Origin
Christ : 1: German and Dutch: from a short form of the personal name Christian or a nickname meaning ‘the Christian’. In both cases it is (ultimately) from the Latin name Christus ‘Christ’ which is from Greek Christos a derivative of chriein ‘to anoint’ a calque of Hebrew mashiaḥ ‘Messiah’ which likewise means literally ‘the anointed’. This is the title given to Jesus of Nazareth (see Jesus) as embodying the fulfilment of Messianic prophecy and expectation; he is the central figure of Christianity and most Christians believe he is the incarnation of God the Son. Compare Chrest Crist Ghrist and Krist.2: English: variant of Crist a cognate of 1 above.3: American shortened form of any of various Greek derivatives of the personal name Christos.4: American shortened and altered form of Bulgarian or Macedonian Hristov (compare Christoff) and also of some related or similarly pronounced Slavic surnames (see Krist).5: Americanized form of German Dutch Czech Slovak or Slovenian Krist a variant or cognate of 1 above.6: American shortened and altered form of any of various Italian surnames beginning with Crist-. Compare Crist.
Agnello : Italian:: 1: from agnello ‘lamb’ applied either as a nickname for a meek and mild person or as a personal name which was popular because the lamb led to the slaughter was a symbol of the suffering innocence of Christ.2: in Sicily a habitational name from a place called Agnello.
Artinian : Armenian: patronymic from the personal name Artin an altered form of Harutyun or Arutyun meaning ‘resurrection (of Jesus Christ)’; see Harutyunyan. This surname is found mainly in the US Lebanon and Egypt.
Ascencion : Spanish (Las Palmas; Ascención): variant of Ascensión from a Christian personal name referring to the Ascension of Jesus (Spanish Ascensión del Señor Latin Ascensio Iesu from ascensio ‘ascent’) i.e. the ascent of Jesus Christ to heaven on the fortieth day after His resurrection. The surname may also be a reference to a local church dedicated to the Ascension. This surname is very rare in Spain; it is found mainly in Mexico. Compare Ascencio and Asencio.
Bambino : Italian: from Bambino a byname meaning ‘child’ (see Child) or a personal name given with reference to Gesù Bambino ‘the Christ child’ the use of Gesù as a personal name being considered taboo in Italy.
Baptiste : French and West Indian (mainly Haiti): from the personal name Baptiste derived from Latin Baptista ‘baptist’ the distinguishing epithet of Saint John the Baptist who baptized people including Jesus Christ in the river Jordan (Mark 1:9). The Latin name is from Greek baptistēs literally ‘one who washes’ (from baptisma ‘the act of washing’). For Christians baptism symbolizes the washing away of sin prior to admission to the Church. This surname is also found in England mainly as a surname of Huguenot origin. Compare Baptist Batiste and Battiste and also Portuguese and Spanish Baptista and Batista Italian Battista.
Belen : 1: Spanish (Belén): from a personal name derived from the Biblical placename Bethlehem birthplace of Jesus Christ.2: Jewish (American): perhaps a shortened form of Belenky.
Brincat : from a reduced form of the Italian personal name Brincato from Pancrazio (Latin Pancratius ultimately from Greek pankratios 'all-powerful' an epithet of Christ especially in the Eastern Church).
Casper : English and German: from the personal name Casper (in English this is a variant of Jasper in German a variant of Kaspar and Kasper) Latin Caspar(us) Gaspar(us). It is widely understood to be from the Persian word gazbar ‘treasurer’ and was ascribed by popular tradition in Europe to one of the three Magi (see also Baltazar and Melchior) who according to the Bible (in which they are not named) brought gifts to the new-born Christ. Their supposed remains were taken to Cologne from Constantinople in the 12th century; hence the popularity of the name Casper and its variants in Germany and elsewhere in central Europe. In North America the English form of the surname has absorbed cognates from other languages e.g. Polish Kasper Czech Kašpar (see Kaspar) Croatian Gašpar (see Gaspar) and Slovenian Gašper (see Gasper) and also their derivatives.
