Origin
Christmas : 1: English (southeastern): nickname from Middle English Criste(s)masse -messe ‘Christmas Day’ also ‘the Christmas season’ perhaps for someone who was born at Christmas or one who played the part of the King of Christmas in Yuletide games. The name was also established in County Waterford Ireland in 1622.2: Americanized form (translation into English) of French Noël (see Noel).
Annunziata : Italian: from a short form of the Marian name Maria l'Annunziata referring to the Annunciation by the archangel Gabriel to the Virgin Mary of her impending motherhood (Luke 1:20–38). The festival of the Annunciation has been celebrated since the 5th century. It was at first kept on Ember Wednesday during Lent but was later moved to 25 March exactly nine months before Christmas Day replacing pagan festivals celebrating the vernal equinox.
Bozic : 1: Croatian and Serbian (Božić) Slovenian (Božič): patronymic from a short form of the personal name Božidar meaning ‘gift from God’ (from bož(j)i ‘of God’ and dar ‘gift’).2: Slovenian (Božič) and Croatian (Božić): nickname for someone born between Christmas Day and Epiphany or for someone who had some particular connection with the Christmas season from božič ‘Christmas’. Compare Bozich Bozick.
Craciun : Romanian (Crăciun): from the old personal name Crăciun ‘Christmas’ denoting someone who was born at Christmas.
Fasching : South German: from Middle High German vaschanc ‘Shrovetide carnival’ possibly a nickname for an exuberant high-spirited person or for someone born between the end of Christmas and the start of Lent.
Fasnacht : South German and Swiss German: from Fastnacht ‘Shrovetide carnival Shrove Tuesday’ (literally ‘fast eve’); probably like Fasching a nickname for a lively exuberant person or someone born between Christmas and Lent in particular on Shrove Tuesday.
Juhl : 1: Danish and Norwegian: nickname for someone who was born on Christmas Day or had some other connection with this time of year from Old Norse jól. This was originally the name of a pagan midwinter festival which was later appropriated by the Christian Church for celebration of the birth of Christ.3: German (of Slavic origin): nickname or topographic name from a Germanized Slavic stem gol ‘naked barren’.2: North German: adoption of the Danish surname (see 1 above).
Kolenda : Polish:: 1: from a pet form of the personal name Mikołaj Polish form of Nicholas.2: from kolęda ‘Christmas carol’ also denoting a collection of donations at Advent and Christmas from Latin Calendae ‘first days of the month’. Compare Kolander.
Malanga : 1: Italian (southern): perhaps a nickname from mala (feminine of malo) ‘wicked bad mean’ + anca ‘hip haunch’.2: Romanian (Mǎlangǎ): variant of Malanca from Ukrainian malanka a nickname for a singer of Christmas carols or someone who wandered from house to house to sing or play during the festive season.
Nascimento : Portuguese: from a Christian religious byname or a personal name given to a child born at Christmas from nascimento ‘birth nativity’ (from Late Latin nascimentum from nasci ‘to be born’) also forming one of the epithets of the Virgin Mary (Maria do Nascimento).
Natal : Portuguese and Spanish: from the personal name Natal (from Latin Natalis) bestowed on someone born at Christmas or with reference to the Marian epithet María del Natal.
Natale : Italian: from the personal name Natale from Latin Natalis itself from dies natalis ‘day of birth’ among early Christians referring to the day of a martyr's or saint's death i.e. birth to eternal life; later it was given in honor of the Christmas festival.
Natividad : Spanish: from the female personal name Natividad ‘nativity Christmas’ from Latin nativitas (genitive nativitatis) ‘birth’ bestowed on a girl who was born at Christmas or with reference to the Marian epithet María de la Natividad.
Navidad : Spanish: nickname from navidad ‘Christmas’ from Latin nativitas (genitive nativitatis) ‘birth’ probably applied to someone born at Christmas.
Noel : 1: French and Walloon (Noël); English: from the Old French personal name Noël Middle English Noel from Old French no(u)el ‘Christmas’ (from Latin natalis (dies) ‘birthday’) used for someone born during the Christmas period. Alternatively a nickname for someone who had some special connection with the Christmas season such as owing the particular feudal duty of providing a yule-log to the lord of the manor or having given a memorable performance as the Lord of Misrule. This surname is also found in the Flemish part of Belgium. Compare Christmas and Newell.2: English: sometimes a post-medieval variant of Knowle and Knoll (see Knowles). The loss of /k/ before /n/ is known in everyday speech by the 17th century and may have been earlier.
