MarkEnglish, German, Dutch Topographic name for someone who lived on a boundary between two districts, from Old High German marka "border, boundary, march". The German term also denotes an area of fenced-off land (see Marker) and, like the English word, is embodied in various place names which have given rise to habitational names.
MarxGerman From a short form of the given name Markus. A famous bearer was Karl Marx (1818-1883), a German philosopher known for his work in socioeconomic theory.
MastGerman, Dutch Derived from Middle High German and Middle Dutch mast "mast (fodder made of acorns and beechnuts); the process of fattening livestock", an occupational name for a pig farmer or a swineherd. In some cases, however, the German name may also have been derived from Middle High German mast, mastic "fat, stout".
MondGerman Either from a short form of an ancient Germanic personal name formed with munt "protection guardianship" making it a cognate of Monday 1 or probably also a topographic or habitational name referring to a house with the sign of a moon from Middle High German manemone "moon".
MookGerman This surname means 'flying insect' from a German word that is mauke. (I think it is mauke, I am SO not sure.)
MostGerman Metonymic occupational name for a producer or seller of must, i.e. unfermented grape juice, from Middle High German most, ultimately derived from Latin mustum vinum meaning "young (i.e. fresh) wine"... [more]
MunkGerman, Scandinavian, Dutch, English From Middle High German münich Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish munk Middle Dutch munc "monk" a nickname for someone thought to resemble a monk or a metonymic occupational name for someone in the service of a monastery... [more]
NarrGerman Nickname for a foolish or silly person, from Middle High German narr ‘fool’, ‘jester’.
NastGerman Topographic name for someone who lived in a thickly wooded area, or a metonymic occupational name for a woodcutter, from Middle High German nast meaning "branch", a regional variant of ast, resulting from the misdivision of forms such as ein ast meaning "a branch".
NeffGerman, German (Swiss) From Middle High German neve 'nephew', hence probably a distinguishing name for a close relation or familiar of a prominent personage.
NeinGerman Unexplained. Perhaps from a short form of a Germanic personal name formed with an element cognate with Old High German niuwi meaning "new".
NerzGerman From the German word Nerz meaning "Mink".
NettGerman, German (Swiss) Derived from Early New High German net(t) "clean; pure; unadulterated".
NeveEnglish, Dutch, German, Danish, Swedish Ultimately derived from Old Germanic nefo "nephew, grandson". In Middle English, it also became a term meaning "wastrel, spendthrift".
NiedUpper German South German: habitational name from Nied in Hesse.
NiesGerman German: from a reduced form of the personal name Dionys (see Dennis), which was stressed on the last syllable; this was a popular personal name as a result of the influence of the French Saint Denis... [more]
NolfFlemish, German Derived from a short form of the personal names Arnolf or Nodolf (a variant of Odolf), or possibly another name ending in wolf "wolf".
NollGerman From a short form of any of various medieval personal names derived from Germanic personal names ending in -n + wald 'rule', for example Arnold and Reinwald.
NussGerman from Middle High German nuz ‘nut’, hence a metonymic occupational name for a gatherer and seller of nuts, or a nickname for a man thought to resemble a nut in some way
ObstGerman, Jewish Means "fruit" in German, denoting someone who grows or sells fruit. As a Jewish name, it is ornamental.
OchsGerman, Jewish Means "ox" in German, derived from Middle High German ohse, possibly denoting a strong person or someone who worked with oxen. As a Jewish name it is ornamental.
OtteGerman Otte was given to someone who lived in Bavaria, where the name came from humble beginnings but gained a significant reputation for its contribution to the emerging medieval society. The name Otte evolved from the Old German personal name Ott, a name of Emperors, made famous by Otto the Great (912-973), Holy Roman emperor.
PachGerman Pach is an occupational hereditary surname for a baker in Old German. Pach is also a German local name for someone who lived by a stream, which was originally derived from the German word "bach" which means stream... [more]
PageGerman Metonymic occupational name for a horse dealer, from Middle Low German page "horse".
PinkEnglish, German Nickname, possibly for a small person, from Middle English pink penkg ‘minnow’ (Old English pinc).English (southeastern): variant of Pinch .Variant spelling of German Pinck, an indirect occupational name for a blacksmith, an onomatopoeic word imitating the sound of hammering which was perceived as pink(e)pank... [more]
PinnEnglish, German Derived from Middle English pin and Middle Low German pinne, both meaning "peg" or "pin". This was an occupational name from a maker of these things. The German name can in some cases be an occupational name for a shoemaker.
