Surnames starting with A

A Hebrew biblical surname originally taken from the given name Aaron, borne especially by Jewish families.

A surname from the word for a monastery superior, originally meaning “abbot.”

A Spanish surname likely from a nickname for someone associated with the rough leather shoe called an abarca.

A name that likely began as a nickname or status term from the word for an abbot or clergyman.

A name from the word for “abbot” or “father,” later used both as a given name and a surname in several traditions.

A surname usually linked to living near an abbey or to someone connected with an abbey in a religious or household role.

A surname that usually began as a nickname or family form of Abbot, the church title, and sometimes as a short form of Abraham.

An Arabic name meaning “servant of God,” later adopted as a surname in some families.

A surname often found in East African and wider Muslim communities, commonly linked to a short Arabic personal name based on “servant.”

A classic Arabic name meaning “servant of God,” used as a surname in many Muslim communities.

A surname from the biblical personal name Abel, originally meaning “breath” or “vapor.”

A surname that usually comes from the biblical given name Abel, meaning “breath” or “vanity” in Hebrew tradition.

A Scottish habitational surname from Abercrombie in Fife, probably meaning a place at the bend or confluence of a stream.

A Scottish surname from a place name, originally meaning “mouth of the Nethy.”

A Hispanic surname most likely built from an old personal name or family line in Spain or the Spanish-speaking world.

Ables is most likely a surname that developed as a spelling variant of Able or Abell, usually from a personal name meaning “noble” or “capable.”

A biblical surname from a Hebrew personal name, often understood as “father of light” or “father is a light.”

A habitational surname from an English place name, most likely the Derbyshire estate of Abney.

A biblical surname from the Hebrew personal name Abraham, meaning “father of many” or “father of a multitude.”

A patronymic surname meaning “son of Abraham.”

Usually from the Lancashire place-name Abram, though some bearers descend from the biblical personal name Abraham.

A patronymic surname meaning “son of Abram,” Abram being a short form of Abraham.

A patronymic surname meaning “son of Abram,” with Abram as a short form of Abraham.

A Spanish surname likely tied to the idea of a sheltered place or protection from the wind.

A Portuguese and Galician surname, usually linked to a place name rather than a personal trait.

A surname of uncertain origin, likely an altered form of an older Germanic or English name.

An English-language surname most likely built from a place-name or older regional name, later fixed in hereditary form in North America.

A Spanish surname taken from a place name meaning “hawthorn grove” or “place of hawthorns.”

A Spanish surname most likely linked to a place name, especially a family’s origin in or near a locality called Aceves.

Acker is most likely a surname for someone associated with a field or an acre of land, and in some cases may also reflect an oak-related place-name.

A German surname meaning “farm man” or, in older folk explanations, “oak man.”

An English-style surname likely meaning “son of Acker,” with Acker probably being a shortened form of a medieval personal name or a nickname based on field/acre imagery.

A topographic surname meaning “oak meadow” or “oak clearing,” essentially the same name as Oakley.

Acord is most likely a surname that developed from a nickname or from a shortened, altered older name rather than a single well-attested origin point.

A mostly Spanish surname, probably from a place-name or from a family line associated with the coast.

A rare surname of uncertain origin, probably a variant of an older English name shaped by regional pronunciation and spelling change.

A habitational surname from places named Acton, meaning a farmstead or settlement near oak trees.

A Spanish surname most often taken from a place name, especially one linked to a local estate or settlement.

A surname usually taken from the Irish place-name Adare in County Limerick, later carried into Scotland and Ulster.

A biblical personal-name surname meaning “son of Adam,” ultimately from the Hebrew word for “man” or “human.”

A surname built from the personal name Adam, ultimately meaning “man” or “of the earth.”

A patronymic surname meaning “son of Adam,” most likely a spelling variant of Adams.

A surname from the personal name Adam, ultimately meaning “red earth.”

A patronymic surname meaning “son of Adam,” from the biblical personal name Adam.

A Polish surname meaning “son of Adam” or “belonging to Adam.”

A patronymic surname meaning “son of Adam.”

A surname most often from the biblical personal name Adam, with forms that could be spelled and pronounced differently across Europe.

A surname meaning “little Adam,” formed from the personal name Adam plus a diminutive ending.

A habitational surname from English places named Addington, meaning “the settlement of Eadda’s people.”

A surname usually understood as meaning “son of Addy” or “son of Adam,” especially in England.

A patronymic surname meaning “son of Addy,” with Addy being a pet form of Adam.

