Browse Submitted Surnames

This is a list of submitted surnames in which the usage is English; and the order is random.
usage
Submitted names are contributed by users of this website. The accuracy of these name definitions cannot be guaranteed.
Doolittle English
From a medieval nickname applied to a lazy man (from Middle English do "do" + little "little"). It was borne by the American poet Hilda Doolittle (1886-1961). A fictional bearer is Eliza Doolittle, the flower seller in Bernard Shaw's 'Pygmalion' (1913); and a variant spelling was borne by Dr Dolittle, the physician who had the ability to talk to animals, in the series of books written by Hugh Lofting from 1920.
Shilling English, German (Americanized), Dutch (Americanized)
nickname from the Middle English coin name schilling "shilling" (Old English scilling) probably referring to a fee or rent owed or paid... [more]
Standish English
Habitational name Standish (Lancashire Now Part Of Greater Manchester, and Yorkshire) meaning Old English Stān ‘Stone Rock’ + Edisc ‘Enclosure; or Enclosed Park’.
Spurrill English (British, Rare)
Most likely from a place called Spirewell in southern Devon.
Hartshorn English
habitational name from Hartshorne (Derbyshire) from Old English heorot "hart stag" (genitive heorotes) and horn "horn" perhaps in reference to the nearby hill (known as Hart Hill) and its supposed resemblance to a hart's horn... [more]
Clooney English, Irish
From Gaelic Ó Cluanaigh meaning "descendant of Cluanach". Cluanach was a given name derived from Irish clauna "deceitful, flattering, rogue".
Thrall English
English status name from Old English þr?l ‘thrall’, ‘serf’ (from Old Norse þræll).
Stemle English
FROM KUPPENHEIM, BADEN, GERMANY, WHERE IT WAS (AND IS TODAY) SPELLED WITH 2 Ms: STEMMLE.... [more]
Linnane Irish, English
Anglicized form of O'lennon.
Balcom English
Altered spelling of English Balcombe, a habitational name from Balcombe in West Sussex, which is named with Old English bealu "evil, calamity" (or the Old English personal name Bealda) combined with cumb "valley".
Hyndeston Anglo-Saxon, English
A an earlier variation of the surname Hingston. See Hingston for full meaning.
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.
Nathan English
From the given name Nathan.
Wynter English
Variant of Winter.
Learn English (American)
The surname Learn is traced to an 18th-century settler and his family who lived in what is now Tannersville, Pa. It is an Anglicized version of the Germanic "Loehrner," which name the settler and his family also used.
Colston English
Colston means “Coal town settlement.” It is also a variant of Colton.
Crumbaugh English (American)
Americanised form of German Krumbach or Swiss German Grumbach.
Waverly English
Meaning, "from Waverley (Surrey)" or "from the brushwood meadow." From either waever meaning "brushwood" or waefre meaning "flickering, unstable, restless, wandering" combined with leah meaning "meadow, clearing."
Southwick English
An English/Scottish locational name from a variety of places, including, Southwick in Northamptonshire, England, and Southwick in Gloucestershire, Sussex, Durham, Hampshire. ... [more]
Voisin French, English
From Old French voisin "neighbor" (Anglo-Norman French veisin) . The application is uncertain; it may either be a nickname for a "good neighbor", or for someone who used this word as a frequent term of address, or it might be a topographic name for someone who lived on a neighboring property... [more]
Bisley English (British)
Bisley is a locational surname from the village of Bisley in Surrey. It comes from the words biss meaning “water” and leah meaning “farm”.
Starling English
From a medieval nickname for someone thought to resemble a starling, especially in constantly chattering.
Greenlee English
habitational name from any of various minor places, for example in Staffordshire, so named from Old English grene ‘green’ + leah ‘woodland clearing’.
Brightwen English
From either of the two Old English given names Beohrtwine (a masculine name which meant "bright friend") or Beohrtwynn (a feminine name which meant "bright joy").
