GuriraSouthern African, Shona From the Ndau word gurira meaning "to break or cut for someone, cut short, take shortcut". The American-Zimbabwean actress and playwright Danai Gurira (1978-) is a famous bearer of this name.
GuroFilipino, Maranao From Maranao goro meaning "teacher, instructor", ultimately from Sanskrit गुरु (guru).
GuroalimFilipino, Maranao From Maranao goro meaning "teacher, instructor" and alim meaning "sage, philosopher".
GurusingaBatak From Sanskrit guru, meaning “Mentor”, and singha, meaning “Lion”.
HäberliGerman (Swiss) Derived from Alemannic and Upper German Haber, a variant of Standard High German Hafer "oats" in combination with the diminutive suffix -li. This name denoted a young farmer of oats.
HabermannGerman, Jewish Occupational name for a grower or seller of oats, composed of the elements Haber and the agent suffix -mann.
HabermehlGerman metonymic occupational name for a producer or seller of oatmeal from Middle High German habaro "oats" and melo "flour".
HackneyEnglish, Scottish From Middle English hakenei (Old French haquenée), an ambling horse, especially one considered suitable for women to ride; perhaps therefore a metonymic occupational name for a stablehand... [more]
HaferGerman, Jewish Metonymic occupational name for a grower of or dealer in oats, from German Hafer "oats". Compare Haber. As a Jewish surname, it is in many cases ornamental.
HaftekPolish “From the english occupation name describing a maker of handles for tools - a hafter”... [more]
HaganJewish Hebrew, shortened from haganah which means soldier
HagemannGerman, Danish Derived from Middle Low German hage "enclosure, hedge" and mann "person, man".
HaikJudeo-Spanish From the name of a garment worn by Algerian women, derived from Arabic حاك (hak) meaning "to weave". It was used as an occupational name for a maker of these garments.
HamelDutch Means "wether, castrated ram" in Dutch, an occupational name for a shepherd.
HamerEnglish, German From the town of Hamer in Lancashire from the old english word Hamor combining "Rock" and "Crag". It is also used in Germany and other places in Europe, possibly meaning a maker of Hammers.
HammerGerman, English, Jewish From Middle High German hamer, Yiddish hamer, a metonymic occupational name for a maker or user of hammers, for example in a forge, or nickname for a forceful person.
HammershaimbFaroese An Faroese Surname, Venceslaus Ulricus Hammershaimb (1819-1909) was a Faroese Lutheran minister who established the modern orthography of Faroese, the language of the Faroe Islands, based on the Icelandic language, which like Faroese, derives from Old Norse.
HandschuhGerman Occupational name for a maker or seller of gloves or perhaps a nickname for someone who habitually wore gloves from Middle High German hantschuoch "glove" literally "hand shoe" from the elements hant "hand" and schuh "shoe".
HansardEnglish Possibly from Middle English hansard "merchant or citizen of a Hanseatic town". Alternatively, from the given name Ansard, derived from ansu "god" and ward "guard" or hard "strong".
HarambašićCroatian, Bosnian, Serbian Derived from harambaša (харамбаша), which was a historic rank for the senior commander of a hajduk band. The hajduks were bandits and freedom fighters in the Balkans who fought the Ottomans.
HaramijaCroatian Derived from harambaša, which was a historic rank for the senior commander of a hajduk band. The hajduks were bandits and freedom fighters in the Balkans who fought the Ottomans.
HarbourEnglish Variant of French Arbour or a metonymic occupational name for a keeper of a lodging house, from Old English herebeorg "shelter, lodging".
HargierFrench Known back to the 15th or 16th century in France.... [more]
HarmerEnglish (British) Meaning, of the Army or man of Armor, from the battle at Normandy, France. It was formerly a French last name Haremere after the battle at Normandy it moved on to England where it was shortened to Harmer.
HatmanuRomanian Medieval military rank the equivalent of general rank
HatterEnglish This name derives from the Old English pre 7th Century "haet" meaning a hat and was originally given either as an occupational name to a maker or seller of hats
HattlerGerman Occupational name for someone who raises goats.
HauptmannGerman Derived from German hauptmann, a word used for a German military rank meaning "Captain".
HausGerman Topographic and occupational name for someone who lived and worked in a great house, from Middle High German, Middle Low German hus "house" (see House).