A surname that likely began as a Germanic personal-name form meaning “noble man.”

Aden is usually a name taken from a place name or from a personal name like Adan/Adam, depending on the family line.

A patronymic surname meaning “little Adam” or “descendant of Adam.”

A German surname meaning “eagle,” originally a bird-name that may also have carried associations of strength and nobility.

A surname of Spanish or Italian origin ultimately based on a word for “ornament” or “beauty.”

A surname from the Latin personal name Hadrianus, ultimately linked to the city of Hadria in northern Italy.

A North Indian surname commonly linked to the merchant community of Agarwal/Agrawal, traditionally associated with trade and the legendary city of Agroha.

A surname with several possible origins, most likely from a nickname or an Anglicized European name rather than a single clear English source.

A surname of Norman French origin, most likely from the place-name Agneaux in Normandy.

A surname likely taken from the month name or feast day of August, ultimately from Latin for “the revered one.”

A North Indian surname linked to the historic merchant community of Agarwal (or Agrawal) people.

A Spanish surname most likely tied to a place-name, with roots in the Iberian toponymic tradition.

A Portuguese and Galician surname usually tied to a place-name, often understood as someone who came from or lived near an aguia- or eagle-associated locality.

A Spanish surname meaning “of the eagle,” originally tied to places named Aguilar.

A Spanish surname meaning “place of eagles” or “eagle’s rock,” originally tied to a landscape marked by eagles.

A Basque surname likely referring to a place-name or local feature, with the first element probably tied to a plant term and the second to a place suffix.

A Basque surname most likely referring to a rocky or exposed place, probably from the Basque word for a height or cliff.

A surname from the personal name Agustín, ultimately tied to Saint Augustine and the Latin name Augustinus.

A Spanish surname originally from a place name, most famously borne by people whose ancestors came from the town of Agüero in northern Spain.

Ahearn is an Irish surname, usually a variant spelling of Hearn/Hearne from Gaelic roots.

An Irish surname, usually from Ó hEachthighearna, meaning “descendant of Eachthighearna.”

A common Muslim surname and given name meaning “highly praised” or “one who praises God.”

A widespread Arabic personal name and surname meaning “most praised” or “highly commendable.”

Ahn is most likely a German surname from the old personal name Anno/Agino, later shortened in local dialects.

A Scandinavian surname most often linked to Finnish and Karelian place-names, especially words for a field or clearing.

A North German surname originally meaning “son of Ahrend/Arend,” a form of Arnold or a related eagle-name.

A Spanish surname most likely tied to a place-name or landscape term connected with smoke or burned land.

A southern Italian surname most likely from a place name, originally meaning someone from Aiello.

Aiken is usually a Scottish surname that developed as a form of Atkin, itself a diminutive of Adam.

A Scottish and English surname that developed as a variant of Aitkin, ultimately from a pet form of Adam.

A Lancashire habitational surname meaning “from Ainsworth,” a place-name that likely referred to the estate or settlement of someone named Ains or Ain.

A Scottish surname that likely began as a diminutive form of Atkin, itself a pet form of Adam or sometimes Arthur.

Aker is usually an English surname from a word for an acre or field, originally marking someone who lived by or worked on a piece of land.

A locational surname meaning “of the acre” or “of the fields,” originally for someone who lived by a particular acre or patch of cultivated land.

A South Asian and Persianate surname or personal name meaning “star.”

Akin is most likely a surname built from the old personal name Aikin/Aikin, probably meaning a family connection to a diminutive form of Adam or another medieval given name.

Akins is usually a patronymic surname meaning “son of Akin,” with Akin itself coming from a medieval personal name.

A surname found across several cultures, most often reflecting Arabic and South Asian naming traditions rather than one single English source.

A Spanish surname, most likely a locational name tied to a place called Alanís in Andalusia.

A Spanish-language surname likely connected to the personal name Alan, with a Hispanicized ending typical of family names from the Iberian and Latin American world.

A Spanish surname taken from a place name, best known from the town of Alarcón in Cuenca, Spain.

A rare surname of uncertain origin, most likely from a short nickname or a non-English name later simplified in spelling.

A Spanish surname most likely meaning “from the tower” or “at the tower.”

A short surname with multiple roots, most often linked to a place-name or to the old word for “white.”

An Italian surname meaning “Albanian” or “from Albania,” originally used as an ethnic or regional nickname.

A surname that can point to someone from Alba or Albano, or more broadly to a place-name built on the Latin root for “white” or “dawn.”

