English Submitted Surnames

English names are used in English-speaking countries. See also about English names.
 more filters...
Submitted names are contributed by users of this website. The accuracy of these name definitions cannot be guaranteed.
NEEVE English, Scottish
An English surname, of Norman origin, meaning the nephew. One who was in care of their uncle. A surname first recorded in Perthshire.
NEIGHBOR English
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.
NEILSON English
Means "son of Neil". Often an English respelling of the surnames Nielsen or Nilsen.
NELVIN English (American)
Female named after her uncle who surname was Melvin. Born in Shreveport, Louisiana in 1931.
NEMIROW English
Is the English for the Russian/Ukrainian Surname Nemirov
NEMO English
A different form of Nimmo (a Scottish name of unknown origin).
NESBITT Scottish, 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.
NESTOR English
Transferred use of given name Nestor
NEVELS English, Scottish
(1) Variant of Neville (2) Possibly variant of Dutch Nevens, which is derived from Neve, from Middle English, Old Norse, Middle Dutch neve ‘nephew’, presumably denoting the nephew of some great personage.
NEVIL English
"Variant of the name Neville"
NEW English
Nickname for a newcomer to an area, from Middle English newe meaning "new".
NEWBORN English
Habitational name from Newbourn in Suffolk or Newburn in Tyne and Wear (formerly part of Northumberland), both named with Old English niwe "new" and burna "stream", perhaps denoting a stream that had changed its course.
NEWBROUGH English (British)
Newbrough surname is thought to be a habitational, taken on from a place name such as from Newbrough in Northumberland, which is derived from the Old English words niwe, meaning "new," and burh, meaning "fortification."
NEWBY English
Means "person from Newby", Newby being a combination of the Middle English elements newe "new" and by "farm, settlement" (ultimately from Old Norse býr "farm"). British travel writer Eric Newby (1919-2006) bore this surname.
NEWEY English
Topographic name for someone who lived at a "new enclosure", from Middle English newe "new" and haga "enclousire".
NEWHAM English
Habitational name from any of the various places, for example in Northumbria and North Yorkshire, so named from Old English neowe "new" and ham "homestead".
NEWLIN English, Irish
An Irish surname meaning "By the the spring"
NEWQUIST English
Americansized form of Swedish Nyquist.
NEY German, English
A dialectal form of the common German word neu "new".... [more]
NICKERSON English
Means "son of NICHOLAS".
NICKS English, German
From the nickname of Nicholas.
NICKSON English
Variant of Nixon, patronymic from the given name Nicholas.
NIGHTINGALE English
Nickname for someone with a good voice, from Middle English nighti(n)gale, Old English nihtegal, from niht "night" and galan "sing" (cf. NACHTIGALL).
NINE English (American)
Americanized spelling of German Nein or Neun, from Middle High German niun meaning "nine".
NOAR English
This surname is thought to be derived from nore which could mean "shore, cliff." This could denote that someone might have lived in a shore or cliff. It may also be used as a surname for someone who lived in the now 'diminished' village of Nore in Surrey.
NOBBS English
Derived from Hob, a Medieval English diminutive of Robert.
NOBLE English, Scottish, Irish, French
Nickname from Middle English, Old French noble "high-born, distinguished, illustrious" (Latin nobilis), denoting someone of lofty birth or character, or perhaps also ironically someone of low station... [more]
NOCK Celtic, English
Dweller at the oak tree; originally spelt as "Noake" evolved into "Nock".
NOICE English
Variant spelling of Noyce.
NOON English
Either (i) from a medieval nickname for someone of a sunny disposition (noon being the sunniest part of the day); or (ii) from Irish Gaelic Ó Nuadháin "descendant of Nuadhán", a personal name based on Nuadha, the name of various Celtic gods (cf... [more]
NORELL Swedish, English
Swedish ornamental name composed of norr "north" or nor "small strait" and the popular surname suffix -ell, from Latin adjectival suffix -elius. ... [more]
NORRELL English, German (?)
