Submitted names are contributed by users of this website. The accuracy of these name definitions cannot be guaranteed.
NATION EnglishMost probably a variant of Nathan, altered by folk etymology under the influence of the English vocabulary word nation
NAUGHTON EnglishHabitational name from a place in Suffolk, named in Old English with nafola meaning "navel" + tūn meaning "enclosure", "settlement", i.e. "settlement in the navel or depression".
NEAD English1. English: possibly a metonymic nickname for a needy person, from Middle English ne(e)d ‘need’. ... [
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NEARS EnglishFrench in origin, it is derived from the word "Noir," which is the equivalent of the English word "Black." It could have referred to a person with dark features, hair, or perhaps even one who was thought to engage in nafarious, or "dark," deeds.
NEEVE English, ScottishAn English surname, of Norman origin, meaning the nephew. One who was in care of their uncle. A surname first recorded in Perthshire.
NEIGHBOR EnglishFrom 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.
NEMIROW EnglishIs the English for the Russian/Ukrainian Surname Nemirov
NESBITT Scottish, Irish, EnglishDerives 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.
NEUFELD German, EnglishNeufeld is a surname of German origin, meaning "new field". It is not seldom in Germany and it is common among German speaking Mennonites from Russia.
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.
NEW EnglishNickname for a newcomer to an area, from Middle English newe meaning "new".
NEWARK EnglishA habitational name taken on from a place name, such as Newark in Cambridgeshire or Newark on Trent in Nottinghamshire.
NEWBORN EnglishHabitational 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 EnglishMeans "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.
NEWCOMER English (American)Nickname for a person who was new to a town or location, from Old English
niwe meaning "new" and
cumen meaning "to come".
NEWEY EnglishTopographic name for someone who lived at a "new enclosure", from Middle English
newe "new" and
haga "enclousire".
NEWHAM EnglishHabitational name from any of the various places, for example in Northumbria and North Yorkshire, so named from Old English
neowe "new" and
ham "homestead".
NIGHTINGALE EnglishNickname 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 EnglishThis 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.
NOBLE English, Scottish, Irish, FrenchNickname 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... [
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NOCK Celtic, EnglishDweller at the oak tree; originally spelt as "Noake" evolved into "Nock".
NOON EnglishEither (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... [
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NORDICK EnglishHabitational name from a place so named near Bocholt, in the Lower Rhine area.
NORELL Swedish, EnglishSwedish ornamental name composed of
norr "north" or
nor "small strait" and the popular surname suffix
-ell, from Latin adjectival suffix
-elius. ... [
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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)... [
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NORTHCOTT EnglishDerived from the Old English words "norð," meaning "north," and "cot," meaning a "cottage," or "shelter."
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.... [
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NOY EnglishEither (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".
NUGENT English, Irish, FrenchAn 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".
NUNNALLYS English (American)A common surname in America, belonging to 4058 individuals. Nunnally is most common among White (63.36%) and Black/African American (30.93%) individuals.
NUTE Anglo-Saxon, EnglishDerived from the given name
CNUTE. Alternatively, it may be of nickname origin, from the Old English word
hnutu, which meant brown, and would have been given to someone with a brown complexion.
NUTTALL EnglishEnglish: 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... [
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NUTTER EnglishMeans 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")... [
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OAK EnglishTopographic name for someone who lived near an oak tree or in an oak wood, from Middle English
oke "oak".
OAKLAND EnglishThis surname is derived from Old English
āc and
land and it, obviously, means "oak land."
ODHAM EnglishVariant of
ODOM, altered by folk etymology as if derived from a place name formed with -
ham.
ODOM EnglishMedieval 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).
OGILVIE Scottish, EnglishFrom the ancient Barony of Ogilvie in Angus, Northeast Scotland. The placename itself is derived from Pictish
ocel, 'high' and
fa, 'plain'.
OKEY EnglishLocation name meaning "lives near oak trees".
OLD EnglishFrom 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 EnglishOriginally "Oldknoll"; deriving from the word
knoll meaning ''hill''.
OLDROYD EnglishDerived from Old English
euld meaning "old" and
royd meaning "clearing".
OLEY EnglishWas my mother's fathers name. Also my mother's brother.
OLIN English, DutchEnglish 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 EnglishMeans "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 EnglishUnexplained surname found in records of Bristol and Bath.
ONG EnglishFrom the old english word
geong which also gives us the well more known version of the name,
YOUNG... [
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OPHEL English19th century name from the Cambridgeshire area. Probably derived from Oldfield. Variants include Opheld, Oful and Offel.... [
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ORANGE Medieval English, Medieval French, EnglishDerived 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... [
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ORBISON EnglishFrom 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, ScottishEnglish: topographic name for someone who lived by an orchard, or a metonymic occupational name for a fruit grower, from Middle English
orchard.... [
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ORCUTT EnglishPerhaps a much altered spelling of Scottish
URQUHART used predominantly in Staffordshire, England.