A Spanish surname most likely tied to a place name or regional origin, rather than a personal occupation or nickname.

A patronymic surname meaning “son of Albert,” especially common in German and Dutch naming traditions.

A surname from the old Germanic baptismal name Albert, meaning roughly “noble-bright.”

A surname usually taken from the given name Alberto, itself the Romance form of Albert, meaning “noble” and “bright.”

A patronymic surname meaning “son of Albert,” ultimately from a Germanic name meaning “noble-bright” or “illustrious.”

A patronymic surname meaning “son of Albert.”

A surname with several possible roots, including a medieval French place-name form and an older Latin/Christian personal name meaning “white” or “pale.”

A surname from a name or nickname built on the Latin word for “white” or “fair.”

A German surname from the old given name Albrecht, meaning roughly “noble-bright” or “illustrious noble.”

A surname originally meaning “son of Albert” or, more broadly, “bright and noble,” from old Germanic personal-name roots.

An English surname that likely began as a place-name or nickname form built on a medieval personal name.

A Spanish surname taken from one of several places called Alcalá, ultimately from an Arabic word meaning “the castle” or “fortified town.”

A surname of Spanish-language origin, usually linked to a place-name or to the Arabic-rooted name Alcántara.

A Spanish surname taken from the place name Alcaraz in southern Spain.

A Spanish surname from a place-name meaning a castle or fortress, originally linked to Arabic al-qaṣr, “the palace” or “the fort.”

A Spanish surname most likely tied to place-names, probably meaning someone from a town or site called Alcocer.

A surname most likely from a place-name, meaning “from Alchome/Alcorn,” with the spelling later simplified.

A surname originally tied to places named Alcántara, especially the famous Spanish town and bridge over the Tagus River.

A Spanish surname most likely tied to a place-name, with roots in the Iberian naming tradition.

An English surname that likely began as a place name, but may also reflect old Anglo-Saxon personal-name forms.

Usually a local surname for someone who lived by an alder tree or alder grove.

A Spanish surname probably tied to a place-name, ultimately meaning a grove of alder trees or a similar wooded spot.

A surname from an old civic title for a senior local official, sometimes also inherited from the title as a personal name.

A patronymic surname meaning “son of Alder” or “son of Aldred,” with some early writers also reading it as “older son.”

A surname that likely began as a medieval personal name, later reinforced by forms like Aldridge.

Usually a surname that developed from the Old English personal name Aldric, later reshaped to look like a place-name.

A Spanish surname from alegría, meaning “joy” or “happiness.”

A Spanish surname likely built from the given name Alejandro, meaning “defender of mankind.”

A Spanish surname taken from the given name Alejandro, ultimately from Greek meaning “defender of men.”

A Spanish surname that likely began as a personal name, ultimately tied to the Greek idea of “helper.”

A surname that usually means “a German” or “someone from Germany,” though in some early English records it was also linked to an alehouse keeper or ale seller.

An Italian surname that usually began as a patronymic from the personal name Alesso, a local form of Alessio (Alexander).

A short surname usually taken from the familiar personal name Alexander, or as a clipped nickname from it.

A wide-spread surname taken from the very common given name Alexander, meaning “defender of men.”

A French form of Alexander, ultimately meaning “defender of men.”

A surname taken from a given name meaning “helper,” ultimately from Greek.

A surname of Italian origin, likely from a personal name built on Germanic roots meaning “noble” and “all.”

A Spanish surname most often linked to the place name Alfaro, with a possible secondary sense connected to a potter or maker of clay vessels in older Spanish usage.

A Spanish and Italian surname from the given name Alfonso, originally meaning “noble and ready.”

Usually a locational surname meaning “from Alford,” originally referring to places by an old ford.

A surname usually taken from the medieval personal name Alfred, meaning “elf counsel” in Old English.

A surname that most likely began as a shortened form of the old Germanic personal name Algar or Ælfgar, meaning roughly 'elf-spear.'

A widespread surname and given name with roots in Arabic and several other traditions, often linked to the meaning “high” or “exalted.”

A surname of likely patronymic origin, generally understood as a Spanish-language form related to the given name Alicia/Alisa.

A Scottish and English surname that usually comes from the personal name Alan, often understood as meaning “handsome” or “cheerful.”

A surname usually traced to a medieval personal name built on old Germanic elements meaning “noble” or “honorable.”

A surname meaning “man from Germany,” from a French form for a German person or the German language.

A very common surname from the medieval personal name Alan, meaning “fair” or “bright” in its Celtic roots.