Chrisley : 1: English: possibly a variant of Christlow a habitational name from Creslow (Buckinghamshire) with a variant in /i/ giving rise to an association with Christ which also appears in spellings of the placename. This form of the surname is now rare in Britain.2: Possibly also an Americanized form of German Kreisler.
Christelow : from Creslow (Bucks) with a variant in /i/ giving rise to an association with Christ which also appears in spellings of the place-name.
Christi : 1: Altered form of English and Scottish Christie 1.2: Indian and Indonesian: apparently adopted as a name designating a Christian from Christi ‘of Christ’ genitive case of Christus the Latin name of Jesus Christ. Compare Christo 4 and Christy 3. Alternatively in some cases from the English female personal name Christi a pet form of Christine (which is derived from the name Christus as well). — Note: As a name from India or Indonesia or any other country where hereditary surnames are not in general use this name was registered as a surname only after immigration of its bearers to the US.
Christina : Americanized form of Italian Spanish and Portuguese Cristina. — Note: It is likely that in the population figure published by the US Census Bureau (which dropped from 1205 in the year 2000 to 887 in the year 2010) the personal name Christina (from Christus the Latin name of Jesus Christ) of some American bearers is also counted as a surname. Some of these bearers may be from countries such as Indonesia where (hereditary) surnames are not in general use.
Christo : 1: American shortened form of any of various Greek derivatives of the personal name Christos. Compare Cristo.2: American shortened and altered form of Bulgarian or Macedonian Hristov. Compare Christoff and Cristo.3: Americanized form of Albanian Kristo and in some cases also of Croatian or Slovak Krišto (see Kristo 2). Compare Cristo.4: Americanized form of Spanish Italian or Portuguese Cristo.5: In some cases also Indian and Indonesian: apparently adopted as a name designating a Christian from a derivative of Christus the Latin name of Jesus Christ. Compare Christi 2.
Christopher : English German West Indian (mainly Trinidad and Tobago Antigua and Barbuda and British Virgin Islands) and African (mainly Nigeria and Tanzania): from the English and German personal name Christopher from Greek Christophoros ‘Christ-bearing’ (see Christ 1). This was borne by a rather obscure 3rd-century Christian martyr. His name was relatively common among early Christians who desired to bear Jesus Christ metaphorically with them in their daily lives. Subsequently the name was explained by a folk etymology according to which the saint carried the infant Christ across a ford and so became the patron saint of travelers. Despite the widespread veneration and depiction of this saint this was not a very common personal name in medieval England and may in some instances have a habitational origin for someone living for example in Saint Christopher parish (Saint Christopher le Stocks London). In North America the English form of the surname has absorbed the German variant Christoffer and cognates from other languages e.g. Hungarian Kristóf and Czech Slovak Slovenian and Croatian Krištof (see Kristof). The usual German form of the name is Christoph.
Corpus : Hispanic (Philippines): from Spanish corpus ‘feast of Corpus Christi’ (from Latin corpus ‘body’) i.e. The Feast of the Blessed Sacrament or Body of Christ observed on the Thursday after Trinity Sunday an important Christian liturgical solemnity.
Crist : 1: English: apparently a nickname from Middle English Crist Old English Crīst ‘Christ’ (see Christ) possibly applied as a nickname for someone who played the part of Christ in a pageant.2: English: from a pet form of the personal names Christian or Christopher.3: Americanized form of German Dutch Czech or Slovak Krist and German or Dutch Christ.4: American shortened and altered form of any of various Greek derivatives of the personal name Christos.5: American shortened and altered form of Bulgarian or Macedonian Hristov (compare Christoff) and Kristov (see Kristoff) and also of some related or similarly pronounced Slavic surnames (see Krist).6: American shortened form of any of various Italian surnames beginning with Crist-. Compare Christ.