HauschildGerman Possibly from German haus "house" or hauen "to chop, to hack" combined with schild "shield".
HausknechtGerman occupational name from Middle High German hus "house" and kneht "boy servant" also "town-hall, messenger".
HausmannGerman From Middle High German hus "house" (see Haus) + man "man".
HauswirthGerman From Middle High German haus 'house' and wirt 'owner' or 'master'.
HaversEnglish Possible variant of Haver, a German, Dutch and English surname. In Germany or England it refers to oats and is used as an occupational surname for a grower or seller of oats... [more]
HechtGerman Means "pike (fish)" in German, generally a nickname for a rapacious and greedy person. In some instances it may have been a metonymic occupational name for a fisher, and in others it may be a habitational name from a house distinguished by a sign depicting this fish.
HedrickGerman (Americanized) This name has a very obscure origin. With the name being of German origin but with notably more people living in England. It means, "Combatant ruler/Ruler of the heathland
HefnerGerman, Jewish Recorded in several spellings including Hafner, Haffner, and Hevner, this is as surname of early Germanic origins. ... [more]
HegdeKannada Hegde means the Headman of the village. Hegde or Heggade Pergade is a surname from Maharashtra, Gujarat, Kasargod district of Kerala and Karnataka in India. It is found amongst Hindus of the Bunt community, Jain bunt community, Havyaka Brahmins, Vokkaligas in Karnataka.... [more]
HeilandGerman South German: from Middle High German heilant ‘savior’, ‘Christ’, presumably either a name given to someone who had played the part of Christ in a mystery play or an occupational name for a healer, from Middle High German heilen ‘to heal’, ‘save’.
HeimburgerGerman, Jewish Status name for a village head, derived from Middle High German heim meaning "homestead, settlement" and bürge meaning "guardian". It could also be a habitational name for someone from numerous places called Heimburg or Heimberg in Germany.
HelberGerman Occupational name for a thresher, from Middle High German helwe 'chaff' + the agent suffix -er; alternatively, it could be a habitational name from a place called Helba near Meiningen.
HelferGerman Metonymic occupational name for an assistant of some kind, or nickname for a helpful person, from Middle High German hëlfære, German Helfer 'helper', 'assistant'.
HelmEnglish, Dutch, German from Old English helm "protection covering" (in later northern English dialects "cattle shelter barn"). The name may be topographic for someone who lived by or worked at a barn or habitational from a place so named such as Helme in Meltham (Yorkshire)... [more]
HelmeyerGerman, Dutch, Danish Derived from Middle Dutch meier "bailiff, steward; tenant farmer" and an uncertain first element.
HengstGerman, Dutch metonymic occupational name for someone who worked with or bred horses or a nickname for a brave strong man from Middle High German and Middle Dutch hengest "stallion" also "gelding" derived from Old Germanic hangist "stallion"... [more]
HenkerGerman Occupational name for an Executioner, from the German word "Henker" meaning Hangman.
HerHmong From the clan name Hawj associated with the Chinese character 侯 (hóu) (see Hou).
HerbsterGerman Occupational name for a grape picker or vintner from Middle High German herbest "(grape) harvest".
HercigonjaCroatian Derived from Herzogin, a German title meaning "duchess".
HerderGerman An occupational surname in reference to herding animals. The anglicized pronounciation is "Her-der", but is Germanically pronounced, "Herr-der".
HerringGerman, English, Dutch, Scottish Occupational name for a fisherman, someone who caught or sold herring, or perhaps someone known for eating herring. It could have also been a nickname from the medieval phrase "to like neither herring nor barrel", meaning something of little value.
HerrmanGerman Herrman is of ancient German origin. It is derived from a Germanic personal name made up of the elements heri meaning "army," and man meaning "man." Herrman was first found in Prussia, where the name emerged in medieval times as one of the notable families of the region.
HineEnglish occupational name from Middle English Old English hine "servant member of a household" also "farm laborer" (such as a herdsman or shepherd)... [more]
HippGerman From the middle high German word hippe meaning "waffle". Perhaps an occupational name for someone who cooks waffles.
HồVietnamese Vietnamese form of Hu, from Sino-Vietnamese 胡 (hồ).
HodderEnglish Occupational name for a maker or seller of hoods, from a Middle English agent derivative of Old English hod
HoedDutch Means "hat, cover", an occupational name for a hatmaker.
