MaherIrish (Rare) The originally spelling was "O'Meachair" which means the 'kindly' or the 'generous'. The Maher family resided in the O'Carrol... [more]
MaiChinese From Chinese 麦 (mài) meaning "wheat, barley, oats". It was adopted as a family name by the descendants of Maiqiu, a figure from the Spring and Autumn Period, or Mai Tiezheng, a Sui dynasty military general.
MaidesEnglish Maides is an almost extinct surname which has decreased significantly in popularity since the 19th century, though has always been relatively uncommon. The surname is today most popular in Leicestershire but the family bearing the surname from that area seem to have originated from the south of Warwickshire... [more]
MannSanskrit (Anglicized) Originally Sanskrit, now in Punjabi and Hindi - used by Jats predominantly in Punjab area of NW India. Well represented in Sikhs. Also spelled as {!Maan} when anglicized. Belonged to landholding nobility of warrior caste (knights) that at one time held a strong and established kingdom.... [more]
MaoChinese From Chinese 毛 (máo) referring to the ancient region of Mao, which existed during the Zhou dynasty in what is now the Henan province. A notable bearer of this surname was Chinese communist revolutionary Mao Zedong (1893-1976).
MarSwiss The surname Mar has roots from Switzerland, Austria, Hungary, France, Germany, Portugal and Spain. MAR: topographic name for someone living by the sea, from mar ‘sea’ (Latin mare). German: nickname from Middle High German mar(w) ‘tender’, ‘delicate’.
MarchEnglish From the English word meaning, "to walk stiffly and proudly" or possibly from the month.
MarksEnglish This surname is derived either from the name Mark or from Old English mearc meaning "border, mark."
MarpleEnglish Means "boundary stream" from Old English maere (boundary), and pyll (stream).
MarxGerman From a short form of the given name Markus. A famous bearer was Karl Marx (1818-1883), a German philosopher known for his work in socioeconomic theory.
MastDutch Derived from Middle Dutch mast "(ship's) mast; pole", a nickname for a tall, lanky man. Alternatively, it can derive from the homonym mast "pig fodder, animal fodder".
MastGerman, Dutch Derived from Middle High German and Middle Dutch mast "mast (fodder made of acorns and beechnuts); the process of fattening livestock", an occupational name for a pig farmer or a swineherd. In some cases, however, the German name may also have been derived from Middle High German mast, mastic "fat, stout".
MengChinese From Chinese 孟 (mèng) meaning "eldest brother". It was also adopted by descendants of Meng Sun, a prince from the state of Lu that existed during the Zhou dynasty.
MerkhGerman (Anglicized, ?) Anglicized form of the name Märkh, a German name that existed in southern Germany with Arabic roots tied to the village of al-Märkh in Qatar; the name became Anglicized in the early 17th century. It is one of those surnames where anyone who possesses it is related to everyone else who possesses the name.
MianUrdu, Bengali, Punjabi, Sindhi From an honorific title used on the Indian subcontinent meaning "lord, master, sir" or "prince", derived from Persian میان (miyan) meaning "middle, centre, between".
MiaoChinese From Chinese 缪 (miào), another name for Duke Mu of Lu, an ancient official whose name (穆) had the same pronunciation as the character 缪. After his death his descendants adopted 缪 as their surname.
MiaoChinese From Chinese 苗 (miáo) meaning "seedling, shoot, sprout", also referring to the ancient fief of Miao, which existed in the state of Chu during the Zhou dynasty in what is now Henan province.
MierDutch Derived from Dutch mier "ant", perhaps denoting an industrious person.
MinChinese, Korean From Chinese 闵 (mǐn) meaning "pity, sorrow", also referring to the posthumous title of the Duke Min of Lu (personal name Ji Qi).
MoesDutch Derived from Middle Dutch moes "stew, mush, vegetables, food", either on its own as a nickname for a cook or vegetable farmer, or as a shortened form of a longer name, such as the toponym Moespot "vegetable pot".
MoineFrench Derived from French moine "monk" (compare Monk).
MostGerman Metonymic occupational name for a producer or seller of must, i.e. unfermented grape juice, from Middle High German most, ultimately derived from Latin mustum vinum meaning "young (i.e. fresh) wine"... [more]
MostPolish, Jewish Topographic name from Slavic most meaning "bridge", or a habitational name from any of several places named with this word.
MouChinese From Chinese 牟 (móu) referring to the ancient state of Mou that existed during the Zhou dynasty (1122–221 BC).
