Submitted names are contributed by users of this website. The accuracy of these name definitions cannot be guaranteed.
RULEScottish, English Scottish name from the lands of Rule in the parish of Hobkirk, Roxburghshire. The derivation is from the River Rule which flows through the area, and is so called from the ancient Welsh word "rhull" meaning "hasty or rushing".... [more]
RUMBELOWEnglish Means "person from Rumbelow", the name of various locations in England ("three mounds").
RUMBLEEnglish Descended from the personal name Rumbald/Rombold, which is composed of the Germanic elements hrom "fame, glory" and bald "bold, brave".
RUMPOLEEnglish A different form of Rumbold (from the Norman personal name Rumbald, of Germanic origin and probably meaning literally "fame-bold"). A fictional bearer of the surname is Horace Rumpole, the eccentric QC created by John Mortimer (originally for a 1975 television play).
RUNCIEEnglish, Scottish Derived from Latin runcinus, and related to the Old French "roncin", for a horse of little value. Middle English, Rouncy, as in Chaucer's Cantebury Tales.... [more]
RUSBYScottish, English Alternative spelling of Busby, a parish in Renfrewshire. A name well represented in the Penistone, and Cawthorne districts of the West Riding of Yorkshire.
RUSTEnglish, Scottish A nickname to someone with reddish hair or a ruddy complexion.
RUTHEnglish, German (Swiss) English: from Middle English reuthe ‘pity’ (a derivative of rewen to pity, Old English hreowan) nickname for a charitable person or for a pitiable one. Not related to the given name in this case.... [more]
RUTTEREnglish Either (i) "player of the rote (a medieval stringed instrument played by plucking)"; or (ii) from a medieval nickname for a dishonest or untrustworthy person (from Old French routier "robber, mugger")... [more]
RYALLEnglish From any of several places in England named from Old English ryge "rye" + hyll "hill".
RYCROFTEnglish Derived from Rycroft, in the parish of Birstall, Yorkshire
RYDELLSwedish, English Swedish: ornamental name composed of the place name element ryd ‘woodland clearing’ + the common suffix -ell, from the Latin adjectival ending -elius.... [more]
SAINTEnglish, French Nickname for a particularly pious individual, from Middle English, Old French saint, seint "holy" (Latin sanctus "blameless, holy"). The vocabulary word was occasionally used in the Middle Ages as a personal name, especially on the Continent, and this may have given rise to some instances of the surname.
SALEEnglish, French English: from Middle English sale ‘hall’, a topographic name for someone living at a hall or manor house, or a metonymic occupational name for someone employed at a hall or manor house. ... [more]
SALISBURYEnglish Habitational name from the city in Wiltshire, the Roman name of which was Sorviodunum (of British origin). In the Old English period the second element (from Celtic dun ‘fortress’) was dropped and Sorvio- (of unexplained meaning) became Searo- in Old English as the result of folk etymological association with Old English searu ‘armor’; to this an explanatory burh ‘fortress’, ‘manor’, ‘town’ was added... [more]
SALTEREnglish Occupational name for an extractor or seller of salt (a precious commodity in medieval times), from Middle English salt 'salt' + the agent suffix -er.
SALTHOUSEEnglish "Salthouse" and other variants come from the place name in Northumberland.
SALTMARSHEnglish Last name of cricket player Ian Saltmarsh (1901-1970).
SAMWAYSEnglish From a medieval nickname for a fool (from Middle English samwis "foolish", literally "half-wise").
SANDEnglish, Scottish, Norwegian, Swedish, Danish, German, Jewish Topographic name for someone who lived on patch of sandy soil, from the vocabulary word sand. As a Swedish or Jewish name it was often purely ornamental.
SANDELLEnglish Originated from a name for someone who lived on a sand hill
SANDEMANEnglish Scottish surname of famous merchant family engaged in banking in Scotland and London and in the Port Wine trade in London. The same family were earlier the founders of an obscure Protestant sect the Sandemanians.
