lastnamegenerators

Christian Last Names

These Christian last names are real surnames rooted in Christian life and history, from churches, pilgrims and holy days to clergy and the name Christian itself, each listed with its origin and meaning.

226 real surnames with meanings, A to Z.

A

  • Abad

    Abbot

    Spanish

  • Abate

    Abbot

    Italian

  • Abbey

    Worker at or dweller by an abbey

    English

  • Abbott

    Abbot, head of a monastery, or his servant

    English

  • Abdelmasih

    Servant of the Messiah

    Arabic

  • Abt

    Abbot

    German

  • Anastasiou

    Son of Anastasios, the Resurrection

    Greek

  • Angel

    Angel, a nickname or mystery-play role

    English

  • Angelopoulos

    Son of Angelos, angel

    Greek

  • Arkhangelsky

    Archangel, after a church of the Archangel

    Russian

  • Armitage

    Dweller at a hermitage

    English

  • Astvatsatryan

    Son of Astvatsatur, given by God

    Armenian

  • Avetisyan

    Son of Avetis, good news (the Gospel)

    Armenian

B

  • Barát

    Friar, or friend

    Hungarian

  • Bischoff

    Bishop

    German

  • Bishop

    Bishop, a nickname or pageant role

    English

  • Biskup

    Bishop

    Polish

  • Bisschop

    Bishop

    Dutch

  • Blagoveshchensky

    Annunciation, a clergy family surname

    Russian

  • Blessing

    Blessing, a nickname of pious origin

    English

  • Bogoyavlensky

    Theophany (Epiphany), a clergy family surname

    Russian

  • Buchanan

    Gaelic for house of the canon

    Scottish

C

  • Cannon

    Canon, a cleric of a cathedral

    English

  • Canonico

    Canon, a cathedral cleric

    Italian

  • Cappellano

    Chaplain

    Italian

  • Cardinal

    Cardinal, a nickname or pageant role

    English

  • Chaplin

    Chaplain, a priest serving a chapel

    English

  • Chappell

    Dweller by a chapel

    English

  • Chierici

    Clerics

    Italian

  • Chiesa

    Church

    Italian

  • Della Chiesa

    Of the church

    Italian

  • Chrétien

    Christian

    French

  • Christ

    From Christian, or a mystery-play role

    German

  • Christensen

    Son of Christen, a form of Christian

    Nordic

  • Christian

    Follower of Christ, from the name Christian

    English

  • Christiansen

    Son of Christian

    Nordic

  • Christie

    From Christian, a Scottish pet form

    Scottish

  • Christison

    Son of Christie, a pet form of Christian

    Scottish

  • Christmann

    From Christian, follower of Christ

    German

  • Christmas

    For someone born or baptized at Christmas

    English

  • Christodoulou

    Servant of Christ

    Greek

  • Christophe

    Christopher, the Christ-bearer

    French

  • Christopher

    Christ-bearer, after Saint Christopher

    English

  • Christopoulos

    Son of Christos

    Greek

  • Christou

    Son of Christos, after Christ

    Greek

  • Church

    Dweller by a church

    English

  • Churchill

    Hill with a church

    English

  • Churchman

    Church caretaker or dweller by a church

    English

  • Churchyard

    Dweller by the churchyard

    English

  • Clark

    Cleric or scribe in minor holy orders

    English

  • Clarke

    Cleric, a literate clerk in minor orders

    English

  • Cristiani

    Christians, from Cristiano

    Italian

  • Crosby

    Farm by the crosses, from Old Norse

    English

  • Cross

    Dweller by a wayside or market cross

    English

  • Crossman

    Dweller by a cross

    English

  • Crouch

    Dweller by a cross, from Middle English crouche

    English

D

  • Deacon

    Deacon, a church officer below priest

    English

  • Deák

    Latin-schooled cleric or scholar

    Hungarian

  • Deakin

    Deacon, a Midlands form

    English

  • Dean

    Dean, head of a cathedral chapter

    English

  • Degn

    Parish clerk, from the word for deacon

    Nordic

  • Deken

    Dean

    Dutch

  • Dewar

    Keeper of a saint's holy relic

    Scottish

  • Diakos

    Deacon

    Greek

  • Dumoutier

    From the monastery

    French

  • Dyachenko

    Son of the church cantor (dyak)