MrózPolish From a nickname for a white-haired man or alternatively for one of an icy and unsociable disposition, from Polish mróz "frost". Also can be from a short form of the personal name Ambroży
MuChinese From Chinese 穆 (mù) meaning "pure, solemn, honest".
MuisDutch, Indonesian From Dutch muis meaning "mouse". Could be a nickname denoting someone with mouse-like tendencies, or who caught mice, or a short form of the given name Bartholomeus.
MunchDanish, French, Norwegian (Rare) Either a variant of Münch or Munk, both meaning "monk". A notable bearer was Norwegian painter Edvard Munch (1863-1944), whose best known work is 'The Scream'.
MunnScottish, English Variant form of McMunn. In English, it is a nickname or an occupational name for a person who worked for monks, derived from Anglo-Norman French moun meaning "monk" (see Monk).
NearsEnglish French in origin, it is derived from the word "Noir," which is the equivalent of the English word "Black." It could have referred to a person with dark features, hair, or perhaps even one who was thought to engage in nafarious, or "dark," deeds.
NelmsEnglish (American) Topographic name for someone who lived near or amid a grove of elm trees, from misdivision of Middle English atten elmes ‘at the elms’
NieChinese From Chinese 聂 (niè) referring to either of two ancient fiefs named Nie. One existed in the state of Wei (Wey) in what is now Henan province, while the other was part of the state of Qi in what is now Shandong province.
NiehChinese Alternate transcription of Chinese 聂 (see Nie).
NingChinese From Chinese 宁 (níng) meaning "peaceful, tranquil", also referring to the ancient county of Ningyi, which existed during the Zhou dynasty in what is now Henan province.
NoarEnglish This surname is thought to be derived from nore which could mean "shore, cliff." This could denote that someone might have lived in a shore or cliff. It may also be used as a surname for someone who lived in the now 'diminished' village of Nore in Surrey.
NoeMedieval English, Korean A patronymic form of the biblical male given name Noah from the Hebrew word "noach" meaning long-lived. Possible origins could be ... [more]
NongChinese, Vietnamese From Chinese 农 (nóng) meaning "farming, agriculture, cultivation", also referring to the ancient official position Nong Zheng (農正) meaning "agriculture officer". It is also used as a simplified variant of Vietnamese Nông, which is of the same origin.
NuteAnglo-Saxon, English Derived from the given name Cnute. Alternatively, it may be of nickname origin, from the Old English word hnutu, which meant brown, and would have been given to someone with a brown complexion.
OeyChinese (Hokkien) Hokkien romanization of Huang based on Dutch orthography. It is primarily used in Indonesia.
OggScottish Anglicized form of a nickname from the Gaelic adjective óg meaning "young", used to distinguish the junior of two bearers of the same personal name.
OldEnglish From Middle English old, not necessarily implying old age, but rather used to distinguish an older from a younger bearer of the same personal name.
OuChinese From Chinese 欧 (ōu) referring to Mount Sheng in present-day Huzhou, China. According to legend, this name (along with the compound name Ouyang containing this character) was adopted by the descendants of a prince from the Yue state who settled in the area around the mountain.
PachGerman Pach is an occupational hereditary surname for a baker in Old German. Pach is also a German local name for someone who lived by a stream, which was originally derived from the German word "bach" which means stream... [more]
PaineEnglish From the Middle English personal name Pain(e), Payn(e) (Old French Paien, from Latin Paganus), introduced to Britain by the Normans. The Latin name is a derivative of pagus "outlying village", and meant at first a person who lived in the country (as opposed to Urbanus "city dweller"), then a civilian as opposed to a soldier, and eventually a heathen (one not enrolled in the army of Christ)... [more]
PateEnglish Derives from the given name Pat(t), a short form of the personal name Patrick from the Latin Patricius meaning "son of a noble father".
PauwDutch, Flemish Means "peacock" in Dutch. Could be a habitational name from a sign depicting a peacock, or a nickname for a proud or flamboyant person. In some cases, it can be a shortened form of the patronymic Pauwels "son of Paul".
PearksEnglish Sir Stuart Edmond Pearks (1875–1931) served as the Chief Commissioner of the North-West Frontier Province of British India from 1930 until 1931. Sourced from Wikipedia.... [more]
PeeleEnglish This surname was given topographically to a person who resided near a physical feature such as a hill, stream, church, or type of tree. A famous bearer of this surname is actor, comedian, writer, producer, and director Jordan Peele.
PeirceEnglish From the given name Piers. A notable bearer was the American philosopher Charles Sanders Peirce (1839-1914), who is considered to be one of the founders of pragmatism, along with William James and John Dewey.
