LabossiereFrench Norman habitational name from a common village name La Boissière, meaning 'wooded area', from bois 'wood'. possibly a metronymic, from a feminine derivative of Bossier 'cooper', denoting the 'wife of the cooper'.
LabrieFrench Topographic name from l’abri meaning "the shelter", or a habitational name from a place named with this word.
LaBrieFrench Referred to a person who came from various places named Brie in France, for example Brie-sous-Matha, a commune in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in southwestern France.
LacombeFrench French (western and southwestern): topographic name for someone living in or near a ravine, from la combe ‘the ravine’ (a word of Gaulish origin, related to English Combe).... [more]
LafitteFrench French: topographic name for someone who lived near a boundary mark, Old French fitte (Late Latin fixta petra ‘fixed stone’, from the past participle of figere ‘to fix or fasten’), or habitational name from any of several places in western France named with this word
LafontFrench topographic name for someone living near a spring or well a variant of Font with fused feminine definite article la.
LafrenièreFrench Topographic name derived from French frenière meaning "place of ash trees". It is often Americanised as Freeman.
LagardeFrench Habitational name from Lagarde or La Garde names of several places in various parts of France named in Old French with garde "watch protection" (see Garde).
LagrangeFrench Means "the granary" in French, a topographic name for someone who lived by a granary or a habitational name for someone who lived in Lagrange or similar in France, all derived from Old French grange "granary, barn" (see Grange) combined with the definite article la... [more]
LahaieFrench Locational name for someone who lived near a hedge or large bush, from old French "La" the and "Haie" hedge.
LahayeFrench, Walloon topographic name with the definite article la from Old French haye "hedge" (see Haye ) or a habitational name from La Haye the name of several places in various parts of France and in Belgium (Wallonia) named with this word... [more]
LakemanDutch Either a topographic name for someone who lived by a lake or pond, from Middle Dutch lake "lake, pool; stream, marshland" and man "person, man", or an occupational name from laken "broadcloth".
LalondeFrench, French (Quebec) Habitational name from any of various places in Normandy called La Londe, from the French definite article la with Old Norse lundr meaning "grove"... [more]
LamDutch, North Frisian Means "lamb" in Dutch, a habitational name for someone who lived by a sign depicting a lamb or a place named for them. In some cases, it may derive from the name of a ship.
LançonFrench Can be a habitational name from any of several locations in France, a diminutive form of Lance, or possibly derived from Old French lançon "branch", a topographic name for someone living in a forested area or an occupational name for a woodcutter... [more]
LandeFrench, Norwegian, Jewish French: topographic name for someone living on a heath, lande (from Gaulish landa ‘space’, ‘land’), or a habitational name from any of numerous minor places named La Lande from this word.... [more]
LandenBelgian Belgian habitational name from Landen in Brabant.
LandonFrench Either from the given name Landon the French cognate of Lando. Or a habitational name from a place so named (from a diminutive of lande "heath") in Creuse.
LangendonckDutch, Belgian A habitational name derived from lang "long, elongated" and donk "sandy hill".
LangerakDutch A habitational name from any of several places called Langerak, derived from lang "long" and rak "straight section of a waterway".
LannesFrench From the French word landes meaning “heathlands” or “moorlands.” This was the surname of one of Napoleon’s marshals.
LardinoisFrench Originally denoted a person from the Ardennes, a forest-covered region situated in Belgium and Luxembourg, extending into Germany and France. A notable bearer of this name was the Dutch politician and diplomat Pierre Lardinois (1924-1987).
LarivièreFrench (Modern) From the region of Bourgoigne, in France, meaning 'the river'. The name is likely a topographic reference to the physical location, likely a river in this case.
LaroseFrench Topographic name for someone who lived at a place where wild roses grew; or a habitational name from a town house bearing the sign of a rose. It may also have been a nickname for a man with a ‘rosy’ complexion, as well as a nickname of a soldier... [more]
LatourFrench Either a topographic name for someone who lived near a tower usually a defensive fortification or watchtower from Old French tūr "tower"; or a habitational name from any of various places called Latour or La Tour named with this word.
LebaronFrench Either a variant of Baron "baron" with the French masculine definite article le. Or a habitational name from Le Baron the name of several places in various parts of France.
