MaturinFrench From the French male personal name Maturin, from Latin Mātūrīnus, a derivative of Mātūrus, literally "timely". It was borne by the Irish "Gothic" novelist Charles Maturin (1782-1824).
MeauxFrench Habitational name from a place in Seine-et-Marne, so named from the Gaulish tribal name Meldi, or from Meaux-la-Montagne in Rhône.
MéeFrench French habitational name from places called (Le) Mée in Mayenne, Eure-et-Loir, and Seine-et-Marne, derived from Old French me(i)s ‘farmstead’ (Latin mansus).
MeeboerDutch (Rare) Possibly an occupational name for someone who brewed or sold mead, from Dutch mede (also mee) "mead" and boer "farmer, peasant; merchant, producer (of a product)".
MeersmanFlemish An occupational name for a travelling salesman, from Middle Dutch merseman "itinerant merchant, peddler".
MeesterDutch, Flemish, German Occupational name for a teacher, lecturer or a master craftsman, or a nickname for someone who had a bossy demeanor, derived from Dutch meester meaning "master". A famous bearer of this surname is the American actress, singer and model Leighton Meester (1986-).
MénardFrench From the Old German given name Meginhard, making it a cognate of Maynard. A notable bearer was André Ménard, Governor General in the French colonial empire.
MerletteFrench Feminine diminutive of French merle "blackbird", this name was given as a nickname to a cheerful person or to someone who liked to sing.
MerlinEnglish, French, German From the given name Merlin as well as referred to the blackbird, that is named merle in French and merlo in Italian and Spanish... [more]
MessiaenDutch, French, Belgian Derived from Messiaen, the (archaic) Dutch form of the latinate first name Messianus, which itself is ultimately derived from the Roman praenomen Messus.
MessierFrench Occupational name for someone who kept watch over harvested crops, Old French messier 'harvest master' (Late Latin messicarius, agent derivative of messis 'harvest').
MetrejonLouisiana Creole (?), French (?) Maiden surname of Constance Leto (nee Metrejon). She was born in Louisiana and has Cajun(French) ancestry. The Metrejon line is traced back to Joseph Marie Maitrejean, who was born c. 1778, in Belle-Île-en-Mer, France, an island off the coast of Brittany.
MeutstegeDutch Possibly from Dutch meute meaning "pack, crowd" and steeg meaning "alleyway, lane, narrow path". Dutch former soccer player Wim Meutstege (1952-) bears this name.
MickGerman, Dutch Occupational name from Middle Low German and Middle Dutch micke "(wheat or rye) bread". Alternatively, a Germanized form of Mik.
MickleyFrench It originated when an immigrant family named Michelet came to New York from Northern France. Because they had a foreign surname, they made up the names Mickley and Michelin. The originator was Jean Jacques Michelet (John Jacob Mickley), a private in the Revolutionary War... [more]
MilletFrench, Catalan metonymic occupational name for a grower or seller of millet or panic grass or a topographic name for someone who lived by a field of millet from French and Catalan millet (from Latin milietum a derivative of milium in Old French mil "millet").
ModdermanDutch Derived from Middle Dutch modder "mud", this name used to denote a dustman, a garbage man.
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".
MolDutch Means "mole (animal)" in Dutch. Could be a nickname for someone with poor eyesight or who was known for digging, an occupational name for a mole catcher, or a habitational name for someone from Mol in the Antwerp province, Belgium.
MolyneuxFrench Possibly a habitational name from Moulineux, meaning "mill of the waters", or derives from the Old French name De Molines or De Moulins, meaning "mill". The surname has been linked to a large French family that settled in Lancashire from France.
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".
MoniqueFrench A notable bearer is Kylie Monique, a singer.
MonteblancoFrench, Spanish Originally from France "Mont Blanc" but translated when arrived in Spain.
