HaikחיאקJudeo-Spanish From the name of a garment worn by Algerian women, derived from Arabic حاك (hak) meaning "to weave". It was used as an occupational name for a maker of these garments.
AlhadeffJudeo-Spanish Possibly an occupational name for a weaver from Arabic الهداف (al-̣haddāf) meaning "the weaver's shuttle". Alternately, it may be from Arabic الهدى (al-hadā) meaning "the guided one".
KatקאַטDutch, Frisian, South African, Jewish Means "cat", a habitational name for someone who lived by a sign depicting a cat, or a nickname for someone who somehow resembled a cat, perhaps in agility or an independent nature.
BialikPolish, Czech, Jewish Derived from Polish biały meaning "white", originally a nickname for a person with blond hair or a pale complexion. A famous bearer of this name is American actress Mayim Bialik (1975-).
MaslovRussian, Jewish Derived from Russian масло (maslo) meaning "butter", originally used as an occupational name for someone who worked as a dairyman or sold dairy products.
BrandeisJewish Derived from Brandýs nad Labem-Stará Boleslav (known as Brandeis-Altbunzlau or Brandeis an der Elbe in German), a town located in the Prague-East District, in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic... [more]
YarchiירחיHebrew From Hebrew יָרֵחַ (yareach), meaning "moon".
JehleHebrew Jehle-Romanov surname was given name of monarchical leaders over the areas of eastern Eurasia known as Russia and all Russia's yet upon revolution family erroneously reported all dead. Most family of Alexander died while remaining in Russia, while those whom escaped circa 1880 survived... [more]
HeimburgerGerman, Jewish Status name for a village head, derived from Middle High German heim meaning "homestead, settlement" and bürge meaning "guardian". It could also be a habitational name for someone from numerous places called Heimburg or Heimberg in Germany.
DropkinJewish, Belarusian Jewish (from Belarus): nickname from Belorussian drobka ‘crumb’+ the eastern Slavic patronymic suffix -in.... [more]
ReissGerman, Jewish, French (Huguenot) German: variant of Reis or from any of several Germanic personal names composed with ric ‘power(ful)’. Also from the French Huguenot forename Ris, rendered as Reis and Reiss.... [more]
BacallRomanian, Jewish Variant spelling of Bacal. A famous bearer was the American actress Lauren Bacall (1924-2014).
GoldmannGerman, Jewish occupational name for someone who worked with gold denoting anything from a gold-miner to a maker of gold jewelry or a gilder (someone skilled in decorating surfaces with a very thin layer of gold leaf)... [more]
KimmelGerman, Jewish Derived from Middle High German kumin and German kümmel meaning "caraway" (related to Latin cuminum, a word of Oriental origin, like the plant itself), hence a metonymic occupational name for a spicer, literally a supplier of caraway seeds... [more]
AmbarעמברHebrew Combination of the word am, means "people, nation" and the name Bar. This surname means "son of the nation" in Hebrew and its variant is Baram which is the same elements but in reverse order.
OrgeriiJewish, Judeo-Provençal Aaron Orgerii is listed in the index of names of Jews in France in the late middle ages in Heinrich Gross' book Judaia Gallica. There is also an extent copy of a deed between "the Jew Nathan Orgerii and Johannes Raynaud", written in Arles in Provence in 1366... [more]
FederGerman, Jewish metonymic occupational name for a trader in feathers or in quill pens from Middle High German vedere German feder "feather quill pen"... [more]
SametGerman, Jewish, Yiddish German and Jewish (Ashkenazic) metonymic occupational name for a maker or seller of velvet, from Yiddish samet ‘velvet’ (German Samt, ultimately from Greek hexamiton, a compound of hex ‘six’ + mitos ‘thread’).
AbitbolאביטבולJudeo-Spanish Means "father of drums" (figuratively referring to a drum maker) from Arabic أَبُو (abū) meaning "father" and طَبْل (ṭabl) meaning "drum".
KochJewish Koch - which also has the meaning of Cook in German's origin was however not from that meaning. It origins are to be traced in the Jewish ancestory. The original meaning came from the word Star. Amongst the related surnames (with or without bar in front or a ba or similar appended) are: Koch, Kochba, Kok, Kock, Kuk, Coq, Coqui, Cook (as a translation from the perceived meaning of cook) and a host of others... [more]
HambergerGerman, Jewish German and Jewish (Ashkenazic) habitational name for someone from any of various places named Hamberg. Jewish (Ashkenazic) variant of Hamburger.