Cyriac : 1: Indian (Kerala): from the English form of the Latin personal name Cyriacus from Greek Kyriakos an adjectival derivative of kyrios ‘lord master’ meaning ‘of the Lord’ with reference to Jesus Christ. The name Cyriacus (or Cyricus Quiricus) was borne by numerous early Christian saints; one of them was St. Cyriacus a 4th-century martyr (together with companions Largus and Smaragdus and twenty others) under the emperor Diocletian; for another see Cyr. Compare Kuriakose and Kurian. — Note: since South Indians traditionally do not have hereditary surnames this name was in most cases registered as such only after immigration of its bearers to the US.2: Americanized form of French (actually Haitian) Cyriaque a cognate of 1 above.
Dieu : 1: French and Walloon: from dieu ‘god’ applied as a nickname for someone who played the role of Christ in the medieval mysteries or for a presumptious or an overly religious person; or from a short form of the personal name Dieudonné ‘God-given’ (see Dieudonne). The surname Dieu is also found in the Flemish part of Belgium (mainly Limburg).2: Vietnamese (Diêu): from the Chinese surname 姚 see Yao 1.
Dimas : 1: Spanish (mainly from Mexico) and Portuguese: from the personal name Dimas from Dismas the name supposedly borne by the repentant robber crucified alongside Christ although no name is recorded in the Biblical account.2: Greek: from the personal name Dimas a short form of Dimitri(o)s from classical Greek Dēmētrios (see Dimitris) or of any of various compound names based on classical Greek dēmos ‘people’ such as Dimosthenis from classical Greek Dēmosthenēs (see Demosthene). This is also a shortened form of Greek patronymics such as Dimopoulos. Compare Demas 1.3: Greek: Hellenized form of Albanian Dhima a cognate of 2 above.
Emanuel : English German Welsh Jewish (Sephardic and Ashkenazic) and African (mainly Nigeria and Tanzania): from the Hebrew personal name Immanuel ‘God is with us’ found as a personal name in many European languages. In the Old Testament this is an epithet of God in the Book of Isaiah and in medieval Christian literature an alternative name for Christ. In Britain the surname is generally a 17th- and 18th-century coinage among Nonconformists especially in south Wales. Compare Emmanuel.
Enos : 1: Variant of Eno 2 a surname of French origin.2: French (Énos): from the personal name Énos from Biblical Enos from Hebrew Enosh borne by the first son of Seth who is part of the genealogy of Jesus Christ as mentioned in Luke 3:38.3: Welsh (Cardiganshire): from the Welsh personal name Einwys a pet form of Einion from Enniaun an old Welsh personal name ultimately from Late Latin Annianus associated with Welsh einion ‘anvil’ for ‘stability fortitude’ and doubtfully with uniawn ‘upright just’. Compare Bennion.4: English: perhaps a variant of Eno or the variant Ennew with post-medieval excrescent -s.5: Irish: variant of Ennis.
Epifanio : Italian and Spanish; Portuguese (Epifânio): from a personal name (Italian and Spanish Epifanio Portuguese Epifânio) bestowed in honor of the Christian feast of the Epiphany (January 6th) from Greek Epiphanios (derived from epiphaneia ‘showing manifestation’ itself a derivative of epiphainesthai ‘to appear’). This was given in particular to children born on or around the feast of the Epiphany commemorating the manifestation of the infant Christ to the three Magi.
Freitag : German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): nickname from (respectively) Middle High German vrītac and German Freitag ‘Friday’ (Old High German frīatag frījetag a translation of Late Latin Veneris dies: Freya was the ancient Germanic goddess of love sometimes considered as equivalent to the Roman Venus). The German name may have denoted someone born on a Friday or who performed some feudal service then. However Friday was considered unlucky throughout Christendom in the Middle Ages (because it was the day on which Christ was crucified) and it seems more likely that the name was given to a person considered ill-omened. It is found as a byname in this sense in Old High German. This is by far the commonest of the surnames drawn from the days of the week followed by Sonntag ‘Sunday’ traditionally a day of good omen. Among Jews it seems to have been one of the names that were distributed at random by government officials. Compare Friday.
