BeveridgeEnglish Derived from the town of Beverege or from the Old French beivre "drink", a nickname for a person who sealed contracts with a drink
PickettEnglish 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.
WimpeyEnglish Perhaps a deliberate alteration of Impey. It is borne by George Wimpey, a British construction company, founded in Hammersmith, London in 1880 by George Wimpey (1855-1913)... [more]
JardinFrench, English Derived from Old French jardin meaning "enclosure, garden", hence a topographic name for someone who lived by a garden or a metonymic occupational name for someone who worked as a gardener.
EadeEnglish (British, ?) Originally derived from the Old English Eadwig, which meant "prosperity / fortune in war." Surname found mainly in Scotland and northern England... [more]
ShenbergerEnglish (?) The name Shenberger comes from a common mix up with the archaic Austrian-German surname Schoenberg; meaning "Beautiful Mountain."
MetcalfeEnglish An occupational name from Northern England, from Old English mete, 'food' and calf, 'calf', i.e calfs being fattened for consumption in late summer. Thus, making this surname an occupational name for either a slaughterer or herdsman... [more]
GrandisonEnglish A habitational name from Grandson on Lake Neuchâtel in Switzerland.... [more]
CallenderEnglish Occupational name for a person who finished freshly woven cloth by passing it between heavy rollers to compress the weave. From Old Franch calandrier, calandreur.
MotleyEnglish This surname may come from a nickname for someone wearing parti-coloured clothes (from Anglo-French motteley, which may come from Old English mot meaning "speck").
MarquisFrench, English for someone who behaved like a marquis or an occupational name for a servant in the household of a marquis, from Old Northern French marquis... [more]
CordrayEnglish From a medieval nickname for a proud man (from Old French cuer de roi "heart of a king").
BardenEnglish English: habitational name from places in North and West Yorkshire named Barden, from Old English bere ‘barley’ (or the derived adjective beren) + denu ‘valley’.
HenceGerman, English, Welsh An American spelling variant of Hentz derived from a German nickname for Hans or Heinrich or from an English habitation name found in Staffordshire or Shropshire and meaning "road or path" in Welsh.
BainebridgeEnglish, Irish Bridge over the Bain, An English town named for its place on the river Bain, now used as a surname. Lives near the bridge over the white water... [more]
PuseyEnglish Habitational name from Pusey in Oxfordshire (formerly in Berkshire), so called from Old English peose, piosu ‘pea(s)’ + ēg ‘island’, ‘low-lying land’, or from Pewsey in Wiltshire, recorded in Domesday Book as Pevesie, apparently from the genitive case of an Old English personal name Pefe, not independently attested + Old English ēg ‘island’.
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.
MadeleyEnglish English: habitational name from places so named in Shropshire and Staffordshire, named in Old English with the personal name Mada + leah ‘woodland clearing’.
BedfordEnglish From the English county Bedfordshire and its principal city or from a small community in Lancashire with the same name. The name comes from the Old English personal name Beda, a form of the name Bede and the location element -ford meaning "a crossing at a waterway." Therefore the name indicates a water crossing once associated with a bearer of the medieval name.
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.
BartholomewEnglish From a medieval personal name, Latin Bart(h)olomaeus, from the Aramaic patronymic bar-Talmay "son of Talmay", meaning "having many furrows", i.e. rich in land. This was an extremely popular personal name in Christian Europe, with innumerable vernacular derivatives... [more]
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".
QuartermainEnglish From a medieval nickname for a very dextrous person, or for someone who habitually wore gloves (from Old French quatremains, literally "four hands"). A fictional bearer of the surname is Allan Quartermain, the hero of 'King Solomon's Mines' (1886) and other adventure novels by H. Rider Haggard... [more]
SinnottEnglish, Irish From the medieval personal name Sinod (from Old English Sigenōth, literally "victory-brave").... [more]
AthertonEnglish Habitational name from a place near Manchester named Atherton, from the Old English personal name Æðelhere + Old English tun meaning "settlement".
MinerEnglish English occupational name for someone who built mines, either for the excavation of coal and other minerals, or as a technique in the medieval art of siege warfare. The word represents an agent derivative of Middle English, Old French mine ‘mine’ (a word of Celtic origin, cognate with Gaelic mein ‘ore’, ‘mine’).
CorderFrench (Anglicized, Archaic), English (American) Linked to both English, French and Spanish origin. Cordier, Cordero, Corder- one who makes cord. Can refer to both the act of making cords (rope), cores of fire wood, or actual location names.... [more]
ApplegateEnglish Extremely common variant of Applegarth, in which the less familiar final element has been assimilated to the northern Middle English word gate meaning "road" or to modern English gate.
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).
