Surnames starting with S

A surname most often linked to Arabic roots meaning “happiness” or “good fortune.”

A Spanish surname of uncertain but likely locational origin, traditionally linked to a place-name in Galicia or northern Spain.

A surname with several possible origins, including a connection to the biblical saint Sabas and a name used in medieval English and French records.

A surname from a given name related to Sabbath or Saturday, common in southern Italy.

A name that likely began as a Roman personal name meaning “Sabine,” pointing to ancestry from the ancient Sabine people of Italy.

A surname of several possible origins, most often tied to a nickname meaning “shoemaker” or to Central/Eastern European family-name traditions.

A surname most likely connected to a Slavic personal name or nickname, though the exact derivation is not firmly established from the excerpted evidence.

A surname of several possible European origins, most often linked to the word for “sack” or to an older Germanic personal name.

A surname that most often points to a Saxon or German ethnic origin, though some older writers linked it to Isaac or to the word for “sack.”

An English and French surname that can come from a sack-maker, a sackcloth garment, or a French place-name.

A surname most likely from a nickname or personal-name source, with a traditional English explanation linking it to a diminutive of “Sack” or a short-form of Zachary.

Usually a surname from a sack-maker or from the medieval word for a sack; in some cases it may also reflect the name Isaac.

An occupational surname for a maker or repairer of saddles and horse harness.

An occupational surname for a maker or seller of saddles.

A Polish surname meaning someone from a place called Sady or Sadowo, ultimately tied to orchards or gardens.

A surname most commonly found among Hmong families, often reflecting a traditional clan-based naming practice rather than a single English-language meaning.

A common Arabic surname and given name meaning “happy” or “fortunate.”

A Spanish surname meaning “son of Sancho,” originally a patronymic name.

A Spanish surname that likely began as a shortened patronymic form, tied to a personal name in the Sancho/Sanz family of names.

A surname that usually began as a nickname for a wise or prudent person, or as an English rendering of French Le Sage.

Most likely an English occupational surname meaning “sawyer,” though some families may also descend from a shortened form of Seager.

A locational surname from the Spanish town of Sahagún in León, originally used for someone who came from there.

A surname that can come from several traditions, including an Arabic personal name meaning “happy” or “fortunate.”

A rare surname that is often linked to the French word for “healthy” or “sound,” though some bearers may have taken it from a place-name or from Saint-related forms.

A surname most likely tied to South Asian regional or clan naming traditions, especially in northern India.

A Spanish surname that began as a patronymic, meaning "descendant of Sancho."

A common Japanese surname, usually written with characters meaning “west” and “wisteria.”

A Spanish surname most often understood as a regional form of Sáez, meaning “son of Sancho” or, more broadly, a patronymic from a medieval personal name.

A surname that often comes from a word for a hall, room, or manor house, especially in Italian, Spanish, and related traditions.

A surname most likely taken from the Spanish city of Salamanca, originally identifying someone who came from there.

A surname of Mediterranean origin, most likely linked to the given name Solomon and its regional forms.

A Spanish surname that most often began as a place-name, from a word for halls, rooms, or a house of halls.

A Spanish surname most often tied to a place-name, widely associated with medieval Castile and the Basque country.

A Spanish surname from place names tied to willow-lined, damp lowland ground near rivers.

A Hispanic surname most likely tied to a place name or regional word, with roots in Spanish or Iberian naming traditions.

A Spanish habitational surname for someone from a place called Saldaña or Saldaña.

A Spanish surname usually linked to a place-name, likely meaning someone from a “salvage” or “sheltered” place in older Iberian usage.

A surname that can mean someone who lived by or at a hall, from an old word for a hall or manor house.

A surname and given-name spelling ultimately from Arabic Salim, meaning “safe” or “sound.”

A name of Arabic origin meaning “righteous” or “good,” often used as a personal name and later adopted as a surname.

A name drawn from the biblical place-name Jerusalem, meaning “peace,” and also used as a surname from association with the town name Salem.

A surname from the Italian city of Salerno, used for someone who came from or was associated with that place.

A surname usually from a place-name or house sign meaning “the hall,” though some bearers may instead descend from Salford-type local names.

A Spanish and Portuguese surname meaning “salty” or “salty place,” often linked to salt flats, saline ground, or a descriptive nickname.

A Spanish surname most likely tied to willow trees or a place where willows grew.

A common Spanish surname meaning “saltworks” or “salt pans,” originally from places where salt was produced.

A habitational surname from Salisbury in Wiltshire, originally meaning “the stronghold of Searo.”

A surname with several possible roots, most likely a spelling variant of a French or English name that was later stabilized in North America.

A surname most likely tied to a place-name, especially in Manx usage where it can point to Ballasalla.

A Spanish habitational surname likely referring to someone from a place called Salmerón.

A surname with several possible roots, most often explained as a medieval form of Solomon, though it was also sometimes linked to the fish or to place-names.

Usually a patronymic surname meaning “son of Salmon,” with Salmon itself often coming from the biblical name Solomon.

A surname usually from the personal name Solomon, with long use among both Jewish and non-Jewish families.

An occupational surname for a salt maker or salt seller.

A Jewish and German surname built from the word for “salt,” often from a salt trader, salt worker, or a place-name tied to salt.

A surname meaning “savior,” from a Christian personal name and devotional title for Christ.

An Italian surname from a personal name meaning “saviour,” ultimately from Latin.

A surname of uncertain origin, most likely an English or Germanic family name that shifted in spelling over time.

A surname most likely developed as a variant form of an older occupational or nickname-based name, later fixed in spelling in English-speaking families.

A surname usually meaning “salt man,” often linked to someone who made, sold, or handled salt.

A surname usually taken as a short form of Samuel, though in some cases it may preserve a local name or another longer surname.

A Spanish surname probably taken from the place name Samaniego in Álava, northern Spain.

A Spanish surname most likely tied to the Basque place name Sámano in northern Spain.

A Hispanic surname most often linked to a place name or regional family name from Guatemala and nearby Central America.

A surname usually treated as a spelling variant of Salmon, itself often a medieval personal-name or nickname-based surname.

A surname usually linked to St. Paul in France, though some sources also connect it with the word for salmon.

A variant form of the surname Sample, probably arising from a medieval personal name or local-name form rather than the modern word "sample."

A surname from the biblical name Samson, meaning “son of Samuel” in some later surname traditions but often simply a variant of Samson.

A surname usually meaning “son of Samuel,” though some bearers may come from the name Sam itself.

A surname from the Biblical name Samuel/Samson tradition, later used by both Jews and Christians and spread in several spelling forms.

A biblical surname meaning “heard of God,” often adopted directly from the Hebrew given name.

A patronymic surname meaning “son of Samuel,” used by both Jewish and Christian families in England.

A patronymic surname meaning “son of Samuel,” with a strong English and Jewish usage history.

A Spanish surname meaning “Saint John,” originally referring to places, churches, or people connected with St. John.

A Spanish surname meaning “Saint Michael,” originally a name taken from a place, church, or devotion to the archangel.

A Spanish surname tied to the place name Sanabria in northwestern Spain.

An English surname often explained as “sand-born,” but more likely a later form of a place-name surname such as Sambourne or Stonbourne.

A surname found in several European naming traditions, often linked to the given name Sancho or related patronymic forms meaning “son of Sancho.”

A very common Spanish surname meaning “son of Sancho,” originally a patronymic from a medieval personal name.

A surname that could point to sandy ground or a place-name built from the word sand.

A Scandinavian habitational surname meaning “sand hill” or “sandy hill.”

A short form of Alexander, later used as a surname meaning “son of Alexander.”

A surname that usually means “son of Sander,” with Sander serving as a short form of Alexander.

A patronymic surname meaning “son of Sander,” with Sander itself a short form of Alexander.

A South Asian surname, most often associated with Punjabi Sikh and Jat communities, with a name that likely began as a clan or lineage identifier.

An English surname probably developed from a place-name, especially Sandiford, though older writers also proposed a more speculative “sent/farer” explanation.

A surname that most often points to an ancestor who made or sold sand, or to a place-name or German/Yiddish naming pattern built on the word for sand.

An English surname likely built from the place-name element sand, originally pointing to someone from sandy ground or a similarly named locality.

A Spanish surname most commonly linked to a place-name, with its deeper origin debated by older writers.

A topographic surname for someone who lived on or by sandy ground or sandbanks.

A Swedish surname meaning “sand stream” or “sand river,” originally tied to a place name or landscape feature.

Usually a surname from the Bedfordshire place-name Sandy, though in some cases it may be a nickname or patronymic from Alexander.

An Italian surname meaning “of Saint Philip,” originally referring to someone connected with a church, place, or family devoted to St. Philip.

A place-based surname meaning “from the sandy ford.”

An occupational surname meaning "singer" or "minstrel," from Old English.

A Lancashire surname originally used for someone from Sankey, a place-name probably meaning either “sunk land” or “sankey/island by water.”

A surname from a medieval personal name tied to St. Samson, especially recorded in Norman and English forms.

A Spanish surname meaning “Holy Cross,” originally a place name or devotional name.

A surname built from the phrase “Saint Mary,” often marking devotion to the Virgin Mary.

A surname of Spanish and Portuguese origin, most often from places named for a saint or sacred grove.

An Italian surname meaning “Saint Angel” or “Holy Angel,” originally a devotional or place-based name.

A surname taken from the Spanish and Portuguese personal name Santiago, originally meaning Saint James.

A Spanish surname meaning “from San Tibáñez” or “from the place of Saint Tibáñez,” ultimately tied to a saint’s name.

A Spanish surname most likely tied to a place-name built on a saint’s name, with the final form shaped by regional pronunciation and spelling.

An Italian surname meaning “little saint” or “descendant of Santo,” from a saint-based personal name.

A surname that usually began as a devotional name for someone associated with a saint or a place-name based on a saint.

An Italian surname meaning “of the holy one” or linked to All Saints’ Day.

A Spanish and Portuguese surname meaning “the saints,” often from devotion to All Saints or from a place-name tied to a church or saintly dedication.

A Spanish surname most likely built from a saint name and a place-name element, though its exact origin is not fully certain.

An Italian surname, most likely meaning “son of Santo” or “little Santo.”

An English surname that most likely began as a nickname, sometimes linked to “sap” in the sense of a simpleton or to the word for plant juice.

A Spanish surname that likely began as a place-based name, probably referring to someone from a locality called Sarabia.

A Spanish surname, probably first used from a place-name or family name and later fixed in the form Saravia.

A surname from the old word for a servant, attendant, or military officer.

A Spanish surname most likely from the word for a grapevine shoot or pruning twig.

A surname of Italian origin, most likely taken from the town of Sarno in Campania, Italy.

A surname most likely built from an older personal name or nickname, with roots that are not fully certain.

A surname most likely from a place-name or an older occupational/nickname form, rather than a single well-established meaning.

A surname with several possible roots, most often linked either to a river lock or sluice, or to old Germanic words for an inhabitant or settler.

A surname of uncertain origin, with no clear etymology established from the historical excerpts provided.

A surname likely from a place-name or a Scandinavian family name, with roots in northern European naming traditions.

A common Japanese surname, most often written with characters meaning “village” and “wisteria,” though its exact kanji can vary.

An English place-name surname meaning someone from or near a patch of marshy or soft land.

A rare English-origin surname likely referring to a person with light or “white” hair or complexion, or to a family name built from an older descriptive nickname.