SANDLEREnglish Norman origin. Habitational name from Saint-Hilaire-du-Harcouët in La Manche, which gets its name from the dedication of its church to St. Hilary, or alternatively from either of the places, in La Manche and Somme, called Saint-Lô... [more]
SANGWINEnglish From Middle English sanguine (blood) ,one of the four humours.
SANKEYEnglish, Irish Habitational name from a place in Lancashire, which derived from the name of an ancient British river, perhaps meaning "sacred, holy." ... [more]
SARDEnglish, French, Spanish, Italian In the book "Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary by Henry Harrison and Gyda (Pulling) Harrison 1912 - Reprinted 1996.... The Sard surname (which has been in England, Italy and Europe for a long time) is defined thus on page 136...... [more]
SARVEREnglish, Jewish English and Jewish (eastern Ashkenazic) occupational name from Old French serveur (an agent derivative of server ‘to serve’), Yiddish sarver ‘servant’.
SAVILLEEnglish A habitational name from an uncertain place in Northern France. This is most likely Sainville, named from Old French saisne, 'Saxon' and ville, indicating a settlement.
SAWTELLEnglish (British) A dialectal variant of SEWELL, which was first recorded in early 13th-century England. The later addition of the 't' was for easier pronunciation.... [more]
SAXBYEnglish (British) Saxby is the surname of the character Stella Saxby from the book Awful Auntie, by David Walliams. Saxby means "Grand" .
SAXTONEnglish Habitational name from a place in West Yorkshire, possibly also one in Cambridgeshire, both so named from Old English Seaxe "Saxons" and tūn "enclosure, settlement".
SCAGGSEnglish Variant of SKAGGS both of English origin and unknown meaning. Famous bearer is singer BOZ Scaggs (1944-) of the STEVEMILLER Band and the band Toto.
SCARBOROUGHEnglish Habitational name from Scarborough on the coast of North Yorkshire, so named from the Old Norse byname Skarði + Old Norse borg "fortress", "fortified town".
SCARGILLEnglish This ancient surname is of Old Norse origin, and is a locational name from a place called Scargill in Northern Yorkshire, deriving from the Old Norse bird name "skraki", a diving duck, plus the Old Norse "gil", valley or ravine.
SCHADEGerman, Dutch, Scottish, English German and Dutch: from schade ‘damage’, a derivative of schaden ‘to do damage’, generally a nickname for a thug or clumsy person, or, more particularly, a robber knight, who raided others’ lands.... [more]
SCHRAMGerman, English, Yiddish Derived from German Schramme (Middle High German schram(me)) and Yiddish shram, all of which mean "scar".
SCOGINGSEnglish, Old Danish A surname of Scandinavian origin from the old Norse and old Danish by-name "Skeggi" or "skoggi", meaning 'the bearded one'. Common in areas invaded and settled by Scandinavians in the 8th and 9th Centuries.
SCOTFORDEnglish Derived from Scotforth, the name of a village near Lancaster (in Lancashire) in England. The village's name means "ford of the Scot(s)" and is derived from Old English Scott "Scot" combined with Old English ford "ford".
SCOTLANDEnglish (i) "person from Scotland"; (ii) "person from Scotland or Scotlandwell", Perth and Kinross; (iii) from the Norman personal name Escotland, literally "territory of the Scots"
SEAFORTHEnglish The name of a projection of the sea on the east coast of Lewis, on the Long Island, Scotland. Means "the forth of the sea".
SEAGEREnglish, German (Modern) English: from the Middle English personal name SEGAR, Old English S?gar, composed of the elements s? ‘sea’ + gar ‘spear’.... [more]
SEAGRAVEEnglish Habitational name from a place in Leicestershire, recorded in Domesday Book as Satgrave and Setgrave; probably named from Old English (ge)set meaning "fold", "pen" (or sēað meaning "pit", "pool") + grāf meaning "grove" or græf meaning "ditch".
SEARSEnglish Version of SAYER. Used in the United States. Famous bearer of the name is Richard Warren Sears, one of the founders of Sears, Roebuck and Co.
SEDDONEnglish "Broad hill" in Old English. A surname that most occurs in Merseyside, and Lancashire.