A surname that most likely began as a name for someone who lived by a narrow lane or passage, though in some cases it may also be a pet form of a personal name.

A variant of Allen, ultimately tied to the personal name Alan and sometimes associated with meanings like “fair” or “handsome.”

An English surname that likely began as a descriptive or nickname name meaning “all good,” though some early scholars also linked it to an old personal name.

A surname that usually means “son of Alice” or “son of Allan,” depending on the family line.

A surname often explained as meaning “the German” or “from Germany,” though some sources also connect it with Norman place-names or older Germanic name forms.

An English surname that likely began as a nickname or place-based name built from old words for “old” and “red.”

A likely English surname that began as a place-based or nickname-style name, with its exact origin still uncertain.

A Spanish-language surname likely tied to a place name, most notably the town of Almaguer in Spain.

A Spanish locational surname from places named Almanza, most famously the town in Castile-La Mancha.

A surname most likely of Spanish or Spanish-American form, probably tied to a place-name or personal-name tradition in the Iberian world.

A Spanish surname most likely taken from a place-name, probably pointing back to a family’s home locality in Spain.

A Spanish surname likely tied to a place name, probably meaning someone from Almazán in Soria, Spain.

A surname taken from the name of a place called Almeida, most famously a town in Portugal.

A Spanish-language surname most likely tied to a place name or local surname form, later carried into the Americas.

A Spanish habitational surname from a place-name, most famously associated with towns in central and southern Spain.

Usually a surname from a place-name, especially one linked to the river Almond in Scotland; in some cases it may also reflect the French/medieval name Amand or Saint Amand.

A surname most likely taken from a place-name, especially in Spanish-speaking contexts.

A very common Spanish surname that began as a patronymic from the medieval given name Alfonso/Alons(o).

A Spanish-derived surname and given name, ultimately tied to the royal name Alfonso and its older form Ildefonso.

A surname of Old Germanic and Jewish use, most likely coming from a personal name meaning “noble” and “bright” or “famous.”

A place-based surname meaning “from Alston,” found in several English place-names.

A rare surname that may be a short form of older names, or a locational name from a place described as “high” or “elevated.”

A Spanish surname probably built from the place-name Altamirano, likely meaning “high Tamar” or “high hill by Tamar,” though its exact origin is uncertain.

A surname with an uncertain origin, probably tied to a place-name or a medieval form related to “altar” or “Alder.”

An Italian surname that likely began as a place-based name, probably pointing to someone from or associated with a place called Altino or a similar locality.

A surname that usually began as a German name meaning “old man” or “elder,” though in England it was sometimes linked to place-names and local forms.

A surname most often taken from places called Alton, especially English place-names meaning “old town” or “settlement on the hill.”

A surname that often points to a place-name or, in some families, to a historical link with the Duke of Alva.

A Spanish surname most often tied to a place-name, likely meaning “at the alder grove” or a similar wooded clearing.

A Iberian surname most likely tied to a place-name, especially in Portugal or Spain.

A Romance-language surname usually meaning “son of Álvaro,” with Iberian roots in Spain and Portugal.

A surname most likely meaning “son of Alver” or “son of Alvar,” built from an old personal name rather than a place or trade.

A Scottish surname linked to the parish of Alves in Elginshire, later also found more widely through migration.

A surname of uncertain origin, often treated as an old English personal-name form and historically concentrated in Nottinghamshire and nearby counties.

A surname with several possible roots, most likely from an old personal name meaning “all-wise,” though some sources connect it with place-name or patronymic forms.

A Spanish and Portuguese surname from the given name Amado, meaning “loved” or “beloved.”

A Spanish surname from a given name meaning “one who loves” or “lover.”

Aman is usually an English surname from a word meaning “a fellow” or “man,” though in some cases it may be a shortened form of a given name.

A Portuguese surname usually taken from a place-name, especially one linked to vineyards or a rural estate.

A surname with several possible roots, most often tied to a personal name or a descriptive word meaning “bitter” or “sad.”

A surname of Italian origin meaning “beloved” or “dear one,” first used as a personal name and later inherited as a family name.

A surname most likely tied to the place name Amaya in northern Spain, though some older writers proposed a different, folkish explanation.

A Spanish-language surname most likely tied to a place-name or local family branch in the Iberian or Mexican tradition.

A medieval baptismal surname from the given name Ambrose, made famous by St. Ambrose of Milan.

A surname from the personal name Ambrosio, ultimately linked to the Greek idea of immortality.