A locational surname from the Germanic (Old English/Old Norse) term for the north. It either refers to someone who lived in a location called Northwell, lived north of a well, spring or stream (Old English weall)... [more]
NORRINGTON English
Norrington is the name given to a person from the eponymous place.
NORSWORTHY English
Habitational name from Norseworthy in Walkhampton, Devon.
NORTHCOTT English
Derived from the Old English words "norð," meaning "north," and "cot," meaning a "cottage," or "shelter."
NORTHERN English
Topographic name, from an adjectival form of North.
NORWAY English
From the country in Europe.
NORWEL English
English surname meaning "From the North Spring"
NORWELL English
Means, "from the North Spring"
NOTTINGHAM English (British)
A habitational name from the city of Nottingham in the East Midlands. Comes from the Old English name, meaning "homestead (ham) of Snot’s people". The initial S- was lost in the 12th century, due to the influence of Anglo-Norman French.... [more]
NOVEMBER English (American)
From the name of the month.
NOY English
Either (i) from the medieval male personal name Noye, the English form of the Hebrew name Noach "Noah"; or (ii) an invented Jewish name based on Hebrew noy "decoration, adornment".
NUNN English
Means someone who is a nun
NUTTALL English
English: habitational name from some place named with Old English hnutu ‘nut’ + h(e)alh ‘nook’, ‘recess’. In some cases this may be Nuthall in Nottinghamshire, but the surname is common mainly in Lancashire, and a Lancashire origin is therefore more likely... [more]
NUTTER English
Means either (i) "scribe, clerk" (from Middle English notere, ultimately from Latin notārius); or (ii) "person who keeps or tends oxen" (from a derivative of Middle English nowt "ox")... [more]
OAK English
Topographic name for someone who lived near an oak tree or in an oak wood, from Middle English oke "oak".
OAKES English, Irish
English: Topographic name, a plural variant of Oak.... [more]
OAKLAND English
This surname is derived from Old English āc and land and it, obviously, means "oak land."
OAKLEAF English (American)
Probably an Americanized (translated) form of Swedish Eklöf.
OAKS English
English variant spelling of Oakes and Americanized form of Jewish Ochs.
OATES English
Patronymic from the Middle English personal name Ode (see Ott).
OATIS English
Altered spelling of Otis, itself a variant of Oates.
OATS English
Variation of Oates.
OBERLIN German, English
From Oberst and the suffix Lynn.... [more]
OBSCURITE English
A word which means "darkness" in French language.
ODD English
Variant of Ott.
ODHAM English
Variant of ODOM, altered by folk etymology as if derived from a place name formed with -ham.
ODOM English
Medieval nickname for someone who had climbed the social ladder by marrying the daughter of a prominent figure in the local community, from Middle English odam ‘son-in-law’ (Old English aðum).
OFFICE English (Modern)
Occupational name for a person who works in an office.
OFFICER English (Canadian), English (American, Rare)
Occupational name for the holder of any office, from Anglo-Norman French officer (an agent derivative of Old French office ‘duty’, ‘service’, Latin officium ‘service’, ‘task’).
OGILVIE Scottish, English
From the ancient Barony of Ogilvie in Angus, Northeast Scotland. The placename itself is derived from Pictish ocel, 'high' and fa, 'plain'.
OKEY English
Location name meaning "lives near oak trees".
OLD English
From Middle English old, not necessarily implying old age, but rather used to distinguish an older from a younger bearer of the same personal name.
OLDKNOW English
Originally "Oldknoll"; deriving from the word knoll meaning ''hill''.
OLDROYD English
Derived from the two Old English pre 7th century words - "euld", meaning "old", and "royd", meaning "clearing".
OLESON English
Anglicized form of Olesen
OLIN English, Dutch
English or Dutch name meaning either "from a low lying area" or from the word Hollander meaning "one from the Netherlands" a country well known for a low lying landscape.
OLIPHANT English
Means "elephant" (from Middle English, Old French and Middle High German olifant "elephant"), perhaps used as a nickname for a large cumbersome person, or denoting someone who lived in a building distinguished by the sign of an elephant.
OLLIS English
Unexplained surname found in records of Bristol and Bath.