Le BretonFrench Describes someone from the French region Breton.
LeegstraDutch Probably derived from either leeg "empty, hollow" or laag "low" combined with the West Frisian suffix -stra.
LeeuwenkampDutch Possibly from an unknown place name meaning "lion's camp" in Dutch.
LefrançoisFrench From the given name François. It may also mean "the Frenchman", probably used to denote someone who came from the region of Île de France in France.
LessardFrench Name for someone who lived in a clearing, derived from French l'essart meaning "the assart" (a term for cleared forest land used for agriculture). It is also a habitational name for someone from any of various locations named Lessard or Lessart, of the same origin and meaning.
LhommeFrench From the name of the commune of Lhomme, located in the Sarthe department in northwestern France.
LichtGerman, Dutch, Yiddish Means "light" or "candle". Could be an occupational name for a chandler, a topographic name for someone who lived in a clearing (see Lichte), or a nickname for someone who had light hair, or who was agile and slender.
LiemDutch Habitual surname for Lieme in Eastphalia, which is from lim meaning "mire".
LieshoutDutch Originally indicated a person from the village of Lieshout in the province of North-Brabant, Netherlands. It is possibly derived from either Dutch lies meaning "great manna grass" (a grasslike plant that grows near riverbanks and ponds) or Middle Dutch lese meaning "track, furrow", combined with hout meaning "forest".
LillardBelgian Habitational name from either of two places called Li(e)laar, in Gavere and Sint-Maria-Oudenhove, East Flanders.
LimogesFrench From the city and various places in France of the same name called Limoges.
LindeGerman, Dutch, Jewish, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish Derived from Middle Hugh German, Dutch linde or Scandinavian lind "lime tree". Almost exclusively ornamental in Swedish, otherwise probably habitational. There are also a number of feminine names containing the element lind, for example Linda, Dietlinde and Gerlinde, and it's possible that the surname is derived from any of those names.
LindenbergGerman, Jewish, Dutch As a German and Jewish name, it is derived from any of numerous places called Lindenberg in Germany, composed of Middle High German linde meaning "lime tree" and berg meaning "mountain, hill"... [more]
ListratFrench From Occitan "listrat" meaning "chopped off, striped" or from "Listrac", a commune in the Gironde department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of southwest France.
LocheFrench From the Old French word loche meaning "freshwater fish."
LokerseDutch Possibly a patronymic form of a given name such as Lokke, or a habitational name from a place using the Middle Dutch element loken "to close, shut, fence" (compare Lock).
LombardFrench, English, South African French and English cognate of Lombardi, or derived from the given name Lambert. A famous bearer of this name was the American actress Carole Lombard (1908-1942), born Jane Alice Peters.
LooDutch, German Means "clearing" in Dutch and North German.
LorraineFrench, English, Scottish Habitational name from Lorraine a region in the northeastern part of France. Its name derives from the name of the medieval kingdom of Lothari Regnum which in turn was named for its sovereign Lothar (a personal name composed of the elements hlud "famous renowned" and hari/heri "army").
LottFrench From the Department (Region/State)in France, "Lot" and "Lot-et-Garrone"; also a river in France (Lot). Brought to the British Isles, Holland (Netherlands) and later the United States, Canada and South Africa, by French Huguenots.
LuchtGerman, Dutch Topographic name from Lucht "cleared area, garden", ultimately from Old German leuhtą "light".
LyéFrench A habitational name from places named Lié located in Deux-Sèvres and Vendée.
MaineFrench French topographic name from Old French maine ‘dwelling’, ‘residence’, ‘abode’, or a habitational name from any of numerous places so named.
MaiselYiddish, German, French Predominantly seems to be a matronymic surname from the Yiddish feminine name Mayzl. Although it is believed that it derived from the Hebrew name Meïser, which means “representative of God”... [more]
MalpassEnglish, Scottish, French Habitational name from any of various places named Malpas, because of the difficulty of the terrain, from Old French mal pas "bad passage" (Latin malus passus). It is a common French minor place name, and places in Cheshire, Cornwall, Gwent, and elsewhere in England were given this name by Norman settlers... [more]
MandevilleFrench, English, Irish French habitational name from Mandeville the name of two places in Normandy derived from Latin magnavilla "large estate" or a variant of Manneville a habitational name from Manneville the name of several places in Normandy... [more]
ManvilleFrench A locational surname deriving from any of the various places in France called "Manneville or Magneville", named, from the Old Germanic personal name "Manno" or the Old French adjective "magne", great, with the word "ville", meaning a town or settlement.