A German occupational surname meaning “saddle maker.”

A Spanish surname likely tied to a place name or landscape feature related to willow trees.

A Spanish surname most often linked to a place with willow trees, from a word for “willow.”

A French occupational surname meaning “sauce maker,” later extended to someone who prepared or sold sauces or seasoning.

A German surname meaning “sour” or “morose,” sometimes also linked to a place-name near the river Sau.

A surname with several possible roots, including the biblical name Saul and English place-name forms related to “Sale” or “Saul.”

Usually an English surname from the given name Saul, with an added -s that often marks “son of” or simply a family form.

A surname meaning “son of Alexander,” with Saunders and its many cousins all springing from the same ancient given name.

A German surname most often meaning “shoemaker,” from the Latin word for a cobbler.

A surname that began as a nickname for someone thought rough, fierce, or wild.

A surname that likely began as a place name, especially from French or English local origins connected with willows.

An Italian surname from the ancient Sabines: originally a name for someone from that central Italian people or region.

A regional surname from Savoy, the Alpine region on the France–Switzerland border.

A rare surname most likely taken from the historic region of Savoy in the western Alps.

A Polish surname most often formed from a place name ending in -ice or -iki, meaning someone from or connected with a place called Sawice or a similar locality.

A common occupational surname for a person who sawed wood, also influenced by older forms with an intrusive -y-.

An occupational surname meaning “son of the sawyer,” or sometimes just a plural/variant form of Sawyer.

A surname that can point to a person from Saxony, a shortened form of Saxton, or, less often, the ethnic name Saxon itself.

A surname with two main roots: either from Saxton in Yorkshire or from the church office of sacristan/sexton.

An old surname that most likely began as a place name from Sai in Normandy, though some early writers also linked it to Old French words for “wise” or “tunic.”

Usually from an occupational name for an assayer or tester of metals, though it can also come from an old Anglo-Norman personal name.

An English surname that usually began as Sayer, from a maker or tester of alloys, though it can also come from an old personal name.

An English surname usually explained as a topographic name for someone who lived by or worked around hurdles or fence stakes.

An English surname probably from a medieval occupational term, though some older authorities disagreed on the exact source.

A variant spelling of Sayer, most likely from an occupational or nickname-based surname tied to saying, speaking, or reciting.

An Italian surname meaning “ladder” or “stair,” sometimes referring to a person or place connected with steps or a staircase.

A surname with several possible roots, including a place-name for a shepherd’s hut or an old noble family name tied to medieval Scales/Eschalers.

A surname probably from a nickname or local place-name, with roots in northern English dialect forms related to a ledge, shelf, or rocky bank.

A surname most likely of Italian origin, probably from a place-name or a descriptive nickname built on a word for “rock” or “escarpment.”

An Irish surname most often linked to Ó Scannláin, a family name associated with the Mac Scanlans of Louth.

An Irish surname, usually treated as a shortened or altered form of an older Gaelic name related to Scanlan.

An English-language surname likely derived from a place-name or a descriptive surname built on old words for a rocky scar or ridge.

A locational surname from Scarborough in Yorkshire, named for the rocky hill and fortified town there.

A locational surname likely referring to someone from Scarborough, the old Yorkshire town name.

A nickname surname for someone linked with scarlet red—often from clothing, sometimes from complexion.

A German surname that most likely began as a nickname or occupational name from a word for a plane, shave, or sheaf, depending on local language and spelling.

A German surname from a word meaning “damage,” “injury,” or, by extension, an “evil-doer” or “harmful person.”

A German occupational surname meaning “shepherd” or “sheep-herder.”

A German surname meaning “shepherd,” from a word for sheep and the man who tends them.

A German occupational surname meaning “shepherd,” from the word for sheep.

A German surname that most often began as a name for a shepherd, though in some cases it may have come from an occupational title for a steward or manager.

A German occupational surname meaning a steward, manager, or administrator.

A German surname that is most likely either a nickname for a noisy person or a name shaped by words for “sound” or “resonance.”

A German surname with several possible roots, most likely tied to a nickname or occupational term rather than one single meaning.

A German and Swiss surname most likely referring to someone who lived by earthworks or fortifications.

A German surname meaning “sharp” or “clever,” sometimes also linked to a nickname for a cormorant.

A German surname that began as a nickname or ornamental name from the word for “treasure.”

A German surname likely formed from a nickname or emblematic word for “bundle of straw” or something similar.

A German surname probably nicknamed for a storm, shower, or sudden burst of weather.

A Jewish occupational surname meaning “butcher” or “slaughterer.”

A nickname surname from a word meaning “cross-eyed,” “squinting,” or more generally “crooked” or “oblique.”

A surname with more than one likely origin, most often linked either to a shearer/barber or to a Dutch place-name.

A German occupational surname, most likely referring to a cooper or barrel-maker, though some historical sources also connect it with related craft terms.

A German surname most likely referring to a boundary, dividing line, or a place named for such a feature.

A surname with several possible roots, including a German nickname from a word for a servant or a northern English place-name connected to a spring or shell-like hollow.

A German surname most likely connected to nicknames or occupational terms built on the root for “to ring” or “a bell.”

A German surname originally referring to an innkeeper or cup-bearer, and sometimes to a place with a tavern.

A German occupational surname meaning a cupbearer, butler, or tavern keeper.

An occupational surname meaning a shearer, barber, or related cutter of cloth or hair.

An Italian surname meaning “Slav” or “the Slav,” originally a label for someone from the eastern Adriatic or a related Slavic background.

A German surname that likely began as a nickname for someone neat, brisk, or well-ordered.

A German surname originally referring to a ship, often for someone who worked on the water or lived by a harbor.

A German surname most often explained as a nickname for someone who squints, though some writers linked it to a word for shimmer or color-play.

A surname that may come from the word for a coin, but in many cases it likely developed from an older personal name or place-name.

A German occupational surname meaning “shingle-maker” or “shingle installer.”

A German surname probably referring to a shield-bearer, protector, or fencer.

A German surname most likely referring to a place by a brook or stream, with spelling influenced by dialect and later Americanization.

A German surname meaning “hammer” or “mallet,” originally a nickname or occupational name connected with striking tools or smithing.

A German surname most likely built from a word for a winding path, narrow lane, or sly, winding movement.

A German surname usually meaning “someone from Silesia” or, in older spelling traditions, a form linked to a place-name in central Germany.

A German occupational surname meaning a locksmith or metalworker who made and repaired locks.

A German surname usually from a word meaning “lock” or “bolt,” often pointing to someone who made, used, or lived by a lock or fastening.

A German occupational surname meaning “smith” or “blacksmith.”

A very common German surname meaning “smith,” originally for a metalworker.

A German surname from the old word for a smith, essentially a spelling variant of Schmidt.

A German surname meaning “smith,” originally given to a metalworker.

A German surname usually meaning “smith,” especially common in the Rhineland and other German-speaking areas.

A classic German occupational surname meaning “tailor.”

A German surname meaning “quick” or “swift,” originally a descriptive nickname for a fast or agile person.

A surname with several possible German roots, most likely tied to an old nickname or short form rather than a single certain origin.

A surname with multiple possible roots, most often linked to the German word for “beautiful” or to a shoe-maker’s trade name.

A German surname meaning “beautiful field” or “fair field,” originally a place-name or descriptive name.

A Lancashire place-name surname meaning “shed field” or “school field,” depending on which old form you follow.

A surname with several possible German roots, including a nickname linked to a “rogue” or possibly a place-name.

A Dutch surname meaning “son/family of the schout” or, in some regions, “son of the scholte,” a local official or leading landholder.

A German surname originally linked to the village headman or reeve, with strong roots in eastern and northern German naming traditions.

A surname most likely tied to a Scandinavian-style place name meaning “hut lea” or “shed meadow.”

A surname most likely from a Dutch place-name meaning “beautiful/clean over” or “upper area,” later Anglicized in North America.

A name with several possible roots, including a nickname for a Scot or a German form of a related ethnic surname.

A German surname meaning “tailor,” ultimately from an old word for cutting or trimming cloth.

A nickname surname likely referring to a scar, mark, or scratch on a person’s face or body.

A German surname usually linked to a nicknamed or descriptive form related to a scar, scratch, or wound.

A German surname from the word for “fright” or “terror,” likely first used as a nickname for someone startling, fearful, or associated with dread.

A German occupational surname meaning “writer” or “clerk.”

A German occupational surname for a carpenter or cabinetmaker.

A surname most likely from a German nickname or dialect word, probably connected with something rough, abrupt, or startling.

A German occupational surname meaning “tailor,” from an older word for cutting or trimming cloth.

A German occupational surname meaning “tailor,” with spelling variants shaped by umlauts and regional dialects.

A German occupational surname originally referring to a shoemaker or shoe-maker.

Usually a German surname, often from a form related to making shoes or leather goods, though some early writers treated it as an abbreviated or variant form.

A German surname most likely from a nickname or place-related form built on a word meaning “shoot” or “pile/heaped mound,” depending on local dialect.

A German surname from the word for a shoe, often arising from a shoemaker or shoe-related nickname.

A German surname meaning “scholar” or “student,” originally applied to someone connected with school or learning.

A surname most likely tied to a scholar or school-related occupation, with German and Dutch forms also linked to place-based naming in some families.

A surname usually meaning “school man” or someone associated with a school, though it can also reflect a Jewish surname derived from German or Yiddish forms.

A North German surname from a local term for a village official or sheriff-like magistrate, ultimately linked to Schultheiß.

A German surname meaning “village headman” or “local magistrate,” from an old administrative title.

A German surname meaning a local magistrate, bailiff, or village headman.

A German occupational surname for a village official, especially a magistrate or bailiff.

A German occupational surname meaning “shoemaker.”

A German occupational surname for a shoemaker.

A German surname most often tied to the trade of shoemaking.

A German surname meaning “shoemaker” or “cobbler’s man,” built from the trade name and the word for “man.”

A German occupational surname meaning “shoemaker.”

A surname found in German-speaking areas, probably from a nickname or a short form related to a word beginning with Schutt/Schütze rather than a single fixed source.

A Low German surname from a word for a guard, especially a village or field watchman.

A German surname meaning “archer” or “marksman,” originally an occupational nickname.

A Dutch surname tied to shelter or refuge, likely from a word for hiding or protecting.

A German surname meaning “Swabian,” originally identifying someone from Swabia in southwest Germany.

A German surname meaning “black,” originally a nickname for someone with dark hair, complexion, or clothing.

A German surname meaning “black,” usually first applied as a nickname for someone with dark hair, complexion, or clothing.

A German surname meaning “Swiss person” or “one from Switzerland.”

A German surname from schütz, meaning “shooter,” “guard,” or “protector.”

A surname with two competing origins: in English use it often reflects Schofield, but some French lines point to Escoville in Normandy.

An English patronymic surname meaning “son of Scoggin,” a medieval personal name probably used as a nickname.

Originally a name for a Scotsman, Scott became one of the best-known surnames in Britain and beyond.

An occupational surname for a writer, scribe, or professional copyist.

A surname that likely developed as a patronymic form of Scoggin/Scogin, with some early confusion from similar-looking names like Scroggs.

An English surname probably from a nicknamed form of Scruggs/Scroggs, likely referring to rough or stunted features.

A surname that likely began as an occupational name, probably for a shooter or archer, though its exact origin is not certain.

An Irish surname from a Gaelic word for “scholar,” “student,” or “learned person.”