MontesquieuFrench From French montagne, meaning "mountain" and possibly also from queue, meaning "line". Charles Montesquieu was a 17th-century French aristocrat, philosopher and politician.
MontignyFrench habitational name from (Le) Montigny the name of several places in various parts of France (from a Gallo-Roman estate name Montiniacum formed either from a personal name or from a derivative of mons "mountain" and the locative suffix acum)... [more]
MontpelierEnglish, French English and French variant of Montpellier. This is the name of several places in the United States, for example the capital city of the state of Vermont, which was named after the French city of Montpellier.
MontpellierFrench Means "woad mountain", derived from French mont (itself from Latin mōns) meaning "mountain" and pastel (Latin pastellus, pestellus) meaning "woad, dye", referring to someone who lived near a mountain that was covered with woad (a plant that produces a blue dye)... [more]
MontyFrench, English Topographic name for a mountain dweller, from Old French mont 'mountain' (Latin mons, montis).
MonvoisinFrench Married surname of a infamous 17th century fortune teller and poisoner, Catherine Monvoisin nee Deshayes, known as La Voisin. Executed for witchcraft in 1680 in the affair of the poisons. Her clients included the elite of Paris including a mistress of Louis XIV.
MooijDutch From Dutch mooi "beautiful, handsome, neat, fine".
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).
MoranvilleFrench Habitational name from a commune in France named Moranville, probably derived from the personal name Morand and Old French ville "city, town, settlement".
MoreFrench nickname for a dark-skinned man from Old French more "Moor" (from Latin Maurus). French cognitive of Moore 3.
MotelFrench Topographic name from a derivative of Old French motte ‘fortified stronghold’.
MotteFrench, Walloon, Flemish, German from old French motte "motte" a word of Gaulish origin denoting a man-made protective mound or moat surrounding a castle or other fortified strongholds; or a habitational name from any of the various places in France and in Belgium named with this word.... [more]
MoutonFrench Nickname from Old French mouton "sheep" used for a docile mild-mannered person for someone easily led or perhaps for a curly-haired man... [more]
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.
MullensFlemish A name referring to someone who lived at or by a mill.
MullinixFrench A locational name "of de Moloneaux" probably from the noble family who trace their descent from William the Conqueror, from Molineaux-sur-Seine, near Rouen. The name came to England during the wake of the Norman Conquest... [more]
MultatuliDutch From the Latin phrase multa tulī meaning "I have suffered much" or "I have borne much". This was the pen name of the Dutch writer Eduard Douwes Dekker (1820-1887), who wrote Max Havelaar, which denounced the abuses of colonialism in the Dutch East Indies, now called Indonesia... [more]
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'.
MunkGerman, Scandinavian, Dutch, English From Middle High German münich Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish munk Middle Dutch munc "monk" a nickname for someone thought to resemble a monk or a metonymic occupational name for someone in the service of a monastery... [more]
MünsterGerman, Dutch habitational name from any of the places called Münster (in Germany) or Munster derived from Latin monasterium "monastery" or a topographic name for someone living near a monastery.
MussertDutch Dutch cognate of Mussett. This name was borne by the infamous Nazi politician Anton Mussert (1894-1946), the leader of the National Socialist Movement in the Netherlands (NSB) during World War II.
NassauGerman, Dutch, Jewish From the name of the town of Nassau in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany (formerly the seat of an independent duchy in the 19th century), derived from Old High German naz meaning "damp, wet" and ouwa meaning "water meadow"... [more]
NaultFrench From a short form of various medieval personal names derived from Germanic personal names formed with wald 'rule' as the final element, in particular Arnold.
NautaDutch Humanistic Latinization of Schipper, from nauta "sailor, seaman, mariner".
NavarreFrench The name means "By the sea". Originally a country of its own, located between Spain and France, Navarre became a part of France in 1284 when the Queen of Navarre married King Philip IV of France. After much war, becoming independent once again, and falling into Spanish rule, the Kingdom of Navarre is now split between Spain and France.