MaquetFrench From a derivative of bac meaning "tub", also meaning "ferry", used as a metonymic occupational name for a maker or for a boatman. Also a habitational name from Le Baquet, the name of several places in various parts of France.
MarkEnglish, German, Dutch Topographic name for someone who lived on a boundary between two districts, from Old High German marka "border, boundary, march". The German term also denotes an area of fenced-off land (see Marker) and, like the English word, is embodied in various place names which have given rise to habitational names.
MaroisNorman, Picard, French topographic name from the Old French words "mareis", "maresc", mareis, marois meaning "marsh" ‘marshy ground’.
MarsmanDutch Derived from Middle Dutch marsch, mersch (Southern Dutch meers), meaning "marsh". In some cases, however, it can also be a variant of Meersman.
MaryFrench Habitational name from places in Saône-et-Loire, Seine-et-Marne, and Nièvre, named in Latin as Mariacum meaning "estate of Marius".
MaseyEnglish, Scottish, French, Norman English and Scottish (of Norman origin) and French: habitational name from any of various places in northern France which get their names from the Gallo-Roman personal name Maccius + the locative suffix -acum.... [more]
MastenbroekDutch Originally indicated a person from the polder area of Mastenbroek in the Dutch province of Overijssel, as well as a small village built around a church in the middle of that polder area. The place names derive from Middle Dutch mast meaning "pole, mast" or "pig feed, fodder" combined with broek meaning "marsh, wetland".
MathenyFrench (Anglicized) Of French origin. According to Matheny family tradition, this surname comes from the name of a village in France named Mathenay. This may also have been a French Huguenot surname.
MattenFlemish Could derive from a short form of a given name such as Matthias or Mathilde, or be a toponym derived from either Middle High German mata "meadow" or French motte "clod, mound of earth".
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).
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.
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.
MondriaanDutch Meaning uncertain. It is a variant of the surname Mondriaal, which could possibly be a Dutch cognate of Monreal, meaning "royal mountain". This was the real surname of the Dutch-American painter Piet Mondrian (1872-1944).
MondrianDutch Variant of Mondriaan. A notable bearer was the Dutch-American abstract painter Piet Mondrian (1872-1944), born Pieter Cornelis Mondriaan Jr. (He changed his name in 1912, dropping the extra a from his surname).
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).
MoranvilleFrench Habitational name from a commune in France named Moranville, derived from French personal name Morand and ville "town, city".
MorshuisDutch Probably derived from Old Dutch mor "swamp, marsh, peat" and huis "house, home".
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]
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]
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.
NancyFrench Habitational name from a city named Nancy (Meurthe-et-Moselle).
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]
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.
NederhorstDutch From the name of the village of Nederhorst den Berg in North Holland, the Netherlands. It means "lower height, lower hill" in Dutch, derived from neder "lower" and horst "overgrown elevated place"... [more]
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".
OldenhaveDutch From the name of a small village in the province of Drenthe, Holland, composed of Dutch oud and hoeve, meaning "old farm".
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]
OnstenkDutch Derived from a place name, ultimately composed of on- "un-, bad" and stede "city, town" combined with the possessive suffix -ink.
OosterhoutDutch From the name of various places in the Netherlands, derived from ooster "eastern" and hout "wood, forest".
OosterwegelDutch From Dutch ooster meaning "eastern, east" and weg meaning "way, path, road". Dutch track and field athlete Emma Oosterwegel (1998-) bears this name.
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]
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]
OverbeekeDutch Means "over the creek", from Dutch over "over, above" and beek "brook, creek".
OverduinDutch Means "over the dune" in Dutch, derived from any of several place names.
OvermarsDutch Means "over the marsh", derived from Middle Dutch over meaning "over, above" and marsch meaning "marsh". A famous bearer of this name is the former Dutch soccer player Marc Overmars (1973-).