A likely English surname built from "sea" plus a place-name or dialect word resembling "bolt," probably originally describing someone from a coastal place or using a local name element.

An English surname probably referring to someone who lived near a sea-side grove or enclosure.

A surname that can come from a place-name meaning “hall” or “dwelling by the lake,” or sometimes from the animal seal as a nickname.

A habitational surname from places called Seale/Seal, originally meaning a hall, dwelling, or manor house.

Most likely a variant spelling of Seeley, a surname once used for a cheerful or innocent person.

Usually a variant of Seal, most often from a place-name meaning “at the sale” or “by the hall,” with later spelling added -s.

A surname with several possible roots, most likely from a nickname or a place-name rather than the animal seal.

Usually an occupational surname meaning “sailor,” though in some cases it may come from the old personal name Seman.

A surname of Norman place-name origin, probably from Cerisy in Normandy.

An old surname probably from a Norman personal name, later also used in forms meaning “the son of Serlo.”

An English surname meaning “son of Searle,” with Searle itself tracing back to the Norman personal name Serlo.

An old English surname most often explained as meaning “son of Sear” or “son of Sayer.”

A habitational surname from places named Seaton, meaning “sea farm” or “lake farm.”

Usually an English nickname surname from Old French and Middle English severe, meaning “grave” or “austere,” though some writers have also connected it with a sieve-maker.

A surname with several possible roots, most often explained as a spelling of See or Say, or as a variant of names linked to a personal name or nickname.

A name from the Latin and Greek tradition meaning “revered” or “venerable,” ultimately tied to the saint’s name Sebastian.

An English surname that is probably a variant spelling of a place-name or nickname-based form, though its exact origin is not firmly settled.

A Spanish-language surname likely formed as a diminutive or locative-style name, most strongly associated with the U.S. Southwest and New Mexico.

A short surname that likely began as a medieval spelling of Sea, referring to someone by the sea or from a place so named.

A surname usually traced to an old Germanic personal name built on the element meaning “victory.”

An English surname from a word meaning “happy,” “blessed,” or later “simple/innocent.”

A surname that usually began as a nickname from Middle English seely, meaning “happy,” “blessed,” or “innocent.”

A Jewish surname usually linked to the Hebrew title segan, meaning a deputy or assistant.

A Catalan surname most often taken from a place name, especially tied to the Segarra region of Catalonia.

Usually a surname from an old Germanic personal name meaning “victory spear” or “victorious army.”

A surname taken from the Spanish city of Segovia, originally used for someone from that place.

A French surname that likely began as a short form of an old Germanic personal name meaning “friend of victory.”

A surname from Spanish and related Romance words meaning “safe,” “secure,” or “protected.”

A German surname that likely developed as a shortened form of old personal names such as Sigibald or Sigboto.

A German surname usually understood as coming from a personal name built on the element for “victory” plus “bright.”

A German surname that likely began as a pet form of a personal name built on the idea of “victory” or “battle.”

A German surname that likely began as a form of the old personal name Sigfrid/Siegfried, meaning “victory-peace.”

A German occupational surname meaning “rope-maker” or “maker of cord.”

A German surname most often explained as a shortened form of Siegfried or related names beginning with Sieg-.

A habitational surname from the Yorkshire town of Selby, probably meaning “hall farm” or “farm by the hall.”

An old surname that may come from an Anglo-Saxon or Scandinavian byname meaning “sea-wolf,” though some instances may also be locational.

A surname with several possible origins, including a place-name link and a connection to a cell or hermitage.

An English surname that likely began as a name for someone living by the cellars or working as a cellarer.

An English surname that usually began as a patronymic or plural form of Seller, meaning a dealer or trader.

A surname that most likely began as a plural or genitive form of Sell, itself probably a nickname or short form tied to older personal names.

A surname with more than one possible origin, most likely from a medieval personal name ultimately linked to Solomon or a nickname form related to Seeley/Seliman.

An occupational surname from German, originally referring to a salter or pickle-maker.

A surname found in several traditions, including Old Frisian patronymic forms and occasional French place-name usage.

A rare surname that is probably either locational or borrowed from a family name in a Germanic-language area.

A surname from a title for an elder or lord, later also used as a nickname for the older man in a family or household.

A surname with several possible roots, most likely from a short Germanic name or a place- or status-based form, depending on the family line.

Likely a variant of Center/Center-like surnames, originally a topographic nickname for someone who lived at or near the center of a place.

A rare surname that may come from an old word for “sea,” though the evidence is thin and the modern form is hard to pin down confidently.

A Spanish surname from a place name linked to a cave or hollow, originally identifying someone from Sepúlveda in central Spain.

A Portuguese surname likely tied to places called Sequeira, ultimately from a word for brushwood or scrubland.

A surname from the given name Seraphin/Serafino, ultimately linked to the fiery celestial beings called seraphim.

A Spanish surname originally linked to farmland or to corvée labor done on a lord’s demesne.

A surname usually meaning “mountain ridge” or “saw,” especially common in Catalan, Italian, Spanish, and related Romance-speaking areas.

A Spanish surname meaning “someone from the mountains” or “a highland native.”

A Spanish surname likely tied to a saw-like feature or to a place-name built on the word for a mountain ridge.

A surname most likely from a saint’s name ultimately tied to the Latin word for “slave” or “servant.”

A name most likely tied to the French place-name Soissons, though older writers also treated it as a variant of Sisson/Sissons.

A surname most likely from a local or family name that was later reshaped in spelling, with roots probably connected to older forms of Cecil or a similar name.

Usually a biblical surname from the Hebrew name meaning “appointed” or “set in place.”

A surname most likely taken from Settle, the Yorkshire market town, meaning someone who came from or lived at that place.

An English surname that is most likely a variant of Settle, the place name and surname meaning someone from Settle, Yorkshire.

A German surname most often linked to an occupier name, likely for a setter or compositor, though the exact sense can vary by region.

An English surname most likely from a nickname or descriptive word linked to severity or determination, though the exact origin is not fully certain.

A surname from a Latin personal name meaning “strict” or “severe,” later used as a family name in Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese-speaking areas.

A patronymic surname meaning “son of Sever” or “son of Severus,” with roots in a Latin personal name that spread through medieval Europe.

A Spanish surname that most often points to the city of Seville, originally meaning someone from that place.

An English surname with several possible roots, most commonly linked to the old personal name Siward/Seaward, though some branches may come from a sow-herd byname.

A surname that can come either from an old personal name meaning “sea power” or, in some cases, from a place-name.

An occupational surname meaning “church sexton” or sacristan, the official who cared for a church’s sacred space and goods.

A spelling variant of Seymour, a surname usually traced to a Norman French place name meaning “St. Maur.”

An English surname that often began as a Norman place-name, but in some families may also have been influenced by local or occupational forms.

A surname of Arabic-derived use in the African American tradition, often associated with the name Shabaz/Shahbaz and meanings like “royal falcon.”

A locational surname from a place-name meaning a ford associated with shackles or fittings.

A locational surname meaning someone from a ford associated with a place called Shackleford.

An English surname with uncertain roots, probably connected either to a place name meaning “shaded spot” or to the old personal name Chad/Ceadda.

A surname with several close origins, most often a German spelling of Shaffer or Schaefer, meaning “shepherd” or one associated with sheep.

A surname most likely meaning “shepherd” or a related occupational name, with Germanic and Dutch forms.

A South Asian surname ultimately linked to Persian *shāh*, meaning “king” or “ruler.”

An Irish surname, usually understood as a shortened or anglicized form related to O'Sheahan / O'Shea.

A surname of Arabic origin meaning “hawk” or “falcon,” often used as a nickname or honorific.

A South Asian Muslim surname and honorific meaning “chief,” “elder,” or “leader.”

An American surname whose origin is likely a spelling variant of a European name, though the exact source is uncertain.

An Irish surname that likely comes from an old Gaelic personal name, with a tradition linking it to a nickname meaning “fox.”

An Irish surname and given-name form of John, with older writers also treating it as an Irish name element meaning ‘old’ or ‘worthy’ in some contexts.

A surname often explained as a Germanized or anglicized form related to names like Scheiner or Schaner.

Usually a nickname for someone with a notable leg or a crooked build, though in Scotland it could also be a topographic surname from a hill spur.

A name likely tied to a place-name meaning “crevice” or “chasm,” especially associated with Shanklin in the Isle of Wight.

A nickname surname from “shank,” meaning leg or shank, originally describing someone with a notable build or gait.

An Irish surname most often explained as meaning “old hero” or “old champion.”

An Irish surname that may come from the river Shannon, but in many cases is probably an Anglicized form of an older Irish name.

A Chinese surname most commonly romanized from several different characters, so it can have more than one original meaning.

A Jewish surname most often explained as a variant of Speyer, the German city name, carried by families from the Rhineland and beyond.

A surname adopted from an Arabic honorific meaning “noble” or “distinguished.”

An Irish surname most often understood as meaning “loving” or “affectionate,” from Gaelic searc, love.

A common South Asian surname, often linked to Sanskrit terms for “joy,” “comfort,” or “protection,” and widely used as a Brahmin name in North India.

A surname most likely taken from the biblical place-name Sharon, the fertile plain mentioned in the Old Testament.

A nickname surname for someone seen as quick, keen, or sharp-witted.

A nickname surname for a sharp, keen, or keen-tempered person.

An English surname of uncertain origin, probably a place-based name or a reduced form of an older name beginning with Chad- or Shad-.

An Irish surname from O'Shaughnessy, originally a Gaelic family name linked to a personal byname or ancestral line.

An English and North American surname that may be a variant of Shaw or a nickname related to shaving or trimming.

An English surname most likely from a nickname or occupational label connected with shaving or a barber’s trade.

A common English surname meaning someone who lived by a wood, copse, or small grove.

Most likely an Irish surname with multiple possible origins, including a form related to Shea/Sheehy or an English nickname for a limping gait.

An Irish surname, usually from Ó Séaghdha, with the sense of a “hawk-like” or “admirable” descendant name.

A surname most likely from an older spelling of Schaefer, meaning a shepherd or sheep manager.

An English or Irish surname likely formed as a spelling variant of Shelley, with related forms found in older surname lists.

A surname that can come from Old English words for “shear” or “bright,” and in some cases from a place-name.

An occupational surname for someone who sheared wool or cloth nap, or did similar cutting work.

An English-language surname that likely began as a nickname or occupational name related to shearing or a shearing trade.

A surname that can come from a nickname for scissors/shears, or from a shortened form of Shere/Shire.

An English surname likely from a place-name or landscape word meaning a division or strip of land.

An Irish surname, usually understood as an anglicized form of an old Gaelic personal name meaning “wise” or “courteous.”

An Irish surname most often treated as a variant of Sheehan, ultimately from an old Gaelic personal name meaning “peaceful” or “gentle.”

A surname usually understood as a plural or variant form of Sheet, probably referring to someone connected with sheets or sheet-making.

A surname usually linked to an occupational name for a shepherd or sheep-keeper, especially in German and English-speaking settings.

A habitational surname meaning “from Sheffield,” the Yorkshire city name likely referring to a crooked or irregular field by the River Sheaf.

A title for an Arab or Muslim leader, later adopted as a surname in South Asian and Middle Eastern communities.

A surname that most often began as a place name, originally meaning someone from a curved or shelf-like settlement.

An English locational surname from places named Sheldon, likely meaning “shelf hill” or “ledge hill.”