OLLSON English
Variant of Olsson or Olsen.
OLMSTEAD English (British)
Comes from the Old French ermite "hermit" and Old English stede "place".... [more]
OPHEL English
19th century name from the Cambridgeshire area. Probably derived from Oldfield. Variants include Opheld, Oful and Offel.... [more]
OPIE English, Cornish
From the medieval personal name Oppy or Obby, a diminutive of such names as Osbert, Osborn, and Osbald. Bearers of this surname include British portrait and history painter John Opie (1761-1807) and British authors and folklorists Peter Opie (1918-82) and his wife Iona Opie (née Archibald; 1923-).
ORANGE Medieval English, Medieval French, English
Derived from the medieval female name, or directly from the French place name. First used with the modern spelling in the 17th century, apparently due to William, Prince of Orange, who later became William III... [more]
ORBISON English
From a village in Lincolnshire, England originally called Orby and later Orreby that is derived from a Scandinavian personal name Orri- and the Scandinavian place element -by which means "a farmstead or small settlement."
ORCHARD English, Scottish
English: topographic name for someone who lived by an orchard, or a metonymic occupational name for a fruit grower, from Middle English orchard.... [more]
ORCUTT English
Perhaps a much altered spelling of Scottish Urquhart used predominantly in Staffordshire, England.
ORDWALD English
English name meaning "spear strength".
ORGAN English
Metonymic occupational name for a player of a musical instrument (any musical instrument, not necessarily what is now known as an organ), from Middle English organ (Old French organe, Late Latin organum ‘device’, ‘(musical) instrument’, Greek organon ‘tool’, from ergein ‘to work or do’).
ORGAN English
From a rare medieval personal name, attested only in the Latinized forms Organus (masculine) and Organa (feminine).
ORLEY Dutch, Flemish, English
A surname of uncertain origin found among the Dutch, Flemish and English. In England the name is primarily found in Yorkshire and Devon. Orley may be an adapted form of a French name D'Orley or a nickname for Orlando... [more]
ORMAY English (American)
Believed to be the Americanization of the last name Ormoi from Hungary.
ORPIN English
Means "herbalist" (from Middle English orpin "yellow stonecrop", a plant prescribed by medieval herbalists for healing wounds). A variant spelling was borne by British painter Sir William Orpen (1878-1931).
OSBORN English
From the given name OSBORN.
OSLER English
Possibly derived from Ostler (from the the Norman 'Hostelier') meaning clerk or bookkeeper. First used in England after the Norman invasion of 1066. Surname of a 19th cent. Canadian doctor, Sir William Osler, widely viewed as the 'Father of Internal Medicine'.
OSMAR English
Variant of Hosmer.
OSMOND English
From the given name Osmond
OSWALD English
From the given name Oswald.
OTTOWAY English
From the Norman male personal names Otoïs, of Germanic origin and meaning literally "wealth-wide" or "wealth-wood", and Otewi, of Germanic origin and meaning literally "wealth-war".
OVERSON English
Derived from the Old French name Overson, meaning "dweller by the river-banks". The name was probably brought to England in the wake of the Norman conquest of 1066.
OWNER English
From English owner meaning "a person who owns something".
OXENDINE English
From an English place name meaning "valley of the oxen", which was derived from Old English oxa "ox" (genitive plural oxena) and denu "valley".
OYASKI English (American)
A surname created by Michael Oyaski (formally Michael O'Yaski). The surname is currently known to only be used by one particular branch of the O'Yaski family tree. The surname means "Dragon Rider of the West" according to members of the Oyaski family.
PACEY English
"Habitation name from Pacy-sur-Eure" which took its name from the Gallo-Roman personal name Paccius and the local suffix -acum.
PACKARD English, Norman, Medieval English, German (Anglicized)
English from Middle English pa(c)k ‘pack’, ‘bundle’ + the Anglo-Norman French pejorative suffix -ard, hence a derogatory occupational name for a peddler. ... [more]
PACKWOOD English
Habitational name from a place in Warwickshire, so named from the Old English personal name Pac(c)a + wudu ‘wood’.