ORGAN EnglishMetonymic 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 EnglishFrom a rare medieval personal name, attested only in the Latinized forms
Organus (masculine) and
ORGANA (feminine).
ORLEY Dutch, Flemish, EnglishA 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... [
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ORPIN EnglishMeans "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).
ORRIS EnglishThis unusual and interesting name is of Italian, Latin origin, and derives from one of the earliest Roman names, "Horatius". The name is thought to mean something connected with "hora", the Latin for "hour", but the original meaning has been lost... [
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OSGOOD English, JewishEnglish: Old Norse personal name Asgautr, composed of the elements as'god'+the tribal name Gaul. This was established in England before the Conquest, in the late old English forms Osgot or Osgod and was later reinforce by the Norman Ansgot.... [
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OSLER EnglishPossibly 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... [
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OTTOWAY EnglishFrom 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".
OVERFELT EnglishDerived from the Old English "ofer," meaning "seashore," or "riverbank."
OVERSON EnglishDerived 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 EnglishFrom English
owner meaning "a person who owns something".
OWSLEY EnglishHabitational name form a now lost place name in Southern England. Possibly derived from the name of the river name Ouse and Old English -
leah meaning "wood".
OXENDINE EnglishFrom 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. PACKWOOD EnglishHabitational name from a place in Warwickshire, so named from the Old English personal name Pac(c)a + wudu ‘wood’.
PADDINGTON EnglishBelieved to mean "Pada's farm", with the Anglo-Saxon name
PADA possibly coming from the Old English word
pad, meaning "toad".
PADLEY EnglishA 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 EnglishFrom 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)... [
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PAINTER English, Medieval French, GermanEnglish: 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... [
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PAITON EnglishLocational surname derived from the village of Peyton in Essex, England; Variant of Peyton
PALFREYMAN EnglishOccupational 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 EnglishMeans "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.
PAPPIN English (Canadian)Southeastern Ontario, Canada. My dad and uncle are the only two I met. I was told their family background was Metis/Cree.
PARDOE EnglishFrom a medieval nickname based on the Old French oath
par Dieu "by God" (cf.
PURDIE).
PARHAM Irish, EnglishThis 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 EnglishHabitational 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.
PARLEY EnglishA 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... [
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PARMLEY EnglishVariant of
PARLEY. This form is found more in northern England, specifically Cumberland and Durham, but is of like derivation.
PARNHAM EnglishEnglish habitational name from Parnham in Beaminster, Dorset.
PARTINGTON EnglishHabitational name from a place in Greater Manchester (formerly in Cheshire) called Partington, from Old English
Peartingtun "
PEARTA's town".
PARTON EnglishHabitational 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.
PASSMORE EnglishEither (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... [
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PATE EnglishDerives from the given name
PAT(t), a short form of the personal name
PATRICK from the Latin Patricius meaning "son of a noble father".
PAVEY EnglishEither (i) from the medieval female personal name
Pavia, perhaps from Old French
pavie "peach"; or (ii) "person from Pavia", Italy.
PAXSON EnglishThis 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 EnglishProbably 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... [
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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 EnglishSir 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.... [
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PEARL EnglishMetonymic 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 Englisha British surname of French origin derived from the pre-9th-century word "pourcel", which described a breeder of animals or a farmer
PEASE EnglishEnglish: from Middle English pese ‘pea’, hence a metonymic occupational name for a grower or seller of peas, or a nickname for a small and insignificant person. The word was originally a collective singular (Old English peose, pise, from Latin pisa) from which the modern English vocabulary word pea is derived by folk etymology, the singular having been taken as a plural.
PEELE EnglishThis 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, EnglishMeans "a place with a fine view". Composed of the Old French roots
beu, which means "fair" and "lovely", and
voir, which means "to see".
PELHAM EnglishFrom the name of a place in Hertfordshire, which meant "
PEOTLA's homestead" in Old English.
PELTON EnglishHabitational name from Pelton, a place in County Durham, named from an unattested Old English personal name Peola + tun 'farmstead', 'settlement'.
PENDARVIS English (American)The American English spelling of the Cornish surname Pendarves. Ultimately, the surname is traced back to Pendarves Island, Cornwall.
PENDLEBURY EnglishLikely 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".... [
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PENDRAGON EnglishFrom 'Pen Dragon' meaning head dragon or dragons head. This was the name of the king Uther Pendragon who was King Arthurs father
PENNING English, Dutch, Low GermanFrom 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 EnglishHabitational surname denoting someone originally from any of the various locations in England named Pennington, derived from Old English
penning meaning "penny" (used as a byname or from a tribute due on the land) and
tun meaning "town".
PENNYWELL EnglishEnglish habitational name from Pennywell in Tyne and Wear or from a similarly named lost place elsewhere.
PENNYWORTH EnglishFrom 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.
PEPYS EnglishFrom 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"... [
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PERCHER EnglishIn 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... [
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PERDUE English, Irish, FrenchEnglish 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... [
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PEREGRINE English, Popular CultureDerived 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 EnglishA 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".
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.