A surname that likely began as a patronymic meaning “son of Amery/Emery.”

Usually a surname of English or Norman origin, often explained as a form of Amis or Amy, or as a place-name surname from a Norman location.

A Spanish surname most likely tied to a place name in the Basque-speaking north of Spain.

A Spanish-language surname most likely tied to a place name, probably meaning someone from or near a small beech wood or a similarly named locality.

A surname usually traced to a Germanic personal name, later fixed as an inherited family name in English-speaking countries.

A surname with several possible origins, most commonly linked to Arabic and South Asian naming traditions, and also found as a separate surname in Europe.

A surname that likely began as a patronymic form of the given name Ammon or a spelling variant of similar biblical or Germanic names.

A nickname surname from Italian meaning “loving” or “lovable,” ultimately tied to the word for love.

A surname that usually began as a medieval nickname or baptismal form linked to the personal name Amy/Amie, though it was later sometimes associated with the biblical prophet Amos.

A Scandinavian patronymic surname meaning “son of Amund.”

A short surname with several possible East Asian origins, most often from Chinese, Korean, or Vietnamese family names written in Roman letters as An.

A South Asian personal name used as a surname, ultimately from a Sanskrit word meaning “bliss” or “joy.”

A surname of Spanish origin, most often explained as coming from a place-name or local family name rather than from a common occupation or nickname.

A likely Spanish-language surname, probably tied to a place-name or regional form rather than a common occupation or nickname.

A surname that usually began as a shortened form of Andrew or, in some cases, from a place-name in northern France.

A Scandinavian patronymic meaning “son of Anders,” with Anders being a form of Andrew.

A classic patronymic surname meaning “son of Andrew.”

A surname with two local origins: most often from Lancashire place-names, but in Cornwall also from a Cornish name meaning “oak hill.”

A Spanish surname most often linked to the Andes or to people from an Andean region.

A Spanish and Portuguese surname tied to the old noble house of A Coruña, in Galicia.

A surname of French origin, usually from the given name Andrew.

A surname from the given name Andrew, ultimately from Greek meaning “manly” or “brave.”

A Scandinavian patronymic surname meaning “son of Andres/Andrew.”

A surname from the old personal name Andrew, ultimately meaning “manly” or “brave.”

A patronymic surname meaning “son of Andrew,” ultimately from the Greek name meaning “manly” or “brave.”

A surname most likely derived from a personal name related to Andrew, especially in Hungarian and other European forms.

A Spanish surname most likely indicating someone from the town of Andújar in Andalusia.

A surname with several possible origins, including a Chinese family name and a few separate European names that were anglicized as Ang.

A surname that usually began as a baptismal name, from the word for a heavenly messenger.

A surname most likely built from the Spanish word for “angels,” often linked to religious naming or place-based origins.

Usually a surname from the word “angel,” though some bearers may descend from an older personal name or from a house sign.

A surname often linked to the personal name Angel or Angelo, originally meaning “angel” or “messenger.”

A surname from living “at the angle” or corner of a road, field, or settlement.

A surname found especially in Ireland, often treated as a form of Anglim and probably linked to the same Gaelic root.

A Spanish surname originally linked to the town of Anguiano in La Rioja.

A surname of Latin origin meaning “angle” or “corner,” often tied to a place name.

A Scottish surname most often linked to the old county name Angus in eastern Scotland, or to the Gaelic personal name Aonghus/Angus.

A surname usually derived from the medieval female name Agnes, though some bearers may instead come from local place-names or other related forms.

A Muslim surname meaning “from Ansar,” referring to the early supporters of the Prophet Muhammad in Medina.

A surname from a personal name meaning “divine helmet,” ultimately from Germanic roots.

Usually a locational surname meaning “from Annesley” or a similar place-name ending in -ley.

Anson is usually an English patronymic surname, often understood as a shortened form of names like Alanson or a variant related to Anne-derived forms.

A surname from the personal name Anthony, ultimately tied to the old Roman family name Antonius.

A French form of the personal name Anthony, ultimately from the ancient Roman name Antonius.

A surname that usually began as a short form of Anthony, though some bearers may descend from local or foreign-name forms.

A surname usually derived from the given name Anthony, ultimately from the Roman family name Antonius.

A patronymic surname meaning “descendant of Antonio,” ultimately from the Roman personal name Antonius.

A surname usually taken from the given name Anthony or Antonio, meaning “of Anthony/Antonio.”