PADDINGTON English
Believed to mean "Pada's farm", with the Anglo-Saxon name Pada possibly coming from the Old English word pad, meaning "toad".
PADGHAM English
A habitational name.
PADLEY English
A habitational name from a place named Padley, which was probably named with the Old English personal name Padda and lēah meaning ‘glade, woodland clearing’. Alternatively, the first element may have been padde, meaning ‘toad’.
PAINE English
From the Middle English personal name Pain(e), Payn(e) (Old French Paien, from Latin Paganus), introduced to Britain by the Normans. The Latin name is a derivative of pagus "outlying village", and meant at first a person who lived in the country (as opposed to Urbanus "city dweller"), then a civilian as opposed to a soldier, and eventually a heathen (one not enrolled in the army of Christ)... [more]
PAINTER English, Medieval French, German
English: from Middle English, Old French peinto(u)r, oblique case of peintre ‘painter’, hence an occupational name for a painter (normally of colored glass). In the Middle Ages the walls of both great and minor churches were covered with painted decorations, and Reaney and Wilson note that in 1308 Hugh le Peyntour and Peter the Pavier were employed ‘making and painting the pavement’ at St... [more]
PAITON English
Locational surname derived from the village of Peyton in Essex, England; Variant of Peyton
PALFREYMAN English
Occupational name for a man responsible for the maintenance and provision of saddle-horses.
PALIN English
(i) "person from Palling", Norfolk ("settlement of Pælli's people") or "person from Poling", Sussex ("settlement of Pāl's people"); (ii) from the Welsh name ap Heilyn "son of Heilyn", a personal name perhaps meaning "one who serves at table"
PALLISER English
Means "maker of palings and fences" (from a derivative of Old French palis "palisade"). In fiction, the Palliser novels are a series of six political novels by Anthony Trollope, beginning with 'Can You Forgive Her?' (1864) and ending with 'The Duke's Children' (1880), in which the Palliser family plays a central role.
PAPAMICHAEL Greek, English (Rare)
Means "Son of priest Michael".
PARDOE English
From a medieval nickname based on the Old French oath par Dieu "by God" (cf. Purdie).
PARDY English (Modern)
English (Dorset) variant of Perdue.
PARHAM Irish, English
This name has been used amongst the Irish and English. This user's great grandmother came from Ireland and her maiden name was Parham. However, in English (London) it is a habitational name from places in Suffolk and Sussex, named in Old English with pere ‘pear’ + ham ‘homestead’.
PARKINGTON English
Habitational name from a place in Greater Manchester (formerly in Cheshire) called Partington, from Old English Peartingtun 'settlement (tun) associated with Pearta', a personal name not independently recorded.
PARKINSON English
From the name Perkin, which is a medieval diminutive of Peter.
PARLEY English
A place name meaning "pear field" from Old English 'per' with 'lee' or 'lea' meaning a field or clearing, perhaps where land was cleared to cultivate pear trees. Therefore this name denotes someone who lived near or worked at such a location or came from a habitation associated with the name... [more]
PARMLEY English
Variant of Parley. This form is found more in northern England, specifically Cumberland and Durham, but is of like derivation.
PARNHAM English
English habitational name from Parnham in Beaminster, Dorset.
PARR English
Means "enclosure".
PARSLEY Medieval French, English, Norman, French
Derived from Old French passelewe "cross the water."... [more]
PARSON English
Surname given to the parson (priest).
PARTINGTON English
Habitational name from a place in Greater Manchester (formerly in Cheshire) called Partington, from Old English Peartingtun "PEARTA's town".
PARTON English
Habitational name from any of various places called Parton; most are named with Old English peretun ‘pear orchard’. A famous bearer of the surname is Dolly Parton.
PASH English (American)
Americanized spelling of German Pasch.
PASSMORE English
Either (i) from a medieval nickname for someone who crossed marshy moorland (e.g. who lived on the opposite side of a moor, or who knew the safe paths across it); or (ii) perhaps from an alteration of Passemer, literally "cross-sea", an Anglo-Norman nickname for a seafarer... [more]
PATE English
Derives from the given name Pat(t), a short form of the personal name Patrick from the Latin Patricius meaning "son of a noble father".
