This is a list of submitted surnames in which the usage is Jewish; and the order is random.
Submitted names are contributed by users of this website. The accuracy of these name definitions cannot be guaranteed.
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".
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.
PortugalSpanish, Portuguese, English, Catalan, French, Jewish Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, English, French, and Jewish surname meaning ethnic name or regional name for someone from Portugal or who had connections with Portugal. The name of the country derives from Late Latin Portucale, originally denoting the district around Oporto (Portus Cales, named with Latin portus ‘port’, ‘harbor’ + Cales, the ancient name of the city)... [more]
HambergGerman, Danish, Jewish German, Danish, and Jewish (Ashkenazic) habitational name from any of several places named Hamberg. Jewish (Ashkenazic) variant of Hamburg.
ZeldinJewish Means "son of Zelde", a Yiddish female personal name based on Middle High German sælde "fortunate, blessed".
SappersteinJewish Ornamental name, a compound of Hebrew sapir 'sapphire' + German Stein 'stone'.
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.
GrünbaumGerman, Jewish from Middle High German gruoni "green" and boum "tree" probably a topographic or habitational name referring to a house distinguished by the sign of a tree in leaf... [more]
ObstGerman, Jewish Means "fruit" in German, denoting someone who grows or sells fruit. As a Jewish name, it is ornamental.
TkachJewish Ashkenazi Jewish and Ukrainian surname meaning tailor.
GrünfeldGerman, Jewish Habitational name from any of several places in northern and central Germany named Grünfeld named with elements meaning "green open country" derived from the elements gruoni "green" and feld "field"... [more]
TordjmanטורדגימןJudeo-Spanish From Arabic ترجمان (turjuman) meaning "translator, interpreter".
LichtJewish From the German word meaning "light", possibly derived from a given name meaning "light" such as Uri or Meir.
EisensteinGerman, Jewish topographic name for someone who lived by a place where iron ore was extracted or perhaps a habitational name from a place called for its iron works. Jewish artificial compound of German isarn "iron" and stein "stone".
MeghnagiJewish, Northern African Sephardic Jewish, originating from the Libyan Jewish community. Most were from Tripoli, with a much smaller contingent from Benghazi.
Ma'ayanמעין, מעייןHebrew (Rare) Means "spring of water" or "fountain" in Hebrew, this is more common as a given name than a surname
LizovichJewish I knew a family with this surname and they were Jewish.
SusanEnglish, Dutch, Jewish (Sephardic) As an English (London) and Dutch surname, it comes from the feminine personal name Susanna, from Hebrew שושן (shushan) meaning "lily, lily of the valley".... [more]
DemskyPolish, Jewish Derived from Polish dab and demb meaning "oak", which is either a habitational name from a place with the same name or an ornamental name with reference to the tree and its qualities of strength and durability.
MilchikYiddish From the Yiddish milch, meaning “milk”derived from Old High German. Refers to food containing and/or prepared with dairy products in Ashkenazi Judaism.... [more]
MorpurgoמורפורגוJudeo-Italian Italian surname of Jewish origin, originally Marpurg, from the Austrian city Marburg an der Drau (today Maribor in Slovenia). The progenitor was Moises Jacob, father of Petachia, in Bad-Rackersburg, Austria... [more]
SchoenGerman, Jewish From German schön, Middle High German schoene "fine, beautiful; refined, friendly, nice", a nickname for a handsome or pleasant man. As a Jewish name, it’s usually ornamental.
KrupskayafRussian, Yiddish (Russified) Derived from Russian крупа (krupa), meaning "grains". This was the last name of Nadezhda Krupskaya, Lenin's wife.
KupferGerman, Jewish German (Küpfer) and Jewish (Ashkenazic) metonymic occupational name for a worker or trader in copper, Middle High German kupfer, German Kupfer ‘copper’... [more]
MargulisמרגליתHebrew Margulis is a surname that is derived from the Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation of the Hebrew word מרגלית (Israeli Hebrew /maʁɡaˈlit/), meaning 'pearl,'
GruberJewish A nickname from an inflected form of Yiddish dialect grub meaning ‘rude' or 'impolite’.
CiechanoverPolish, Jewish Variant of Ciechanower. It is borne by the Israeli biologist Aaron Ciechanover (1947-), who is known for characterising the method that cells use to degrade and recycle proteins using ubiquitin.
BonaparteItalian (Rare), French (Rare), Judeo-Italian (Rare), American, Caribbean Variant and French form of Buonaparte, later adopted as a Jewish surname. It has also been adopted in parts of America and the Caribbean by admirers of the notable bearer Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1820), who ruled as Emperor of France from 1804 through 1814 and again briefly in 1815, who was of Italian (Tuscan) ancestry.
WohlGerman, Yiddish Meaning "pleasant" in both Middle German and Ashkenazic Yiddish
MajPolish, Jewish Surname adopted with reference to the month of May, Polish maj. Surnames referring to months were sometimes adopted by Jewish converts to Christianity, with reference to the month in which they were baptized or in which the surname was registered.
