel a diminutive of the French brun, which means "brown". The suffix el-- a short form of "little" was added to brun to make Brunel... [more]
BurnetteFrench Descriptive nickname from Old French burnete ‘brown’ (see Burnett). Possibly also a reduced form of Buronet, from a diminutive of Old French buron ‘hut’, ‘shack’.
BurneyEnglish, Irish Form of the French place name of 'Bernay' or adapted from the personal name Bjorn, ultimately meaning "bear".
BurrEnglish, Scottish, German Nickname for a person who is difficult to shake off, derived from Middle English burr meaning "bur" (a seedhead that sticks to clothing). It could also be a derivation from Old English bur meaning "small dwelling, building", or a German topographic name derived from burre meaning "mound, hill"... [more]
ButtacavoliItalian Nickname composed of the elements butta "throw" + cavoli "cabbages".
ButtafuocoItalian Nickname composed of the elements butta "throw" + fuoco "fire".
ButterEnglish, German 1. English: nickname for someone with some fancied resemblance to a bittern, perhaps in the booming quality of the voice, from Middle English, Old French butor ‘bittern’ (a word of obscure etymology)... [more]
BüyükTurkish Means "big, large, grand" in Turkish.
BuzekSilesian, Polish A nickname derived from buza 'rebuke' or buzować 'to scold to be cross with somebody'.
CabaleiroGalician From a nickname derived from Galician cabaleiro meaning "knight", a cognate of Portuguese Cavaleiro.
ČabarkapaSerbian, Montenegrin Derived from čabar (чабар), meaning "tub, bucket", and kapa (капа), meaning "cap, hat".
CabboiItalian Probably from Sardinian caboi "capon", a gelded cockerel, perhaps a nickname for a cowardly person.
CabeleiraPortuguese Likely originates from the Portuguese word "cabeleira," which means "head of hair" or "hairpiece." It might have been used as a nickname to describe someone with a notable or distinctive head of hair... [more]
CabellCatalan, English, German As a Catalan name, a nickname for "bald" from the Spanish word cabello. The English name, found primarily in Norfolk and Devon, is occupational for a "maker or seller of nautical rope" that comes from a Norman French word... [more]
CacioppoItalian, Sicilian Derived from Sicilian cacioppu meaning "dried tree trunk", presumably applied as a nickname for someone with wizened skin, or from caciopu meaning "short-sighted" (derived from Greek kakiopes, literally meaning "having bad eyes").
ČádaCzech Descriptive nickname from Old Czech čad- "smoke", applied to someone with dark skin.
CadedduItalian From Sardinian cadeddu "puppy, whelp", ultimately from Latin catellus.
CaesarAncient Roman, English An Ancient Roman political title that indicated a military leader. A famous bearer was Julius Caesar, Roman general, dictator, and politician. In modern times, the surname is used to refer to an individual with a tyrannical attitude, which references the connotative meaning of the word "caesar", meaning "a dictator".
ÇakırTurkish Means "greyish blue (eyes)" in Turkish.
CalabazaSpanish, Indigenous American Nickname from ‘calabaza’ meaning pumpkin squash. This is commonly used by Pueblos (Native Americans) in New Mexico.
CalafioreItalian, Sicilian altered form of Calaciura from the Greek name Kalokiourēs a variant of KalokyrēsKalokyrios meaning "good man".
CalandraItalian from calandra "skylark" (from Latin calandra) probably a nickname for someone with a fine singing voice.
CalcaterraItalian Nickname from calcare meaning "to tread", "to stamp" + terra meaning "land", "earth", "ground", probably denoting a short person, someone who walked close to the ground, or an energetic walker.
CalfeeAnglo-Saxon This surname is a variant of the name Calf, which is a variant of the Old Norse Kalfr, however it is possible that it is a nickname for someone who had characteristics like a calf, or baby cow.
CamoysEnglish From a medieval nickname for someone with a snub nose (from Old French camus "snub nose").
CampionNorman, French English (of Norman origin) and French: status name for a professional champion (see Champion, Kemp), from the Norman French form campion.
CannarsaItalian Possibly means "dry throat", a joking nickname for someone who drinks too much.
CanomanuelSpanish The first part of this surname is possibly derived from Spanish cano "hoary, white-haired, grey-haired". The second part is derived from the given name Manuel... [more]
CaoVietnamese Vietnamese form of Gao from Sino-Vietnamese 高 (cao).
CaouetteFrench (Quebec) Altered form of French Cahouet, itself a regional form of chat-huant meaning "screech owl", hence a nickname referring to the bird.
CapaldoItalian Probably a diminutive of Italian capo meaning "head", perhaps used as a nickname for a stubborn or hard-headed person.
ČapekCzech Derived from a diminutive of Czech cáp meaning "stork", applied as a habitational name for someone who lived at a house distinguished by the sign of a stork. In some cases the family name may have derived from a heraldic symbol.
CarotiItalian From Italian carota "carrot", probably referring to the bearer's hair colour.
CarreFrench French (Carré): from Old French carré "square", applied as a nickname for a squat, thickset man.
CarrizoSpanish Nickname for a person who's bold, shameless.
CarroguItalian Possibly from Sardinian carroga "crow, carrion crow".
CasabuenaSpanish (Modern, Rare) Means "Happy House" or "House of Happiness" in Spanish, with the Spanish word "Casa", which means "House" and Buena, meaning "Happy" or "Happiness".
CasseseItalian From Arabic قِسِّيس (qissis) "priest", perhaps a nickname for someone who worked for or was related to a priest, or perhaps someone who was notably pious.
