Farkas
A Hungarian surname meaning “wolf,” originally a nickname or byname for a fierce or brave person.
The #5,204 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 45,985 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Farkas is the Hungarian word for “wolf,” and the surname most likely began as a nickname or descriptive byname. In many Central European naming traditions, animal words were often used figuratively for strength, fierceness, or other traits associated with the animal. The surname is therefore usually understood as meaning something like “the wolf.”
History
The name is strongly associated with Hungary and Hungarian-speaking communities, and it remains common there. It also appears in neighboring regions with Hungarian populations, and later spread more widely through emigration. In English-language records it is usually retained in its original Hungarian spelling.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
In Hungarian, farkas is the everyday word for a wolf, so the surname is essentially identical to a common noun.
From the historical record
“Farini 653. Farkas 664. *Farle 486. Farmer 623. *Famowanc 472. *Famstejit 532. 1 Faro 178, 316, 487.”
— Die Personennamen, insbesondere die Familiennamen