PlumEnglish, German From Old Germanic *plūmā "plum", used as a topographic name for someone who lived by a plum tree, a metonymic occupational name for someone who grew or sold plums, or perhaps a nickname referring to a plum-coloured birthmark.
PoppGerman Derived from the given name Poppo (or possibly Boppo) which is of uncertain origin and meaning... [more]
PortEnglish, German, French Either from Middle English porte "gateway, entrance" (Old French porte, from Latin porta), hence a topographic name for someone who lived near the gates of a fortified town or city, or for the gatekeeper... [more]
PüttGerman Habitational name from any of several places so named in Rhineland, Westphalia, and Pomerania, but in most cases a topographic name from Middle Low German putte ‘pit’, ‘well’, ‘puddle’, ‘pond’.
PutzGerman German for "plaster". Likely used to denote someone who manufactured plaster
RaabGerman Derived from German rabe "raven". As a surname, it was given to a person with black hair.
RaheGerman Nickname for a rough individual, from a North German variant of Rauh.
RampGerman (Swiss) German and Swiss German: variant of Rampf, from Middle High German ramft, ranft ‘edge’, ‘wall’, ‘crust (of bread)’; applied as a topographic name for someone who lived at the limit or outer edge of some feature, for example a field, or possibly, in the sense ‘crust’, a nickname for a poor person.
RanzGerman The surname that can have one of two origins. In some cases, it is derived from the ancient German given name, Rando, whose origins lie in the word rand, meaning "rim of shield"... [more]
RathGerman 1 German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): descriptive epithet for a wise person or counselor, from Middle High German rāt ‘counsel’, ‘advice’, German Rat ‘counsel’, ‘advice’, also ‘stock’, ‘supply’.... [more]
ReckGerman Nickname from Middle High German recke ‘outlaw’ or ‘fighter’. North German and Westphalian: from Middle Low German recke ‘marsh’, ‘waterlogged ground’, hence a topographic name, or a habitational name from a place named with this term.
RittGerman Either a topographic name from Old High German ritta meaning "reeds" or a habitational name from a place near Kassel, Germany. Alternately it may also be a variant of Ried.
RitzGerman From a short form of the personal name Rizo, itself derived in part from Richard and in part from Heinrich (see Henry).
RohrGerman, Jewish Topographic name for someone who lived in an area thickly grown with reeds, from Middle High German ror. Also a habitational name from one of the several places named with this word.
RollUpper German, German, English German: from Middle High German rolle, rulle ‘roll’, ‘list’, possibly applied as a metonymic occupational name for a scribe.... [more]
RoosEstonian, Swedish, Danish, Dutch, German (Swiss), Low German Means "rose" in Estonian and Dutch. Swedish and Danish variant of Ros, also meaning "rose". This could be a locational name for someone living near roses, an occupational name for someone who grew roses, or a nickname for someone with reddish skin.
RostGerman From a nickname for a red-haired person, from Middle High German rost meaning ‘rust’.
RostGerman A metonymic occupational name for a limeburner or blacksmith, from Middle High German, Middle Low German rōst meaning ‘grate, grill’ or Middle High German rōst(e) meaning ‘fire, embers, pyre, grate’ (typically one for burning lime).
RottGerman As far as I've researched the name dates back to a man by the name of Count Palatine Kuno von Rott (~1083). After he got land from the Pfalzfrafs which seem to be a nobile family line.... [more]
RuchGerman (Swiss) It was originally a nickname for a greedy person, from Middle High German ruoch ‘eager,’ ‘intent.’... [more]
RudeNorwegian, German German: From a pet form of a personal name formed with Old High German hrōd "fame", for example Rudolf or Rüdiger... [more]
RugeGerman Nickname from Middle High German ruowe, ruge ‘quiet’, ‘calm’ or Low German rug ‘rough’, ‘crude’.... [more]
RughGerman A variant of the Alsacian German (and probably Swiss before that) Ruch. Also a variant of the Danish Rügh (not related as far as is known)
RuheGerman Variant of Ruge. (Rühe) is also a nickname from Rüde ‘hound.’ Habitational name from places named Rühen, Rüden, Rhüden in northern Germany.
RuhrGerman Name given to a person who lived near the Ruhr River in Germany.
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]
SeibGerman Short form of SEIBOLD. Ultimately derived from names composed of the Germanic name element sigi "victory".
SeidGerman From the Germanic given name Sito, a short form of a compound name formed with sigi "victory".
SeifGerman, Jewish Metonymic occupational name for a soap maker, from Middle High German seife, German Seife 'soap'.
