AlerEnglish (Rare), German From the alder tree, a tree found in the Americas, Europe and parts of Asia. The much less common given name Aler is possibly derived from it.
BatzUpper German Derived from Alemannic Swabian Batz "pile; large quantity", possibly applied as a nickname either for a man of large physical proportions or for a man of wealth. The term also denoted a coin and may have been used metonymically for a coiner... [more]
BeerGerman, Dutch From Middle Low German bare, Middle Dutch bere "bear". Given as a nickname to someone who was thought to resemble a bear, a metonymic occupational name for someone who kept a performing bear, or a habitational name for someone who lived near a sign depicting a bear... [more]
BehnGerman From the German male personal name Behn, a shortened form of Bernhard. A famous bearer was the English novelist and dramatist Aphra Behn (1640-1689).
BenzGerman South German: (in Alemannic areas) from a short form of the Germanic personal name Berthold, or to a lesser extent of Bernhard
BernGerman, Scandinavian, German (Swiss) German and Scandinavian: from the personal name Berno, a pet form of Bernhard. In South German it comes from the habitational name from Bern, Switzerland, notably in the south; in other parts from the personal name Berno.
BetzGerman Derived from a Thuringian short form of the personal name Bernhard.
BierGerman, Jewish from Middle High German bier "beer" German bier Yiddish bir a metonymic occupational name for a brewer of beer or a tavern owner or in some cases perhaps a nickname for a beer drinker.
BirkGerman Either a variant of Buerk or a habitational name derived from places named Birk, Birke, or Birken.
BodeGerman, Dutch, English, Danish Means "messenger, deliverer, herald; prophet, omen", ultimately from Old Germanic budą. This can be an occupational name, or a patronymic derived from a given name containing the element (see Bothe).
BoldGerman, English English: nickname from Middle English bold ‘courageous’, ‘daring’ (Old English b(e)ald, cognate with Old High German bald). In some cases it may derive from an Old English personal name (see Bald)... [more]
BornGerman, English A topographical name indicating someone who lived near a stream, from the Old English "burna, burne". Alternatively, it could be contemporarily derived from the modern English word "born". Possible variants include Bourne, Burns 1 and Boren.
BrotAlsatian Derived from German Brot "bread", this surname was given to someone who sold or baked bread.
BuchGerman Topographic name for someone who lived by a beech tree or beech wood, from Middle High German buoche, or a habitational name from any of the numerous places so named with this word, notably in Bavaria and Württemberg... [more]
BudeGerman, Dutch Means "booth, stall" or "hut, small house".
BuhlmGerman Nickname for a male relative (i.e. a member of an important family who was not the head of it), from Middle High German buole ‘kinsman’ (Old High German buolo, also used as a personal name).... [more]
BurrEnglish, Scottish, German Nickname for a person who is difficult to shake off, derived from Middle English burr meaning "bur" (a seedhead that sticks to clothing). It could also be a derivation from Old English bur meaning "small dwelling, building", or a German topographic name derived from burre meaning "mound, hill"... [more]
CaanScottish, German, Jewish Altered spelling of Jewish Cohen, or probably denoted a person from the city of Aberdeen in Scotland. Famous bearers of this surname include American actor James Caan (1940-2022), as well as his son Scott Caan (1976-), also a noted actor.
DanzGerman Derived from a given name, a short form of the name Tandulf, the origins of which are uncertain. (In some cases, however, this surname may have originated as a nickname denoting a person who liked to dance, from the Middle High German word tanz, danz "dance".)
DaumGerman, Jewish Nickname for a short person, from Middle High German doum "tap", "plug", or dume, German Daumen "thumb".
DausGerman From Middle Low German dūs denoting the "two on a die or , the ace in cards" hence a nickname for a passionate card or dice player.
DelkGerman (?) Possibly an altered form of German telke, meaning “proud” or “famous,” or a shortened form of German Delker.
DeppGerman Derived from Germanic depp which is a nickname for a joker (person who plays jokes on others). A notable bearer is Johnny Depp, an American actor.