Usually an English locational surname, originally referring to someone from a place called Shell.

A habitational surname from English places named Shelley, meaning “shelf- or ledge-meadow.”

A surname with several possible roots, most often treated as a spelling variant of Shelley or as a name formed from a shell-related place or word.

A place-based English surname meaning “from Shelton,” originally referring to a settlement on a shelf, ledge, or hillside.

A surname most often tied to Chinese origins, and in some cases to Irish or Manx place-name roots in historical records.

A surname of Germanic origin, often an Americanized spelling of a German or Swiss family name related to a nickname for a person with a limp or a bent leg.

An occupational surname meaning “shepherd,” originally referring to someone who tended sheep.

An occupational surname meaning “shepherd,” originally used for someone who tended sheep.

An occupational surname for a sheep herder, originally given to someone who tended flocks.

An occupational surname from “shepherd,” with Sheppard reflecting an old spelling of the same word.

A surname usually understood as a variant spelling of Shearer, meaning “one who shears” or “sheep-shearer.”

An Irish surname most often explained as meaning “descendant of the wild one” or “descendant of a satyr-like figure,” though some older writers linked it to a place-name instead.

A surname from the office of sheriff or shire-reeve, originally applied to someone who held or worked for that role.

An old English surname most likely meaning “clear or bright-haired,” though some later writers linked it to a personal name or place-name.

An English surname that can mean a cloth-shearer or, less commonly, a shire man from a county.

A surname likely tied to an English place-name tradition, especially southern English forms that developed into Sherrill/Sherrin-type spellings.

An English surname most likely from a nickname or reduced form related to “sheriff,” though the exact pathway is not fully certain.

An English and Irish surname that can come from an Irish nickname meaning “the colt,” or from later English spellings tied to Sheriff or Sheridan.

An old English surname from an early personal name, most likely meaning “bright friend” or possibly a nickname tied to swift movement.

A habitational surname from Sherwood Forest in Nottinghamshire, famed as the setting of Robin Hood legends.

A surname that most likely comes from the biblical name Seth, meaning “appointed” or “placed.”

A surname most likely built from a Germanic place-name or nickname base, though its exact origin is not securely documented.

A Chinese surname, most commonly written 石 or 施, with several unrelated origins and modern forms.

Usually a locational surname from North or South Shields in northeast England, though some families may descend from Shield/Sheild as a descriptive or occupational name.

A surname most likely from an older place-name or personal-name form, preserved in American family usage.

A surname that most likely developed as a regional or family-name variant of an older English surname, probably tied to a place-name or nickname form.

A Chinese surname most often representing several different names in romanization, especially forms now written Shi.

A surname that usually began as a personal name or byname tied to the old English word for a shilling, a coin.

An uncommon surname that can be a shortened form of a longer name, or an anglicized spelling linked to Hebrew and Gaelic personal names in older records.

A short surname that can be English or Gaelic in origin, and in some cases may also be a spelling variant of related names like Shin(n), Shun, or Chin.

Usually an Irish surname, often explained as a form of Seighin, though some sources also connect it with ideas of brightness or with a descriptive nickname.

An English surname probably connected to Chinn or Sheen, with some early sources also treating it as a local name.

A habitational surname from places named for a sheep meadow or sheep clearing.

An English occupational surname meaning “sailor” or “seaman,” originally from Old English.

A likely English locational surname, originally referring to someone who lived by a ship, boat, or a place marked by a ship sign.

A surname most likely from a place-name or a regional spelling of a word for a boundary or district, later fixed in English-speaking countries.

A surname with uncertain origins, possibly from an old word or nickname that suggested haste, shirking, or a related descriptive trait.

A surname usually taken from places named Shirley, meaning a bright or white clearing or meadow.

A surname most likely descended from a German-Swiss form, later Anglicized in the United States.

An English surname that likely began as a nickname, perhaps for someone quick, brisk, or sharp in movement or speech.

A surname most likely from a nickname or descriptive term linked to shivering, shaking, or chilliness.

A surname of likely Germanic origin, probably an Americanized spelling of a German or Swiss-German family name.

An English surname that may come from a nickname, a place-name, or a crop-related term, but its exact origin is not certain.

A surname most likely from an old nickname or dialect form, probably connected to a person who was rough, shaky, or abrupt in manner.

An English surname likely formed from a place-name or from the Old English word for a shady clearing, with the familiar -ley ending meaning “wood” or “clearing.”

An American surname that likely began as a nickname or variant spelling related to a shoemaker or someone who made or repaired shoes.

An occupational surname for a maker or repairer of shoes.

A surname that most likely began as a nickname from the verb “to shake,” perhaps for someone restless, forceful, or connected with shaking something by hand or machine.

A surname most likely of Germanic or Dutch origin, often representing a spelling of a word meaning “to shape” or “to make.”

Likely a variant spelling of Shoppe or a name tied to the word “shop,” though the exact origin is not certain.

A topographic surname for someone who lived by the shore, riverbank, or lakeside.

A locational surname from living by the shore or river/lake bank.

A nickname surname for someone of short stature, with a likely secondary use in Ireland as an English form of Gaelic names meaning “short.”

A surname that usually began as a nickname for a smaller or shorter person, though some sources also treat it as a variant of other Short- names.

An English surname most likely built from a place-name or topographic phrase containing “shot” and “well,” though the exact origin is not certain.

A surname most likely from a German or Dutch name for a scoop, ladle, or spoon-like object, later carried into English-speaking countries.

Likely a surname that developed as a variant spelling or pronunciation of Shute/Shout/Shough, though its exact origin is uncertain.

A surname that likely began as a German-derived name, sometimes explained as referring to a maker or keeper of a show altar or display altar.

An English surname likely from an old word for a shoemaker, though it can also have developed from the word for a rain shower in some cases.

A surname usually linked to a German occupational name for a tailor or cutter of cloth.

A South Asian surname and honorific family name most strongly associated with Nepali speakers, originally tied to the idea of being excellent or noble.

An English surname most likely from sheriff or local office-holder, though one older source also linked it to Shrewsbury.

An Anglicized surname from German Schreiber, meaning “scribe” or “writer.”

A locational surname for someone who came from Shropshire, the English county on the Welsh border.

A surname most likely developed as a regional spelling of a Germanic name, probably tied to a shoemaker or a similar occupational label.

An English-language surname whose exact origin is uncertain, but it is often treated as a variant spelling of a shorter nickname or dialect form.

A surname of uncertain but likely Germanic origin, sometimes linked in older sources to forms resembling Siebert or to a place-name source.

A surname with uncertain origins, likely developed from a nickname or an older word linked to sheaves, husks, or something “cast off.”

A surname usually understood as an Americanized spelling of a German occupational or byname-based name, often linked to a schoolmaster or scholar.

Shull is most likely a shortened or altered form of a German surname such as Schulz(e) or a related spelling.

A surname most often linked to the Yiddish word for a synagogue or study house, and sometimes to a school-related or place-based origin in Jewish communities.

A surname usually treated as a variant spelling of Schultz, ultimately from a German occupational name for a village headman or constable.

A German-language surname usually linked to a village headman, sheriff, or local official.

An occupational surname for a maker or seller of shoes.

A surname usually explained as meaning “shoe man,” originally referring to a shoemaker or shoe dealer.

A surname most likely tied to an old nickname or occupational phrase involving shoes, though the historical evidence is thin.

An English-language surname of uncertain but likely nickname or occupational origin, preserved in a distinctive American family name.

An uncommon surname of likely Germanic origin, probably developed as a variant spelling of Shup/Schupp or a related nickname form.

A surname most often linked to a shoemaker or shoe-related trade name.

An English surname usually explained as a variant of Shute, often linked to a place-name in Devon or to a narrow lane or “shoot.”

An old Germanic surname from a personal name meaning roughly “victorious and bright.”

A surname of medieval nickname origin, commonly explained as meaning “the child of Sybil” or “descendant of Sibyl.”

An Italian surname meaning “Sicilian,” originally used for someone from Sicily or with Sicilian roots.

An occupational surname for someone who used a sickle, especially in harvesting or mowing.

A Muslim surname meaning “descendant of Abu Bakr al-Siddiq,” the honored first caliph of Islam.

A surname that is usually patronymic or topographic, originally tied to a person called Side or to living by the side of something.

A South Asian surname, especially associated with Punjab, often linked to a clan or lineage name rather than a job or nickname.

A German and English surname from a very old Germanic personal name meaning roughly “victorious and bright.”

A German surname that may derive from a nickname or short form built on the element for “victory,” though some historical writers also linked it to other German roots.

A Germanic name meaning “victory + peace,” later used as a surname and familiar from the heroic dragon-slayer of legend.

A Spanish surname originally referring to a saw-shaped mountain ridge, a mountain range, or someone who lived by one.

A German and Dutch surname that most likely began as a patronymic, meaning “son of Sievert/Siewert.”

A Spanish surname tied to place names, likely meaning someone from or near a small spring or fountain.

A surname most likely of Spanish or Italian origin, probably tied to a place-name or regional word rather than an English occupational name.

A surname most likely linked to an occupational name for a maker or user of sigils or seals, though its exact origin is not fully certain.

Sigman is most likely a surname that developed from a personal name, place name, or an altered form of an older European surname.

A surname that likely began as a patronymic or altered form of a Germanic personal name, especially in North American usage.

A surname usually explained as a Yorkshire-style name for someone who lived by a small stream or ditch, though some 19th-century writers also linked it to other forms.

A Slavic surname that likely began as a nickname from a word for the titmouse bird.

A Polish surname meaning “from Sikory” or “belonging to the falconer/sparrowhawk,” depending on the local place-name source.

A surname probably formed from the biblical personal name Silas, though 19th-century writers treated the evidence as thin.

A surname with uncertain origins, most likely a Germanic or English name that may be linked to a personal name or a descriptive word rather than a clear occupation.

A surname most likely from a nickname or pet form of Cecil, though it may also reflect older forms related to Silvester or Silvanus.

Likely a patronymic surname meaning “son of Sill,” with Sill probably a short form of Cecil or a related nickname.

A surname from the Latin word for “forest” or “wood,” often pointing to someone who lived by or came from a wooded place.

A rare surname likely linked to the personal name Silvester, with a Manx place-name example suggesting a later shortened or altered form.

A Portuguese surname originally linked to a place with woods or brush, from the word for wild woodland growth.

A name probably from the old word for silver, often used as a personal name and sometimes linked to gray or silvery hair.

A surname derived from the Latin name Silvius/Silverius, ultimately meaning “of the forest” or linked to the woodland god Silvanus.

An anglicized Jewish surname, originally from the German Silbermann, meaning “silver man.”

Usually a patronymic or descriptive name related to the word “silver,” though some early forms may connect it to a longer surname like Silverside.

A Jewish surname meaning “silver stone,” often built from German or Yiddish word elements.

A surname from the Latin saint-name meaning “of the woods” or “wild/forest-dwelling.”

An Italian surname meaning “of Silvester/Sylvester,” ultimately tied to the Latin word for “forest” or “woodland.”

Likely a variant of Silvey/Silvy related to the Latin word for “wood,” though the surname may also have developed as a spelling variant of Silvester.

A surname from a Latin word meaning “of the woods” or “woodland.”

A short form of Simon or Simeon, used as a surname and personal name in medieval England and Scotland.

A Spanish-language surname most likely linked to a place name, especially the Simental/Simental-like toponymic tradition in Iberian and Latin American naming.