Harutyunyan : Armenian: patronymic from the personal name Harutyun from classical Armenian yarutʿiwn ‘resurrection (of Jesus Christ)’ a calque on the Greek word anastasis and the name Anastasios (see Anastasio). This form of the surname is found mainly in Armenia. Compare Arutyunyan Haroutunian and Hartunian.
Heiland : South German: from Middle High German heilant ‘savior Christ’ presumably either a name given to someone who had played the part of Christ in a mystery play or an occupational name for a healer from Middle High German heilen ‘to heal save’.
Herod : 1: English: usually a variant of Herald (Middle English Herald Heraud Heroud). Occasionally the name may have been used as a nickname in allusion to the Biblical King Herod played as a bragging tyrant in medieval mystery plays or for someone who had an overbearing temper but evidence to support this possibility is lacking. Herod (Greek Hērōdēs apparently derived from hērōs ‘hero’) was the name of the king of Judea (died AD 4) who at the time of the birth of Christ ordered that all male children in Bethlehem should be slaughtered (Matthew 2: 16-18).2: American shortened form of Greek Herodiadis a patronymic from the classical personal name Hērodiōn. This was the name of a relative of Saint Paul and an early Bishop of Patras venerated in the Orthodox Church. Hērodēs ‘Herod’ is also found in Greek as a nickname for a violent man but this is less likely to be the source of the surname.
Jesus : Spanish (Jesús) and Portuguese: either from a personal name taken in honor of Jesus Christ in Christianity the divine son of God the Father (see Christ 1) or from a short form of any compound name composed of any personal name + de Jesús. The name Jesus is from the Greek form Iēsous of Aramaic Yeshua from Hebrew Yoshua a byform of Yehoshuah (English Joshua) ‘God is salvation’.
John : 1: English and Welsh: ultimately from the Hebrew personal name Yoḥanan ‘Jehovah has favored (me with a son)’ or ‘may Jehovah favor (this child)’. This personal name was adopted into Latin (via Greek) as Johannes and has enjoyed enormous popularity in Europe throughout the Christian era being given in honor of Saint John the Baptist precursor of Christ and of Saint John the Evangelist author of the fourth gospel as well as the nearly one thousand other Christian saints who bore the name. Some of the principal forms of the personal name in other languages are: Welsh Ieuan Evan Siôn and Ioan; Scottish Ia(i)n; Irish Séan; German Johann Johannes; Dutch and Slavic Jan; French Jean; Italian Giovanni; Spanish Juan; Portuguese João; Greek Iōannēs (vernacular Giannis Yannis); Russian Ivan. There were a number of different forms of the name in Middle English including Jan(e) a male name (see Jayne); Jen (see Jenkin); Jon(e) (see Jones); and Han(n) (see Hann). By the beginning of the 14th century John rivalled William in popularity and has always been a favorite name. Johan became Jo(h)n and another Old French form Jehan was shortened to Jan and Jen giving rise to Old French and Middle English diminutives such as Jonin Janin and Jenin. More common in Middle English were Jankin Jonkin and Jenkin which were Middle Dutch pet forms introduced after the Conquest by Flemish and Picard settlers. The most common pet form of John was Jack another borrowing from Flemish and Picard usage. Han may sometimes have been a short form of Johan but was more usually a pet form of Henry. There were also various Middle English feminine versions of this name (e.g. Joan Jehan) some of which were indistinguishable from masculine forms. The distinction on grounds of gender between John and Joan was not firmly established in English until the 17th century. It was even later that Jean and Jane were specialized as specifically female names in English; bearers of these surnames and their derivatives are more likely to derive them from a male ancestor than a female. As a surname in the British Isles John is particularly frequent in Wales where it is a late formation representing Welsh Siôn rather than the older form Ieuan (which gave rise to the surname Evan). In North America the English form of the surname has absorbed many cognates from other languages e.g. Assyrian/Chaldean Youkhana French Jean Hungarian János (see Janos) Slovenian Janež and Janeš (see Janes) Czech Jan Albanian Gjoni and their derivatives (see examples at Johnson). The name John is also found among Christians in southern India (compare Ninan and Yohannan) but since South Indians traditionally do not have hereditary surnames the southern Indian name was in most cases registered as such only after immigration of its bearers to the US.2: German: from a North German and Silesian variant of the personal name Johannes. This surname is also found in France (Alsace and Lorraine). Compare Yohn.
