MiddletonEnglish, Scottish Habitational name from any of the places so called. In over thirty instances from many different areas, the name is from Old English midel "middle" + tun "enclosure","settlement".
MidlerEnglish Nickname for a person who causes trouble or meddles in the affairs of others, derived from Middle English medeler meaning "meddler, troublemaker, one who interferes". This name is borne by the American singer, actress and comedienne Bette Midler (1945-).
MilkEnglish Probably from Middle English milk ‘milk’, applied as a metonymic occupational name for a producer or seller of milk.In some instances, probably a translation of German Milch, a variant of Slavic Milich or of Dutch Mielke (a pet form of Miele), or a shortening of Slavic Milkovich.
MillScottish, English Scottish and English: topographic name for someone who lived near a mill, Middle English mille, milne (Old English myl(e)n, from Latin molina, a derivative of molere ‘to grind’)... [more]
MillayEnglish This surname is thought to be a respelling of Millais, which may come from the French surname Millet, a metonymic occupational name for a grower or seller of millet or panic grass (derived from a diminutive form of Old French mil which is then derived from Latin milium meaning "millet").... [more]
MillsapEnglish (American), English Judging by the name and how it sounds, I guess it's occupational. This is the name of a town in Texas, named after Fuller Millsap.
MillwoodEnglish, Anglo-Saxon The name was originally given to a miller or the keeper of a mill. The surname Millwood is derived from the Old English word mylenweard.
MilmanEnglish From the old English word mylen meaning "mill" and mann meaning "man", which in this sense means a worker
MilnerEnglish, Scottish Northern English (mainly Yorkshire) and Scottish: variant of Miller, retaining the -n- of the Middle English word, which was a result of Scandinavian linguistic influence, as in Old Norse mylnari.
MinerEnglish English occupational name for someone who built mines, either for the excavation of coal and other minerals, or as a technique in the medieval art of siege warfare. The word represents an agent derivative of Middle English, Old French mine ‘mine’ (a word of Celtic origin, cognate with Gaelic mein ‘ore’, ‘mine’).
MoberleyEnglish English habitational name from Mobberley in Cheshire, named in Old English as ‘clearing with a fortified site where assemblies are held’, from (ge)mot ‘meeting’, ‘assembly’ + burh ‘enclosure’, ‘fortification’ + leah ‘wood’, ‘clearing’.
MockfordEnglish Mockford comes from "Mocca's ford", with Mocca being an Old English name of uncertain origin. An alternative theory is that it comes from "Motholfr's ford" from the Old Norse meaning "renown-wolf". Either way, Mockford was once a place in Sussex, near Rottingdean, and it is from there that most branches of the name originate.
MoltenEnglish The surname Molten refers to one who melts lead.
MonarchEnglish Origin unidentified. Perhaps a translation of French Monarque, Monarc, a nickname for a high-handed or haughty person, from Old French monarque 'monarch'.
MoneymakerEnglish (American) Translated form of German Geldmacher or Geldschläger, occupational names for a coiner.
MoneypennyEnglish Probably from a medieval nickname for a rich person or a miser. A fictional bearer is Miss Moneypenny, secretary to M (the head of MI6) in the James Bond novels of Ian Fleming and in the films based on them.
MongerEnglish Name for a retail trader or a stallholder in a market, Middle English monger, manger.
MonierFrench, English, French (Huguenot) French variant of Monnier and occupational name for a moneyer from Middle English monier "moneyer" (Old French monier) or for a miller from Old French monier "miller".
MontfordEnglish As a Shropshire name believed to mean "from a communal ford or water crossing" while the Norfolk origin is "from Munda's ford," Munda being an old English personal name meaning "protector, guardian," as seen in names such as Edmund.
MontgomerieScottish, English Variation of Montgomery. A famous bearer was Margaret Montgomerie Boswell (1738 to 1789), wife of author James Boswell.
MontyFrench, English Topographic name for a mountain dweller, from Old French mont 'mountain' (Latin mons, montis).
