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What's in a Name?

Home > Just for Kids > What's In a Name? > What Does Your Last Name Mean?

Is your surname in the list below? Even if it isn�t, you can still try to figure out the meaning of your name if you can deduce the �root word� in your name. To do this, look for the possible �root� word in your name, such as �man,� �field,� �wood,� or �water.� Are any of the names below similar to yours in their root?

While it�s hard to know if exactly what a name means (sometimes there can be more than one meaning), it�s fascinating to think that our names meant something to our ancestors, and can still to us today. Names based on a place especially, or names based on what a person did for work, can often give you clues to other similar names. See if your name (or one similar to yours) is in the list below:

Altman: old man Lloyd: gray-haired man
Anderson: son of Andrew Mason: stone mason or stone cutter
Ash: home by an ash tree Messerschmidt: sword or knife maker
Ashburn: ash tree brook Metzger: butcher
Atwood: home by the forest Miller: one who operates a mill (sawmill, grist or grain mill, etc.)
Badger: grain dealer Moody: brave and proud
Baldwin: bold friend Moseley: home by a marshy meadow
Bannister: basket maker Newton: newly planned farmstead
Barker: stripper of bark Norton: village to the north
Baum: tree Ogden: valley of oak trees
Baxter: village bread baker Perkins: young Peter
Davis: son of David Peterson: son of Peter
Fuller: shrinker of cloth Petty: short or small man
Gallup: small boat owner Redford: red-soil river crossing
Gamble: wise old man Reid: red-haired man
Goldsmith: gold craftsman Robertson: son of Robert
Gould: golden haired Schwerdtfeger: sword maker or cleaner
Hallowell: holy spring Smith: wood, stone or metal worker
Hardwick: cattle pasture Tanner: tanner of leather
Hardy: bold and daring Taylor: maker or sewer of clothes
Harper: harp player Thorpe: farming village
Heald: sloping land Thwaite: to carve
Hodgkins: son of young Rodger Tinker: traveling seller of pots and pans
Holt: small forest Todd: fox
Inman: Inn keeper Tyler: maker of roofing tiles
Johnson: son of John Udall: yew tree valley
Jones: sone of John Wagner: wagon maker or driver
Kaufman: merchant Weaver: cloth weaver
Kelly: hill or grove Wheeler: wheel or cart maker
Kerr: marshy land Williams: son of William
Kirk: house by the church Wilson: son of William
Lamont: man of the law Woodward: keeper of the forest
Livingston: stone fortress Wright: carpenter, wheel maker, or cart maker

Other �root� words having to do with location that you might find in your name are:

burn= brook or stream lin= lake
cole= water or river pen= hill
dale= valley shaw= forest
field= open cleared land stein= rock or stone
ley= wooded area ville= town

 

 
 



 

 

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