A patronymic surname meaning “son of Simon,” with Simmonds reflecting a later spelling variant of Simmons.

Usually a patronymic surname meaning “son of Simon,” though in some places it may also reflect older forms like Simund or even a changed form of Seaman.

Usually a patronymic surname meaning “son of Simon,” with Simms as a genitive or possessive form of Sim.

A very common surname from the biblical personal name Simon, later extended into many related forms like Sims, Simms, and Simpson.

A variant of Simon, ultimately from the biblical personal name meaning “he has heard.”

A surname from the personal name Simon, especially common in Italian and other Romance-language traditions.

A common surname meaning “son of Simon,” ultimately from the biblical personal name Simon.

A Scandinavian patronymic surname meaning “son of Simon.”

A patronymic surname meaning “son of Simon.”

An English patronymic surname meaning “son of Simpkin,” with Simpkin being a diminutive of Simon.

A classic patronymic surname meaning “son of Sim” or “son of Simon.”

A patronymic surname meaning “son of Sim,” with Sim being a short form of Simon.

A rare surname that is most likely a short form or variant spelling rather than a single well-established family name.

A Scottish surname meaning “Saint Clair,” originally taken from a Norman place-name and later commonly fused into one word.

Likely a patronymic surname formed from a short personal name such as Sine, though the exact source name is uncertain.

An occupational surname for a singer or minstrel, from an Old English word for a vocalist.

A South Asian surname and title meaning “lion,” widely used among Sikhs and other communities.

A surname most likely derived from a place-name or older personal name, now best known in the United States.

A classic English surname from place names called Singleton, most likely meaning “single or solitary farmstead.”

An Indian surname, often linked to Sanskrit words for “lion” or used as a family name in north and east India.

A surname likely from the common word for a sink or hollow, though some cases may be linked to other names or nickname forms.

A surname most likely reflecting a German name that was Anglicized into a shorter, simpler spelling in America.

A surname whose exact origin is unclear, but which may be tied to a nickname or a regional form related to similar names like Hipes and Snipe.

A French-Canadian surname most often understood as a regional or family-name form that became hereditary in Quebec and neighboring French-speaking areas.

Likely a surname of Italian or related European origin, though the historical evidence here is too thin to pin down a single secure source meaning.

A surname whose origin is uncertain; it may be a short form or variant that became established as an inherited family name.

A Spanish surname most likely linked to place-name forms related to a geographic feature or locality in the Hispanic world.

Usually an English surname meaning “Ciss’s son,” originally a pet-form descendant of Cecilia or Cicely.

Usually a surname from the nickname Siss, itself a pet form of Cecilia or Cicely, though one older source also suggests a link to the Gloucestershire place-name Siston.

A surname with an uncertain origin, possibly a later spelling shaped by the common word “site” or a variant of a similar-sounding older name.

A surname of several possible origins, most often treated as a Chinese family name in modern usage, though older Irish sources also connect similar spellings to nickname forms.

An uncommon surname that may come from the Old English word for a dagger, though the evidence is limited.

An English surname of uncertain origin, probably from a place-name or nickname now lost to history.

A surname usually treated as an English nickname or patronymic form that likely began as a shortened, altered, or dialectal variant of an older personal name.

A Scottish surname that is usually treated as a variant of Skene, a name tied to the place of Skene in Aberdeenshire.

A surname likely tied to the older Scottish place-name Skeen or a related local form, with the final -s often marking a family or possessive form.

An Irish surname probably meaning “descendant of the story-teller,” though some sources note confusion with related forms like Scully and Scally.

A habitational surname from places called Skelton, especially in northern England.

An English surname most likely from a place-name meaning “moor/ heath ridge” or similar, though older writers also proposed a nickname sense.

A surname likely from a Yorkshire place-name or a related medieval nickname form, later found in several spelling variants.

An occupational surname for someone who prepared or sold animal skins and hides.

An occupational surname for a shipmaster, sailor, or boat captain.

A surname that could describe a lazy person—or someone who lived by a slope, pass, or hollow.

A habitational surname for someone who lived by a valley, hollow, or grassy dell.

A German surname most likely related to Schlegel, meaning “smith’s hammer” or “mallet,” with English spellings simplified over time.

Usually a shortened or altered form of a surname linked to Sleat in Scotland, though it may also overlap with occupational forms related to slate or slater.

An occupational surname for a person who worked with slate, especially roofing slate.

A surname most likely built from a place name or an older spelling of a local name, rather than from a personal characteristic.

An Irish surname likely meaning “strong” or “robust,” though older sources also proposed a few other readings.

Usually an English surname from the Gloucestershire place-name Slaughter, though some older writers also linked it to an occupational meaning like “slaughterer” or “butcher.”

A surname probably from a medieval garment name, originally referring to a cloak or surcoat associated with the Slavs.

A nickname surname from Old English and Middle English words meaning “sly” or “crafty,” though some families may also reflect the loom term “slay.”

An English surname that likely began as a place-name for a house or homestead linked to weaving.

An English surname that likely began as a nickname or occupational name connected with a sledge, cart, or heavy hammer.

An Irish and Scottish surname that likely began as a nickname or clan-based form meaning “warrior” or “host.”

An Irish surname usually understood as a spelling variant of Sloan, with roots in an old Gaelic family name.

A surname probably from an English place-name meaning “at the valley,” later carried to America in several spellings.

A surname usually treated as a variant spelling of Sloan/Sloane, likely from an Irish Gaelic personal name.

An English surname likely formed from a nickname or occupational label connected with “slushing” or slushy, muddy work.

A surname most likely from a German or Dutch nickname or occupational root, probably referring to a locksmith or metalworker.

A northern form of Small, likely a nickname surname for a slight or small person.

A nickname surname for someone of small stature or slight build.

A locational surname meaning someone from a place called Smalley, likely from Old English words for “small” and a lea or pasture.

A surname most likely formed from the nickname or descriptor “small,” originally meaning a short or slight person.

A habitational surname for someone who lived near or came from a small wood or a place called Smallwood.

An English surname first used as a nickname for a quick, lively, or brisk person.

A locational surname from an English place-name meaning “smooth meadow” or “flat lea.”

A surname probably built from the German word for a smelter or metalworker.

A surname most often treated as a nickname for someone pleasant, cheerful, or mild-looking.

An occupational surname meaning a metalworker, originally the most basic and widespread craft name in English.

An English occupational surname meaning “the smith’s man” or assistant to a smith.

An English surname that likely began as a form of Smither or as a place-name corruption linked to Smethurst.

A patronymic surname meaning “son of Smith.”

An English surname likely from the word for a smock or work blouse, probably first used for someone who wore or made one.

A surname that may be a shortened or variant form related to Smith, though its exact origin is uncertain.

An English surname that likely began as a nickname or variant form related to “Smithers,” though the exact origin is uncertain.

A German surname most likely built from a short form of a name beginning with Smuk- or Schmuck-, rather than a single fixed occupational meaning.

An older spelling of Smith, the common occupational surname for a metalworker.

An old spelling of Smith, originally an occupational surname for a metalworker.

Usually an English surname from a local place-name related to a springy or boggy spot, though some examples may also reflect the word “snap” or a nickname.

A surname most likely derived from an older Germanic place-name or nickname form that was later reshaped in English spelling.

An English surname that likely began as a local name for someone living by a “cut-off” or cleared piece of land.

An English surname usually linked to a cut-off strip of land or to a scythe shaft, with roots in old words for cutting or clearing.

A surname from Old English meaning “quick,” “active,” or “bold.”

An English surname meaning “son of Snell,” from an old personal name meaning quick or bold.

An occupational surname meaning “tailor” or “cutter,” especially common as an Anglicized German or Dutch name.

A surname with uncertain roots, likely a nickname or altered form related to “snipe,” the bird name.

A Scottish and northern English surname meaning someone who lived by, or was nicknamed for, smooth or neatly kept grass.

Usually a name for someone thought to be long-nosed or projecting, though some sources also connect it with a place-name like Sevenoaks.

Usually a nickname or baptismal name from the word for snow, sometimes used for someone born in snowy weather.

A habitational surname meaning someone from a snowy place or a place called Snowdon/Snowden.

An occupational surname meaning “tailor,” especially common in German- and Dutch-speaking communities.

A short surname that can arise from several different language traditions, especially as a romanized East Asian name or as a reduced form in other cultures.

A surname of uncertain English origin in some older sources, though today it is most strongly associated with Portuguese and Spanish naming traditions.

A surname with several possible Jewish and Slavic roots, often linked to the Polish word for a marten or, in some cases, to a personal name meaning “seven.”

A German surname meaning simply “son,” often used in Jewish and German naming traditions.

A French surname, most likely a regional or nickname-based name that came into English through French-speaking communities, especially in Louisiana.

A rare surname with uncertain origins, most likely a short form or phonetic spelling found in several European naming traditions.

A Slavic surname meaning “falcon,” often originating as a nickname or emblematic name for a swift, keen person.

A Polish surname meaning “from Sokołów” or “belonging to Sokołów,” ultimately linked to the word for “falcon.”

A surname most often tied to the sun or a sunny place, and in Spanish also to a south or east wind.

A Spanish surname likely tied to a family seat or ancestral homestead, from solar meaning a house plot or noble estate.

A Scandinavian surname meaning “sun mountain” or “sun hill,” originally a place name.

A surname that can be locational, usually tied to an upper room or loft, and in Spanish also relates to sunlit ground or a floor/base.

A surname most likely from a local name, originally meaning someone who lived by a pond or marshy place.

A common Hispanic surname that likely began as a place name, and in some traditions may also echo the Latin word for “sun.”

A Spanish surname most often understood as a regional variant of Solís, likely built from a place name and associated with an old Iberian noble surname.

A surname from the biblical given name Solomon, meaning “peaceful” or “peaceable.”

A Spanish surname likely tied to a place name, probably referring to someone from or near a sunlit or dry tract of land.

A Spanish surname from the word for an unmarried man, originally a nickname for a bachelor.

A Slavic surname most likely linked to a personal name, with roots in Central and Eastern Europe.

A Spanish locational surname taken from the place name Solórzano in Cantabria.

A surname that is usually either a shortened form of Somerset or a genitive form linked to the place-name Summer/Somer.

A surname of place-name origin, tied to a medieval French locative name adopted by an aristocratic Norman family in England and Scotland.

A surname with multiple European roots, often linked to “summer,” but also sometimes to an occupational or status term.

A surname usually treated as a variant of Somers, ultimately linked to “summer” or to Somerset/Somerton in English usage.

A rare surname that is often a shortened patronymic meaning “son,” though in some cases it may reflect other surnames or place-names ending in -son.

A rare surname that can reflect an ancestor’s connection to singing, poetry, or a related word for “song” in an East Asian naming tradition.

An occupational surname originally meaning “the singer” or “songster.”

A surname found in several cultures, often linked to South Asian naming traditions and, in some cases, a nickname or occupational root.

A German surname meaning “sun mountain” or “sun hill,” usually from a place name.

A French surname, most likely linked to an old nickname or occupational term related to song or a singer.

An English occupational surname meaning “soap-maker” or “soap-boiler.”

A Scandinavian patronymic surname meaning “son of Søren” or “son of Sören.”

A Scandinavian patronymic surname meaning “son of Søren” or “son of Sören,” ultimately tied to the personal name Severin.

A surname usually taken from the Spanish city and province of Soria, meaning “from Soria.”