MoodyEnglish, Irish Either from Middle English modie "angry, haughty, impetuous", or Old English modig "brave, proud".
MoorcockEnglish From a medieval nickname for someone thought to resemble a moorcock (the male of the red grouse). It is borne by British author Michael Moorcock (1939-).
MoraleeEnglish, French First found in Norfolk where they were seated from very early times and were granted lands by Duke William of Normandy, their liege Lord, for their distinguished assistance at the Battle of Hastings.
MorantEnglish, French From the Old French personal name Morant, perhaps from a nickname meaning "steadfast", or alternatively of Germanic origin and meaning literally "courage-raven". A known bearer was the British-born Australian soldier and poet Breaker Morant, original name Edwin Henry Murrant (?1864-1902).
MordauntEnglish Recorded as Mordant, Mordaunt (English), Mordagne, Mordant (French) and apparently Mordanti in Italy, this is a surname of French origins. According to the famous Victorian etymologist Canon Charles Bardsley writing in the year 1880, the name was originally Norman, and was brought to England by a follower of Duke William of Normandy, when he conquered England in 1066... [more]
MorehouseEnglish Habitational name from any of various places, for example Moorhouse in West Yorkshire, named from Old English mōr meaning "marsh", "fen" + hūs meaning "house".
MoreyIrish, English Anglicized form of Irish Gaelic Ó Mórdha, and in English (of Norman origin), derived from the Old French given name Mory, a short form of Amaury (see Emery).
MortEnglish Perhaps from a Norman nickname based on Old French mort "dead", possibly referring to someone with a deathly pallor or otherwise sepulchral appearance.
MosherEnglish It is one of several variants of the name Mauger, also spelt Moger and Major, which itself comes from the Old French Maugier and Old German Malger, a compound name meaning "council-spear"... [more]
MosleyEnglish Habitational name from any of several places called Mos(e)ley in central, western, and northwestern England. The obvious derivation is from Old English mos ‘peat bog’ + leah ‘woodland clearing’, but the one in southern Birmingham (Museleie in Domesday Book) had as its first element Old English mus ‘mouse’, while one in Staffordshire (Molesleie in Domesday Book) had the genitive case of the Old English byname Moll.
MossmanEnglish This interesting name is a variant of the surname Moss which is either topographical for someone who lived by a peat bog, from the Old English pre 7th Century 'mos' or a habitational name from a place named with this word, for example Mosedale in Cumbria or Moseley in West Yorkshire.
MotleyEnglish This surname may come from a nickname for someone wearing parti-coloured clothes (from Anglo-French motteley, which may come from Old English mot meaning "speck").
MottEnglish The surname Mott was first found in Essex, where the family held a family seat from very early times, having been granted lands by Duke William of Normandy, their liege Lord, for their distinguished assistance at the Battle of Hastings in 1066 A.D. Moate (Irish: An Móta) is a town in County Westmeath, Ireland... [more]
MoultonEnglish Derived from various places with the same name, for example in the counties of Cheshire, Lincolnshire, Norfolk, Northamptonshire, Suffolk and North Yorkshire in England. It is either derived from the Old English given name Mūla, the Old Norse name Múli or Old English mūl meaning "mule" and tun meaning "enclosure, yard, town".
MountjoyEnglish Habitational surname for a person from Montjoie in La Manche, France, named with Old French mont "hill", "mountain" + joie "joy".
MountstuartEnglish Possibly derived from the mountain in the Cascade Range, in the state of Washington, United States.
MousallEnglish The surname Mousall was first found in Lancashire where they held a family seat as Lords of the Manor. The Saxon influence of English history diminished after the Battle of Hastings in 1066.
MoxonEnglish Means "son of Magge", a pet-form of Margaret, a female personal name which came into English via French from Late Latin Margarita, literally "pearl".
MoyesEnglish From the medieval personal name Moise, a vernacular variant of Moses (the biblical name of the Hebrew prophet who led the Children of Israel out of captivity).