Kingsbury English
Habitational surname derived from several places in England with the same name, for example in northwest London (formerly Middlesex), Somerset, and Warwickshire. These are mostly named in Old English as cyninges burh meaning "the king’s stronghold", but the last mentioned is cynesburh meaning "stronghold of Cyne" (cyne is a short form of any of various compound names with cyne- meaning "royal" as the first element).
De Lara English
Means "from Lara", a Spanish and French habitational name.
Siler English
Anglicized form of Seiler, an occupational name for a rope maker, from German Seil ‘rope’
Dawkins English, Welsh
A derivitive of the Hebrew name David which translates to “beloved”. (see Daw)
Cramer German, English
Variant of German surname Krämer.
Gunner English
From Old English gunne meaning "cannon, gun" and the agent suffix "-er"
Leech English, Scottish
A physician.
Quarry English
From Middle English quarey "quarry", a topographic name for someone who lived near a stone quarry, or a metonymic occupational name for someone who worked in one. ... [more]
Goodbar German (Anglicized), English
Possibly an altered spelling of English Godber, derived from the medieval given name Godebert, or an occupational name for a beer brewer and a nickname for a toper... [more]
Gainsborough English
From the city of Gainsborough in Lincolnshire, England. A famous bearer of this surname includes English painter Thomas Gainsborough.
Wimpey English
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]
Camm English
English (of Norman origin): habitational name for someone from Caen in Normandy, France.English: habitational name from Cam in Gloucestershire, named for the Cam river, a Celtic river name meaning ‘crooked’, ‘winding’.Scottish and Welsh: possibly a nickname from Gaelic and Welsh cam ‘bent’, ‘crooked’, ‘cross-eyed’.Americanized spelling of German Kamm.
Branner Danish, German, English
Danish variant of BRANDER and German variant of BRANTNER.
Latimer English
English occupational name for a clerk who could translate documents to and from Latin and/or other languages, from Anglo-Norman French latinier, latim(m)ier.
Stradling English (British)
Researchers found the origin of this surname Stradling by referring to such documents as the Viking Sagas, the Orkneyinga Sagas, the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland, the Inquisitio and the translations of local manuscripts, parish records, baptismal & tax records, found in the north of Dingwall, and in the Orkneys and Shetlands.... [more]
Manchester English
Habitational name from the city in northwestern England, formerly part of Lancashire. This is so called from Mamucio (an ancient British name containing the element mammā "breast", and meaning "breast-shaped hill") combined with Old English ceaster "Roman fort or walled city" (Latin castra "legionary camp").
Birchall English
Probably a habitational name from Birchill in Derbyshire or Birchills in Staffordshire, both named in Old English with birce "birch" + hyll "hill".
Farewell English (Rare)
Means "goodbye,departing" in English.
Kelham English
Derived from the village of Kelham, near Newark-upon-Trent, Nottingham.
Stowell English
A locational name from various places in England called Stowell
Hamlin English
From an Old English word meaning "home" or "homestead" and a diminutive suffix -lin.
Dewey English
From the given name Dewey.
Beacher English
Means "near the beech trees".
Gayler English (American)
Variant of Gaylord
Mattingly English (British)
This name dates all the way back to the 1200s and research shows that Mattingly families began immigrating to the United States in the 1600s and continued until the 1900s. However, the place name (Mattingley, England) dates back to the year 1086, but spelled as Matingelege... [more]
Applewhite English
Habitational name from a place named Applethwaite, from Old Norse apaldr ‘apple tree’ and þveit ‘meadow’. There are two or three such places in Cumbria; Applethwaite is also recorded as a surname from the 13th century in Suffolk, England, pointing to a possible lost place name there... [more]
Bails English
Indicated that the bearer lived outside the walls of a feudal castle, from the Old French baile, refering to the structure
Earenfight English
appears in early American history in Pennsylvania and New Jerssey. Jacob Earenfight fought in the Battle of Princeton in the American Revolutionary War.
Ashcroft English
English (chiefly Lancashire) topographic name from Middle English asche ‘ash tree’ + croft ‘enclosure’, or a habitational name from a minor place named with these elements.