PATTERS English
History not available.
PAULEY English, German
English: from a medieval pet form of Paul.... [more]
PAVEY English
Either (i) from the medieval female personal name Pavia, perhaps from Old French pavie "peach"; or (ii) "person from Pavia", Italy.
PAXSON English
This surname means "son of Pack." Pack may be a survival of the Old English personal name Pacca or it may have been a Middle English personal name derived from Paschalis (meaning "relating to Easter"), the Latin form of Pascal.
PEABODY English
Probably from a nickname for a showy dresser, from Middle English pe "peacock" (see Peacock) and body "body, person". Alternatively it may be from the name of a Celtic tribe meaning "mountain men" from Brythonic pea "large hill, mountain" combined with Boadie, the tribe's earlier name, which meant "great man" (or simply "man") among the Briton and Cambri peoples... [more]
PEACH English (Rare)
Derived from the name of the fruit, which itself derived its name from Late Latin persica, which came from older Latin malum persicum meaning "Persian fruit."
PEARKS English
Sir Stuart Edmond Pearks (1875–1931) served as the Chief Commissioner of the North-West Frontier Province of British India from 1930 until 1931. Sourced from Wikipedia.... [more]
PEARL English
Metonymic occupational name for a trader in pearls, which in the Middle Ages were fashionable among the rich for the ornamentation of clothes, from Middle English, Old French perle (Late Latin perla).
PEARSALL English
a British surname of French origin derived from the pre-9th-century word "pourcel", which described a breeder of animals or a farmer
PEELE English
This surname was given topographically to a person who resided near a physical feature such as a hill, stream, church, or type of tree. A famous bearer of this surname is actor, comedian, writer, producer, and director Jordan Peele.
PEEVEY Norman, English
Means "a place with a fine view". Composed of the Old French roots beu, which means "fair" and "lovely", and voir, which means "to see".
PEGG English, Welsh
Son of "Margaret", in Old English.
PELHAM English
From the name of a place in Hertfordshire, which meant "Peotla's homestead" in Old English.
PENDARVIS English (American)
The American English spelling of the Cornish surname Pendarves. Ultimately, the surname is traced back to Pendarves Island, Cornwall.
PENDLEBURY English
Likely originated from the area Pendlebury, in the Borough of Swindon and Pendlebury in Greater Manchester. Formed from the Celtic pen meaning "hill" and burh meaning "settlement".... [more]
PENDLETON English
An Old English name meaning "overhanging settlement".
PENDRAGON English
From 'Pen Dragon' meaning head dragon or dragons head. This was the name of the king Uther Pendragon who was King Arthurs father
PENNEY English
Variant of PENNY.
PENNING English, 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 or a nickname referring to tax dues of a penny.
PENNINGTON English
Habitual surname for someone from Pennington, Lancashire; Pennington, Cumbria; or Pennington, Hampshire.
PENNYFIELD English (Rare, ?)
Probably derives from the two English words, 'Penny' and 'Field'.
PENNYWELL English
English habitational name from Pennywell in Tyne and Wear or from a similarly named lost place elsewhere.
PENNYWORTH English
From Old English pening, penig meaning "penny (the coin)" and worþ meaning "enclosure". A notable fictional bearer is Alfred Pennyworth, a DC Comics character notable for being the butler of the superhero Batman.
PENWELL English
English probably a variant of Pennywell.
PEPYS English
From the medieval personal name Pepis, a form of Old French Pepin, brought into England by the Normans. It may have been based on an earlier nickname meaning "awesome". It is standardly pronounced "peeps"... [more]
PERCHER English
In textile mills, woven fabric coming off the mill / loom would pass over a frame, or rod, called a 'perch'. It was the job of the 'Percher' to examine the cloth for defects, and repair them when they were found... [more]
PERDUE English, Irish, French
English and Irish from Old French par Dieu ‘by God’, which was adopted in Middle English in a variety of more or less heavily altered forms. The surname represents a nickname from a favorite oath... [more]
PEREGRINE English, Popular Culture
Derived from the given name Peregrine. A fictional bearer is Alma LeFay Peregrine, a character from the novel "Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children" (2011) by Ransom Riggs.
