LillyEnglish Derived from Lilly, a pet name for Elizabeth. It was also used as a nickname for someone with fair skin or hair, and is derived from Old English lilie meaning "lily (the flower)"... [more]
LillywhiteEnglish From a medieval nickname for someone with very fair hair or complexion. It was borne by English cricketers James Lillywhite (1842-1929), first captain of England, and William Lillywhite (1792-1854), pioneer of overarm bowling, uncle of James... [more]
LilyEnglish Derived from Lily, a pet name for Elizabeth. It was also used as a nickname for someone with fair skin or hair, and is derived from Old English lilie meaning "lily (the flower)"... [more]
LimbachGerman Derived from any of numerous places in Germany named with Germanic lindo meaning "lime tree" and bach meaning "stream". Several of these places are in areas such as the Palatinate, which contributed heavily to early German immigration to the United States.
LindberghSwedish (Rare), English (Rare) Rare variant spelling of Lindberg. A famous bearer was American aviator Charles Lindbergh (1902-1974) who was the first person to fly non-stop from America to mainland Europe in 1927.
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.
LindenbaumGerman, Jewish topographic name for someone who lived by a lime tree Lindenbaum or a topographic or habitational name referring to a house distinguished by the sign of a lime tree. Derived from the elements linta "linden" and boum "tree".
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]
LindenmeyerGerman Habitational name for the tenant of a farm identified by a lime tree, derived from Middle High German linde meaning "lime tree" and meier meaning "tenant farmer".
LinderGerman Derived from the German word linde, which means lime tree.
LindhagenSwedish Combination of Swedish lind "lime tree" and hage "enclosed pasture". Carl Lindhagen was the Chief Magistrate of Stockholm in the early 1900s.
LindleyEnglish, German English habitational name from either of two places in West Yorkshire called Lindley, or from Linley in Shropshire and Wiltshire, all named from Old English lin ‘flax’ + leah ‘wood’, ‘glade’, with epenthetic -d-, or from another Lindley in West Yorkshire (near Otley), named in Old English as ‘lime wood’, from lind ‘lime tree’ + leah ‘woodland clearing’... [more]
LindstedtSwedish Combination of Swedish lind "lime tree" and stad "town, city" (spelling possibly influenced by German Stadt, also meaning "town, city").
LineEnglish Americanized form of German Lein: occupational name for a grower of or dealer in flax from Middle High German līn, meaning “flax”.... [more]
LinekerEnglish From a place name composed of Old English lin meaning "flax" and æcer meaning "field". A famous bearer is retired English soccer player Gary Lineker (1960-).
LinelinGerman (Americanized) Of German origin, an anglicization of German "Leinlindt", which is a combination of surnames Lein meaning "linen" and Lindt meaning "gentle".
LinfordEnglish habitational name from Great and Little Linford in Buckinghamshire or Lynford in Norfolk. The former may have Old English hlyn "maple" as its first element; the latter is more likely to contain lin "flax" or alternatively the first element may relate to the river Lynn... [more]
LinleyEnglish This surname can be derived from a place of the same name in Shropshire, which is derived from Old English lín meaning "flax, linen" and leah meaning "clearing." As a modern surname, it can also be a variant of Lindley (Lindley is used in 2 places in Yorkshire), which is derived from Old English lind meaning "lime tree" and leah.
LinnGerman Toponymic surname derived from Germanic lin "swamp, bog, marsh".
LinnGerman Derived from the given name Linto, a short form of names containing the element lind "soft, flexible".
LinnGerman (Silesian), Jewish (Ashkenazi) Derived from the Slavic word lin "tench (fish)", a nickname for a fisherman, or for a person who somehow resembled a tench.
LinnaeusSwedish (Rare) Latinized form of Lind. A famous bearer was Swedish botanist Carl Linneaus (b. 1707 - d. 1778). His father adopted the name Linnaeus after a big lime tree (lind in Swedish) that grew on the family homestead in Vittaryd parish, Småland.
LinneyEnglish From an Old English female personal name Lindgifu, Lindgeofu, composed of the elements lind ‘lime (wood)’, i.e. ‘shield’ (a transferred sense) + gifu, geofu ‘gift’.