Grange English, French
English and French topographic name for someone who lived by a granary, from Middle English, Old French grange (Latin granica ‘granary’, ‘barn’, from granum ‘grain’)... [more]
Rugby English
From Rugby, Warwickshire. Originally named *Rocheberie, from Old English *Hrocaburg, 'Hroca's fort', the name was altered due to influence fort Danish settlers, with the second element being replaced with Old Norse byr, 'farm'.... [more]
Ebanks English
Probably a variant of Eubanks.
Sill English
English: from a medieval personal name, a short form of Silvester (see Silvester) or Silvanus (see Silvano).
Eldon English
Habitation name from the Old English personal name Ella- and -don from dun meaning "hill."
St Vincent English
Most likely referring to Vincent Ferrer, a friar and preacher or one of the many places called St. Vincent.
Edmison English, Scottish
Patronymic surname meaning “Son of Edmund”.
Batchelor English, Scottish
Occupational name for an unmarried man, a young knight or a novice, derived from Middle English and Old French bacheler literally meaning "bachelor", ultimately from medieval Latin baccalarius.
Forman English
An occupational surname for a keeper of swine, Middle English foreman, from Old English for hog, "pig" and mann ‘man’. The word is attested in this sense from the 15th century but is not used specifically for the leader of a gang of workers before the late 16th century.
Upsher English
This Anglo-Saxon surname means “of Upshire” and refers to someone from the hamlet Upshire in County Essex.
Coventry English
habitational name from the city of Coventry in the West Midlands, which is probably named with the genitive case of an Old English personal name Cofa (compare Coveney) + Old English treow 'tree'.
Gus English
From the given name Gus.
Norwel English
English surname meaning "From the North Spring"
Osmond English
From the given name Osmond
Carsten English
Could mean son of Carsten.... [more]
Caine French, English
Originally from a French derogatory nickname for someone with a bad temper.
Herbaugh English (American)
Americanized form of German Harbach.
Axford English
Derived from Axford, which is the name of two villages in England (one is located in the county of Hampshire, the other in Wiltshire). Both villages derive their name from Old English æsc(e) "ash tree(s)" and Old English ford "ford", which gives their name the meaning of "ford by the ash trees" or "a ford with ash trees"... [more]
Compton English
Habitational name from any of the numerous places throughout England (but especially in the south) named Compton, from Old English cumb meaning "short, straight valley" + tūn meaning "enclosure", "settlement".
Bywater English
The surname Bywater came from the Anglo-Saxon origin and means ’dweller by the water‘
Ryerson English (American)
Americanized spelling of Swedish Reierson or of any of its cognates, for example Dutch Ryerse, Ryersen or Norwegian and Danish Reiersen.
Bartholomew English
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]
Leadbeater English
Variant spelling of Ledbetter.
Cherryman English
It is topographical or perhaps occupational and describes a person who lived or worked at a cherry orchard, or who lived by a house known by the sign of the cherry. In the days before house numbering, it was the tradition in almost all western countries to give the house a sign... [more]
Bottomley English
English (Yorkshire and Lancashire): habitational name from a place in West Yorkshire named Bottomley, from Old English botm ‘broad valley’ + lēah ‘woodland clearing’.
Rhine German, French, English, Irish
A habitational name for an individual whom lived within close proximity of the River Rhine (see Rhein). The river name is derived from a Celtic word meaning 'to flow' (Welsh redan, 'flow').... [more]
Coney English
Means "seller of rabbits", or from a medieval nickname for someone thought to resemble a rabbit (in either case from Middle English cony "rabbit").
Ravenscar English (British)
From a coastal village with the same name, located in the Scarborough district of North Yorkshire, England.
Kidwell Welsh, English
The origins of this surname are uncertain, but it may be derived from Middle English kidel "fish weir", denoting a person who lived by a fish weir or made his living from it, or from an English place called Kiddal, probably meaning "Cydda's corner of land" from the Old English given name Cydda and halh "nook or corner of land".