HoenDutch, German From Middle Dutch hoen "chicken, hen", perhaps a nickname denoting a silly or foolish person, or an occupational name for someone who raised chickens.
HoggEnglish An occupational name for someone who herded swine.
HoggattEnglish A name for someone who worked as a keeper of cattle and pigs.
HohnGerman Derived from Middle High German hon "chicken". As a surname, it was given to someone who either bred or traded in chickens.... [more]
HolderGerman, Jewish, English 1. German: topographic name for someone who lived by an elder tree. Middle High German holder, or from a house named for its sign of an elder tree. In same areas, for example Alsace, the elder tree was believed to be the protector of a house... [more]
HollierEnglish, French Occupational name for a male brothel keeper, from a dissimilated variant of Old French horier "pimp", which was the agent noun of hore "whore, prostitute". Hollier was probably also used as an abusive nickname in Middle English and Old French.... [more]
HollisterEnglish English: occupational name for a brothelkeeper; originally a feminine form of Hollier.
HolmanEnglish Uncertain etymology. Could be a topographic name derived from Old English holh "hollow, hole" or holm, which can mean either "holly" or "small island" (see Holme), combined with man "man, person"... [more]
HoncharenkoUkrainian Means "child of the potter", from Ukrainian гончар (honchar).
HonigGerman, Jewish Metonymic name for a gatherer or seller of honey, from Middle High German honec, honic "honey", German Honig.
HoodEnglish, Scottish, Irish English and Scottish: metonymic occupational name for a maker of hoods or a nickname for someone who wore a distinctive hood, from Middle English hod(de), hood, hud ‘hood’. Some early examples with prepositions seem to be topographic names, referring to a place where there was a hood-shaped hill or a natural shelter or overhang, providing protection from the elements... [more]
HöövelEstonian Höövel is an Estonian surname meaning "planer".
HopDutch Variant form of Hopp. Alternatively, an occupational name derived from Dutch hop referring to the common hop (Humulus lupus), a kind of plant traditionally used to preserve and flavour beer.
HopfGerman An occupational name for a brewer or farmer, from German Hopfen meaning "hops", a plant used in preserving and flavouring beer.
HorntonEnglish (Rare, Archaic) Derived from the surname Horton or perhaps used to describe a horn maker meaning “maker of horns.”
HosekinDutch (Archaic) Occupational name for a maker or seller of hose (garments for the legs), from Middle Dutch hose "stocking, boot".
HoshinaJapanese It can be spelled with 星 (hoshi) meaning "star, mark, dot" and 奈 (na) meaning "name, noted, distinguished, reputation", or 保 (ho) meaning "protect", combined with 科 (shina, ka) meaning "department, technology".
HosnerGerman Occupational name for a knitter of hose (garments for the legs), from the plural form of Middle High German hose + the agent suffix -er (see Hose 3).
HospodPolish (Rare) From the Proto-Slavic gospodь, meaning "lord" or "host." Variant of the Old Polish gospodzin, meaning "landlord."... [more]
HowladerBengali From a Bengali word meaning "land owner", itself derived from Arabic حول (hawl) meaning "power, might, strength" and the Persian suffix دار (dar) indicating ownership.
HoyEnglish Metonymic occupational name for a sailor, from Middle Dutch hoey "cargo ship".
HuāwūChinese From Chinese 花 (huā) meaning "flower, blossom" combined with 屋 (wū) meaning "shop".
HudecCzech, Slovak Occupational name for a fiddler, hudec, a derivative of housti meaning "to play the fiddle".
HufnagelGerman Metonymic occupational name for a farrier from Middle High German hufnagel "horseshoe nail" (literally "hoof nail"). Derived from huof "hoof" and nagal "nail".
HulkeEnglish a nickname for a person who literally "towed" ships and barges
HurtadoSpanish Derived from the Spanish word hurtar, meaning "to steal".
HusemannGerman Epithet for a servant or an administrator who worked at a great house, from Middle Low German hus ‘house’ (see House 1, Huse) + man ‘man’.
HütterGerman German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name for a hatter from an agent derivative of Middle High German huot ‘hat’; Yiddish hut, German Hut ‘hat’. German (Hütter): topographic name from Middle High German hütte ‘hut’... [more]
ImamArabic, Bengali, Persian, Urdu From Arabic إِمَام (ʾimām) meaning "leader, guide", used to denote a Muslim leader.