DruxGerman Variant of Trux, which itself is a contracted form of Truxes and derived from the German word Truchsess, ultimately from Middle High German truhsaeze and Old High German truhtsazzo (from truht "band; cohort; regiment" and saza "seat; chair").... [more]
DückLow German, German North German nickname for a coward, from Low German duken ‘to duck or dive’. ... [more]
EdenGerman Refers to someone from one of several places of the same name, mainly in Bavaria and Austria, from Middle High German œde "wasteland" and the suffix n, which signifies an action toward the root word... [more]
EichGerman German from Middle High German eich(e) ‘oak’, hence a topographic name for someone who lived near an oak tree. In some cases, it may be a habitational name for someone from any of several places named with this word, for example Eiche or Eichen, or for someone who lived at a house distinguished by the sign of an oak.
ElbeGerman habitational name from any of various places called Elbe, Elben or from the river name.
FahrGerman, German (Swiss) A topographic name for someone who lived near a crossing point on a river, from Middle High German vare, meaning ferry.
FallEnglish, German English topographic name Middle English falle "fall descent" (from Old English gefeall or gefall "felling of trees" Old Norse fall "forest clearing") denoting a waterfall steep slope or (in northern England) a forest clearing... [more]
FassGerman From Middle High German faz, German Fass 'cask', 'keg', hence a metonymic occupational name for a maker or seller of casks and kegs, or a nickname for someone as rotund as a barrel. German: variant of Fasse, Faas.
FastGerman, Swedish Either a short form of a name starting with the element fast meaning "steadfast, firm", or a nickname for a reliable steadfast person.
FeckGerman, Frisian From a short form of the Frisian personal name Feddeke, a pet form of Fre(de)rik (see Friederich).
FeitGerman, Jewish Variant of Veit. Also, nickname from Middle High German feit ‘adorned’, ‘pretty’ (the same word as French fait, Latin factus).
FellEnglish, German, Jewish Metonymic occupational name for a furrier, from Middle English fell, Middle High German vel, or German Fell or Yiddish fel, all of which mean "skin, hide, pelt". Yiddish fel refers to untanned hide, in contrast to pelts "tanned hide" (see Pilcher).
FinkGerman, Slovene, English, Jewish Nickname for a lively or cheerful person, Jewish ornamental name derived from the Germanic word for "finch", and German translation of Slovene Šinkovec which is from šcinkovec or šcinkavec meaning "finch".
FunkGerman Derived from Middle High German vunke "spark". ... [more]
FustGerman Variant of Faust or a nickname for a person who was strong and pugnacious, derived from Old German fust "fist".
GannGerman Topographic name for someone who lived near an expanse of scree, Middle High German gant.
GansGerman, Dutch Means "goose" in German and Dutch, either an occupational name for someone who worked with geese, a habitational name for someone who lived by a sign depicting a goose, or a nickname for someone walked oddly or was considered silly or foolish... [more]
GansGerman, Dutch From Old High German ganz "whole, intact, healthy", a nickname for a particularly strong or healthy person.
GishGerman From a shortened form of the Germanic personal name Gisulf, literally "hostage wolf". It was borne by American actress Lillian Gish (?1893-1993), original name Lillian de Guiche.
GoosGerman, Flemish, Dutch Either a metonymic occupational name for a breeder or keeper of geese, from Middle Low German gōs and Middle Dutch goes "goose", or a short form of an Old German personal name containing Gote "Goth" or got "god", particularly Goswin or Gozewijn (a compound name with the second element wini "friend").
GötzGerman Originally a hypocorism of Gottfried, which is derived from an Old High German given name. Variants include the surnames Getz and Goetz, as well as the given name Götz.
GrauGerman, Jewish Nickname for someone with gray hair or a gray beard, from German grau "gray".
GrobGerman A nickname for a strong, heavy man, or for a lout, from Middle High German g(e)rop "coarse".
GrünGerman, Jewish from Middle High German gruoni "green fresh raw" hence a nickname for someone who habitually dressed in green a topographic name for someone who lived in a green and leafy place or a habitational name for someone from a place called with this word such as GrunaGrunau in Silesia... [more]
GustGerman German: from a short form of the personal name Jodocus, which is either a Latinized form of a Breton name, Iodoc, borne by a 7th-century Breton saint (compare Jost and Joyce) or from a reduced form of the personal name Augustus.... [more]
HausGerman Topographic and occupational name for someone who lived and worked in a great house, from Middle High German, Middle Low German hus "house" (see House).