An Italian surname meaning “descendant of Antonio,” ultimately from the personal name Anthony.

A Spanish surname meaning “son of Antón” or “son of Antonio,” ultimately from the old family of names built on Anthony.

An Italian surname, most likely from a personal name or nickname with southern Italian roots.

A Spanish surname ultimately tied to the idea of an epiphany or “appearing.”

A Basque surname most likely taken from a place name in northern Spain.

A Spanish surname meaning “at the bridge,” originally referring to someone living near or by a bridge.

A surname that usually points to the German word for “apple,” though in some cases it may be a shortened form of another Germanic name.

A surname that usually began as a name for someone from an apple-rich place, or from a local name built on the apple tree itself.

A habitational surname meaning “from Appleby,” taken from several English place-names with an Old Norse ending meaning “farm” or “settlement.”

An English habitational surname from a place name meaning “apple enclosure,” later sometimes treated as a form of Applegarth.

A habitational surname meaning “settlement or town associated with apples,” originally taken from one of several English places named Appleton.

An English locational surname from a place-name meaning “apple clearing” or “apple meadow.”

A surname of place-name origin, ultimately referring to someone from Aquino in central Italy.

A surname taken from the Spanish region of Aragon, originally identifying someone from that kingdom or its people.

A Spanish-language surname that is most likely to have developed from a regional place name or old family name in the Iberian world.

A surname of likely Spanish-language origin, probably tied to a place name or a regional family name from the Hispanic world.

A Basque surname most likely linked to a place-name or landscape term, especially one connected with a grove or wooded area.

A Spanish surname most often linked to the place name Aranda, meaning it likely began as a locational name for someone from that town or area.

A Spanish surname, likely rooted in a place name from northern Iberia.

A Portuguese and Spanish surname most likely from a place name, especially tied to Aroujo/Araújo-like localities in Iberia.

A surname of Germanic origin, traditionally explained as meaning “inheritance guest” or “guest of the estate.”

A surname probably linked to the place-name Harbottle, with strong roots in northern England and southern Scotland.

A surname found in Spanish and related traditions, probably tied to a place-name or to a word for a fortification or embankment.

A French surname that is most likely a regional form of a name meaning “little archer” or “arrow-maker,” especially associated with Louisiana Creole and Acadiana families.

A Spanish-language surname most likely tied to place names or a topographic term related to a grove or wild pear tree.

A French surname that goes back to an old Germanic personal name meaning roughly “bold, sacred prince.”

An occupational surname for an archer or professional bowman.

A surname from the old personal name Archibald, originally meaning something like “genuine” or “precious” plus “bold.”

A Scottish surname that usually began as a nickname from the pet form of Archibald.

A Spanish surname that most likely began as a place-based name tied to a small or distinctive location in the Basque-influenced north of Spain.

A Spanish surname tied to the place name Arciniega, most likely meaning someone who came from that locality.

A Spanish surname most likely from a place name, originally referring to someone from or near a place called Arcos.

A rare surname that likely began as a short form of a Gaelic personal name meaning “noble” or “high.”

A French surname that likely began as a place-name or neighborhood name, with some forms linked to old words for a rocky or gravelly shore.

A Spanish-language surname likely tied to a Basque place-name tradition, with the exact origin uncertain.

A Spanish surname from the Navarrese place-name Arellano, later borne by a notable noble line such as the Ramírez de Arellano family.

A name of Spanish and Italian origin, often linked to sand or a sandy place.

A Spanish surname from the plural of *arena*, meaning “sand” or “sandy places.”

Probably a short form or altered spelling of a Germanic or regional surname, though the evidence is too thin to be sure.

A Spanish surname most often linked to a place-name or landscape word, though its exact origin is debated in older scholarship.

A Spanish-language surname that is likely locational in origin, probably tied to a place name rather than a personal trait or job.

A Spanish surname, likely from a place name or local designation, best known through families from northern Spain and later the Americas.

Arias is a surname that can be patronymic in Spanish and Portuguese usage, and in some English-family contexts it was also linked to Arras, the city in northern France.

A Spanish surname most likely taken from a place-name, with deep roots in northern Iberia.

A Basque surname meaning, in origin, “the stone quarry” or “rocky mine place.”

A surname that likely arose from the Spanish word for “weapons” or from heraldic and military associations.

An occupational surname meaning “crossbow maker.”

A Basque surname most likely meaning “place of alders” or “alder grove.”

A Spanish surname likely tied to a place-name or a regional word for arable land.