Gammon English
From a medieval nickname applied to a merry or sportive person (from Middle English gamen "game"), or to someone who walked in a strange way or had some peculiarity of the legs (from Anglo-Norman gambon "ham").
Mudgett English
Derived from a pet form of Mudge.
Menzel German, English
Derived from a short form of MENZ, Clemens or Hermann.
Symere English (American, Rare)
Name of unknown origin, typically used in the United States. It is best known as the real first name of American rapper Lil Uzi Vert.
Sutherlin English
Variant of Sutherland
Scroggs English
From Middle English scrogge meaning "brushwood".
Town English
topographic name from Middle English toun(e) th one tun(e) "town village settlement" (Old English tun) often in the senses "primary settlement within an area" "manor estate" and "hamlet farm" for someone who lived in such a place.
Josias English
From the given name Josias
Ketay English (British)
It was first used by the great king Richard skinner-ketay wh ruled over his land fairly and wisely and his subjects respected and loved him.
Brucker English
Variant spelling of Brooker.
Cawood English
Traditional English habitational surname meaning "jackdaw wood" from the Old English ca referring to 'jackdaw' (a member of the crow family), and wudu 'wood'.
Mapp English
From a variant of the medieval female personal name Mabbe, a shortened form of Amabel. A fictional bearer is Elizabeth Mapp, busybodyish spinster in the 'Mapp and Lucia' novels of E.F. Benson.
Marler English (British)
The name Marler might be loosely tied to marl, the type of crumbly clay made up of sand, silt, or clay. The name Marler likely means to mine marl, so they were called Marlers.
Fyler English (American)
Americanized spelling of German Feiler.
Rymer English
Occupational name for a poet.
Ann English
Habitational name from Abbots Ann in Hampshire, named for the stream that runs through it, which is most probably named with an ancient Welsh word meaning ‘water’.
Earhart English (American)
Americanized spelling of German Ehrhardt.
Tungate English
habitational name from Tungate a minor place near North Walsham named from Old English tun "farmstead estate" and Old Norse gata or Old English gaet "way path road street gate".
Parsley Medieval French, English, Norman, French
Derived from Old French passelewe "cross the water."... [more]
Sebastian German, English
From the given name Sebastian.
Roel English, Spanish, Dutch, German
From the name Roeland, meaning "famous country".
Lepley English
From a byname for a cobbler.
Muston English
Habitational name from places so named, from Old English mus "mouse", or must, "muddy stream or place" combined with tun "enclosure, settlement". Another explanation could be that the first element is derived from an old Scandinavian personal name, Músi (of unknown meaning), combined with tun.
Rain English
Variant of Raine.
Frias English
English form of Frías.
Bogs English
A name given to someone that lives near a bog or swamp. More comonly spelled as Boggs.
Fenton English
Originated from several place names in England, meaning “marsh town” from Old English fenn “marsh, fen” + tun “enclosure; settlement, town”.
Crist English
Applied to someone who played the part of christ in a pageant
Garison English
Means “son of Gary”.
Oakenshield English (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.
Tenant English
Variant of the surname Tennant.
Kyer English (American)
Anglicized form of Geier.
Isaiah English
From the given name Isaiah
Lynd English
Variant of Lund.
Sedon English
Variant of "Seddon"
Whitacre English (American)
Variant of Whitaker. A notable bearer is Eric Whitacre (1970-), an American composer.
Feverel English
From a Middle English form of February, probably used as a nickname either for someone born in that month or for someone with a suitably frosty demeanor. In fiction, this surname was borne by the central character of George Meredith's novel 'The Ordeal of Richard Feverel' (1859).
Hollobone English
Common surname in the southeast England, predominantly Sussex
Hollowell English
Either a variant of Halliwell or derived from another place named with Old English hol "hollow" and wella "spring, well".
Huckleberry English
From the name of the variety of shrubs (genus Vaccinium) or the berries that grow on them. This is also the anglicized form of the German surname Hackelberg.
Screeton English
Locational surname originating from the village of Screveton in Nottinghamshire. Derived of Old English elements scīr-rēfa "sheriff" and tun "settlement".