PolitzerHungarian, German, Jewish Habitational name derived from any one of several places called Police (known as Pölitz in German) in the Czech Republic. Hugh David Politzer (1949-) is an American theoretical physicist who, along with David Gross and Frank Wilczek, discovered asymptotic freedom.
KarmanJewish From Russian карман (karman) meaning "pocket, bag pocket", probably an occupational name for someone who made such items. Alternatively, could derive from Hungarian Kármán.
ElfmanJewish (Ashkenazi), German May be an Americanized form of German Elfmann. This is both a habitational name for someone from a place called Elvede or Elbe and a short form of an ancient Germanic personal name composed of the elements alf ‘ghost’ + man ‘man’... [more]
MontefioreItalian, Jewish Derived from Montefiore, which is the name of several places in Italy. For example, there is Castle Montefiore in the town of Recanati (province of Macerata), the municipality of Montefiore Conca (province of Rimini) and the municipality of Montefiore dell'Aso (province of Ascoli Piceno)... [more]
CortPolish, Russian, Jewish Derived from the surname "Kutalczuk", "Kotelchik", "Cuttlechuck", or "Kuttlechuck"
Ben Nunבן נוןHebrew Joshua or Yehoshua Ben Nun functioned as Moses' assistant in the books of Exodus and Numbers, and later succeeded Moses as leader of the Israelite tribes in the Hebrew Bible's Book of Joshua
AlmogאַלְמוֹגHebrew From the given name Almog, means "coral" in Hebrew.
ArousiערוסיJewish, Hebrew, Judeo-Arabic, Arabic Yemenite Jewish and Arabic name possibly deriving from Arabic words aroosi, "bridal, relating to a wedding", rousi, "groom". El Aroussi, a variant, is found densely in Morocco and Francophone populations (France, Canada).
LevanaלְבָנָהHebrew From the given name Levana 1, means "white" or "moon" in Hebrew.
StauberGerman, Jewish An occupational name from Staub, with the addition of the German agent suffix -er.
KunHungarian, Jewish Hungarian: ethnic name for a member of a Turkic people known in English as the Cumanians (Hungarian kún). ... [more]
LindeGerman, Dutch, Jewish, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish Derived from Middle Hugh German, Dutch linde or Scandinavian lind "lime tree". Almost exclusively ornamental in Swedish, otherwise probably habitational. There are also a number of feminine names containing the element lind, for example Linda, Dietlinde and Gerlinde, and it's possible that the surname is derived from any of those names.
GhermezianIranian, Jewish, Persian The surname’s most notable bearers are the Ghermezian Family, Iranian Canadians of Jewish descent.
HolderGerman, Jewish, English 1. German: topographic name for someone who lived by an elder tree. Middle High German holder, or from a house named for its sign of an elder tree. In same areas, for example Alsace, the elder tree was believed to be the protector of a house... [more]
JüngerGerman, Jewish German (Jünger) distinguishing name, from Middle High German jünger ‘younger’, for the younger of two bearers of the same personal name, usually a son who bore the same name as his father... [more]
RoweJewish A shortened form of the surname Horowitz, a variant of the surname Horovic, from the town of Horovice, Czech Republic.
PolskiPolish, Jewish Nickname for a Polish person, originating in areas of mixed populations.
GreenbergerGerman, Jewish Anglicized form of the German surname Grünberger, which is formed from the words grün "green", Berg "mountain", and the habitational suffix -er. This name indicated a person who lived on or near a forest-covered mountain.
AppelGerman, Dutch, Jewish, Yiddish From Low German Appel, Middle Dutch appel, or Yiddish epl "apple", an occupational name for a grower or seller of the fruit. As a Jewish surname, it is generally ornamental rather than occupational.
Shremשרים/שְׁרֵםHebrew The surname “Shrem” is of Halabi-Jewish origin. It is an acronym for “Shabbat, Rosh Chodesh, Yom Tov, and Moed”.
StangGerman, Jewish German and Jewish (Ashkenazic) from Middle High German stang, German Stange ‘pole’, ‘shaft’, hence a nickname for a tall, thin person, a metonymic occupational name for a maker of wooden shafts for spears and the like, or a metonymic occupational name for a soldier.