A Spanish surname meaning “from Soria” or more broadly “a person from Soria,” the historic province and city in north-central Spain.

A nickname surname probably referring to a reddish-brown complexion or hair, from an old word for sorrel-colored.

A surname usually understood as a variant of Sorrell, from a nickname for someone with reddish-brown hair or complexion.

An Italian surname meaning someone from Sorrento, on the Bay of Naples.

A surname most likely linked to a place name or a descriptive nickname, especially in Spanish-speaking regions.

A surname most often tied to the Spanish form of Souza/Sousa, originally a place-name meaning a marshy or willow-lined spot.

A Spanish surname most often linked to a place name, likely referring to someone from or near a wooded hill or small grove.

A Spanish surname meaning “grove” or “small wood,” originally used for people who lived near such a place.

A Spanish toponymic surname meaning “under the greater tower” or, more loosely, “at the base of the high hill/tower.”

A French surname most likely formed from a place-name or nickname root, now especially associated with French Canada.

An old surname usually linked to a spelling of “souter,” meaning a shoemaker or cobbler.

A surname usually linked to German names meaning “sour” or “acid,” probably brought into English by immigrant families and later reshaped in spelling.

A Czech surname probably built from a personal name, ultimately meaning someone descended from or associated with a forebear named Soukup.

A surname that may come from a French place-name, especially one linked to Normandy.

A Portuguese surname originally tied to a place-name, ultimately meaning “from Sousa.”

A topographic surname for someone who lived in or came from the south, or from a place named South/Southam/Southall.

A locational surname from Southall in Middlesex, with an older sense of someone living at the south corner or southern slope.

A surname usually treated as a place-name form related to the word south, though some 19th-century writers also linked it to Southward.

A Scottish locational surname meaning “south land,” originally applied to the region south of Caithness.

A surname meaning “the southerner,” originally used for someone from the south or the southern part of a region.

A habitational surname meaning “the south dwelling” or “south settlement,” taken from one or more English places called Southwick.

A habitational surname from a Lancashire place-name meaning “south enclosure” or “southern farm.”

A Portuguese surname that originally points to a place name, most likely meaning “from Sousa.”

An English surname meaning “swine-herd” or “pig keeper,” from an old occupational byname.

A surname with several possible English roots, most likely from a place-name or from a personal name that was reshaped over time.

A surname that may come from a maker or worker name, though in some cases it is likely an altered form of German Sauer or a similar name.

A German surname most likely related to a byname for someone who was quick or late, depending on the older spelling it reflects.

A surname that usually meant “from Spain,” though some English families may have different origins.

A surname that usually began as a place name from Spalding in Lincolnshire, England.

A German surname most likely from a maker or seller of buckles or clasps.

Likely a name from a nickname or occupational source connected with “span” or “stretch,” though the surname’s exact origin is not certain.

An Italian surname most often linked to a nickname for a person with fair or blond hair, or sometimes to regional roots in southern Italy.

A surname that likely began as a nickname or occupational name for someone linked with sparks, fire, or metalwork.

A surname that may have started as a nickname or descriptive byname, probably linked to a lively or sparking image.

A nickname surname from the bird name “sparrow,” likely first used for someone thought small, lively, or ordinary-looking.

A surname most likely meaning “from Spalding,” a place-name in England.

An English surname that likely began as a nickname or personal-name form meaning “speaker” or “spokesman.”

An English surname most likely from a nickname for an eloquent or talkative person, though it may also be a variant of older forms built on “speak.”

A surname that usually began as a nickname or occupational name for a spear-bearer or spearman.

An occupational surname for a soldier or warrior armed with a spear or pike.

Usually a patronymic surname meaning “son of Spear,” though it may also reflect an occupational link to spear-making.

A German and Dutch surname from the word for a woodpecker, probably first used as a nickname or house sign.

A surname that may come from a nickname for the woodpecker, or from an old personal name related to Speke/Speak.

A surname that may reflect an occupational title connected with inspection or oversight, though its exact origin is uncertain.

A name of hope or nickname: originally linked to success, prosperity, or quick movement.

A surname usually linked to “spear” or to an old nickname/occupational form related to a spear-bearer or watcher.

A nickname surname from an old word for a woodpecker, likely first used for someone thought to resemble the bird in some way.

A name likely from the Old English word for a story, saying, or discourse—sometimes linked to a storyteller or preacher.

An English and Irish surname that can mean either “son of Spileman” or “speaker/narrator,” depending on the family line.

An occupational surname for someone who managed the pantry or food stores of a household or estate.

An occupational surname for a household steward or dispenser of provisions.

A surname most often understood as German for “sparrow,” though some English forms may also reflect a patronymic in -ing.

Likely an old surname from a personal name or a local place-name, with early English roots and some uncertainty about the exact source.

An occupational surname for a spice dealer or grocer.

A German and Dutch surname meaning “mirror,” often first used as a nickname or house-sign name.

A surname of German and Jewish use, often linked to a musician or player, though some bearers may have a different local occupational origin.

A surname with several possible origins, most likely either from a medieval nickname or from a Dutch/German patronymic form related to Peter/Pier.

Likely an occupational or nickname surname connected with a spike, nail, or pointed tool.

A surname most likely tied to spikes or spiked objects, probably as an occupational or descriptive nickname.

A surname that most likely began as a nickname or occupational name for a player, performer, or gamer.

Usually an occupational surname meaning a fiddler, player, or entertainer, from a Germanic word for play or performance.

An Italian and Latin-based surname meaning “thorn” or “spine,” often used as a nickname or as a place-name form.

An occupational surname for a maker of spindles, the small tool used in spinning thread.

An Italian surname likely linked to a thorny shrub or bramble, or to a place-name built from the same idea.

A surname that likely began as a nickname from the bird name “spink,” or as a patronymic form meaning “Spink’s son.”

An occupational surname for someone who spun thread or yarn, especially in textile work.

A surname most likely taken from the German city of Speyer, known as Spires in English.

A short surname from German meaning “pointed” or “sharp,” likely first used as a nickname.

A German surname that most often began as a nickname for someone from Speyer or, in some cases, from a spiky or brisk personal trait.

A surname most likely from a medieval nickname or a place-name, with roots in older English or French forms that may have described someone from a small, thorny, or speckled place.

An English occupational surname originally referring to a maker or seller of spoons.

A surname most likely built from an old English personal name or place-name element, with a later -ley ending added in English-speaking usage.

A surname of uncertain origin, likely an Americanized form of a northern English or Scots name built from an older place-name or personal name.

A surname that is likely a regional or patronymic form built on an older English personal name or place-based root.

A surname usually explained as coming from an old word for someone lively, quick, or spry.

A surname most often explained as a nickname from the fish-name sprat, though some older scholarship linked it to the medieval personal name Sprot.

A surname that most likely began as a patronymic from the nickname or personal name Sprigg, rather than from the word spring.

A surname that can point to a spring or fountain, or sometimes to a grove or young wood.

An old nickname surname meaning “the leaper” or “one who sprang/jumped.”

A place-name surname meaning someone from a spring field or a settlement named Springfield.

A locational surname most likely denoting someone who lived by, or came from, springs or a spring-fed place.

A rare English surname most likely from a nickname or descriptive word, probably tied to the idea of sprinkling or scattering.

A surname most likely from a medieval nickname, probably describing someone lively, brisk, or sprightly.

A Southern U.S. surname most likely from an older English place-name or surname form, ultimately tied to a personal nickname or locational source.

A Cornish surname, probably from a word meaning a shoot, sprig, or branch, later also associated with being lively or nimble.

A Norfolk surname probably arising from an old local personal name, though one older writer also suggested a nickname based on “spur.”

An English surname probably built from a nickname or place-name element, though its exact origin is uncertain.

An occupational surname for a knight’s attendant or shield-bearer, later also used for an abbey servant or messenger.

A surname from the medieval office of squire, meaning an attendant or shield-bearer to a knight.

An Indian surname and given-name-based family name meaning “of Srinivasa,” referring to a devotional name of Vishnu.

An Indian surname associated especially with the Kayastha community and traditionally linked to learned or scholarly ancestry.

A surname from the place-name and title “St. Clair,” ultimately tied to a French locale and adopted as a family name by people linked to that name.

A surname from the French place name and saint’s name Saint-Germain, meaning “Saint Germain.”

A surname from the name of Saint John, often used for families connected with churches, devotion, or the personal name John.

A French surname meaning “Saint John,” originally referring to a saint’s name, a church dedication, or a place named for St. John.

A surname from the French place name and saint’s name Louis, often borne by families linked to places or churches called Saint Louis.

A French surname meaning “Saint Peter,” usually referring to someone associated with a place, parish, or devotion to St. Peter.

A German surname most likely referring to someone from or named after Staab, the German form of the Bohemian town Stab/Staab.

A surname most likely linked to the Dutch nickname for Eustace, and in some cases to a German patronymic form from the personal name Staats/Statius.

An English surname usually understood as a form of Stace, itself a pet form of Eustace.

A surname that likely began as a topographic name for someone living by a steep rock, hill, or stack-shaped outcrop.

An English habitational surname from a place-name ending in “-house,” most likely meaning someone who lived by or came from a house or building called the stack house.

A surname that likely began as a medieval form of Stace, itself a short form of Eustace or a Latinized Statius-like name.

A German surname meaning “person connected with a barn or granary,” originally a farm or storage-yard name.

A habitational surname from Stafford in Staffordshire, originally meaning “ford by the landing place” or a similar riverside crossing.

Usually a nickname from the stag, or sometimes a voiced spelling of Stack.

Likely a pet form or variant of Stagg, a surname often linked to the old personal name St. Agg or to a nickname for a stag.

A German surname meaning “steel,” originally a name for someone associated with the metal or its qualities.

A habitational surname from Staley in Cheshire, originally meaning “the meadow or lea by staves or stakes.”

An occupational surname for a hunter or deer-stalker.

A surname that may come from an old English word for a stable-keeper or from a personal name meaning “steel-hard.”

A chiefly English and American surname that likely began as a place-based or nickname-style name built on the word for a stall or stable.

An English surname from an old word meaning “stalwart,” originally a nickname for a strong or sturdy person.

An American surname of likely Germanic origin, probably from a place-based or descriptive form that was later reshaped in spelling.

A surname of likely German origin, probably a habitational name built from a place-name ending in -bach, meaning “stream.”

A surname most likely developed as a local or family-name variant of an older European name, later fixed in English-speaking use.

A surname from the German word for a tree trunk, later also used as a nickname or house-name.

An occupational surname for a maker or user of stamps, dies, or coin dies, and sometimes for someone known as a pounder or printer.

An occupational surname for someone who stamped, pounded, or worked at a mint or similar mechanical trade.

A surname most likely derived from Etampes, a place-name in France, though some later writers also connected it with “stamps” or marks.

A surname likely built from the old English element stan- meaning “stone,” probably originally linked to a stone feature or place-name.

An English-style surname most likely built from a place-name, probably meaning someone from or near a stony ford or a standing stone feature.

A surname usually treated as a variant of Stanley, likely originally meaning “stone/rock meadow” or “stony clearing.”

A likely English habitational surname, probably meaning someone who lived near a standing ridge or prominent ridge line.

A Slavic surname most often formed as a pet or diminutive of a personal name such as Stanisław or Stanislav.

A locational surname meaning someone from a place called Stanfield, literally a “stony field.”