Jordan : English German French (mainly Alsace and Haute-Savoie) Polish Czech and Slovenian; Spanish and Hungarian (Jordán): from the Christian personal name or nickname Jordan. This is taken from the name of the river Jordan (Hebrew Yarden a derivative of yarad ‘to go down’ i.e. to the Dead Sea). At the time of the Crusades it was a common practice for crusaders and pilgrims to bring back flasks of water from the river in which John the Baptist had baptized people including Christ himself and to use it in the christening of their own children. As a result Jordan became quite a common personal name.
Jude : 1: English (Cambridgeshire Norfolk and Suffolk): variant of Judd. The name is also occasionally (but probably rarely) from the Middle English personal name Jude an Old French vernacular form of the Biblical name Latin Judas (see 2 below).2: French: from Jude a vernacular form of the Hebrew personal name Yehuda ‘Judah’ (of unknown meaning) based on its Latin form Judas. In the Bible this is the name of Jacob's eldest son. It was not a popular name among Christians in medieval Europe because of the associations it had with Judas Iscariot the disciple who betrayed Christ for thirty pieces of silver. See also Judah.3: French and German: name for a Jew Old French and Middle High German jude (from Latin Iudaeus Greek Ioudaios from Hebrew Yehudi ‘member of the tribe of Judah’).
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).
Kilkie : possibly a shortened or pet form of Gilkison a Scottish translation of Gilchrist (Mac Giolla Chríst) well established in Ulster.
Kyriacou : Greek (typically Cypriot): patronymic from the genitive case of the personal name Kyriacos a typically Cypriot spelling of Kyriakos an adjectival derivative of Greek kyrios ‘lord master’ meaning ‘of the Lord’ with reference to Jesus Christ. See also Cyriac.
Lazar : 1: Jewish Assyrian/Chaldean German Czech Slovenian and Croatian; Polish (also Łazar); Slovak (also Lazár and Lázár); Hungarian (Lázár); Romanian (Lazăr): from a Biblical personal name of Aramaic origin a shortened form of the Hebrew name Elazar composed of the elements El ‘God’ + azar ‘help’ and meaning ‘may God help him’ or ‘God has helped (i.e. by granting a son)’. This was established in central Europe as a Jewish name but was also popular among Christians because it is recorded in the New Testament. Lazaros is the New Testament Greek form of the name of the brother of Martha and Mary who was restored to life by Christ (John 11: 1–44). As a non-Jewish name it was also used as a nickname for a beggar or an outcast leper; this use arises from the parable of Dives and Lazarus (Luke 16: 19–31). In North America this surname has also absorbed various other European cognates and their derivatives e.g. Albanian Lazri Lazëri and Llazari (from the personal names Lazër and Llazar; see Lazer) Greek patronymics like Lazarakis Lazaridis and Lazaropoulos Serbian patronymic Lazarević (see Lazarevic).2: Slovenian: from lazar a topographic name for someone who lived in an area of cleared woodland itself derived from laz ‘cleared woodland’. Compare Austrian German and Gottscheerish (i.e. Gottschee German) Lasser 3 and Loser 3 and also Lazzari 2.