SEDGWICKEnglish Habitational name from Sedgwick in Cumbria, so named from the Middle English personal name Sigg(e) (from Old Norse Siggi or Old English Sicg, short forms of the various compound names with the first element "victory") + Old English wic "outlying settlement", "dairy farm"; or from Sedgewick in Sussex, named with Old English secg (sedge) + wic.
SEEEnglish, German Topographic name for someone who lived by the sea-shore or beside a lake, from Middle English see meaning "sea", "lake" (Old English sǣ), Middle High German sē. Alternatively, the English name may denote someone who lived by a watercourse, from an Old English sēoh meaning "watercourse", "drain".
SEGALEEnglish, Italian Respelling of SEGAL. A famous bearer is Mario A. Segale, the inspiration for Nintendo's video game character Mario
SEGERSwedish, English, Dutch Means "victory" in Swedish. It is also a variant of the English surname SEAGER or derived from the Germanic given name SIGIHERI "victory army".
SELFEnglish East Anglian surname, from the medieval English masculine name SAULF which was derived from the Old English elements sǣ "sea" and wulf "wolf".
SEVERNEnglish From the name of the River Severn, which is of unknown meaning. The Severn is Great Britain's longest river, flowing from Wales through much of western England to the Bristol Channel. It is one of Britain’s most ancient river names, recorded as early as the 2nd century AD in the form SABRINA; its original meaning may have been "slow-moving" or "boundary".
SEVIEREnglish Occupational name for a sieve-maker, Middle English siviere (from an agent derivative of Old English sife "sieve").
SEVILLESpanish, English a city in southwestern Spain; a major port and cultural center; the capital of bullfighting in Spain. Synonyms: Sevilla Example of: city, metropolis, urban center. a large and densely populated urban area; may include several independent administrative districts... [more]
SEWALLEnglish (British, Modern) Dates back at least to Middle English (1500s or earlier); many believe it is Saxon in origin; "may mean "sea" and "victory" or "war""
SHACKLADYEnglish Perhaps from a medieval nickname for a man who had had sexual relations with a woman of higher social class (from shag "to copulate with" (not recorded before the late 17th century) and lady).... [more]
SHACKLEFORDEnglish, Medieval English Locational surname deriving from the place called Shackleford in Surrey, near the town of Farnham. The origin of "shackle" is uncertain. It could be derived from Old English sceacan "to shake"... [more]
SHADEEnglish, German, Dutch, Scottish Topographic name for someone who lived near a boundary, from Old English scead ‘boundary’.nickname for a very thin man, from Middle English schade ‘shadow’, ‘wraith’.... [more]
SHADOWEnglish Origin unidentified. The name Shadue, Schadewe is recorded in England in the 12th and 13th centuries, from Middle English shadwe ‘shadow’, Old English sceadu (see SHADE)... [more]
SHADWELLEnglish English surname meaning "By the shed spring"
SHALLCROSSEnglish Means "person from Shallcross", Derbyshire ("place by the Shacklecross", an ancient stone cross in the High Peak, its name perhaps denoting a cross to which people could be shackled as a penance).
SHANDYEnglish (Rare) Shandy appears as a rare surname, mostly found in English-speaking countries going back to the 1600s. This name may originate from the English dialect adjective meaning "boisterous" or "empty headed; half crazy", of which the earliest record dates to 1691, though any further explanation for its origins are unknown... [more]
SHANKSEnglish (Modern) Possibly a diminutive of LONGSHANKS, which would be given to a tall or gangly person.
SHARPTONEnglish Habitational name from Sharperton in Northumberland, possibly so named from Old English scearp "steep" and beorg "hill", "mound" and tun "settlement".
SHELDONEnglish From an Old English place name meaning "valley with steep sides".
SHELDRAKEEnglish From a medieval nickname for a dandyish (showy) or vain man, from Middle English scheldrake, the male of a type of duck with brightly-coloured plumage (itself from the East Anglian dialect term scheld "variegated" combined with drake "male duck").
SHENBERGEREnglish (?) The name Shenberger comes from a common mix up with the archaic Austrian-German surname Schoenberg; meaning "Beautiful Mountain."