CattEnglish Nickname from the animal, Middle English catte "cat". The word is found in similar forms in most European languages from very early times (e.g. Gaelic cath, Slavic kotu). Domestic cats were unknown in Europe in classical times, when weasels fulfilled many of their functions, for example in hunting rodents... [more]
CavaleiroPortuguese From a nickname derived from Portuguese cavaleiro meaning "knight", a cognate of Galician Cabaleiro.
CaveNorman, French, English A name of various possible origins. As a Norman French name Cave can mean "bald" from cauf or it can mean "worker in a wine cellar" or "one who dwelt in or near a cave". As an English name Cave refers to a Yorkshire river whose fast current inspired the name meaning "swift".
CavellEnglish Nickname for a bald man, from a diminutive of Anglo-Norman French cauf.
ÇaylakTurkish Means "kite (the bird)" or "inexperienced" in Turkish.
CentofantiItalian Means "a hundred soldiers on foot" in Italian, derived from Italian cento meaning "(a) hundred" and Italian fanti, which is the plural form of fante meaning "soldier, infantryman"... [more]
CentoreItalian from cento ore "hundred gold pieces" hence probably a nickname for a wealthy person.
CenturiónSpanish Originally a nickname derived from Spanish centurión (ultimately from Late Latin centum) literally meaning "centurion". Historically, a centurion is a military officer who commanded one hundred men in an Ancient Roman army during the classical period.
CepedaSpanish A nickname for someone from the region where they grow vineyards.
ÇerkezTurkish Means "Circassian" or "Adyghe" in Turkish, referring to an ethnic group native to the Caucasus.
CetruloItalian Possibly from Italian citrullo "fool, simpleton", or alternately from Latin citrullus "watermelon".
ÇevikTurkish Means "nimble, agile, quick" in Turkish.
ChabotFrench From chabot ‘bull-head’, a species of fish with a large head, hence a nickname for someone with a big head and a small body.
ChaffinEnglish A diminutive that originated from the Old French word chauf, which itself is derived from Latin calvus, both meaning "bald". Originally used as an Anglo-Norman nickname for a bald man.
ChaichanaThai From Thai ไชย (chai) meaning "victory" and ชนะ (chana) meaning "win, conquer, defeat".
ChaikhamThai From Thai ไชย (chai) meaning "victory" and คำ (kham) meaning "gold" or "word, speech".
ChaiwongThai From Thai ใจ (chai) meaning "heart, mind, spirit" or ไชย (chai) meaning "victory" and วงศ์ (wong) meaning "lineage, family, dynasty".
ChaiyasingThai From Thai ไชย (chai) meaning "victory" and สิงห์ (sing) meaning "lion".
ChakirisGreek Alternate transcription of Greek Τσακίρης (see Tsakiris). The American actor and dancer George Chakiris (1932-), who is best known for portraying the character Bernardo Vasquez in the movie West Side Story (1961), is a famous bearer of this name.
ChakmaBengali From the name of the Chakma people of Bangladesh, India and Myanmar, derived from Sanskrit शक्तिमान (shaktimana) meaning "powerful" (composed of शक्ति (shakti) meaning "power" and the suffix मत् (mana) meaning "as, like, having the qualities of").
ChakravartiMarathi, Hindi Derived from Sanskrit चक्रवर्तिन् (chakravartin) meaning "world-ruler, emperor, monarch" (literally "wheel-turner" or "one who's wheels are turning"), from चक्र (chakra) meaning "wheel, circle" and वर्तिन् (vartin) meaning "abiding, moving, turning"... [more]
ChalametFrench Nickname for someone who played the reed or an occupational name for seller of torches, from a regional form of Old French chalemel meaning "reed" or "blowtorch". A notable bearer is American actor Timothée Chalamet (1995-).
ChaleunLao Means "flourish, prosper" or "much, many" in Lao.
ChallengerEnglish Probably from a medieval nickname for a touchy or quarrelsome person (from a derivative of Middle English chalangen "to challenge"). A fictional bearer is Professor George Challenger, irascible scientist and explorer, leader of the expedition to Amazonia in Arthur Conan Doyle's 'The Lost World' (1912).
ChalovRussian From Russian чалый (chalyy) meaning "roan".
ChalujBelarusian Derived from Belarusian халуй (chaluj), a derogatory word meaning "lackey, groveller".
ChampionEnglish, French Derived from the Middle English and Old French words campion, champiun and champion all meaning "athlete" such as a wrestler or boxer; also "warrior hired to do battle in single combat on behalf of others" (from Late Latin campio genitive campionis a derivative of campus "plain field of battle")... [more]
ChapinFrench, Spanish From a reduced form of French eschapin or Spanish chapín, a term for a light (woman's) shoe; perhaps a nickname for someone who habitually wore this type of footwear or possibly a metonymic occupational name for a shoemaker.
ChâtelainFrench from châtelain "lord (of the manor)" Old French chastelain (from Latin castellanus a derivative of castellum "castle") applied either as a status name for the governor or constable of a castle or as an ironic nickname.
ChernoffRussian, Jewish Alternative spelling of Chernov, a patronymic from the byname Chernyj meaning ‘black’, denoting a black-haired or dark-skinned person.
ChernookyRussian Derived from Russian черноокий (chernooky) meaning "black-eyed, having dark brown eyes". This surname has Polish, Ukrainian or Belarusian noble origin.
ChernovRussian From Russian чёрный (chyorniy) meaning "black".
ChernyavskyRussian Derived from Russian чёрный (chyornyy) meaning "black".
ChernykhRussian Derived from Russian черный (cherniy) meaning "black".