Maria : 1: Spanish (María); Italian and Portuguese; Hungarian (Mária): from the female personal name Latin Maria. This was the name of the mother of Jesus Christ in the New Testament as well as several other New Testament figures. The Latin form of the name on which all common variants from European languages are based (including English Mary) derived as a back-formation from the early Christian female name Mariam. This was mistaken for an accusative case with the usual Latin feminine accusative ending -am but in fact it is an Aramaic form (originally Maryam) of the Hebrew name Miryam. The Hebrew name is of uncertain etymology perhaps from a word meaning ‘wished-for child’ from an Egyptian root mrj with the addition of the Hebrew feminine diminutive suffix -am. Saint Jerome understood it as a compound of mar ‘drop’ + yam ‘sea’ which he rendered as Latin stilla maris later altered to stella maris ‘star of the sea’ whence the medieval Christian liturgical phrase.2: French: Latinized form of Marie a cognate of 1 above. It is also found in England as a surname of Huguenot origin.3: West Indian (Dutch Caribbean): from the female personal name Maria (see 1 above). Maria is among the ten most frequent surnames on Curaçao where it reflects the partially mother-oriented name culture of the formerly enslaved people in the West Indies (compare Martina).
Mariam : 1: Ethiopian: from the female personal name Mariam (see 2 below) forming part of Christian male names like Haile Mariam ‘the power of Mary’ (see Hailemariam). — Note: Since Ethiopians do not have hereditary surnames this name was registered as such only after immigration of its bearers to the US.2: Indonesian and Indian: from the female personal name Mariam a variant of the Aramaic Maryam (see Maria) among Christians usually applied with the reference to Mary the mother of Jesus Christ. — Note: As a name from Indonesia and India or any other country where hereditary surnames are not in general use this name was registered as a surname only after immigration of its bearers to the US.
Nazareno : Spanish: nickname from nazareno from Latin Nazarenus ‘of or pertaining to Nazareth’ the birthplace of Christ.
Nazarenus : German: surname adopted with reference to Latin Nazarenus ‘of or pertaining to Nazareth’ the birthplace of Christ. This is one of the German surnames that became established in the Volga basin in Russia in the 18th and 19th centuries.
O'Connor : Irish (especially Munster): Anglicized form of Gaelic Ó Conchobhair ‘descendant of Conchobhar’ a personal name which is said to have originated as Cú Chobhair from cú ‘hound’ (genitive con) + cobhar ‘desiring’ i.e. ‘hound of desire’. Present-day bearers of the surname claim descent from a 10th-century king of Connacht of this name. In Irish legend Conchobhar was a king of Ulster who lived at around the time of Christ and who adopted the youthful Cú Chulainn.
Palma : 1: Spanish Catalan Galician Portuguese and southern Italian: habitational name from any of various places called with Latin palma ‘palm’.2: Italian: from the personal name Palma ‘palm’ bestowed with reference to the triumphal entry of Christ into Jerusalem before his arrest and crucifixion. The personal name is used for both sexes though predominantly for females.3: Portuguese: habitational name from Parma in Italy.
Pankratz : German: from the personal name Pankratz from Latin Pancratius Greek Pankratios a name derived from the term pankratēs ‘all-in wrestler’ from pan ‘all every’ + kratein ‘to conquer subdue’. This Greek name was re-analysed by early Christians as meaning ‘Almighty’ and thus a suitable epithet of Christ. The name was borne by a 4th-century Christian martyr hence its popularity as a personal name in the Middle Ages. Saint Pancras is one of the Ice Saints (see also Boniface and Servatius) so called in central European folklore because their feast days fall on the days of May 12 May 13 and May 14 a time when in central Europe there was often a brief spell of cold weather bringing the last frost before summer.