SHENTONEnglish "Beautiful town" in Old English. Parishes in Leicestershire, and Cheshire.
SHERLOCKEnglish, Irish Nickname for someone with "fair hair" or "a lock of fair hair."
SHERRARDEnglish Probably from a medieval nickname based on Middle English shere "bright, fair", with the derogatory suffix -ard.
SHERRELLEnglish This surname is of English locational origin, from the place in Devonshire called Shirwell. The placename is first recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Sirewelle, and by 1242 as Shirewill... [more]
SHINGLEREnglish An occupational name for someone who laid wooden tiles, or shingles on roofs, from an agent derivative of Middle English schingle ‘shingle’. ... [more]
SHINNEnglish Metonymic occupational name for a Skinner, from Old English scinn, Middle English shin ‘hide’, ‘pelt’. In Middle English this word was replaced by the Norse equivalent, skinn.
SHIPLEYEnglish (Rare) English: habitational name from any of the various places, for example in Derbyshire, County Durham, Northumberland, Shropshire, Sussex, and West Yorkshire, so called from Old English sceap, scip ‘sheep’ + leah ‘wood’, ‘clearing’.
SHIPTONEnglish From Old English scip "sheep", and tun "enclosure; settlement".
SHOCKLEYEnglish (i) perhaps "person from Shocklach", Cheshire ("boggy stream infested with evil spirits"); (ii) perhaps an anglicization of Swiss German Schoechli, literally "person who lives by the little barn"
SHORTALLEnglish The ancient history of the name Shortall began soon after 1066 when the Norman Conquest of England occurred. It was a name given to a stocky or short-necked person which was in turn derived from the Anglo-Saxon word scorkhals meaning a person with a short neck.
SHRAPNELEnglish A different form of CARBONELL. Shrapnel (i.e. metal balls or fragments that are scattered when a bomb, shell or bullet explodes) is named after General Henry Shrapnel (1761-1842), a British artillery officer who during the Peninsular War invented a shell that produced that effect.
SHRIMPTONEnglish Probably referring to the unknown "Estate of Shrimp"
SHROPSHIREEnglish Regional name from the county of Shropshire, on the western border of England with Wales.
SHUCKEnglish Origin uncertain; perhaps a nickname from Middle English schucke "devil, fiend".
SIDWELLEnglish From an English surname of uncertain origin, possibly originally a habitational name from an unidentified place with a second element from Old English well(a) ‘spring’, ‘stream’, but on the other hand early forms are found without prepositions... [more]
SILLITOEEnglish A different form of Shillito (which is 'a name of unknown derivation and meaning, probably originating in Yorkshire'), borne by British novelist, short-story writer and poet Alan Sillitoe (1928-2010).
SILVERGRASSEnglish From English "Silver" and "Grass". Probably given from the plant called "Silvergrass", a Miscanthus type growing in Africa, Europe, Asia, and the Pacific Islands, or a field shining with the sun.
SISSONEnglish metronymic from the medieval female personal name Siss, Ciss, short for Sisley, Cecilie, or possibly from a pet form of Sisley (with the old French diminutive suffix -on). variant of SESSIONS.
SKELTONEnglish, German, Norwegian (Rare) Habitational name from places in Cumbria and Yorkshire, England, originally named with the same elements as SHELTON, but with a later change of ‘s’ to ‘sk’ under Scandinavian influence.
SLACKEnglish, Dutch, Scottish English and Dutch: nickname for an idle person, from Middle Dutch slac, Middle English slack, ‘lazy’, ‘careless’. ... [more]
SMALLEYEnglish, Cornish (?) Locational surname from places in Derbyshire and Lancashire, so called from Old English smæl ‘narrow’ + leah ‘wood’, ‘clearing’. This may also be a Cornish name with an entirely separate meaning.
SMARTEnglish From Old English (smeart) meaning "quick". This surname was used to refer to person who worked as a handyman.
SMEATONEnglish From Old English Smiðatun meaning "settlement of the smiths".
SMILEYScots, English From elements small and lea meaning "a small clearing" or as a nickname may refer to a person of happy disposition known for smiling.