A surname of Germanic origin, likely a name for someone from a place called Armentrout or a related regional name brought to America by German-speaking immigrants.

A Spanish surname, most likely tied to a place name or local geographic feature rather than a personal trade.

An English locational surname from Hermitage, meaning a hermit’s dwelling or retreat.

A surname for an armourer, or in some cases a later spelling form tied to the same trade name.

A surname that most likely began as a nickname or occupational name connected with arms, armor, or bearing arms.

A topographic surname meaning “the hermit’s dwelling” or “hermit-stead.”

An English and Scottish surname meaning “strong in the arm,” originally a nickname for a powerful fighter or athlete.

A German surname from a short form of Arnold, meaning roughly "eagle ruler" or "eagle power."

A Scandinavian patronymic surname meaning “son of Arne.”

A surname that began as a shortened or altered form of Arnold, with the ending -ett giving it a diminutive feel.

Originally a nickname form of Arnold, with some cases possibly influenced by old eagle-based name elements.

A classic surname from the old personal name Arnold, meaning roughly “eagle ruler,” also sometimes linked to places named Arnold in England.

A patronymic surname meaning “son of Aron/Aron,” ultimately linked to the biblical name Aaron.

A South Asian surname most often associated with the Arora community of Punjab.

A short Germanic surname that likely began as a name linked to inheritance or an old personal name, though some early explanations are uncertain.

A Spanish surname most likely taken from a place-name meaning “the round or circular one.”

A Spanish surname most likely built from a place-name or descriptive root, later carried to the Americas.

A Spanish surname likely tied to a place name, possibly ultimately from a word for a small field or enclosure.

A Spanish surname from a place name, likely meaning a rough or stony land.

A Basque surname most likely from a place name, with roots in words for stone or rock.

A habitational surname from an English place-name, most likely meaning “from Arrington,” a village name built on an old place-name element ending in “-ton.”

A Basque and Spanish place-based surname, likely meaning someone from a place called Arriola.

An English-language surname likely built from the words for an arrow and a wood, probably originally a place-style name or descriptive byname.

A Spanish surname meaning “stream” or “brook,” originally referring to someone who lived by a small watercourse.

A Portuguese surname most often tied to the herb rue, likely used as a place-name or nickname surname.

A French surname ultimately from a personal name, most common in Acadian and French-Canadian families.

A Basque surname from a place-name, probably meaning a wooded or brush-covered upland.

A surname that usually began as a patronymic meaning “son of Arthur,” from the well-known personal name Arthur.

A surname most likely meaning “from Artois,” the French province; in some cases it may also reflect a patronymic from Arthur.

A Spanish surname, most likely of local or regional origin, found especially in the Hispanic Southwest.

A surname of Spanish-language origin, most likely a regional or toponymic name brought into wider use in the Hispanic world.

A Spanish-language surname most likely tied to a place-name, especially in the Basque or northern Spanish naming tradition.

A Spanish surname taken from the name of the town of Arévalo in Castile, Spain.

A surname usually treated as a place-name surname, probably referring to Ashbury or a similar English locality.

A Spanish surname usually connected with the Christian feast of the Ascension.

A mostly English surname for someone who lived by an ash tree, with some cases also linked to places called Ash.

Likely a shortened form of Ashburner, originally from a place or feature named for ash trees beside a stream.

A common English place-based surname meaning “from Ashby,” originally referring to one of several towns or villages named Ashby.

An English surname built from “ash” plus “croft,” likely referring to someone who lived by an ash-tree enclosure or small field.

A surname usually meaning “at the ash tree,” from someone who lived by a notable ash tree or ash landmark.

A surname from a biblical Hebrew personal name meaning “happy” or “blessed,” later adopted in English and sometimes reinforced by German forms.

A place-based surname meaning “from Ashford,” originally referring to someone who came from one of several English settlements by an ash-tree ford.

A habitational surname meaning someone from a place called Ashley, originally “ash-tree clearing” or “ash meadow.”

A habitational surname originally meaning someone from Ashmore, a place-name in Dorset.

A common English surname from places named for ash trees, meaning “ash-tree settlement.”

A Lancashire place-name surname meaning “ash-tree enclosure or homestead.”

A mainly Yorkshire surname from a place-name, later also linked to spellings like Ayscough and Ascough.

An English surname probably meaning “descendant of Asketin,” a shortened medieval form of the Old French personal name Asketel.

A common English place-based surname meaning “ash town” or “ash settlement.”

A surname taken from the Spanish city of Astorga, in León, so it is a classic locational family name.