AusterlitzGerman (Austrian), Jewish Derived from Slavkov u Brna (historically known as Austerlitz in German), a town located in Vyškov District, in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. This was real surname of the American actor and dancer Fred Astaire (1899-1987), as well as his sister Adele Astaire (1896-1981), an actress, singer and dancer.
AvitovאֲבִיטוֹבHebrew (Modern, Rare) Means "my father is good", from Hebrew ’av meaning "father" and tov meaning "good".
HefnerGerman, Jewish Recorded in several spellings including Hafner, Haffner, and Hevner, this is as surname of early Germanic origins. ... [more]
SpielbergJewish, German From Old High German spiegel "lookout point" or German Spiel "game, play" and berg "mountain". Locational surname after a town in Austria. A famous bearer is American director Steven Spielberg (1946-present).
NaimanUkrainian, Jewish Before Genghis Khan conquered the world, he conquered his neighbors, and his last great victory, in 1204, was over a tribe of Turkic Christians called the Naiman. (Some Naimans today are Christian but most are Jewish.)... [more]
RubinsteinGerman, Jewish, Polish Means "ruby stone", from rubin and stein. Rubin means "ruby" in German and stein means "stone" in German.
PrinsDutch, Jewish Means "prince" in Dutch, a doublet of Prince. Often a habitational name for someone who lived or worked near a location named Prins, such as an inn or windmill, or sign depicting the Prince of Orange... [more]
KienbaumGerman, Jewish from Low German kienbaum "Scots pine" originally denoting any species or variety of pine tree. Derived from kien "pine tree" and boum "tree".
RózsavölgyiHungarian, Jewish Either a Magyarized form of Rosenthal, or a habitational name denoting a person from the village of Ružindol in the Trnava region of Slovakia (formerly a part of Hungary and called Rózsavölgy).
EichenlaubGerman, Jewish Derived from Eichenlau, a topographic name from Middle High German eichen "oaks" and loh "forest clearing", reinterpreted through folk etymology as Eichenlaub, meaning "oak leaf".
DesserJewish Habitational name from the city of Dessau in Germany.
StrassmannGerman, Jewish Topographic name for someone living on a main street, from Middle High German strasse, German Strasse "street, road" and man "man".
ShereshevskyשרשבסקיRussian, Jewish Name for someone originally from the city of Sharashova in Belarus, probably derived Russian шерешь (sheresh) meaning "frozen mud, ice (on a river)".
PressEnglish, Jewish A nickname for a pious individual from the Middle English form of "priest" or possibly someone employed by a priest. In the Jewish sense, one whose occupation was to iron clothes.
KochaviכוכביHebrew From Hebrew כוכב (kokhav) meaning "star", commonly used as a replacement for Ashkenazi surnames containing the old German element stern "star". For example, it was adopted as a surname by the Romanian-born Israeli archaeologist and university professor Moshe Kochavi (1928-2008), whose birth surname was Stern.
HimmelreichהימלרייךGerman, Jewish humorous topographic name from a place so named as being at a high altitude from Middle High German himel "heaven" and riche "empire" meaning "kingdom of heaven, heavenly kingdom".
FeitGerman, Jewish Variant of Veit. Also, nickname from Middle High German feit ‘adorned’, ‘pretty’ (the same word as French fait, Latin factus).
SasportasסספורטסJudeo-Spanish Possibly derived from Spanish seis puertas meaning "six doors" or Catalan las portes meaning "the doors".
DreyfussדרײפֿוסGerman, Jewish Means "three feet" in German. This surname originates from the German city of Trier. The Latin name for the city was "Treveris," whose pronunciation eventually developed into Dreyfuss. The spelling variants tend to correspond to the country the family was living in at the time the spelling was standardized: the use of one "s" tends to be more common among people of French origin, while the use of two tends to be found among those of German descent
ZellerGerman, Dutch, Jewish Originally denoted someone from Celle, Germany or someone living near a hermit's cell from German zelle "cell". It is also occupational for someone employed at a zelle, for example a small workshop.
SalzmannGerman, Jewish Means "salt man" in German, denoting a maker or seller of salt, derived from Middle High German salz "salt" and man. A cognate of English Saltman.
KaplanקפלןGerman, Czech, Jewish Means "chaplain, curate" in German and Czech, ultimately from Latin cappellanus. It is also sometimes used as a Jewish name, from a translation of Hebrew כֹּהֵן (kohen) meaning "priest" (see Cohen).