An English-style surname likely built from place-name elements, probably meaning “stone hill” or “stony slope.”

A habitational surname meaning “from the stony ford,” taken from several English places named Stanford.

A surname that can come from a place-name meaning a pool or from a word for a pole or spear-staff.

An English surname most likely from a pole-maker or thatcher, though some sources also suggest a local place-name origin.

A classic English surname meaning “dweller by the stony meadow” or taken from a place called Stanley.

A surname most likely from a place-name or farm-name meaning “stone berry” or, more plausibly, “stan/stone fort by the barrow or hill.”

A British place-based surname meaning “from the stony fort” or “from Stanesbury,” originally tied to a local place-name.

A habitational surname from places named for a stone settlement or a settlement by stones/rocks.

A surname usually meaning “of the staple” or “from Etaples,” with English and French place-name roots.

A locational surname meaning “someone from Stapleton,” a place-name built from Old English elements for a post or pillar and an enclosure or settlement.

An English-language surname that likely began as a nickname or variant spelling tied to a stout step, stamp, or clap sound.

An occupational surname for someone who starched linen or stiffened clothing.

A nickname surname meaning “strong,” “stout,” or “stern,” from an old word for something hard or rigid.

A surname from an old word for “strong” or “stiff,” originally a nickname for a stern or sturdy person.

A nickname surname from Stark, meaning “strong” or “stiff,” with an -ey/-ie diminutive ending.

A patronymic surname meaning “Stark’s son” or “belonging to Stark,” ultimately from a nickname for a strong, rigid, or stern person.

A surname that most likely began as a nickname for someone thought to resemble a starling, though older records also point to early personal-name and place-name forms.

A surname probably linked to the starling bird or to the surname Sterne, with some early references treating it as a regional name.

A surname that most likely began as a nickname or house-name meaning “star,” though it may also descend from an old personal name.

A surname most likely from a Scottish or northern English form of Storrie/Stewart-style name development, though the exact origin is not firmly established from these excerpts alone.

A Dutch-style surname probably linked to an estate, farm, or place-name rather than a personal trait.

An English surname likely meaning “someone who lived by a farmstead or enclosure,” with links to place-names such as Stayton or Staunton.

A German surname from the word for “dust,” likely first used as a nickname or descriptive byname.

A German surname probably meaning “someone from the Stauf region” or “the one who lived by a steep slope.”

An occupational surname meaning “farmworker” or “the man of the stead,” from an old word for a farm or place.

A surname that usually developed as a variant or patronymic form of Stern, meaning severe, hard, or stern in look or temperament.

An English surname probably from Stebbing in Essex, meaning “the people from the place by the stump or tree-stub.”

A surname that likely began as a German nickname or place-based name, with roots in words meaning “point,” “prick,” or “stick.”

An English surname meaning “man of the stead,” originally for someone who lived or worked on a homestead or farm.

An English surname that usually comes from a word for a horse, though some families may instead descend from Stead.

Usually a nickname or personal-name surname from the metal steel; in some places it may also reflect a northern word for a stile or hill spur.

Usually a surname for someone connected with a stile or steep place, though it could also have been a nickname from the metal steel.

An English-style surname likely built from "steel" plus the agentive suffix "-man," originally suggesting someone associated with steel or a smith-like trade.

A surname that usually comes from Stephen, though in some cases it may also reflect a word for “stone.”

A Germanic patronymic surname meaning “son of Steffen,” with Steffen itself being a short form of Stephen/Stefan.

A Germanic and Dutch patronymic surname meaning “son of Steffen,” a pet form of Stephen.

A surname most likely from a place-name or local topographic term, probably referring to someone who lived near a steep path, ridge, or crossing.

A German surname most likely referring to a person connected with a stair, path, ascent, or perhaps a mountain slope.

A German surname usually referring to someone who lived or worked on a steep path or hillside, and sometimes to a mine overseer.

A surname meaning “stone” or “rock,” especially common in German and Jewish naming traditions.

A German locational surname meaning “stony brook” or “rocky stream.”

A German habitational surname meaning “stone hill” or “rocky hill.”

A German surname meaning “dweller by a rock” or, in some cases, “stone-hard warrior.”

A German surname built on the word for “stone,” often from a place name or a nickname for someone connected with stone or rocky ground.

A German surname meaning “stone man,” likely first used for someone associated with stone-working or a rocky place.

An occupational German surname meaning “stonemason.”

Usually a surname from the place-name Stella in Durham, though in some cases it may reflect the personal name or nickname “Star.”

A surname with several possible roots, most likely a regional or surname-based form that developed in English-speaking areas.

A German surname meaning “stem” or “stalk,” and in some cases extended from words for a bar, pole, or lever.

A surname most likely tied to a pole, rod, or lever—probably describing someone who made or used such an implement.

Usually a patronymic meaning “son of Stephen,” though some bearers may descend from the Derbyshire place name Stenson.

A surname from the personal name Stephen or Stephan, meaning “crown” or “garland.”

A surname from the given name Stephen, ultimately meaning “crown” or “wreath.”

A patronymic surname meaning “Stephen’s son,” from the given name Stephen.

A classic patronymic surname meaning “son of Stephen.”

A surname that is most likely a nickname or shortened form tied to the word “step,” though its exact origin is not firmly established.

Usually a nickname from the word for high-quality, “pure” silver money, though some bearers may derive it from place names or confusion with Stirling/Starling.

A surname with several independent origins, most commonly from German and English words meaning “star” or “stern, severe.”

A German and Jewish surname originally tied to a place name meaning “star mountain,” though some older scholars proposed an unrelated older root.

A surname from the adjective “stern,” likely meaning “severe” or “a stern person.”

A surname that likely began as a Danish nickname for a stepson, though the evidence is thin.

A patronymic surname meaning “son of Stephen.”

A patronymic surname meaning “son of Stephen.”

An occupational surname for a household or estate manager — originally someone who kept the lord’s property and provisions in order.

A classic surname from the medieval office of steward or household guardian.

An English surname likely nicknamed for a person who “sticks” to rules or takes a firm stand in disputes.

A habitational surname from a Lincolnshire parish name, probably meaning “island or riverside place with stakes or sticks.”

An English surname that likely began as a place-based name, probably from a now-lost or altered local place name.

A likely German surname built from a nickname or occupational form, probably referring to someone connected with stiff, rigid, or hard material or behavior.

A surname usually from living by a stile or gate; in some cases it may reflect the old byname Stile rather than a true plural.

An English surname that likely began as a nickname for a calm, quiet person, though in some cases it may come from an old personal name.

Originally a nickname or name for a calm, quiet man, though some sources also explain it as a later form of Styleman.

An English surname meaning “one who lived by a still, constant spring.”

A surname likely formed from a nickname or occupational byname built on the idea of a stilts-maker, stilt-walker, or someone unusually tall and thin.

An English habitational surname meaning someone who lived by a steady, unbroken spring or well.

A surname that usually comes from the medieval short form of Christina or Christine, ultimately meaning “follower of Christ.”

A surname most likely from a nickname or pet form of an older personal name, rather than from a place or trade.

A variant of Stevenson, ultimately meaning “son of Stephen.”

A surname likely from a place name or a variant spelling of an older English surname, later established in North America.

An old English name from a word meaning “firm” or “steadfast,” sometimes linked to a byname or an ancient personal name.

A surname most likely from an old word for being stiff, firm, or hard.

A surname of uncertain origin, probably related to the older surname Stiver and often treated as a variant form.

A surname that can point to a tree stump, a stockade-like enclosure, or a place-name built from that same old word.

A northern English place-name surname meaning “valley of the tree-stump” or “valley by the stump.”

Usually an occupational surname for someone who grubbed up tree stumps or worked with timber, though it can also be a variant of Stoker.

Likely an English occupational surname meaning “the man connected with the stock” or “stock-keeper,” though some sources treat it as uncertain.

A surname usually derived from Stock, referring to a tree stump, post, or stockade, with an early habit of appearing in the plural form.

A habitational surname meaning “from Stockton,” a place-name built from Old English words for a stump or stock and an enclosure or settlement.

A habitational surname from places called Stockwell, originally meaning either “well by a tree stump” or “well by a stockade/log fence.”

Originally an occupational surname meaning “ox-herd” or “horsekeeper.”

A surname from the given name Christopher, especially in Dutch, German, and Swiss forms.

An occupational surname for someone who tended a furnace or fire; in some cases it may reflect a connection to a place called Stoke.

A classic English locational surname, originally meaning someone who came from a place called Stoke or Stokes.

A surname with German roots, often from a nickname or a place name, and sometimes linked to a term for a pillar or post.

A surname that can point to someone from a place, a status term in German, or a name formed from a similar-sounding occupational or nickname base.

A German surname built from a word meaning “proud” or “haughty,” related to Stolz.

A Pennsylvania German surname likely built from German elements meaning “proud” and “foot.”

A German surname from a word meaning “proud” or “haughty.”

A very common English surname from a place name or a house sign, originally meaning someone who lived by a stone, rock, or stone-built landmark.

Usually an occupational surname meaning a stone worker, hewer, or mason; in some cases it may be a shortened form of Stone-hewer.

An English surname likely from a place-name or a variant spelling of a longer name such as Stong, Stone, or Stange.

A surname most likely from a byname for someone who stooped or bent in posture or gait.

An occupational surname for a keeper of stores or goods, and in some areas a wool-warehouseman or manor officer.

A surname with overlapping origins, most likely from Storr or Storer, and sometimes treated as a variant of Story.

A nickname surname for someone likened to the bird stork, or used as a sign-name for a house or shop with that emblem.

A surname from the word for a storm, likely first used as a nickname or personal name for someone fierce, tempestuous, or born in wild weather.

A patronymic surname meaning “son of Storm,” or sometimes a nickname based on stormy weather or temperament.

A surname that likely began as a Scandinavian or northern nickname name, and in some cases may also relate to a “stout” or “bold” root.

A northern English surname from a word for an ox, bullock, or horse, likely first used as a nickname or sign-name.

A Northern English surname most likely from Stott, a word for a young ox or a lively youngster, with the -s form probably meaning “son of Stott.”

A surname of Germanic look and likely German or Swiss origin, probably from a place-name or an older variant of a related family name.

A surname originally meaning “bold” or “courageous,” later also used for a stockier or more robust person.

A surname most likely from an English place name, originally identifying someone from a particular locality.

Usually an altered form of a German surname like Stoever or Stober, though older sources also gave it a different Scandinavian explanation.

A habitational surname meaning someone who came from a place called Stow or Stowe, from an Old English word for a place or meeting place.

A location-based surname meaning “from Stowell,” a name borne by places in Gloucestershire, Somerset, and Wiltshire.

A pluralized surname from Stower, usually understood as a place-based name with English local roots.

A Scottish surname from a place name in Kincardineshire, likely meaning “head of the valley” or “little valley.”

A surname likely tied to the idea of striding or spreading—probably a nickname for a person with a long stride or a broad stance.

A surname of Gaelic origin, most often treated as a form of Strachan or a related Irish name meaning “descendant of Sruthán.”

An English nickname surname for someone noted for being upright, straight-backed, or otherwise physically straight.

A Scottish surname usually understood as an Anglicized form of Strachan or Strahan, with some older sources also linking it to a place-name in northern Scotland.

A surname usually linked to “strait” in the sense of a narrow pass, channel, or tight place, and sometimes influenced by the spelling of “straight.”

A topographic surname for someone who lived by a shore, riverbank, or strand.