WinehouseJewish, German Anglicized variant of German and Yiddish 'Weinhaus'. From German wein, 'vine, grapevine' and haus 'house, building, home', likely indicating a house with a vineyard. ... [more]
SelaסֶלַעHebrew Means "rock" in Hebrew. In the Old Testament this is the name of a city, the capital of Edom. Famous bearer is the Israeli model, actress and television presenter Rotem Sela (born 1983)
WeisenburgerGerman, Jewish Habitational name for someone from any of numerous places named Weissenburg "white fortress".
SpringerGerman, English, Dutch, Jewish Nickname for a lively person or for a traveling entertainer, from springen "to jump, to leap". A famous bearer was Ludwig der Springer (AKA Louis the Springer), a medieval Franconian count who, according to legend, escaped from a second or third-story prison cell by jumping into a river after being arrested for trying to seize County Saxony in Germany.
DinkinJewish (Ashkenazi) Metronymic with the addition of the Slavic possessive suffix -in, derived from the Yiddish female personal name Dinke, a hypocoristic form of Biblical Dinah, that in turn, derived from Hebrew dina, meaning “judged” or “vindicated”.
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.
LogowinJewish The last name "Logowin" was found in Russia. Emigrants from Russia moved to the USA and changed the last name in "Levin".
CortPolish, Russian, Jewish Derived from the surname "Kutalczuk", "Kotelchik", "Cuttlechuck", or "Kuttlechuck"
ZacharJewish, Hungarian, Russian, Slovak, Belarusian Derived from the Hebrew word זָכַר (zakhar) meaning "to remember". As a surname it can also derive from the given name Zakhar (Zechariah) that shares this etymology.
SteinhardtJewish, Polish, Hungarian Steinhardt is recorded as a Jewish Ashkenazi family name among Jews in Alsace, Germany, Poland, Israel and the U.S.A. since at least the 18th century.... [more]
ManheimGerman, Jewish Habitational name from the city of Mannheim in southwestern Germany (formerly the residence of the electors Palatine) so named from the ancient Germanic personal name Manno (see Mann ) annd Old High German heim "homestead"... [more]
PulitzerHungarian, German, Jewish Variant form of Politzer. A famous bearer was the Hungarian-American businessman, newspaper publisher and politician Joseph Pulitzer (1847-1911). His family came from Hungary, but they were of Czech origin.
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".
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.
BarzelayHebrew Variant form of Barzilai via Barzelai. A known bearer of this surname is American-Israeli musician Eef Barzelay (b... [more]
BarkaiבַּרְקַאיHebrew Means ''morning star'' in Hebrew.
HandelmanJewish Occupational name for a tradesman merchant or dealer.
PolanskimPolish, Rusyn, Jewish Unaccented form of Polański. A famous bearer of the name is French film director Raymond Roman Thierry Polański (1933-), who was born to a Polish-Jewish father.
ZweigGerman, Jewish Derived from Middle High German zwīg "branch bough twig graft" German zweig applied perhaps as a nickname for a new member in a family offspring or as an occupational name for a horticultural expert... [more]
BergenGerman, Dutch, Flemish, Jewish Originally denoted a person from any of the various places named Bergen in Germany and the Netherlands. It is also a variant of Berg. Famous bearers include the Americans Candice Bergen (1946-), an actress, and Polly Bergen (1930-2014), an actress, singer and television host.
ZelnickJewish Occupational name for a tax collecter, comes from Yiddish tselnik which means haberdashery.
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).
LiebermannGerman, Jewish Derived from German lieb or Yiddish lib meaning "dear, beloved". Many Liebermann families originally spelled the name in Hebrew or Cyrillic characters, so variations in the spelling occurred during transliteration to the Latin alphabet.
ShatnerGerman (Anglicized), Jewish (Anglicized) Anglicized form of Schattner. A notable bearer was Canadian actor William Shatner (1931-), who is known for his roles as Captain James T. Kirk in 'Star Trek', T.J. Hooker in 'T.J. Hooker', Denny Crane in 'Boston Legal', and the Priceline Negotiator in Priceline.com commercials.
BiedermannGerman, Jewish nickname for an honest man from a compound of Middle High German biderbe "honorable" and man "man". Jewish surname adopted because of its honorific meaning from German bieder "honest, upright" and mann "man".
LivingstoneScottish, Irish, Jewish Scottish: Habitational name from a place in Lothian, originally named in Middle English as Levingston, from an owner called Levin (Lewin), who appears in charters of David I in the early 12th century.... [more]
WasserGerman, Jewish Topographic name from Middle High German wazzer "water".
FeingoldJewish A Jewish name, from German, literally "fine gold".
KurzbergקורזבערגGerman, Yiddish, Jewish From a location name meaning "short mountain" in German, from Middle High German kurz meaning "short" and berg meaning "mountain". As a Jewish surname it is ornamental.