HeldGerman, Jewish, Dutch Means "hero" in German, ultimately derived from Middle High German helt. This name was bestowed upon a person either in its literal meaning or else in an ironic sense.
HelmEnglish, Dutch, German Either from Old English helm "protection covering" (in later northern English dialects "cattle shelter barn"). The name may be topographic for someone who lived by or worked at a barn or habitational from a place so named such as Helme in Meltham (Yorkshire)... [more]
HessGerman Habitational name from Hesse, a German state. It can also derive from the personal name Hesso, a short form of Matthäus, Hendrick, or a name containing the element hadu "battle, strife".
HockGerman Topographic name for someone living by a hedge, from a dialect variant of Heck.
HoenDutch, German From Middle Dutch hoen "chicken, hen", perhaps a nickname denoting a silly or foolish person, or an occupational name for someone who raised chickens.
HoenDutch, German From the personal name Huno, a short form of names containing the element hun "bear cub, offspring".
HoffGerman Means "yard, court, farmyard", from Germanic hof.
HotzGerman (Swiss), German, Hungarian Of debated origin and meaning; theories include a habitional name for someone from the Hotzenwald, a derivation from any given name containing the Germanic name element hadu "battle, combat" and a derivation from the verb hotzen "to swing, to sway, to tremble".
JaukGerman (Austrian) The meaning of the name Jauk is similar to the word "acre" in English. It is a measure word for how much land an ox can plough in one day. People with the surname Jauk are likely to have descended from farmers... [more]
KalkGerman, Dutch Occupational name for a lime burner from Middle High German kalc and Middle Dutch calk "lime" (both a loanword from Latin calx).
KalpGerman, Jewish From Middle High German kalp ‘calf’, German Kalb, probably applied as a metonymic occupational name for someone who reared calves.
KaltGerman, German (Swiss) From Middle High German kalt "cold" probably applied as a nickname for someone who felt the cold or for someone with an unfriendly disposition.
KammGerman, Estonian Means "comb" in German, an occupational name for a wool comber or fuller, or perhaps a maker of combs. In some cases it might have been used in the sense of "ridge of mountains, hills", making it a topographic name... [more]
KampGerman, Dutch, Danish From the Germanic element kamp "field", derived from Latin campus "open space, battlefield".
KariFinnish, German (Austrian), Slovene (?), Hungarian, Indian, Marathi As a Finnish name, it is a topographic and ornamental name from kari "small island", "stony rapids", "sandbar", or "rocky place in a field". This name is found throughout Finland.... [more]
KaukGerman probably a variant of Kauke from Middle Low German koke "cake" (dialect kauke) hence a metonymic occupational name for a baker or confectioner or a nickname for a cake lover.
KausGerman From a regional (Hessian) variant of the habitational name Kues, from a place on the Mosel river, probably so named from Late Latin covis "field barn", "rack" and earlier recorded as Couese, Cobesa.
KautGerman Netonymic occupational name for a flax grower or dealer, from Middle High German kute, from Kaut(e) "male dove", hence a metonymic occupational name for the owner or keeper of a dovecote.
KautGerman Topographic name from the Franconian dialect word Kaut(e) "hollow", "pit", "den".
KelmGerman Germanized form of Polish Chelm ‘peak’, ‘hill’, a topographic name for someone who lived by a hill with a pointed summit, or habitational name from a city in eastern Poland or any of various other places named with this word.
KernGerman, Dutch, Jewish Means "kernel, grain, core" in Dutch, German, and Yiddish (as קערן), an occupational name for a farmer or a nickname for a physically small person. As a Jewish name, it is ornamental.
KielGerman German surname of several possible origins and meanings.... [more]
KiesGerman Either from Middle High German kis "gravel, shingle", denoting someone who lives in a gravelly place, or kiesen "to choose". Johann Kies (1713–1781) was a German astronomer and mathematician.