OverpeltDutch From the name of a town in Limburg, Belgium, meaning "above the pelt" (see Van Pelt).
PannekoekDutch Means "pancake" in Dutch, possibly a nickname for someone who made or liked to eat pancake. Alternatively, it could derive from a place name, such as an inn or field named for pancakes.
ParadisFrench From a learned variant of Old French pareis "Paradise" (from Greek paradeisos). As a toponym this was applied to verdant places and it is quite common as a place name in Nord and Normandy; the surname therefore can be a topographic or habitational name.
PathéFrench Meaning, "Dweller near an important path or footway."
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".
PenningEnglish, Dutch, Low German From early Middle English penning, Low German penning, and Middle Dutch penninc, all meaning "penny". It was used as a topographic surname from the name of a field, or a nickname referring to tax dues of one penny.
PercheFrench Derived from a former province of the south of Normandy, and extending into Orleanois.
PijnenburgDutch From the name of an estate or hamlet called Pijnenburg in the town of Soest in Utrecht, Holland, composed of Middle Dutch pijn meaning "pine tree" and burg meaning "fortress, manor, mansion".
PinFrench A topographic name for someone living by a pine tree or in a pine forest, or a habitational name from a place named with the Old French word pin, meaning "pine, pine tree".
PineauFrench Either a diminutive of Pin from Old French pin "pine" or a habitational name from (Le) Pineau the name of several places in the western part of France of the same origin.
PinochetBasque, French, Spanish Derived from Basque pinoche meaning "pine cone". Alternately, it could be derived from the name of the hamlet of Pinouchet, located in the Gironde department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of France... [more]
PlainFrench from Old French plain an adjective meaning "flat" and a noun meaning "plain" hence a topographic name denoting e.g. a dwelling on a flat terrain.
PoilièvreFrench, French (Quebec) Meaning uncertain, possibly from French pois aux lièvres "yellow pea, split pea" or a combination of French poil "hair" and lièvre "hare", denoting a furrier.
PolDutch From Middle Dutch pol "tussock, grassy hill; area of raised ground in a fen".
PolandEnglish, German, French (Anglicized), Irish (Anglicized) English and German name is derived from the Middle High German Polan, which means "Poland". The surname originally signified a person with Polish connections.This French surname originated from an occupational name of a poultry breeder, or from a fearful person; it is derived from the Old French poule, which means "chicken".In other cases, particularly in Ireland, the English Poland is a variant of Polin,which is in turn an Anglicised form of the original Gaelic spelling of Mac Póilín, which translated from Irish means "son of little Paul"... [more]
PoortmanDutch Occupational name for a gatekeeper or topographic name for someone who lived near the gates of a fortified town, from Dutch poort "gate" and man "man, person".
PoortvlietDutch From the name of the village and former municipality called Poortvliet in the province of Zeeland in the Netherlands, derived from Middle Dutch port meaning "port, harbour, storage yard, city" and vliet meaning "brook, stream, river, creek, inlet"... [more]
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]
PortugalSpanish, Portuguese, English, Catalan, French, Jewish Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, English, French, and Jewish surname meaning ethnic name or regional name for someone from Portugal or who had connections with Portugal. The name of the country derives from Late Latin Portucale, originally denoting the district around Oporto (Portus Cales, named with Latin portus ‘port’, ‘harbor’ + Cales, the ancient name of the city)... [more]
PostmaWest Frisian, Dutch West Frisian variant of the Dutch and North German surname Posthumus, given to a child born after their father’s death. It could also be a variant of the habitational name Post or an occupational name for a mailman or guard, using the Frisian suffix -ma.
PotDutch From Middle Dutch pot "pot, jar", an occupational name for a potter, or perhaps a toponymic surname referring to a low-lying piece of land.
PottierFrench A variant of the french word for potter, potier.... [more]
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]
PrivettFrench, English, Welsh (?) French, from the given name Privat (see Privatus). Also an English habitational name from a place so named in Hampshire, derived from Old English pryfet "privet".
PujolCatalan, French Catalan and French variant of Puig. Spanish tennis player Marcel Granollers (1986-) bears this name.