A northern English and Scottish surname meaning “strong” or “sturdy,” or in some cases simply a variant spelling of Strong.

An English surname meaning “foreign” or “stranger,” originally a nickname for someone from elsewhere.

A German surname most likely meaning someone who lived by or came from a street or road.

A habitational surname meaning someone from a place called Stratton, originally “street-farm” or “farm by a Roman road.”

A German surname that originally described someone with a rough, tousled, or shaggy appearance.

A German surname most often linked to the “ostrich,” and sometimes to a crest, tuft, or plume image.

An English and Scottish surname most likely linked to a place-name based on a valley or lowland, though some later writers also connected it with the word for straw.

An English surname most likely from a place-name, probably referring to someone who came from a local feature named with “straw.”

A surname most likely linked to a wanderer or traveler, or to someone from a place-name built on the same root.

A topographic surname for someone who lived by a road or in a place called Street.

A surname most commonly meaning “person who lived by a street or main road.”

An English surname that likely began as a nickname for a stripling—literally, a young or slight person.

A surname with more than one possible origin, but often linked to German roots meaning a knitter or to a name based on strength or steadiness.

An English place-based surname meaning “from Strickland,” a Westmorland/Westmorland-name explained as the land of young cattle or steers.

A surname of German origin, likely from a word for a rough or strict person, though it may also be tied to a regional nickname or place-name form.

A surname most likely from a place-name or local form related to a narrow path, crossing, or boundary strip.

An occupational surname for someone who made strings or cords, especially bowstrings.

An English surname that likely began as a nickname or descriptive form, with a possible link to “strong fellow” rather than to string-making.

A German surname probably nicknamed for someone with straw-like or rough hair, or a related form of Straub/Strube.

A mainly locational surname, originally used for someone from a place called Strode or Stroud.

A German surname from the word for “straw,” likely first used for someone associated with straw or straw-working.

A surname from words for “stream” or “current,” also used in Scandinavian place-based and ornamental forms.

A surname most likely built from Dutch words for straw, often pointing to an occupational or descriptive nickname.

A Scandinavian and German-style surname meaning “stream mountain” or “river mountain.”

A nickname surname for a person noted for physical strength or a forceful character.

A North English and Border surname meaning someone who lived by a marsh or stream.

A locational surname from places called Stroud or Strood, ultimately tied to brushwood, thickets, or marshy ground.

A surname most likely from a German or Dutch name for someone from a reed bed, marsh, or thicket.

A surname most likely from a German or Yiddish name related to “ostrich” or a nickname for a lively, strutting person.

A surname of uncertain origin, probably a German or Dutch form that came into American use through immigration.

A rare surname that may come from a nickname, an occupation-related form, or a German/Dutch family name of the same spelling.

A German surname most likely from a nickname or regional word, later carried to English-speaking countries by immigrants.

A spelling of Stewart, ultimately from the English occupational title steward.

A habitational or descriptive English surname that likely refers to a field left with stubble after harvest.

A surname most likely from a place beside a tree stump or stump-marked clearing.

A nickname surname for someone short, stubby, or stocky.

A surname that may be locational, often linked to Stiffkey in Norfolk, though some evidence also points to an old personal-name origin.

A surname with German and Swiss roots, often linked to a word for a farmstead or to place-names beginning with Stud-.

An English and German surname that is often treated as a shortened form of older names like Stul(l)e or a variant related to Stuhl/Stoll, though the exact source is not certain.

A surname likely from German Stolz, meaning “proud,” often reshaped in English-speaking countries to look and sound more familiar.

A nickname or topographic surname from the word for a tree stump, or someone who lived by one.

A German surname meaning “stump” or “tree stump,” often first used for someone living by or working with stumps or stumps of land cleared of trees.

A surname usually treated as a variant of Sturtevant, probably from an old French nickname for a bold or overbearing person.

An English surname from the fish name “sturgeon,” originally a nickname or perhaps a shop sign or house name.

A surname that most likely grew as a regional spelling of a place-based name, probably tied to an older English place-name element.

An English surname that likely began as a medieval variant of Sturges, itself tied to an old nickname or family form that later settled into a hereditary name.

A German surname meaning “storm,” likely first used as a nickname or inherited from a personal name.

An English surname likely linked to cloth-making or the sale of woollen goods.

A short German surname that likely began as a nickname from a clipped form of a word for a tuft, trim, or cropped cut.

A German-language surname likely meaning “son of Stutz” or “man from Stutz,” with the first element probably a nickname or place-based name.

An English surname usually understood as meaning “son of Style” or “of the stile,” originally from a person’s location or family name.

A short surname found in several cultures, especially Chinese, where it often represents a common family name.

A Spanish-language surname likely tied to an old regional or place-based name, now especially associated with Latin America.

An uncommon surname with likely Romance roots, possibly linked to a place-name or to Latin words related to bark or cork-oak.

A South Indian surname and given-name-derived family name based on the deity Subrahmanya, especially associated with Tamil and other Dravidian-speaking communities.

An English surname probably formed as a regional or locative name, later established in the American South.

A surname probably related to Scruggs and Scroggs, likely from an older nickname or dialect form rather than a place or occupation.

A short surname found in Korea and elsewhere in East Asia, usually representing a Korean family name spelled Suh in older romanization.

An English surname most likely developed as a family-name variant of Sullivan or a related southern form of the same Gaelic root.

An Irish surname commonly explained as meaning “dark-eyed,” though one old source also linked it to a traditional Irish oath phrase.

A surname drawn from the title for a Muslim ruler, often adopted as a nickname or honorific-based family name.

A name borrowed from the title for a female ruler or the wife of a sultan, ultimately from Arabic.

A surname most likely built from the word “summer,” probably as a nickname or place-based name with a warm-weather sense.

Usually a patronymic surname meaning “son of Summer,” from an old personal name for someone born in summer or associated with the season.

A surname that likely began as a place name, and in some historical sources was also treated as a French-looking form of another surname.

An occupational surname for a summoner or ecclesiastical court officer.

An occupational surname for a pack-horse man or attendant in charge of baggage horses.

A surname of uncertain origin, probably a regional spelling or altered form of an older English or Scottish place-name surname.

A name that usually points to the sun itself, sometimes adopted as a bright, symbolic surname.

A surname that usually began as a nickname or given name taken from the day of the week.

A Scandinavian surname meaning “mountain by the sound” or “sea mountain,” usually understood as a Swedish-style place-name surname.

A locational surname from the English town of Sunderland, probably understood as “the separate or reserved land.”

Most often a Korean surname, Sung is a romanized family name that can reflect several different Korean hanja and meanings.

A surname most likely from a German place-name or descriptive root, later carried into English-speaking countries by immigrant families.

A surname most likely from a French place-name or family name, later fixed in English-speaking countries in several spellings.

A surname of Jewish and Germanic background, often understood as a name built from the personal name Suss/Sus or from a Yiddish/German word for “sweet.”

A likely Spanish-language surname of uncertain origin, possibly linked to a local place-name or an older personal name.

A surname for a shoemaker or cobbler, from an old word for a shoe-making trade.

A Scottish surname originally meaning “southern land,” taken from the far-north county of Sutherland in Scotland.

A surname of uncertain origin, likely a local or altered English name that became established in North America.

A German and Swiss surname most often tracing back to a shoemaker or tailor, though some forms may also reflect place-names.

Usually a name for someone from Soothill in West Yorkshire, though it was sometimes also linked with the word subtle.

An English surname most likely formed from a nickname or a place-name, with the exact source unclear today.

A very common English surname from places called Sutton, meaning "south homestead" or "southern enclosure."

A major Japanese surname that originally referred to a “bell tree” or a plant tied to old Japanese place- and clan-naming traditions.

A Spanish patronymic surname meaning “son of Suero,” from a medieval personal name.

A Slavic surname meaning “freedom” or “liberty,” originally a nickname or name of good fortune.

An English surname that likely began as a place-name or local-name surname, though its exact origin is uncertain.

A surname most likely from a Bavarian place name, brought into English-speaking use as a locational family name.

An old nickname and status name for a youth, servant, or herdsman, ultimately from Old Norse and Anglo-Saxon words for a young man or attendant.

A surname that can come from the bird, a sign-name, or an old nickname/personal name meaning “swan.”

A surname that most likely began as a nickname or a variant of Swan, evoking the bird or a graceful, swan-like person.

A surname most likely of Germanic origin, probably from a place-name or older German word form that was later reshaped in English-speaking countries.

An English and German surname linked to a word for being smartly dressed, lively, or stylishly swaggering.

Usually a surname from the bird name “swan,” sometimes a nickname or sign-name, and in some cases a spelling related to Swain.

Originally “son of Swan” or, more often, a later spelling of Swainson, meaning “son of Swain.”

A nickname surname meaning “swarthy” or “dark,” especially common in English and Scandinavian traditions.

A surname from a word meaning “black” or “dark,” originally a nickname for someone with dark coloring or clothing.

A Germanic surname likely built from words meaning “black” and “tube,” probably an old occupational or descriptive compound that became fixed as a family name.

A surname most likely from a place-name or a Dutch/Germanic family name that was later Anglicized in North America.

An English surname that may be a nickname or a shortened form of older names such as Sweet or Sweatman.

A surname usually treated as a spelling variant of Sweat, likely from a nickname or descriptive word for being sweaty or working in heat.

An Irish surname from the Gaelic personal name Suibhne, later also found in anglicized Mac Sweeney forms.

A nickname surname from Old English for a pleasant, pleasing, or agreeable person.

A surname meaning “Swiss” or “a person from Switzerland,” likely brought into English from German-speaking naming traditions.

A Scandinavian patronymic surname meaning “son of Sven” or “son of Swen.”

An old nickname surname from a word meaning “sweet” or “amiable.”

A surname of uncertain but likely English or Germanic origin, perhaps from a place-name or nickname root.

An English nickname surname for someone notably quick on foot or in movement.

A surname of uncertain origin, probably a Germanic or Anglicized family name that became established in English-speaking North America.

A locational surname from Swindale, meaning someone from the “swine valley.”

Usually an English surname from a northern place-name, probably Swindale in Westmorland, with some later confusion with local spellings and related forms.

A rare surname of uncertain origin, probably a nickname or descriptive name rather than a place-name.

An Anglicized form of Sweeney, ultimately from an Irish personal name meaning “pleasant” or “well-disposed.”

An English surname that usually means “Sweyn’s son” or “Swain’s son,” with Swain as a medieval personal name.

An American surname of uncertain origin, probably tied to a German or Dutch immigrant name rather than an English occupational word.

A name for someone from Switzerland, originally a term for a Swiss person or Swiss mercenary.

A Pennsylvania German surname most likely from German Schwab, originally meaning a Swabian or someone from Swabia.

A straightforward surname from the word for a sword, often given to makers, bearers, or people identified by the weapon.

A short surname often found as a transliteration of several different Asian names, especially Chinese, Vietnamese, and Cambodian forms.

A respected South Asian surname and honorific originally linked to descent from the Prophet Muhammad.

A name that most likely began as a local surname for someone living by a small stream or rill.

A surname from the old personal name Sylvester, ultimately tied to the Latin for “wood” or “forest.”

A Roman feminine name meaning “of the woods” or “from the forest.”

A Hungarian surname meaning “tailor.”

A Polish surname meaning “from Szyman” or “son of Szyman,” ultimately tied to the given name Szymon (Simon).