Pasion : Spanish (Pasión): from a Christian name given to someone born on Good Friday from pasión ‘suffering’ referring to the Passion or suffering of Christ. This surname is most common in the Philippines.
Peter : English Scottish German Dutch French (Alsace and Lorraine) Czech (Moravian) Slovak Croatian and Slovenian; Hungarian (Péter): from the personal name Peter (Greek Petros from petra ‘rock’). The personal name was popular throughout Christian Europe in the Middle Ages having been bestowed by Christ as a byname on the apostle Simon bar Jonah the brother of Andrew. The name was chosen by Christ for its symbolic significance (John 1:42 Matt. 16:18); Saint Peter is regarded as the founding head of the Christian Church in view of Christ's saying ‘Thou art Peter and upon this rock I will build my Church’. In Christian Germany in the early Middle Ages this was the most frequent personal name of non-ancient Germanic origin until the 14th century. In North America this surname has also absorbed cognates from other languages for example Czech Petr Polish Piotr and Pietr Albanian Pjetri (from the personal name Pjetër definite form Pjetri) and also their derivatives (see examples at Peterson). It has also been adopted as a surname by Ashkenazic Jews.
Pilat : Polish (Piłat); Czech and Slovak (Pilát); Croatian Slovenian and French: from Latin (Pontius) Pilatus the name of the Roman governor of Judea who interrogated Christ then ‘washed his hands’ of responsibility for his crucifixion. This was used as a nickname for someone who would take no responsibility also perhaps for someone who had played the role of Pontius Pilate in a pageant or passion play. Compare Pelot.
Resurreccion : Spanish (Resurrección): from the Christian personal name Resurrección from resurrección ‘resurrection’ recalling the rising again of Christ after His death and burial. This surname is most common in the Philippines.
Salvador : 1: Spanish Catalan Portuguese and northeastern Italian: from the personal name Salvador meaning ‘Savior’ (from Latin Salvator a derivative of salvare ‘to save’) bestowed in honor of Christ.2: Spanish Asturian-Leonese and Galician: habitational name from any of the places called Salvador in Valladolid Lugo and Asturias.
Santiago : Galician Portuguese and Spanish: habitational name from any of numerous places so named from the dedication of their churches to Saint James (Sant Iago). The apostle Saint James the Greater is the patron saint of Spain; there is a medieval legend that after the death of Christ he did not meet a speedy end under Herod Agrippa but visited and evangelized the Iberian peninsula. His alleged burial site at Compostela has been a place of pilgrimage from all over Europe for over a thousand years. See also Sandiego.
Sibley : English: from the Middle English female personal name Sibily Old French Sibilie from Latin Sibilia from Greek Sibylla a title of obscure origin borne by various oracular priestesses in classical times. In Christian mythology the sibyls came to be classed as pagan prophets (who had prophesied the coming of Christ) and hence the name was an acceptable one that could be bestowed on a Christian child.
Soter : 1: American shortened (and altered) form of Greek patronymics such as Soteriades Soteriou Soteropoulos Sotiriou and Sotiropoulos derived from the personal name Sōtērios modern pronunciation Sotiri(o)s an adjectival form meaning ‘redeeming saving’ based on the vocabulary word sōtēr ‘savior redeemer’ and referring to Christ (compare Italian Salvatore). Compare also Sotir.2: Hungarian (Sótér): perhaps a metonymic occupational name for a cheesemaker from Middle High German schotte ‘cheese’ or an occupational name for a maker of wooden plates and troughs from Middle High German schotteler or for a peddler from Middle High German schotte (see Schott).3: German: variant of Sotter a topographic name from Middle High German sōt ‘spring well’.4: Slovak (Šótér): from a Slavicized form of Hungarian Sótér (see 2 above).
St. Sauveur : 1: French (Saint-Sauveur): habitational name from any of several places in France so called from the dedication of their churches to Saint-Sauveur ‘the Holy Savior’ (i.e. Christ) or a nickname perhaps ironic.2: Haitian (also Saint-Sauveur): from Saint-Sauveur a nickname ornamental name or personal name composed of the French prefix Saint and the personal name Sauveur (see 1 above).