ScheinGerman, Jewish from Middle High German schīn German schein "shining brightness" hence a nickname for someone with either a radiant personality or possibly for someone living in a sunny location or a Jewish artificial name.
RaskinJewish Derived from the given name Raske which is a pet form of Rachel.
Tzviadצְבִיעָד / צבי-עדHebrew (Modern) Combination of the name Tzvi and the word עַד (ʿaḏ) "an eternity". The illustration of the gazelle, along with the value of eternity, creates a meaning that represents the beauty and existence of the Land of Israel.
SilbermannGerman, Jewish Variant of Silber. from Middle High German silber German silber "silver" and Middle High German Yiddish man "man" an occupation for a man who worked with silver.
DrellJewish (Ashkenazi) Metonymic occupational name from East Slavic drel meaning “borer, gimlet.”
MondscheinGerman, Jewish topographic or habitational name referring to a house name meaning "moonshine" or a nickname for someone who was bald from the same word Middle High German māno "moon" and schinen "shine"... [more]
GinsburgGerman, Jewish Habitational name for someone who came from Gunzberg in Bavaria, Günsburg in Swabia, or Gintsshprik (Königsburg) in East Prussia. Its origin is from the name of the river Günz, written in early Latin documents as Guntia, which was probably of Celtic origin, and Old High German burg meaning "Fortress, walled town".
BaronJewish From German or Polish baron or Russian барон (baron) meaning "baron". In Israel the name is often interpreted to mean "son of strength" from Hebrew בר און (bar on).
Mileikowskyמיליקאָווסקי, מִילֵיקוֹבְסְקִיRussian, Belarusian, Polish, Jewish (Ashkenazi) From Milików, a village in Poland or Mileykov, the name of several villages in Belarus and Russia. This was the ancestral name of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (1948-).
LovitzJewish From the Polish name of Łowicz, a town in central Poland. Its name is derived from Polish lowisko meaning "fishing, hunting". A well-known bearer is American comedian and actor Jon Lovitz (1957-).
TordjmanטורדגימןJudeo-Spanish From Arabic ترجمان (turjuman) meaning "translator, interpreter".
KnafoכנפוJudeo-Spanish Likely derived from Tamazight akhnif referring to a type of woolen hooded cloak (a type of burnous). It has also been connected to the Hebrew word כָּנָף (kanaf) meaning "wing".
HeilprinJewish From the Yiddish name for Heilbronn, Germany.
KupkaCzech, Polish, Ukrainian, Slovak, Sorbian, Jewish Nickname or topographic name from the Polish, Ukrainian, Czech and Sorbian word kupka, a diminutive of kupa meaning "heap, pile", in Upper Sorbian also "lump".... [more]
LäuferGerman, Jewish Habitational name for someone from a place called Lauf, also an occupational name for a messenger or a nickname for a fast runner, from an agent derivative of Middle High German loufen, German laufen ‘to run’.
ManorמנורHebrew Means "loom" or "weaving" in Hebrew.
Bernthalברנטל, בערנטאַלJewish Ornamental name derived from the Yiddish given name Ber meaning "bear" and German thal meaning "valley". A famous bearer is American actor Jon Bernthal (1976-).
GrodskyPolish, Jewish Altered spelling of Polish Grodzki, a habitational name from Grodziec or Grodzie, places named with gród ‘castle’, ‘fortification’ (cognate with Russian grad)... [more]
KozakJewish Nickname from Yiddish kozak from a Ukrainian loanword meaning "warrior", "brave man".
BluthGerman, Jewish German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name from Middle High German bluot, German Blüte ‘bloom’, ‘flower head’. ... [more]
RifkindJewish Variant of Rifkin. The final element was changed due to the influence of the Yiddish noun kind "child" (German: "Kinder").
LevensteinJewish, Yiddish Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name, or perhaps an ornamental elaboration associated with the name Leyb; from Middle High German lewe ‘lion’, translating the Yiddish male personal name Leyb (see Low) + German stein ‘stone’, ‘rock’... [more]
StossGerman, Jewish Nickname for a quarrelsome person, from Middle High German stoz 'quarrel', 'fight'.
FleischmannGerman, Jewish occupational name for a butcher literally "meatman, butcher" from Middle High German fleisch "flesh, meat" and man "man".