IngogliaItalian Means "belonging to the family of Goglia" in Italian, derived from the prefix in- meaning "belonging to the family of" combined with the name Goglia... [more]
InmanEnglish (British) Anglo-Saxon in Origin. Occupational surname given to a person who "tended a lodge or an inn". Surname first found in Lancashire, England.
In'yakuJapanese (Rare) From Japanese 印鑰 (in'yaku) meaning "seal of head government office and keys to various buildings", referring to someone who would make seals or keys for such purposes.
IteJapanese (Rare) From Japanese 射 (i) meaning "shoot" and 手 (te) meaning "hand", referring to an archer.
JäägerEstonian Jääger is an Estonian surname meaning "game warden". Ultimately, from the German-language "jäger" meaning "hunter".
JägermeisterssenGerman Means son of the "Master-Hunter". Originally given to the son of the master-hunter in hunting camps.
JaggardEnglish The name Jaggard is rooted in the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture. It was originally a name for someone who worked as a person who tends draughthorses.
JahimeesEstonian Jahimees is an Estonian surname meaning "hunter" (literally, "hunting man").
JaimoukhaCircassian Means "cow herd, cowman", from Kabardian жэм (žăm) meaning "cow" and хъу (χ°) "male, man". It traditionally indicated someone who was wealthy because they possessed a large herd of bovine.
JanmaatDutch Possibly from janmaat, a slang term for a sailor or the collective nautical community, derived from a combination of the common given name Jan 1 and maat "shipmate, sailor; mate, buddy".
JardinFrench, English Derived from Old French jardin meaning "enclosure, garden", hence a topographic name for someone who lived by a garden or a metonymic occupational name for someone who worked as a gardener.
JaukGerman (Austrian) The meaning of the name Jauk is similar to the word "acre" in English. It is a measure word for how much land an ox can plough in one day. People with the surname Jauk are likely to have descended from farmers... [more]
JaunzemeLatvian Feminine form of Jaunzems, a Latvian occupational surname meaning "new farmer", composed of jauns meaning "new" and zeme meaning "land" (compare zemlja).
JavaheriPersian Occupational name for a jeweller from Persian جواهر (javaher) meaning "jewel".
JessieEnglish Possibly a variant of Jessey, an occupational name for someone making jesses (a short strap fastened around the leg of a bird used in falconry).
JezavitBelarusian Derived from dialectal Belarusian езавіт (jezavit), an equivalent to standard езуіт (jezuit) meaning "jesuit".
JezavitaŭBelarusian Patronymic surname derived from dialectal Belarusian езавіт (jezavit) meaning "jesuit".
JourdemayneMedieval English Likely from Old French jor de main meaning "day labourer". This was borne by Margery Jourdemayne, an English woman known as the "Witch of Eye" who was burned at the stake in 1441 for conspiring to kill the king with witchcraft... [more]
JudgeEnglish, Irish occupational name for an officer of justice or a nickname for a solemn and authoritative person thought to behave like a judge from Middle English Old French juge "judge" (from Latin iudex from ius "law" and dicere "to say") which replaced the Old English term dema... [more]
JuhtEstonian Juht is an Estonian surname meaning "leader" and "driver".
JunkurEstonian Junkur is an Estonian surname meaning "squire" and "cadet".
JupeEnglish A kind of cloak or cape. It is possible that an ancestor of an individual with this surname was known for their association with these kinds of clothing.
JupinFrench from a diminutive of Old French jupe a term denoting a long woolen garment hence a metonymic occupational name for a maker or seller (or a nickname for a wearer) of such garments. This word ultimately derives from Arabic.
JuskeEstonian Juske is an Estonian surname possibly derived from "harjusk", meaning "peddler".
KaeserGerman, German (Swiss) Occupational name for a cheesemaker or a cheese merchant from an agent derivative of Middle High German kæse "cheese". Variant of Käser.
KafetzisGreek Means "coffee shop owner" in Greek, derived from the Ottoman Turkish word قهوهجی (kahveci), equivalent to Greek καφές (kafés) both meaning “coffee” and the Greek suffix -τζής (-tzís), from Ottoman Turkish قهوه (kahve) and Ottoman Turkish ـجی (-ci) respectively... [more]