PepysEnglish From the medieval personal name Pepis, a form of Old French Pepin, brought into England by the Normans. It may have been based on an earlier nickname meaning "awesome"... [more]
PlumEnglish, German From Old Germanic *plūmā "plum", used as a topographic name for someone who lived by a plum tree, a metonymic occupational name for someone who grew or sold plums, or perhaps a nickname referring to a plum-coloured birthmark.
PoorEnglish Referred to someone who was poor or impoverished.
PortEnglish, German, French Either from Middle English porte "gateway, entrance" (Old French porte, from Latin porta), hence a topographic name for someone who lived near the gates of a fortified town or city, or for the gatekeeper... [more]
PorteFrench, German, English from Old French porte "gateway entrance" (from Latin porta) hence a topographic name for someone who lived near the gates of a fortified town (typically the man in charge of them)... [more]
PourPersian Means "son, descendant" in Persian, typically used as a suffix in compound surnames.
PressEnglish, Jewish A nickname for a pious individual from the Middle English form of "priest" or possibly someone employed by a priest. In the Jewish sense, one whose occupation was to iron clothes.
PreusGerman/Norwegian Unknown, but may have come from Prussia or be Jewish. It could mean to jabber. Maybe the same as Preuss, but eliminated the S when immigrating to America.
PriestEnglish Derived from the occupation priest, which is a minister of a church. It could also be a nickname for a person who is / was a priest.
PrinsDutch, Jewish Means "prince" in Dutch, a doublet of Prince. Often a habitational name for someone who lived or worked near a location named Prins, such as an inn or windmill, or sign depicting the Prince of Orange... [more]
PronkDutch Means "flamboyance" in Dutch, derived from pronken "to show off, to display" or "to sulk, be sullen, be displeased".
ProustFrench From a nickname derived from French preux meaning "valiant, brave". A famous bearer was Marcel Proust (1871-1922), a French writer.
ProwseEnglish Nickname for a person who was proud, haughty, brave or valiant, derived from Old French prous, prou, preux, proz and prouz meaning "proud, brave, valiant". A famous bearer was David Prowse (1935-2020), an English bodybuilder, weightlifter and character actor who portrayed the villain Darth Vader in the Star Wars movies.
PrueEnglish, French English: nickname for a redoubtable warrior, from Middle English prou(s) ‘brave’, ‘valiant’ (Old French proux, preux).... [more]
PrynneEnglish Derived from an Anglo-Norman form of the Late Latin name Primus. A fictional bearer is Hester Prynne, the protagonist of Nathaniel Hawthorne's novel 'The Scarlet Letter' (1850).
PungKorean From Sino-Korean 馮 (pung) meaning "fast running horse".
PyakKorean (Russified) Russified form of Baek used by ethnic Koreans living in former Soviet territories.
PykeEnglish Most likely originates from the words pike (the weapon or the fish), having to do with fishermen or soldiers, or pick, having to do with miners or somebody who tills the ground.
PyneEnglish Means "pine" from the Old French pin. This was originally given as a topographical name for someone who lived by a conspicuous pine tree or in a pine forest.
PyoKorean (Rare) From Sino-Korean 表 (pyo) meaning "table, diagram, graph".
QiaoChinese From Chinese 喬 (qiáo) referring to Qiao Shan, a mountain in present-day Shaanxi province where the legendary king Huang Di was supposedly buried.
QinChinese From Chinese 秦 (qín) referring to the ancient state of Qin, which existed from 221 BC to 206 BC in what is now the Gansu and Shaanxi provinces.
QiuChinese From Chinese 邱 or 丘 (qiū) referring to a place called Yingqiu that existed in the state of Qi in what is now Shandong province. The name was originally written with the character 丘 until its usage was prohibited during the Qing dynasty in order to avoid a taboo caused by using the character of Confucius's given name, 丘... [more]
QuChinese From Chinese 屈 (qū) meaning "bent, crooked", also referring to the ancient fief of Qu, which existed during the Zhou dynasty in what is now Hubei province.
QuChinese From Chinese 瞿 (qú) meaning "halberd", also possibly referring to an ancient state or fief named Qu (present-day location unknown) that existed during the Shang dynasty.
QuanChinese From Chinese 权 (quán) referring to the ancient state of Quan, which existed during the Shang and Zhou dynasties in what is now Hubei province.
QuantEnglish Nickname for a clever person from Middle English cwointe/queynte meaning "intelligent, skilled" or "cunning, deceptive", as well as "wonderful, strange, unknown". Ultimately derived from Latin cognitus "known, recognised".
QuếVietnamese Vietnamese form of Gui, from Sino-Vietnamese 桂 (quế).