LinzmeyerGerman, Portuguese (Brazilian) Means "bailiff of Linz, Austria" in German, derived from Proto-Celtic *lentos (“bend”) and Middle High German meier meaning "bailiff, administrator", derived from Latin maior meaning "greater".... [more]
LionsEnglish Variant of Lyons influencd by the spelling of the word lion
LippincottEnglish A habitational name meaning "of Luffincott," a parish in Devon, England. Named from Old English uncertain first element + cot ‘cottage’.
LippsGerman Derived from Lippe, a place in Westphalia, Germany. The name is a variant of the first name Philipp.
LipschitzGerman, Jewish The name is derived from the Slavic "lipa," meaning "linden tree" or "lime tree." The name may relate to a number of different place names: "Liebeschitz," the name of a town in Bohemia, "Leipzig," the name of a famous German city, or "Leobschutz," the name of a town in Upper Silesia.
LischkeGerman A German surname of slavic origin. A historic bearer was Johann Lischke, a German Protestant reformer in the 16th century. The name may come from the German word “Lisch,” which can refer to a marshy or wetland area.
LitherlandEnglish From a place name: either Litherland in Merseyside or Uplitherland in Lancashire. The place names themselves derive from Old Norse hlið "hillside, slope" (genitive form hliðar) and Old English land "land".
LittlewoodEnglish Habitational name for a person from any of the various minor places in Yorkshire, derived from Old English lytel "small, little" and wudu "tree, wood".
LittmanGerman (East Prussian), German (West Prussian), German, Jewish Derived from Germanized Czech personal names like Litomir (Czech: Ljutomir) and Litobor (Czech: Ljutobor) which ultimately go back to Old Slavic ljutu "grim; fierce; ferocious; wild". One theory suggests, however, that these given names might have been influenced by ljub- "love; dear".... [more]
LivelyEnglish A modern English surname possibly derived from a lost village called Laefer-leah which would give it the meaning "the farm by the lake".... [more]
LivelyEnglish From a nickname for a lively person, from Middle English lifly.
LivengoodGerman The surname LIVENGOOD is the Americanized version of Leibendgut. Leibengut is Swiss-German in origin. It has been written as Livengood and Levengood in America. Records show the family name back to 1550, in Aarwangen, Canton of Berne, Switzerland... [more]
LivermoreEnglish Derived from Old English lifer "rush reed, muddy water" and mere "lake".
LiverpoolEnglish Derived from Old English lifer "rush reed, muddy water" and pol "pool".
LivingstonEnglish, Scottish This surname is thought to be derived from Middle English Levingestun meaning "Leving's town" or "Leving's settlement."
LoamEnglish 1 English and Scottish: unexplained. The name is recorded in both England and Scotland. It may be a variant of Scottish Lour, a habitational name from Lour, formerly a part of the parish of Meathielour.... [more]
LöbeGerman Variant of Löwe from Middle High German lēwelöuwe "lion" hence a nickname for a brave or regal person. In some cases the surname may have been a topographic or habitational name referring to a house or inn distinguished by the sign of a lion.
LockhartScottish, German Scottish: of uncertain origin, probably from a Germanic personal name composed of the elements loc ‘lock’, ‘bolt’ + hard ‘hardy’, ‘brave’, ‘strong’. English: occupational name for a herdsman in charge of a sheep or cattlefold, from Old English loc ‘enclosure’, ‘fold’ + hierde ‘herd(er)’.
LockyerEnglish Variant of Locklear. Lockyer is an occupational name of anglo-saxon origin meaning "locksmith".
LodgeEnglish Local name for someone who lived in a small cottage or temporary dwelling, Middle English logge (Old French loge, of Germanic origin). The term was used in particular of a cabin erected by masons working on the site of a particular construction project, such as a church or cathedral, and so it was probably in many cases equivalent to an occupational name for a mason... [more]
LoenNorwegian Loen is a Norwegian place name derived from Old Norse Ló, meaning “flat land” or “meadow,” referencing fertile, flat areas near water, often used for farming in ancient times.
LoescherGerman German variant of Löscher, an occupational name for a fireman, from Middle High German leschen ‘to extinguish’. Als a variant of Loesch and Lescher or a derivative of Loesche.
LöfströmSwedish Combination of Swedish löv "leaf" and ström "stream".
LoftEnglish Possibly an occupational name for a servant who worked in the upper chamber of a household, from Middle English lofte "upper chamber, attic".
LöfvénSwedish (Rare) Combination of Swedish löv "leaf" and the common surname suffix -én, a derivative of Latin -enius "descendant of". Stefan Löfven (b. 1957) is a Swedish politician and the prime minister of Sweden since 2014.