A Spanish-language surname and place-name originally meaning “the Assumption,” usually referring to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary.

A surname usually understood as a patronymic form, most likely meaning “son of Adam” or, in some lines, “son of Archibald.”

An English surname most likely arising as a variant of Atcherley, itself a locational name tied to a place-name form.

A surname of Spanish-language form, likely derived from a personal name or nickname built on the idea of attention or attentiveness.

An English habitational surname from Atherton in Lancashire, meaning a person from that place.

A surname most likely from a place name or a shortened form of an older personal name, with English and Irish roots both possible.

A medieval English surname from the pet form of Adam, meaning “little Adam” or “son of Adam.”

A patronymic surname meaning “son of Atkin,” with Atkin itself coming from a medieval pet form of Adam.

A surname most likely from a lost or shifted English place name, now fixed in a distinct modern family line.

A topographic surname meaning “at the water,” originally given to someone who lived by a river, stream, or other body of water.

A topographic surname meaning “at the well,” originally for someone who lived by a well or spring.

An English surname meaning “at the wood,” originally describing someone who lived by a wood or forest edge.

A short surname that can come from several different linguistic traditions, most often linked to Chinese or other East Asian naming patterns, and sometimes to place-name or nickname origins elsewhere.

A French surname from places called Saint-Aubin, originally tied to the personal name Albinus, meaning “white” or “pale.”

A medieval personal name and surname, ultimately from a Norman-French form related to the old Germanic name Alberic/Albericus.

A French surname most likely tied to a place-name or old French personal-name form, now found especially in French-descended communities in North America.

A German surname that usually began as a place-name, referring to someone from an area called Aue, Au, or Auer.

A surname with Norman and French roots, often linked to a personal name and sometimes to a Cheshire place-name.

A surname from the personal name August, ultimately tied to Latin Augustus, meaning “venerable” or “majestic.”

A French surname and given-name surname ultimately from Latin Augustus, meaning “venerable” or “esteemed.”

A surname that usually comes from the personal name Augustin, itself tied to the old Roman name Augustus and the idea of venerable dignity.

A surname from the personal name Augustine, ultimately tied to the Latin for “venerable” or “revered.”

Ault is usually an English or German surname meaning “old,” often a spelling variant of Auld or Alt.

A classic English surname from the personal name Austin, originally a shortened form of Augustine.

A surname most likely derived from a medieval personal name, later fixed in English-speaking families as a hereditary surname.

A surname likely from a French place name, especially Autry in Champagne, with some forms possibly influenced by older Germanic names.

A surname that may come from the Hampshire place-name Havant or from the French/Old French word for “forward.”

A Iberian surname likely tied to places or words for hazelnuts or hazel trees.

A Spanish surname most likely tied to a place-name, with the -año element marking an old regional or locational origin.

Averett is a surname most likely built from a medieval personal name, probably a regional or pet form of Avery or another similar Old French/Germanic name.

A British surname that most likely began as a place-name form, though its exact source is debated in older dictionaries.

Avery is usually an English surname from a medieval personal name, though some lineages may also connect to Norman place-names or older Germanic roots.

A Spanish surname most likely pointing to a family connection with the place name Ávila or a related Iberian form.

A Spanish locational surname meaning “from Avilés,” the Asturian town in northern Spain.

A rare surname with unclear origin, likely connected to an older personal name or place-name tradition in English records.

A surname of likely Spanish or Hispanic origin, probably tied to an old personal name or a place name.

A common Arabic surname and given name, usually from a word meaning “custom” or “habit,” often carrying the sense of established practice or tradition.

A Spanish surname most often tied to the place name Ayala in the Basque Country.

Aycock is an English surname that likely began as a nickname or a place-based name, though its exact origin is uncertain.

A surname usually treated as a spelling variant of Eyre, traditionally explained as meaning “the heir.”

An English surname that may come from the name Ayer/Ayr, often linked to a place-name or an earlier personal name.

A surname with several possible origins, most likely from a place-name or a shortened form of an older personal name.

A French surname most likely tied to a place name or old regional form, especially in France and French Canada.

A surname with multiple origins, most often linked either to a place-name in Scotland or to the medieval name Eyre, with later spelling variation in Britain and America.

An uncommon surname that may reflect the Spanish word for “chance” or, in some cases, a place-name or descriptive source.

A Portuguese surname meaning “from the ash grove” or “ashwood.”

A surname from an Arabic name meaning “mighty,” “powerful,” or “dear/precious.”