PERHAM English
A variation of the English name Parham, based on the village of Parham (one in county Suffolk, another in county Sussex). From the Old English peru, meaning "pear" (the fruit), and ham, meaning "homestead".
PERKIN English, Welsh
"Variant of Surname Perkins "
PERLEY English
Variant of Parley or Burley.
PERPICH English (American)
Americanized spelling of Croatian and Serbian Prpić. Prporuše was a term denoting young girls who, in the dry season, would visit houses in the village and pray for rain.
PERSON English
Americanised version of Persson.
PETRIE English
Patronymic surname that was derived from the first name Peter.
PETTINGER English
English version of Pottinger.
PETTIS English
From the possessive or plural form of Middle English pytte, pitte ‘pit’, ‘hollow’, hence a topographic name for someone who lived by a pit, or a habitational name from a place named with this word, as for example Pett in East Sussex.
PETTY English, Scottish
Derived from Norman French petit, 'small', thus a nickname for a small or insignificant individual.... [more]
PHEONIX English
A rare nickname given for someone's appearance of blonde and red hair just as a phoenix has colorful plumage and a tail of gold and scarlet.
PHILBERT English
From the medieval French male personal name Filibert, of Germanic origin and meaning literally "very bright, very famous".
PHILIPSON English
Means Son Of Philip
PHILLIP English
Derived from the given name Philip
PHILLIPSON English
Means "son of Phillip"
PHILLISKIRK English (Rare)
From a 'lost' medieval parish in England or Scotland, named with the Old Norse element kirk meaning 'church' or 'place of worship'.... [more]
PHILPOT English
English (chiefly southeastern): from the Middle English personal name Philipot/Philpot, a pet form of Philip.
PHILSON English
Patronymic from Phil, a short form of the personal name Philip.
PHOENIX English
From the name of a beautiful immortal bird which appears in Egyptian and Greek mythology. After living for several centuries in the Arabian Desert, it would be consumed by fire and rise from its own ashes, with this cycle repeating every 500 years... [more]
PICKETT English
of Norman origin, from the personal name "Pic", here with the diminutive suffixes "et" or "ot", and recorded as "Picot, Pigot" and Piket". The name is ultimately of Germanic derivation, from "pic", meaning "sharp", or "pointed", which was a common element in names meaning for instance, residence near a "pointed hill", use of a particular sharp or pointed tool or weapon, or a nickname for a tall, thin person.
PICKFORD English
This surnames origins lie with the Anglo-Saxons. It is a product of their having lived in the parish of Pitchford in Shropshire. ... [more]
PICOT English
Norman-French
PIERPONT English
English (of Norman origin): habitational name from any of various places, for example in Aisne and Calvados, so called from Old French pierre ‘stone’ + pont ‘bridge’.
PIKE English, Irish
English: topographic name for someone who lived by a hill with a sharp point, from Old English pic ‘point’, ‘hill’, which was a relatively common place name element.... [more]
PILCH English
From Middle English pilch, a metonymic occupational name for a maker or seller of pilches or a nickname for a habitual wearer of these. A pilch (from Late Latin pellicia, a derivative of pellis "skin, hide") was a kind of coarse leather garment with the hair or fur still on it.
PILCHER English
Occupational name for a maker or seller of pilches, from an agent derivative of Pilch. In early 17th-century English, pilcher was a popular term of abuse, being confused or punningly associated with the unrelated verb pilch "to steal" and with the unrelated noun pilchard, a kind of fish.
PILKINGTON English (British), Irish
Habitational name from a place in Lancashire, England.
PIN English
Variant spelling of Pinn.
PINCH English
Nickname for a chirpy person, from Middle English pinch, pink ‘(chaf)finch’. Compare Finch. possibly a metonymic occupational name from Middle English pinche ‘pleated fabric’, from Middle English pinche(n) ‘to pinch (pastry)’, ‘to pleat (fabric)’, ‘to crimp (hair, etc.)’, also ‘to cavil’, ‘to be niggardly’.