Geraldson English
Means "son of Gerald".
Breathe English
English variant of Breath. It comes from the La Bret family in Daveham.
Welburn English
English surname meaning "From the Spring brook"
Hagstrom English
Anglicized form of Swedish Hagström.
Danforth English
Probably a habitational name, perhaps from Darnford in Suffolk, Great Durnford in Wiltshire, or Dernford Farm in Sawston, Cambridgeshire, all named from Old English dierne ‘hidden’ + ford ‘ford’.
Quentin English
Derived from the given name Quentin.
Clutterbuck English, Dutch (Anglicized, ?)
English surname of unknown origin, possibly a corrupted form of a Dutch surname derived from Dutch klateren "to clatter" and beek "brook". The original surname may have been brought to England by Flemish weavers whom Edward III brought to England in the 14th century to teach their techniques to the English, or by Huguenots who fled the Netherlands in the 16th century to escape religious persecution... [more]
Engelbert German, English, French
From a Germanic personal name composed of engel (see Engel) + berht ‘bright’, ‘famous’. The widespread popularity of the name in France during the Middle Ages was largely a result of the fact that it had been borne by a son-in-law of Charlemagne; in the Rhineland it was more often given in memory of a bishop of Cologne (1216–25) of this name, who was martyred.
Luster English
Variant of Lester.
Houseman English
Referred to a man who lived or worked in a house, as opposed to a smaller hut (see House). Famous bearers of this name include Romanian-British-American actor John Houseman (1902-1988; real name Jacques Haussmann), Argentine soccer player René Houseman (1953-2018) and Canadian actor Tyson Houseman (1990-).
Ace English, Norman, Medieval French
The surname Ace's origin is from a Norman and Old French personal name, Ace, Asse, from Germanic Frankish origin Azzo, Atso, a pet form of personal names containing adal ‘noble’ as a first element.
Rittman German, English
From Middle High German "riet" and "mann", riet meaning reed.
Hartwell English
Habitational name from places in Buckinghamshire, Northamptonshire, and Staffordshire called Hartwell, from Old English heorot ‘stag’, ‘hart’ + wella ‘spring’, ‘stream’... [more]
Large French, English
Originally a nickname derived from Middle English and Old French large "generous".
Whitlow English
white hill” place name from east side of country in lower Northumbria perhaps? Or perhaps next lower shire.
Warden English
Occupational name for a watchman or guard, from Old French wardein meaning "protector, guard". It was also used as a habbitational name for someone from any of the various locations in England named Warden... [more]
Jefferies English
Derived from the given name Jeffrey.
Beats English
Variant of Beets.
Storie English (American)
Possibly a variant of Storey.
Bromwell English
Habitational name from Broomwell in Herefordshire named in Old English with brom ‘broom’ + wella ‘spring’, ‘stream’.
Barham English
English: habitational name from any of the various places so called. Most, for example those in Cambridgeshire and Suffolk, are named with Old English beorg ‘hill’ + ham ‘homestead’. The one in Kent, however, is from an unattested Old English byname Biora, Beora (a derivative of bera ‘bear’) + ham.
Boss English
From an originally French term meaning "hunchback".
Churlson English
Means “son of Charles”.
Jolly English
From the English word jolly, which is ultimately from Old French joli# ("merry, happy"). Originally a nickname for someone of a cheerful or attractive disposition.
Broomby English
A surname well represented in Cheshire, and Nottinghamshire.
Errey English
This uncommon and intriguing name is of Old Norse origin, and is found chiefly in the north western counties of England, reflecting the dense settlement of Scandinavian peoples in those areas. The surname is locational, from places such as Aira Beck or Aira Force near Ullswater in Cumberland, or some other minor or unrecorded place also named with the Old Norse term "eyrara", meaning "gravel-bank stream river”.
Dacy English
Variant of Dacey.
Treacher English
From a medieval nickname for a tricky or deceptive person (from Old French tricheor "trickster, cheat").