AbajianArmenian The surname Abjian is a patronymic from Turkish abacι ‘maker or seller of coarse woolen cloth or garments’, from aba ‘coarse woolen cloth’.
AbakeliaGeorgian Georgian surname used by sculptor Tamar Abakelia and physician Ioseb Abakelia.
AbkhazavaGeorgian, Mingrelian Most likely from Georgian აფხაზი (apkhazi) meaning "Abkhaz". Alternately, it may be from the Adjaran (Muslim) given name Abkhas, derived from Arabic أب ('ab) meaning "father" and خاص (khas) meaning "special, particular".
AbkhaziGeorgian Means "Abkhaz person" in Georgian, referring to a member of the Abkhaz ethnic group inhabiting the Black Sea coast. This was the name of a Georgian family of princely status descended from the Shervashidze ruling family of Abkhazia.
AdleibaAbkhaz Most likely from the given name Adlei, itself derived from Arabic عَادِل (ʿādil) meaning "fair, just", combined with Abkhaz аҧа (āpā) meaning "son"... [more]
ƏfəndiyevAzerbaijani Means "son of the effendi" from the Ottoman title افندي (efendi) meaning "lord, master".
AgassiArmenian, Persian, Italian The surname Agassi most likely evolved from a nickname for someone resembling a mappie, perhaps jokingly referred to as chattering or nagging person. ... [more]
AğayevAzerbaijani Means "son of the ağa", from the Turkish title ağa meaning "lord, master".
AgrbaAbkhaz Most likely derived from Abkhaz агыруа (ā́gər-uā) meaning "Mingrelian, farm labourer, serf", historically used to refer to the Mingrelians, an ethic sub-group of the Georgians. Alternatively, it could be from Abkhaz агара (āgārā) meaning "to take" or "to bring"... [more]
Al-ShishaniArabic, Chechen (Expatriate) Means "the Chechen" in Arabic. This was adopted by Chechens who migrated to the Arab world from the Caucasus.
AltounianArmenian Meaning unknown. A famous bearer was Roger Altounyan (1922-1987), Anglo-Armenian physician and the namesake of Roger in the Swallows and Amazons books series.
AndronikashviliGeorgian Means "son of Andronikos". This was the name of a Georgian family of nobility that claimed descent from Andronikos I, the emperor of the Byzantine Empire from 1183-1185.
ArshbaAbkhaz Most likely from a contracted form of Arabic أَرْشَد (ʾaršad) meaning "most sensible, most reasonable" or Persian ارشد (arshad) "senior, superior, eldest" combined with Abkhaz аԥа (āpā) "son".
AushevIngush (Russified) Russified form of an Ingush surname derived from Nakh ауш (aush) or аус (aus) literally meaning "rock, slope", figuratively meaning "strong, solid, confident".
AvidzbaAbkhaz Derived from Georgian ავი (avi) meaning "currish, severe, sullen" combined with ძე (dze) "son" and Abkhaz аԥа (āpā) "son". The name was most likely borne by Georgians under the spelling Avidze, which was modified with the Abkhaz suffix -ba after migration to Abkhazia.
BagrationiGeorgian Means "son of Bagrat" in Georgian. This was the name of a royal dynasty that ruled Georgia from the Middle Ages to the 19th century.
BarchoCircassian Possibly derived from an Adyghe word meaning "band, lace", referring to someone who made ropes or binding tapes, or from a Chechen word referring to a tailor.
BazzatyOssetian Derived from Georgian ბაზი (bazi) meaning "falcon" or from a given name derived from Tatar базу (bazu) meaning "to dare" (given in hopes that a son would become a warrior).
BestautyOssetian Derived from Ossetian бистэ (biste) meaning "village, suburb" or from Persian به (beh) meaning "good, excellent, better". In the case of the former, it would have been used to indicate the place of residence of an ancestor.
BulguchevIngush (Russified) Russified form of an Ingush surname derived from the name of an Ingush teip (clan). The clan's name is derived from the name Bulguch of unknown meaning.
DiasamidzeGeorgian Means "son of Diasami", from a Georgian given name of unknown meaning, perhaps meaning "master" or derived from Abkhaz дәаӡа (dwaʒa) meaning "uncultivated land, virgin soil" (thus used to refer to someone who plowed land)... [more]
DonabedianArmenian Patronymic from classical Armenian tōnapet meaning ‘head of a festival’.
DudayevChechen, Ossetian (Russified) Russified form of a Chechen and Ossetian family name of disputed meaning; the name may be derived from Ossetian дудахъхъ (dudaqq) meaning "bustard", from Ingush тат (tat) meaning "Mountain Jew", or from Circassian дадэ (dade) meaning "grandfather" or "king, head, chief"... [more]
DzagoevOssetian (Russified) Russified form of the Ossetian surname Зæгъойты (Zægoyty), which came from the nickname Dzagoy. The name was probably from Ossetian дзаг (dzag) meaning "full, complete", ultimately derived from Persian چاق (čâq) meaning "fat".
DzharimovCircassian (Russified) Russified form of a Circassian name possibly from Adyghe джары (ǯ̍ārə) meaning "that is" combined with мэ (mă) meaning "this" or "smell". A notable bearer is Aslan Dzharimov (1936-), the former President of the Adyghe Republic from 1992-2002.
DzugaevOssetian (Russified) Probably derived from Dzuga, the name of a past ancestor and the founder of the family/clan of uncertain meaning, though it could have been used to refer to a shepherd or herder if derived from Iron Ossetian дзуг (dzug) meaning "flock, herd (of sheep or cattle)".
EvloevIngush (Russified) Russified form of an Ingush name, which is derived from Yovloy, the name of an Ingush teip (clan), which is of unknown meaning. It may be from the name of the Alans, a medieval Iranian nomadic group (the word itself derived from Sanskrit आर्य (ā́rya) meaning "noble, honourable") or from Adyghe елъы (ełăə) meaning "to sharpen" combined with елъэ (ełă) meaning "to jump over".
GabaratyOssetian Derived from Алгуз (Alguz), an earlier Ossetian family name of unknown meaning. Historically, the last of the Alguz family migrated to the village of Zalda (located in present-day South Ossetia), where most members of the family presently reside.
GandaloevIngush (Russified) Russified form of the Ingush clan name Гӏоандалой (Ghoandaloy), derived from the name of the ancient village of Gandaloy in present-day Ingushetia.
GarabedianArmenian Means "son of Garabed", an Armenian personal name meaning literally "leader, precursor" and traditionally used as an epithet of John the Baptist in the Armenian church.
GazdantyOssetian Possibly derived from Arabic غَازِي (ḡāzī) meaning "hero, champion".
GazdievIngush (Russified), Ossetian (Russified) Russified form of an Ingush and Ossetian surname derived from the name of an Ingush teip (clan) of unknown meaning, possibly of Turkic origin. The name is mainly found in present-day Ingushetia and North Ossetia-Alania.