This is a list of submitted surnames in which the usage is English; and the first letter is O.
Submitted names are contributed by users of this website. The accuracy of these name definitions cannot be guaranteed.
OakEnglish Topographic surname for someone who lived near an oak tree or in an oak wood, from Middle English oke "oak".
OakdenEnglish A variant of Ogden, from a place name derived from Old English āc "oak" and denu "valley". Famous bearers include British diplomat Edward Oakden and English cricketer Patrick Oakden.
OakenshieldEnglish (British), Literature In J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Hobbit", the surname of Thorin Oakenshield, the leader of the Company of Dwarves and the King of Durin's Folk.
OaksEnglish English variant spelling of Oakes and Americanized form of Jewish Ochs.
OakwellEnglish Probably either from the former village of Oakwell-in-the-Blean in the county of Kent, or Ockwell Manor, and again a former village, near Bray, in Berkshire
OdhamEnglish Variant of Odom, altered by folk etymology as if derived from a place name formed with -ham.
OdomEnglish 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).
OfficerEnglish (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’).
OgilvieScottish, English From the ancient Barony of Ogilvie in Angus, Northeast Scotland. The placename itself is derived from Pictish ocel, 'high' and fa, 'plain'.
OgleScottish, English, Northern Irish Habitational name from a place in Northumbria, named with the Old English personal name Ocga + Old English hyll 'hill'.
OglethorpeEnglish It indicates familial origin within the civil parish of Bramham cum Oglethorpe in the West Riding of Yorkshire.
OglethorpeEnglish From Oglethorpe Hall in Bramham (WR Yorks) which is recorded as Ocelestorp in 1086 and Okelesthorp in 124 The place-name derives from the Old Scandinavian personal name Oddkell and Old Scandinavian or Old English þorp "secondary settlement outlying farmstead" meaning "Oddkell's village" the surname derived from oddr "point of a weapon" and ketill "cauldron".
OldEnglish 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.
OldhamEnglish Habitational name from Oldham in Lancashire. The placename derives from Old English ald "old" and Old Norse holmr "island water meadow" or eald "old" and ham "farmstead" meaning either "old lands" or "old farm".
OldknowEnglish Originally "Oldknoll"; deriving from the word knoll meaning ''hill''.
OleyEnglish Was my mother's fathers name. Also my mother's brother.
OlinEnglish Etymology uncertain, possibly derived from the Swedish surname Olander.
OliphantEnglish 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.
OnslowEnglish Locational name from a place called Onslow described in Victorian times as being "a place within the liberty of Shrewsbury, in Salop', the original and still confusingly used, name for the county of Shropshire.
OrangeEnglish, French Nickname for someone associated with the color orange.
OrangeMedieval 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]
OrbisonEnglish 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."
OrchardEnglish Derived from Middle English orchard, from Old English ortgeard. It denoted somebody who lived by or worked in an orchard or lived in a place named Orchard.
OrcuttEnglish Perhaps a much altered spelling of Scottish Urquhart used predominantly in Staffordshire, England.
OrdEnglish, English (American) Ord is an English descent surname that also has Gaelic roots. It's also short for many English surnames that end with "Ord". people include US Army general Edward Ord who practiced in California and had many street names after him.
OrganEnglish 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’).
OrganEnglish From a rare medieval personal name, attested only in the Latinized forms Organus (masculine) and Organa (feminine).
OrleyEnglish Habitational name from Orleigh, possibly meaning "Ordwulf’s clearing", functionally from ort "point" and leah "woodland, clearing"... [more]
OrmayEnglish (American) Believed to be the Americanization of the last name Ormoi from Hungary.
OrmerodEnglish Habitational name for a person from a minor place named Ormerod in Lancashire, from Old Norse given name Ormr and Old English rod "cleared land".
OrpinEnglish 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).
OrrellEnglish Habitational name from either of two minor places in Lancashire called Orell. The placename derives from Old English ora "bank, slope, hill, edge" or ora "ore" and hyll "hill".
OrrisEnglish (Canadian) This 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... [more]
OsbaldestonEnglish Habitational name for a person from the village called Osbaldeston in Lancashire, derived from Old English given name Osbald and tun "enclosure, town".
OsgoodEnglish, Jewish English: 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.... [more]
OslerEnglish 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... [more]
OsmerEnglish, Low German from an Old English and ancient Germanic personal name composed of Old English Old Saxon os "god" and Old English mære Old Saxon mari "famous" (Middle English Osmer)... [more]
OttowayEnglish 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".
OversonEnglish 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.
OwnerEnglish From English owner meaning "a person who owns something".
OwsleyEnglish Habitational 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".
OxbyEnglish fortification where oxen are kept (From the Old English words “oxa” and “burh”)
OxendineEnglish From an English place name meaning "valley of the oxen", which was derived from Old English oxa "ox" (genitive plural oxena) and denu "valley".
OxfordEnglish Habitational name from the city of Oxford in Oxfordshire. The placename derives from Old English oxa "ox" and ford "ford, river crossing".
OyaskiEnglish (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.