Stasinos : Greek: from the personal name Stasinos ‘standing’ a derivative of classical Greek histamai ‘to stand’ associated with the Resurrection of Christ (compare Anastasio); or a shortened form of any of various patronymics derived from this name e.g. Stasinopoulos (compare Stacy).
Steven : Scottish English Dutch and North German: from the personal name Steven from Latin Stephanus Greek Stephanos ‘crown’. This was a popular name throughout Christendom in the Middle Ages having been borne by the first Christian martyr stoned to death at Jerusalem three years after the death of Christ. In North America this surname has also absorbed various cognates from other languages e.g. German Steffen German and Polish Stefan Slovenian and Slovak Štefan Hungarian István (see Istvan) and also their patronymics and other derivatives (see Stevens).
Thomas : 1: English French Walloon Breton German Dutch Flemish Danish Greek West Indian (mainly Haiti and Jamaica) and African (mainly Tanzania and Nigeria): from the personal name Thomas of Biblical (New Testament) origin from Aramaic t’ōm’a a byname meaning ‘twin’. It was borne by one of the disciples of Christ known for his scepticism about Christ's resurrection (John 20:24–29). The Th- spelling is organic the initial letter of the name in the Greek New Testament being a theta. The English pronunciation as t rather than th- is the result of French influence from an early date. In Britain the surname is widely distributed throughout the country but especially common in Wales and Cornwall. In North America the English form of the surname has absorbed many cognates from other languages (e.g. Assyrian/Chaldean or Arabic Toma and Tuma Albanian Toma and Thoma and Slavic surnames listed in 3 below) and their patronymics and other derivatives (e.g. Polish Tomaszewski and Slovenian Tomažič; see Tomazic). In France this surname is most common in the Vosges and Brittany. The name Thomas is also found among Christians in southern India (compare Machan Mammen and Oommen) but since South Indians traditionally do not have hereditary surnames the southern Indian name was in most cases registered as such only after immigration of its bearers to the US. This surname is also very common among African Americans.2: Native American (e.g. Navajo): adoption of the English personal name Thomas (see 1 above) as a surname.3: Germanized or Americanized form of Polish Tomas Tomasz and Tomaś Sorbian Tomaš (see also 4 below) Croatian Tomaš and Tomas Slovenian Tomaš and Tomaž Czech and Slovak Tomáš all meaning ‘Thomas’.4: Germanized or Americanized form of Sorbian Domaš: from the personal name Domaš a derivative of the Old Sorbian name Domasław based on the Old Slavic element domъ ‘home’ but later associated with the Biblical name Thomas (see 1 above compare 3 above).
Tufano : Italian: from a variant of the personal name Teofano from Greek Theophanēs which is based on words meaning ‘manifestation of God’ another name for the Epiphany or ‘showing’ of Christ (see Epifanio).
Virgil : 1: English West Indian (Trinidad and Tobago Bermuda Turks and Caicos) and Spanish: from the personal name Virgil from Latin Virgilius originally Vergilius perhaps connected in some way with the name Vergiliae ‘the Pleiades’. The name is famous in particular as that of the Latin poet Publius Vergilius Maro (70–19 BC) author of the Aeneid. Virgil was much admired in medieval Europe; there were attempts to make him into an honorary Christian (even though he actually lived before the time of Christ) and Dante made him his guide through the Inferno and Purgatorio a model of classical moderation and reason. This was also the name of an early Christian saint a 6th-century bishop of Arles. This surname is very rare in Britain.2: French: rare variant and an Americanized form of Virgile a cognate of 1 above.
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.
More
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
FANBI : The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain, ©2021, University of the West of England
Subject to the Terms and Conditions of Ancestry