MuddEnglish Either (i) "person who lives in a muddy area"; (ii) from the medieval female personal name Mudd, a variant of Maud (variously Mahalt, Mauld, Malt, vernacular versions of Anglo-Norman Matilda); or (iii) from the Old English personal name Mōd or Mōda, a shortened form of various compound names beginning with mōd "courage".
MudgeEnglish A location surname for someone who lives or dwells near the swamps. A famous bearer of this surname is Angela Mudge, a champion fell runner and trail runner from Scotland.
MulcasterEnglish (Modern) The surname Mulcaster was first found in Cumberland where they trace their lineage back to the place name Muncaster, home of Muncaster Castle, a privately owned castle overlooking the Esk river, near the west-coastal town of Ravenglass in Cumbria which dates back at least 800 years.
MullisEnglish As either Mulles and Mullis, the surname first found in Parish Registers in Cornwall Co. by 1548 in Michaelstow. Manorial tenement rolls trace that particular family to 1483. Between 1337 and 1453 random tenants were recorded between Tintagel and Altarnun as Molys and Mollys... [more]
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).
MustonEnglish Habitational name from places so named, from Old English mus "mouse", or must, "muddy stream or place" combined with tun "enclosure, settlement". Another explanation could be that the first element is derived from an old Scandinavian personal name, Músi (of unknown meaning), combined with tun.
MyattEnglish From the medieval personal name Myat, literally "little Mihel", an Anglo-Norman variant of Michael.
MycroftEnglish From Old English ġemȳþ "mouth (of a river)" + croft meaning "enclosed field", originally denoting somebody who lives at the mouth of a river.... [more]
NapierScottish, English Scottish occupational name for a producer or seller of table linen or for a naperer, the servant in charge of the linen in use in a great house from the Middle English, Old French nap(p)ier, an agent derivative of Old French nappe ‘table cloth’ (Latin mappa)... [more]
NapperEnglish 1 English: occupational name for a naperer, the servant in charge of the linen in use in a great house, Middle English, Old French nap(p)ier. Compare Scottish Napier .... [more]
NaramorEnglish, Welsh Naramor, also Narramore or Naramore, is a corruption of Northmore, and has Welsh/English background. "More North"
NarramoreEnglish Earliest progenitor is Reginald Bynorthemore, living 1318 inbetween Bovey Tracy and Moretonhampstead, in Dartmoor, Devonshire, England. By the 16th century, the surname was being used interchangeably as Narramore/Northmore within the same generation, as in the case of Walter Narramore/Northmore... [more]
NasmithScottish, English This surname is derived from an occupation, "nail-smith", but may also mean "knife-smith".
NatesEnglish, Jewish It's probably from the given name Nate, the origin is said to be Jewish*, but the ancestors immigrated to English speaking countries.
NaughtonEnglish Habitational name from a place in Suffolk, named in Old English with nafola meaning "navel" + tūn meaning "enclosure", "settlement", i.e. "settlement in the navel or depression".
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.
NeeveEnglish, Scottish An English surname, of Norman origin, meaning the nephew. One who was in care of their uncle. A surname first recorded in Perthshire.
NeighborEnglish From the Middle English word neighbor, derived from neghebour, which in turn comes from the Old English words neah, meaning "near", and gebur, meaning "a dweller". This may have been used as a nickname for someone who was a 'good neighbor', more likely it evolved from the term of address for someone living nearby.
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’
NelvinEnglish (American) Female named after her uncle who surname was Melvin. Born in Shreveport, Louisiana in 1931.
NemirowEnglish Is the English for the Russian/Ukrainian Surname Nemirov
NemoEnglish A different form of Nimmo (a Scottish name of unknown origin).
NesbittScottish, Irish, English Derives from the hamlets of East Nisbet and West Nisbet, Berwickshire. Some bearers of Nisbet/Nesbitt (and variant) names may originate from the village of Nisbet in Roxburghshire.
NettingEnglish As Needham the derivation is from the Olde English pre 7th century elements 'ned' meaning need, with 'ham', a homestead or village, the name indicating a place that provided a poor living.