DurwardEnglish, Scottish (?) Means "guardian of the door, door-keeper" (cf. Durward). A fictional bearer of the surname is Quentin Durward, eponymous hero of the novel (1823) by Sir Walter Scott.
CasleyEnglish Derived from Old English C(e)atta, a personal name meaning "cat" and leah "woodland, clearing"."
PoseyEnglish, French Derived from the Greek word "desposyni." The Desposyni is a term referring to a group of people that are allegedly direct blood relatives to Jesus. They are mentioned in Mark 3:21 and Mark 3:31. American actress Parker Posey is a famous bearer.
StoutScottish, English Probably a nickname for a brave or powerfully built man, from Middle English stout ‘steadfast’. A contrary origin derives from the Old Norse byname Stútr ‘gnat’, denoting a small and insignificant person.
DebleEnglish This surname is of French derivation and was introduced to Britain by the Normans. It has two possible derivations, the first from the Roman (Latin) 'debil-is', which means literally "poorly" or "weak", and may have been a metonymic for a doctor or healer, whilst the second possible origin is a nickname derivation from the old French 'Theodore' to Tibald and Tibble or Dibble, Deble.
BurleyEnglish English habitation name from the elements burh meaning "stronghold or fortified settlement" and leah meaning "field or clearing".
YoungerEnglish, American English (mainly Borders) from Middle English yonger ‘younger’, hence a distinguishing name for, for example, the younger of two bearers of the same personal name. In one case, at least, however, the name is known to have been borne by an immigrant Fleming, and was probably an Americanized form of Middle Dutch jongheer ‘young nobleman’ (see Jonker)... [more]
AlsopEnglish Habitational name, now chiefly found in the Midlands, for a person from Alsop-en-le-Dale, a chapelry in the parish of Ashborne, Derbyshire. The place name itself meant "Ælle's valley" from the genitive of the Old English personal name Ælle and Old English hōp meaning "enclosed valley" (compare Hope).
RedgraveEnglish From the name of a village and civil parish in Suffolk, England, derived from Old English hrēod meaning "reed" or rēad "red", and græf meaning "pit, ditch" or grāf "grove"... [more]
InmanEnglish (British) Anglo-Saxon in Origin. Occupational surname given to a person who "tended a lodge or an inn". Surname first found in Lancashire, England.
HarndenEnglish From an English village Harrowden in Bedfordshire. This place name literally means "hill of the heathen shrines or temples," from the Old English words hearg and dun.
HatchEnglish English (mainly Hampshire and Berkshire): topographic name from Middle English hacche ‘gate’, Old English hæcc (see Hatcher). In some cases the surname is habitational, from one of the many places named with this word... [more]
BradshawEnglish Habitational name from any of the places called Bradshaw, for example in Lancashire and West Yorkshire, from Old English brad "broad" + sceaga "thicket".
FriarEnglish Denoted a member of any of certain religious orders of men, especially the four mendicant orders. (Augustinians, Carmelites, Dominicans, and Franciscans)
QuintonEnglish From a place name meaning "queen's town" in Old English.
DenbyEnglish Means "person from Denby", Derbyshire or Yorkshire ("farmstead of the Danes").
SlingerEnglish Travelled with the army's a user of Slings for war. The variant Slingo is a misspelling only appeared after the English civil war. YDNA between the two matches.
EagleburgerEnglish (American) Americanized form of German Adelberger, a habitational name for someone from a place called Adelberg near Stuttgart.
WalkingtonEnglish Habitational name from a place in East Yorkshire named Walkington, from an unattested Old English personal name Walca + -ing- denoting association with + tūn.
UseltonEnglish Perhaps a variant of Osselton, a habitational name from a lost or unidentified place, probably in northeastern England, where this name is most common.
HarknessScottish, English (British), Northern Irish Apparently a habitational name from an unidentified place (perhaps in the area of Annandale, with which the surname is connected in early records), probably so called from the Old English personal name Hereca (a derivative of the various compound names with the first element here ‘army’) + Old English næss ‘headland’, ‘cape’... [more]
KinderEnglish Habitational name derived from a place in Derbyshire, of unknown etymology.
CoullsonScottish Gaelic (Anglicized, Rare), English All origins of the name are patronymic. Meanings include an Anglicized version of the Gaelic Mac Cumhaill, meaning "son of Cumhall", which means "champion" and "stranger" and an Anglicized patronymic of the Gaelic MacDhubhghaill, meaning "son of Dubhgall." The personal name comes from the Gaelic words dubh, meaning "black" and gall, meaning "stranger."... [more]
FairbrotherEnglish From a medieval nickname probably meaning either "better-looking of two brothers" or "brother of a good-looking person", or perhaps in some cases "father's brother".
NoonEnglish 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]
MudgeEnglish A location surname for someone who lives or dwells near the swamps. A famous bearer of this surname is Angela Mudge, a champion fell runner and trail runner from Scotland.