NeeskensDutch Nickname for a nosy person, from Dutch nees meaning "nose, snout". It could also be derived from a Dutch diminutive of the feminine given name Agnes... [more]
NeugerGerman, French (?) Was popularized by the German community. Famous bearers include investors Win Neuger and Dan Neuger, author Christie Cozad Neuger.
NiemanDutch Means "new man", a cognate of German Neumann. Can also derive from Middle Dutch nieman "no one, nobody", a byname for an unknown or otherwise nameless person... [more]
NoirFrench Means "black" in French, originally used in Northern France as an ethnic nickname for someone from Southern France, Spain, Italy or North Africa. It also may have been used for someone who wore dark clothing or for someone who had an occupation during the night or was associated with the night.
NolfFlemish, German Derived from a short form of the personal names Arnolf or Nodolf (a variant of Odolf), or possibly another name ending in wolf "wolf".
NoppeFlemish Possibly related to Middle Dutch noppe "tuft of wool, tassel", a metonymic name for someone who worked with cloth, or a nickname for someone with a slight stature. Alternatively, from a childish form of the given name Norbert.
NordGerman, French from a short form of an ancient Germanic personal name with the first element nord "north" for example Norbert.
NostradamusHistory, French (Latinized) Latinized form of de Nostredame. This surname was borne by the French physician and writer Michel de Nostredame (1503-1566), famous for his collection of prophecies Les Prophéties (1555) allegedly predicting the apocalypse and danger from the Arab world.
NottetFrench, Belgian, Flemish Derived from given names using the French diminutive -otte, such as Ernotte.
NugentEnglish, Irish, French An English, Irish (of Norman origin) and French habitational surname derived from any of several places in northern France (such as Nogent-sur-Oise), From Latin novientum and apparently an altered form of a Gaulish name meaning "new settlement".
OdelinFrench Not to be confused with the similarly spelled Odelín, which is Spanish rather than French, though they could have similar origins in name.
OmtzigtDutch Derived from Dutch omzicht meaning "cautious, careful, circumspection", ultimately from the verb omzien meaning "to look around". It may have originated in a Dutch village with several farms named Omzicht, or as a nickname for a cautious person... [more]
OnbekendDutch Means "unknown, anonymous" in Dutch, given to individuals who don’t have a family name (often for cultural reasons).
OosterweghelDutch Derived from the Dutch words ooster "east" and weg "road".
OostwalDutch From the Dutch words oost "east" and wal "coast, shore" or "bank, levee, wall".
OranjeDutch Means "orange (colour)" in Dutch, in reference to the Dutch Royal Family, who in turn derive their name from the town of Orange (or Auranja) in France, first attested as Arausio in the first century... [more]
OrleansFrench From Orléans, a city in France sieged by the English in 1429. Orléans is derived from Aurelianum, meaning "of Aurelius" in Latin.
OstiguyBasque, French Worn Quebec (Ostéguy variant), the name is visibly Basque and assumes initially a Ostegi form, which could designate a place where the foliage is abundant (osteo = + -egi sheet suffix). Alternatively, place the cold, cold house (Ortz, otz, followed -egi or -tegi).
OudelandDutch Habitational name from places called Oudeland in the Netherlands, or perhaps the village of Oudelande in the Dutch province of Zeeland. Their names mean "old land" in Dutch.
OudenhovenDutch Derived from Dutch oude "old" and hoeve "farm, farmstead, manor". As a surname it is derived from one of the many places of this name.
OudshoornDutch From the name of a former village in South Holland, Netherlands, derived from Out, a Middle Dutch diminutive of the given name Otgar, and hoorn "horn; corner, protruding bend (of a river)"... [more]
OuwehandDutch Means "old hand" in Dutch, originally a nickname for a fisherman, associated with the phrase "old hands at sea". Another theory holds that it comes from a misdivision of the surname Oudeland... [more]