KiffGerman Topographic name from a Westphalian dialect Kiff "outhouse, tied cottage, shack".
KillGerman (Rare) A habitational name for someone from a place named Kill.
KindGerman, Jewish, Dutch From Middle High German kint, German Kind "child", hence a nickname for someone with a childish or naive disposition, or an epithet used to distinguish between a father and his son. In some cases it may be a short form of any of various names ending in -kind, a patronymic ending of Jewish surnames.
KlemGerman, Dutch From a short form of the given name Klemens, or a location named using the personal name.
KlorGerman (Austrian) The Klor surname may have evolved from the feminine personal name Klara. Or it may have come from the Middle High German and Middle Low German "Klar," meaning "Pure" or "Beautiful".
KlugGerman (Austrian) First recorded in the early 14th century in present-day Austria (southeastern region of the Holy Roman Empire at that time). The surname was derived from the ancient Germanic word kluoc meaning "noble" or "refined".... [more]
KornGerman From Middle High German korn "grain", a metonymic occupational name for a factor or dealer in grain or a nickname for a peasant.
KöthGerman From Middle High German, Middle Low German kote ‘cottage’, ‘hovel’, a status name for a day laborer who lived in a cottage and owned no farmland.
KragDanish, Norwegian, German (Rare) An occupational name for someone making collars, or a nickname for someone wearing one. Ultimately from Middle Low German krage "collar".
KrahGerman Nickname from Middle High German kra "crow" given to someone who resembles a crow.
KrayGerman Variant of Krah nickname for someone who resembled a crow from Middle High German kra "crow".
KuchGerman German metonymic occupational name for a pastry cook, from German kuchen ‘cake’, or simply a variant of Koch ‘cook’.
KuesGerman, Dutch (Rare) Habitational name from Cues, now part of Bernkastel-Kues in the Rhineland Palatinate.
KühlGerman, Low German The spelling Kühl results from a folk-etymological association with High German kühl ‘cool’ (Middle High German küel(e), a nickname from Middle High German küel ‘cool’, ‘calm’... [more]
KühnGerman, Jewish Variant of Kuhn or from German kühn meaning "daring, audacious". As a Jewish name it is ornamental.
LandEnglish, German Topographic name from Old English land, Middle High German lant, "land, territory". This had more specialized senses in the Middle Ages, being used to denote the countryside as opposed to a town or an estate.
LappGerman From Middle High German lap(pe) ‘cloth’, ‘patch’, ‘rag’; a metonymic occupational name for a mender of clothes or shoes, or a nickname for a simple-minded person.... [more]
LentEnglish, German, Dutch Nickname from either Old English lencten meaning "spring season, springtime" or from Germanic langa-tinez meaning "long days" which refers to the increasing daylight of spring. Likely a nickname for someone who was born or baptized during springtime.
LiebGerman, Jewish Nickname for a pleasant or agreeable person, from Middle High German liep "dear, beloved"; Yiddish lib or German lieb. This word was also used as a personal name, both alone (German) and in compounds (German and Jewish).
LiebGerman From a short form of the various compound Slavic personal names formed with lubo- "love" as the first element.
LinnGerman Toponymic surname derived from Germanic lin "swamp, bog, marsh".
LinnGerman Derived from the given name Linto, a short form of names containing the element lind "soft, flexible".
LinnGerman (Silesian), Jewish (Ashkenazi) Derived from the Slavic word lin "tench (fish)", a nickname for a fisherman, or for a person who somehow resembled a tench.
LöbeGerman Variant of Löwe from Middle High German lēwelöuwe "lion" hence a nickname for a brave or regal person. In some cases the surname may have been a topographic or habitational name referring to a house or inn distinguished by the sign of a lion.
LochGerman From German Loch "hole", ultimately derived from Middle High German loch "hole, hollow, valley".
LockEnglish, Dutch, German Habitational name from any of various places derived from Old English loca meaning "(locked) enclosure, stronghold".
LunzGerman Nickname for a careless or slovenly person, from Middle High German lunzen 'to doze'. Can also be a habitational name for someone from Lunz in Tyrol.