Pust : 1: North German: metonymic occupational name for an upholsterer from Middle Low German pust ‘upholstery’.2: South German: variant of Pfaus (see Pfautz).3: East German (of Slavic origin): topographic name from a Slavic word such as Sorbian and Polish pusty ‘wild uncultivated’; compare 5 below.4: Slovenian: nickname from the name of a mythological being Pust folk patron of Shrovetide hence probably denoting someone born between the end of Christmas and the start of Lent. The name Pust is a shortened form of the obsolete word mesopust ‘Shrovetide’ composed of meso ‘meat’ and the imperative pust(i) ‘abstain’.5: Slovenian: probably also a nickname or a topographic name from pust ‘fatless’ figuratively ‘insipid’ also ‘barren’ thus denoting an insipid person or someone who lived on barren land.
Ray : 1: English: from the Middle English personal name Ray or Rey perhaps a pet form of names beginning in Ray or Rey especially Raymond.2: English: nickname from Old French rei ‘king’ denoting someone who behaved in a regal fashion one with the bearing of a king or referring to the mock king or lord in festive games and pageants e.g. at Christmas May Day or harvest. Compare Roy and King.3: English: nickname from Middle English ræghe (Old English rǣge) ‘female roe deer’ or in northern England more likely northern Middle English rā raa rae ray (Old English rā) ‘roe deer’ perhaps for a timid person or swift runner. Compare Roe.4: English: variant of Rye (1 and 2).5: English: post-medieval form of Wray or vice versa.6: Scottish: shortened and altered form of McRae.7: French: topographic name for someone who lived by a spring or rushing stream Old French rai (a noun derivative of Old French raier ‘to gush stream or pour’) or a habitational name from a place called Ray. Compare Leray.8: Americanized form of Polish and Slovenian Raj.9: Indian: variant of Rai.
Weinacht : German: equivalent of Christmas possibly a nickname for someone born on Christmas Day (Weihnacht in German) or perhaps a name given to a foundling. Compare Whynot.
Youle : from the early Middle English personal name Yol Yhol Yool (Old Scandinavian Iól Ióli Old Danish Iuli Old Swedish Iule a short form of names in Iól- Iúl- which is thought to derive from Old Scandinavian *ighul ‘sea urchin’). The name was identical in pronunciation and spelling with (and therefore probably confused with) the Middle English name for Christmas in (ii). Both names underwent the phonetic change of Middle English /o:/ to early Modern English and Older Scots /u:/ whence the common modern spellings Youle and Yule. In Scotland most of the earliest bearers of the surname are those of burgesses whose families may have originated in N England.perhaps from Middle English Yol(e) Yhol Youle Ȝoul(e) northern Middle English Yoil Yiol Older Scots Y(h)ule Ȝuil(l) Ȝoul(e) Y(h)ole Yeul(e) ‘Yule Christmas’ (Old English Geōl(a) Iōl Iūl(a) Old Scandinavian Iól). Whether the surname was ever derived from the word for the festive season is not certain. There is a semantic parallel in Christmas so this possibility cannot be ruled out but the early geographical concentration of the surname in parts of England heavily settled by Vikings (Yorks and Lincs) suggests that the most likely derivation is from the Scandinavian personal name in (i).
Yule : Scottish:: 1: from the northern Middle English personal name Yol (Old Norse Iól Ióli Old Danish Iuli Old Swedish Iule a short form of names in Iól- Iúl- which is thought to derive from Old Norse ighul ‘sea urchin’). In Scotland most of the earliest bearers of the surname are those of burgesses whose families may have originated in northern England. The name was identical in pronunciation and spelling with (and therefore probably confused with) the Middle English name for Christmas; see 2 below. Both names underwent the phonetic change of Middle English /o:/ to early Modern English and Older Scots /u:/ whence the common modern spelling Yule.2: perhaps also a nickname from Older Scots ʒule ‘Yule Christmas’ (Old English geōl Old Norse jól) given to one born on Christmas Day or with some other connection with that time of year. This was originally the name of a pagan midwinter festival which was later appropriated by the Christian Church for celebration of the birth of Christ. However there is no clear evidence of this origin for the surname.
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Source : DAFN2 : Dictionary of American Family Names 2nd edition, ©2022 by Patrick Hanks and Oxford University Press
FANBI : The Oxford Dictionary if Family Names in Britain and Ireland, ©2016, University of the West of England
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