PuseyFrench Habitational name form Pusey in Haute-Saône, so named from a Gallo-Roman personal name, Pusius, + the locative suffix -acum.
QuackenboschDutch Topographic name meaning "night heron woodlands" in Dutch, from Dutch kwak "night heron" and bosch "woodland wilderness". This surname is now extinct in the Netherlands.
RangerEnglish, German, French English: occupational name for a gamekeeper or warden, from Middle English ranger, an agent derivative of range(n) ‘to arrange or dispose’.... [more]
RavelFrench, French (African) Derived from either a place called Ravel in the district of Drome or Provence, or from the word 'rave' meaning a root vegetable, and hence a grower or seller of such items.
RavenEnglish, Dutch From a variety of sources all ultimately derived from the name of the bird. Could be a patronymic form of a given name such as Raven, Hraban, or Walraven; from a nickname referring to dark hair or thieving tendencies; or from a toponym derived from a given name.
RavenelEnglish, French Habitational name from Ravenel in Oise or a metonymic occupational name for a grower or seller of horseradish, from a diminutive of Old French ravene ‘horseradish’ (Latin raphanus)... [more]
RavenswaaijDutch From the name of a village in Gelderland, Netherlands, meaning "Raven’s ford", derived from the personal name Raven combined with Old Dutch wade "ford, shallows", later reinterpreted as Middle Dutch way "pool, kolk lake".
ReeseLow German, Dutch, German Variant of Riese or Reus, from risi meaning "giant". Alternatively, could be a patronymic form of the Germanic given name Razo, derived from rēdaz "counsel, advise", or a habitational name from places called Rees or Reese in Rhineland and Lower Saxony.
ReilleFrench, Occitan Topographic name derived from Old Occitan relha meaning "plowshare", or a habitational name from any of several places named Reille or La Reille in southern France. A notable bearer was Honoré Charles Reille (1775-1860), a Marshal of France during the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars.
RelyeaGerman, French (Anglicized) Altered spelling of southern German and French Rellier, or probably a regional variant of Swiss German Reller, especially in the western provinces of Austria... [more]
RevereEnglish, French, Judeo-Italian French: variant of Rivière, Rivoire, or Rivier, topographic name for someone living on the banks of a river, French rivier ‘bank’, or habitational name from any of the many places in France named with this word.... [more]
RheimsFrench From the city of Reims in France, also known as Rheims in English.
RhineGerman, French, English, Irish A habitational name for an individual whom lived within close proximity of the River Rhine (see Rhein). The river name is derived from a Celtic word meaning 'to flow' (Welsh redan, 'flow').... [more]
RibéryFrench Indicated a person from La Ribeyre, a town in the Auvergne region of France, which translates to "the riverbank". The former French soccer player Franck Ribéry (1983-) is a famous bearer of this name.
RigoletFrench Means "creek" in French. From (American) French rigole (“rivulet”), from Old French regol.
RijlaarsdamDutch Derived from Reguliersdam, a dam named for a nearby monastery from Old French reguler "ecclesiastical, subject to religious or monastic rule".
RochelleFrench, English habitational name from La Rochelle the name of several places in various parts of France especially that in Manche from a diminutive of Old French roche "rock cliff promontory"... [more]
RockettFrench From the French "la roche," or "of the rock." Some family histories trace this back to French Hugenots (sp) who immigrated to England in the 1500's from the Normandy region of France.
RoestDutch Habitational name derived from Old Dutch roest "reed bed, rush forest". Alternatively, from Dutch roest "rust", a nickname for a red-haired person.
RoosEstonian, Swedish, Danish, Dutch, German (Swiss), Low German Means "rose" in Estonian and Dutch. Swedish and Danish variant of Ros, also meaning "rose". This could be a locational name for someone living near roses, an occupational name for someone who grew roses, or a nickname for someone with reddish skin.
RootDutch From Dutch root, a derivative of roten "to ret", a topographic name for someone who lived by a retting place, a place where flax is soaked in tubs of water until the stems rot to release the linen fibers.
RosenboomDutch From Dutch rozeboom meaning "rose tree", a habitational name for someone who lived near such a tree or a sign depicting one, or who come from the neighbourhood Rozenboom.