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).
LomasEnglish, Scottish, Scottish Gaelic Variant spelling of "Lomax", meaning a steam pool devoted from Lumhalghs, Lancs. Also variant spelling of "Lennox", meaning Elmwood in Gaelic.
LomaxEnglish Lomax is a territorial surname, derived from the hamlet of Lumhalghs, near Bury, Greater Manchester, and meaning "pool nook" or "recess". Notable persons with the surname Lomax include: Alan Lomax (1915–2002) American musicologist, son of John Avery Lomax... [more]
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.
LomholtDanish From the name of a farm/estate in Vejlby Parish, Denmark.
LongbottomEnglish, Literature, Popular Culture English (West Yorkshire) topographic name for someone who lived in a long valley, from Middle English long + botme, bothem ‘valley bottom’. Given the surname’s present-day distribution, Longbottom in Luddenden Foot, West Yorkshire, may be the origin, but there are also two places called Long Bottom in Hampshire, two in Wiltshire, and Longbottom Farm in Somerset and in Wiltshire.
LongfellowEnglish From a nickname for a tall person, derived from Middle English lang "long, tall" and felawe "fellow, companion, colleague". A famous bearer of the name was American poet and educator Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882)
LongfieldEnglish Derived from Old English lang "long" and feld "field".
LongleyEnglish Geographic name referring to multiple places by the same name in Yorkshire, England. The name comes from the word "long" plus Old English leáh "meadow".
LonsdaleEnglish Habitational name from the district of Lonsdale (straddling Lancashire Yorkshire and Westmorland) and also from Lonsdale in Great Ayton (North Yorkshire). The district takes its name from the river Lune (of uncertain origin) annd Old English dæl "valley"... [more]
LooDutch, German Means "clearing" in Dutch and North German.
LordEnglish A surname derived from someone of a lordly manner, or perhaps one who had earned the title in some contest of skill or had played the part of the ‘Lord of Misrule’ in the Yuletide festivities.... [more]
LorimerEnglish, Scottish Occupational name for a maker or seller of bits and other metal parts of a horse's bridle, and other metal pieces, derived from Old French lorain "tackle, harness".
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").
LortonEnglish habitational name from any of the places so named in Cumbria probably so named from an Old English river name Hlóra meaning "the roaring one" and Old English tun "settlement".
LöschLow German, Upper German North German metonymic occupational name for a maker of fine leather, from Middle Low German losche ‘fine leather’. South German variant of Lesch (see Loesch).
LothropEnglish Habitational name from Lowthorpe in East Yorkshire named with the Old Norse personal name Logi and þrop "outlying farmstead".
LotsijDutch Apparently a Dutchified form of the Polish surname Illotzki.
LotspeichEnglish possibly from Bavarian lott ‘mud’ + speich ‘spittle’, ‘moist dirt’, either a topographic name for someone who lived on land in a muddy area or a nickname for someone who had a dirty appearance... [more]
LottEnglish Nickname for someone who owned an allotted share of land, derived from Middle English lot "portion, plot of land".
LoudEnglish from the English word "loud", given to a loud or, in jest, quiet person
LoudermilkGerman In German the word “lauter” translates into English as “pure” and the German word “milch” translates into English as “milk”. This surname belonged to those who worked in the dairy industry.
LoudonScottish, English (Canadian) This surname is Scottish, although also recorded in England. It is believed to be locational from the village of Loudoun, in the district of Cunningham, in the county of Ayrshire. The placename is composed of the Northern English word "low", meaning a flame or beacon, itself from the pre 7th century Norse word "loge", plus the Gaelic "doun", meaning a hill... [more]
LouisvilleEnglish From the name of the largest city of Louisville in the U.S. state of Kentucky. The city was named for the 18th-century King Louis XVI of France, whose soldiers were then aiding Americans in the Revolutionary War.
LovecraftEnglish An English surname coming from the Old English lufu, meaning "love, desire", and cæft, meaning "strength, skill".... [more]
LovedayEnglish Means either (i) "person particularly associated with a 'loveday'" (a day when, by custom, old differences were settled and reconciliations were made); or (ii) from the medieval female personal name Loveday, a descendant of Old English Leofdæg, literally "beloved day"... [more]
LovelandEnglish From the name of a farmstead in Devon, England, possibly derived from the Old English given name Leofa (or Lufa) combined with land "land, cultivated land, estate".