SeimUpper German German: metonymic occupational name for a beekeeper, from Middle High German seim ‘honey’.
SelzGerman The Selz is a river in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, and a left hand tributary of the Rhine. It flows through the largest German wine region, Rheinhessen or Rhenish Hesse. Also, Seltz (German: Selz) is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department of the Alsace-Champagne-Ardenne-Lorraine region in north-eastern France.... [more]
SengGerman 1. Topographic name for someone who lived by land cleared by fire, from Middle High German sengen ‘to singe or burn’. ... [more]
SennGerman Derived from the Middle High German word senne meaning "dairy farmer".
SpahGerman (?), English (American) Spah (sometimes spelt Späh) is last name found most commonly in the US that is believed to be of German origin. Unsure of the meaning.
StarGerman, Jewish Means "starling (bird)" in German, probably denoting a talkative or perhaps a voracious person. Alternatively, an Anglicized form of Stern 2.
TappEnglish, German Derived from an Old English given name Tæppa, of uncertain origin and meaning. In German, it is a nickname for a clumsy person or a simpleton, derived from Middle Low German tappe meaning "oaf".
ThalGerman, Jewish Topographic name for someone who lived in or near a valley, derived from Middle High German tal "valley". As a Jewish name, it is ornamental.
TimmGerman, Dutch, English English: probably from an otherwise unrecorded Old English personal name, cognate with the attested Continental Germanic form Timmo. This is of uncertain origin, perhaps a short form of Dietmar... [more]
ToppGerman German: from Low German topp 'point', 'tree top', hence a topographic name; or alternatively a metonymic occupational name or nickname from the same word in the sense 'braid'.
TornGerman Derived from Old High German dorn / torn "thorn". As a surname, it was usually given to someone who lived near a thorn hedge.
TothEnglish (Anglicized), German Either an anglicized form of Hungarian Tóth or derived from German tot "dead" or Middle High German tote "godfather".
TreuGerman, Jewish From a nickname for a trustworthy person, from late Middle High German triuwe ‘loyal’. As a Jewish surname it is mainly ornamental.
WahlGerman, Jewish From Middle High German Walhe, Walch "foreigner from a Romance country", hence a nickname for someone from Italy or France, etc. This surname is also established in Sweden.
WaldGerman, English Topographic name for someone who lived in or near a forest (Old High German wald, northern Middle English wald).
WeilGerman, Jewish South German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): habitational name from any of various places so named in Baden, Bavaria, and Württemberg, from Latin villa ‘country house’, ‘estate’ (later used of a group of houses forming a settlement).
WeinGerman, Yiddish, Hungarian Means "grape, vine, wine" in German and Yiddish (װײַנ). According to Nelly Weiss, Wein-style family names originated from signboards (house sign, house shield) in Jewish communities. Wein may also be related the German verb weinen meaning "to cry"... [more]
WelkGerman (East Prussian) Nickname from Middle High German welc, meaning "soft and mild". The name was first recorded in South Holland, however many of the bearers of the name trace its roots back to East Germany. A famous bearer of this name was Lawrence Welk, an American musician and host of the Lawrence Welk Show.
WerbGerman Name for an artisan or craftsman, from Middle High German werc(h), meaning "work, craft".
WickEnglish, German English: topographic name for someone who lived in an outlying settlement dependent on a larger village, Old English wic (Latin vicus), or a habitational name from a place named with this word, of which there are examples in Berkshire, Gloucestershire, Somerset, and Worcestershire... [more]
WillScottish, English, German Scottish and northern English from the medieval personal name Will, a short form of William, or from some other medieval personal names with this first element, for example Wilbert or Willard... [more]
ZahnGerman Zahn was a nickname given to a person with a peculiar tooth or a strange or defective set of teeth. It comes from the Middle High German Zan(t), which means "tooth".
ZaunGerman From a topographical name from Middle High German zun "fence, hedge" the German cognitive to Anglo-Saxon tun.
ZinnGerman From the German for word for tin "tin." The name indicated someone who worked with the metal. A famous bearer is Johann Gottfried Zinn, a German botanist. Carl Linnaeus named the flower Zinnia in his honor.
ZopfGerman Nickname for someone who wore his hair in a pigtail or plait, Middle High German zopf, zoph, or from a field name from same word in the sense ‘tail’, ‘end’, ‘narrow point’.
ZornGerman From Middle High German zorn "wrath, anger". A notable bearer was Swedish painter Anders Zorn (1860-1920) whose father was German.