GartenGerman, Jewish metonymic occupational name for a gardener or overseer of a garden or enclosure. Originally the term denoted the keeper of an enclosure for deer later of a vineyard or smallholding from Middle High German garte "garden enclosure"... [more]
KarlinJewish Jewish (eastern Ashkenazic) habitational name for someone from Karlin, a suburb of Pinsk in Belarus, in which the Jews formed the majority of the population until the Holocaust. A well-known Hasidic sect originated in Karlin and at one time it attracted so many followers that a (now obsolete) Russian word for ‘Hasid’ was Karliner (of Yiddish origin)... [more]
FeldsteinGerman, Jewish Ornamental name meaning "field stone" in German. A famous bearer is American actor and filmmaker Jonah Hill (1983-), born Jonah Hill Feldstein. Another famous bearer is Hill's sister, actress Beanie Feldstein (1993-).
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]
ZahaviזהביHebrew, Jewish From Hebrew זהב (zahav) meaning "gold", commonly used as a replacement for Ashkenazi surnames containing the element gold, such as Goldman, Goldstein or Goldberg.
LöwenthalGerman, Jewish Habitational name from any of the various places called Löwenthal in Germany, derived from German Löwe "lion" and Thal "valley". As a Jewish name, it is ornamental, sometimes associated with given names that mean "lion" (i.e., Levi, Leib or Lew 2).
GaberJewish, German In Jewish, from Haber, and in German from Gabrijel.
BrodJewish Either derived from German Brot "bread" or taken from one of the various towns named Brod in Bosnia, Croatia and Macedonia or from one of the towns named Brody in Ukraine and Poland.
KarchJewish 1 Jewish (Ashkenazic): Americanized spelling of Karcz .... [more]
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).
MecklenburgGerman, Jewish Regional name for someone from this province in northern Germany. Derived from Old Saxon mikil "big, great" and burg "castle".
Trachtenbergטרכטנברג, טראַכֿטנבערגGerman, Jewish Could mean either mean "mountain of thoughts", from Yiddish trakhtn (טראַכטן) "to think" and berg "mountain" or "mountain of costumes", from German tracht "to wear, carry" and berg "mountain"... [more]
SarverEnglish, Jewish English and Jewish (eastern Ashkenazic) occupational name from Old French serveur (an agent derivative of server ‘to serve’), Yiddish sarver ‘servant’.
SchaalשָׁאַלGerman, Dutch, French, Jewish Either a nickname for a braggart or a market crier, (derived from Middle High German schal meaning "noise, bragging"), an occupational name for someone who made dishes for scales and vessels for drinking, (from Middle Low German and Dutch schale "dish"), a habitational name from Schaala in Thuringia or the Schaalsee lake near Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, or a topographic name for someone living on marshy land, (from Dutch schald "shallow")... [more]
Simantovסימנטוב, סימן-טובHebrew (Modern) Means "good sign", derived from Hebrew סימן (siman) means "sign" and טוב (tov) means "good".
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]
RozmanJewish Variant of Rosman. Slovenian (also Rožman): occupational name for a carter or a horse breeder or dealer, from Middle High German ros 'horse' + man 'man'. Compare German Rossmann.
Beginבעגין, בֵּגִיןBelarusian, Jewish Nickname for a runner, derived from Belarusian бегун (begun) meaning "one who walks quickly". A noteworthy bearer was Israeli prime minister Menachem Begin (1913-1992), who is best remembered for signing a peace treaty with Egypt in 1979, for which he and Anwar Sadat were both awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
SontagGerman, Jewish "sunday;" usually given to a person who was born on a sunday.
YarchiירחיHebrew From Hebrew יָרֵחַ (yareach), meaning "moon".
DisraeliItalian, Jewish Originally denoted a person who came from Israel. This surname was borne by the British politician, statesman and novelist Benjamin Disraeli (1804-1881), who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom; he is also the only British prime minister to have been of Jewish origin.
MargolinמרגוליןJewish Derived from Hebrew מרגלית (margalit) meaning "pearl".
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.
MoragמוֹרַגHebrew Means "threshing sledge", "flail" in Hebrew. Morag is a hand-held threshing tool.
KrochmalPolish, Yiddish, Hebrew Krochmal (Yiddish: קראָכמאַל, Hebrew, קרוכמל/קרוכמאל) is a rare Ashkenazi-Jewish-Polish surname meaning "laundry starch" (a starch solution in water used to whiten and stiffen fabric)... [more]
CaslariJewish (Archaic), Judeo-Provençal, Judeo-Catalan, Judeo-French Abraham ben David Caslari was a Catalan-Jewish physician. Abraham Caslari (presumably a different man) is also listed in the index of known Jews in France in the late middle ages in the book Judaia Gallica by Heinrich Gross.
AlmosninoאלמושנינוJudeo-Spanish Meaning uncertain, possibly derived from Catalan or Spanish limosna meaning "alms, charity" or from an Arabic word denoting an orator.