PINCHES English (British, Rare)
This is one of the very earliest of surnames. This is an English name. First recorded in the 12th century it was a nickname of endearment for a bright, chirpy, person, thought by his peer group to be active like a finch... [more]
PINCKNEY English
The surname Pinckney originally denoted someone from Picquigny, France, which derives from a Germanic personal name, Pincino (of obscure derivation) and the Latin locative suffix -acum... [more]
PINES English (American)
Surname of the characters, Dipper, Mabel and Stan from Gravity Falls.
PINK English, German
Nickname, possibly for a small person, from Middle English pink penkg ‘minnow’ (Old English pinc).English (southeastern): variant of Pinch .Variant spelling of German Pinck, an indirect occupational name for a blacksmith, an onomatopoeic word imitating the sound of hammering which was perceived as pink(e)pank... [more]
PINKHAM English
habitational name from a lost or unidentified place in or bordering on Devon
PINKNEY English
Variant spelling of Pinckney.
PINN English, German
A metonymic occupational name for a maker of pins or pegs, which is from Middle English pin and Middle Low German pinne meaning ‘pin’ or ‘peg’. In some cases, the German name was an metonymic occupational name for a shoemaker.
PINN English (British)
A topographic or habitational name from a place named with Middle English pinne, meaning ‘hill’ (Old English penn).
PINNER English (Rare)
Parish in Middlesex.
PISTOLET English (Americanized, Modern)
Mishgan Pistolet is the first waiter of the surname.
PITCHER English, German
From an agent derivative of Middle English pich ‘pitch’, hence an occupational name for a caulker, one who sealed the seams of ships or barrels with pitch. English variant of Pickard. Possibly from German Pitscher, from the short form of a personal name formed with Old High German bitan ‘to endure’, or bittan ‘to wish or ask for’.
PITCOCK English
Old English pytta
PITT English
English from Middle English pytte, pitte ‘pit’, ‘hollow’, hence a topographic name for someone who lived by a pit or hollow, or a habitational name from a place named with this word, as for example Pitt in Hampshire.
PITTMAN English
Described someone who lived in a hollow or pitt (see Pitt).
PLANT English
An occupational surname for a gardener.
PLATTEN English
Diminutive of Platt.
PLAYFAIR English
From a medieval nickname for an enthusiastic competitor in sports and games (from Middle English pleyfere "companion in play, playmate"), or else a different form of Playford (from a Suffolk place-name meaning "ford where sports are held")... [more]
PLAZA English
From the english word "plaza". A mostly famous bearer is actress Aubrey Plaza (1984-)
PLEASANCE English
Either (i) from the medieval female personal name Plaisance, literally "pleasantness"; or (ii) "person from Piacenza", Italy (from Latin Placentia, literally "pleasing things").
PLUM English, German, Jewish
English and North German: from Middle English plum(b)e, Middle Low German plum(e) ‘plum’, hence a topographic name for someone who lived by a plum tree, or a metonymic occupational name for a fruit grower... [more]
PLUMER German, English, Dutch
North German (Plümer) and English: variant of Plum, the suffix -er denoting habitation or occupation. Altered form of South German Pflümer, an occupational name for a grower or seller of plums, from an agent derivative of Middle High German pflume ‘plum’... [more]
PLUMMER English
1. Occupational name for a worker in lead, especially a maker of lead pipes and conduits, from Anglo-Norman French plom(m)er, plum(m)er ‘plumber’, from plom(b), plum(b) ‘lead’ (Latin plumbum)... [more]
POBJOY English
From a medieval nickname for someone thought to resemble a parrot, from Middle English papejai, popinjay "parrot". This probably denoted someone who was talkative or who dressed in bright colours, although it may have described a person who excelled at the medieval sport of pole archery, i.e. shooting at a wooden parrot on a pole.
POE English
From a medieval nickname for a vain or flamboyantly dressed person (from Old Norse pá "peacock"). American author and poet Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849) was a famous bearer.