ThreadgoldEnglish Means "person who embroiders cloth with gold thread".
RickmanEnglish Means "son of Rick". A famous bearer was American Alan Rickman (1946-2016).
NapierScottish, English Scottish occupational name for a producer or seller of table linen or for a naperer, the servant in charge of the linen in use in a great house from the Middle English, Old French nap(p)ier, an agent derivative of Old French nappe ‘table cloth’ (Latin mappa)... [more]
HigginsEnglish Patronymic from the medieval personal name Higgin, a pet form of Hick.
BarringtonEnglish, Irish English: habitational name from any of several places called Barrington. The one in Gloucestershire is named with the Old English personal name Beorn + -ing- denoting association + tun ‘settlement’... [more]
FrizzellEnglish (Rare) Either (i) from Friseal, the Scottish Gaelic form of Fraser; or (ii) from a medieval nickname applied to someone who dressed in a showy or gaudy style (from Old French frisel "decoration, ribbon").
BackmanEnglish, Swedish, German Combination of Old English bakke "spine, back" and man "man". In Swedish, the first element is more likely to be derived from Swedish backe "hill", and in German the first element can be derived from German backen "to bake"... [more]
IretonEnglish Habitational name from either of two places in Derbyshire called Ireton, or one in North Yorkshire called Irton. All of these are named from the genitive case of Old Norse Íri ‘Irishmen’ (see Ireland) + tun ‘enclosure’, ‘settlement’.... [more]
MountjoyEnglish Habitational surname for a person from Montjoie in La Manche, France, named with Old French mont "hill", "mountain" + joie "joy".
BaldockEnglish (Rare) Means "person from Baldock", Hertfordshire ("Baghdad": in the Middle Ages the lords of the manor were the Knights Templar, whose headquarters were in Jerusalem, and they named the town Baldac, the Old French name for Baghdad).
BassfordEnglish Habitational name from any of several places called Basford, especially the one in Nottinghamshire. There are others in Staffordshire and Cheshire. Either that or it's from Old English berc "birch tree" + Old English ford "ford".
LowehartEnglish Variation of Lowheart, used to denote people who seem to show a lack of consideration through expression
MagnumEnglish Possibly derived from the given name Magnus. It is borne by the fictional character Thomas Magnum, the protagonist on the American television series Magnum, P.I. (1980-1988).
HarbinEnglish This surname is of Anglo-Saxon origins, and is derived from the personal names Rabin, Robin, and Robert. It has the English prefix 'har', which means gray.... [more]
WinegardnerEnglish (American) Anglicized form of the German occupational surname Weingartner. A known bearer of this surname is the American writer Mark Winegardner (b. 1961).
MelmothEnglish From middle english milde, meaning "mild, gentle, friendly" and mouth. The development of the surname may have been influenced by association with Middle English mele-mouth, meaning "mealy-mouthed, reticent, ingratiating, hypocritical".
TerwilligerEnglish An anglicized version of the Dutch surname, Der Willikeur, meaning "a by-law; a statute". Also, Der willige-waar, means "serviceable ware", or "ware that sells well" and could be related as well.
HoleEnglish Topographic name for someone who lived by a depression or low-lying spot, from Old English holh "hole, hollow, depression".
HusseyEnglish, Irish As an English surname, it comes from two distinct sources. It is either of Norman origin, derived from Houssaye, the name of an area in Seine-Maritime which ultimately derives from Old French hous "holly"; or it is from a Middle English nickname given to a woman who was the mistress of a household, from an alteration of husewif "housewife"... [more]
HeadleeEnglish (Rare) The Anglo-Saxon name Headlee comes from when the family resided in one of a variety of similarly-named places. Headley in Hampshire is the oldest. The surname Headlee belongs to the large category of Anglo-Saxon habitation names, which are derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads.
BoysEnglish From the Old French word bois, which means "wood," indicates that the original bearer lived near a wooded area, such as a forest.
DuxburyEnglish Habitational name from a place in Lancashire, recorded in the early 13th century as D(e)ukesbiri, from the genitive case of the Old English personal name Deowuc or Duc(c) (both of uncertain origin) + Old English burh ‘fort’ (see Burke).
RuggEnglish Nickname for a person associated with the color red, whether through hair color, clothing, or complexion. Accordingly, the name is derived from the Old French word ruge, meaning red.
UdomEnglish English: nickname for someone who had done well for himself by marrying the daughter of a prominent figure in the local community, from Middle English odam ‘son-in-law’ (Old English āðum).
BenfieldEnglish habitational name from one or more of the numerous places in England called Benfield or Binfield which are named from Middle English bent "bent-grass" and feld "open country" or "land converted to arable use" (Old English beonet and feld).