    Ukrainian

  • Dyakonov

    Son of the deacon

    Russian

  • Dyakov

    Son of the deacon

    Russian

E

  • Engel

    Angel

    German

  • Evangelou

    Son of Evangelos, the Gospel

    Greek

F

  • Faith

    Faith, from Old French feid, faithfulness

    English

  • Fraile

    Friar

    Spanish

  • Frati

    Friars

    Italian

  • Friar

    Friar, a member of a mendicant order

    English

G

  • Gilchrist

    Servant of Christ

    Scottish

  • Gillanders

    Servant of Saint Andrew

    Scottish

  • Gillespie

    Servant of the bishop

    Scottish

  • Gilsenan

    Son of the devotee of Saint Senan

    Irish

  • Godbehere

    God be here, a pious greeting nickname

    English

  • Goodspeed

    God speed you, a well-wishing nickname

    English

  • Grace

    Grace, a nickname for a pleasing person

    English

H

  • Halliday

    Holy day, for someone born on a church feast

    English

  • Harutyunyan

    Son of Harutyun, Resurrection

    Armenian

  • Holliday

    Holy day, a variant of Halliday

    English

  • Holywell

    Dweller by a holy well

    English

I

  • Iglesias

    Churches, often from places so named

    Spanish

  • Igumnov

    Son of the hegumen (abbot)

    Russian

K

  • Kalogeropoulos

    Son of the monk

    Greek

  • Kántor

    Cantor, church singer and teacher

    Hungarian

  • Kantor

    Cantor, church choir leader

    German

  • Kassis

    Priest or minister

    Arabic

  • Keresztes

    Crusader or cross-bearer

    Hungarian

  • Kerkhof

    Churchyard

    Dutch

  • Khachatryan

    Son of Khachatur, given by the Cross

    Armenian

  • Khachikyan

    Son of Khachik, little cross

    Armenian

  • Khoury

    Priest, common among Levantine Christians

    Arabic

  • Kierkegaard

    Churchyard, or the church farm

    Nordic

  • Kirby

    Church farm, from Old Norse

    English

  • Kirchhoff

    Churchyard, dweller by the church

    German

  • Kirchner

    Sexton or church custodian

    German

  • Kirk

    Church, from the northern and Norse word

    Scottish

  • Kirkbride

    Church of Saint Brigid

    Scottish

  • Kirkeby

    Church village

    Nordic

  • Kirkham

    Village with a church

    English

  • Kirkland

    Church land

    Scottish

  • Kirkman

    Church caretaker or dweller by a church

    English

  • Kirkpatrick

    Church of Saint Patrick, a Scottish place

    Scottish

  • Kirkwood

    Wood belonging to the church

    Scottish

  • Klooster

    Monastery, a monastery worker

    Dutch

  • Klostermann

    Worker at a monastery

    German

  • Kościelniak

    Son of the church sexton

    Polish

  • Koster

    Sexton or church warden

    Dutch

  • Kristensen

    Son of Kristen, a form of Christian

    Nordic

  • Kristiansen

    Son of Kristian (Christian)

    Nordic

  • Kříž

    Cross

    Czech

  • Křížek

    Little cross

    Czech

  • Kurian

    From Kuriakose, of the Lord, among Kerala Christians

    Indian

  • Küster

    Sexton, church custodian

    German

L

  • Labbé

    The abbot

    French

  • Lachapelle

    The chapel, dweller by a chapel

    French

  • Leclerc

    The cleric or clerk

    French

  • Lemoine

    The monk

    French

  • Leprêtre

    The priest

    French

  • Leprieur

    The prior

    French

  • Lévesque

    The bishop

    French

M

  • MacMillan

    Son of the tonsured one, a monk

    Scottish

  • MacNab

    Son of the abbot

    Scottish

  • MacPherson

    Son of the parson

    Scottish

  • MacTaggart

    Son of the priest

    Scottish

  • MacVicar

    Son of the vicar

    Scottish

  • Mannix

    Descendant of the little monk

    Irish

  • McCleary

    Son of the cleric

    Irish

  • McGillicuddy

    Son of the devotee of Saint Mochuda

    Irish

  • Messner

    Sexton, keeper of the Mass vessels

    German

  • Minster

    Worker at a minster church

    English

  • Mkrtchyan

    Son of Mkrtich, the Baptist

    Armenian

  • Monaco

    Monk

    Italian

  • Monahan

    Descendant of the monk

    Irish

  • Monakhov

    Son of the monk

    Russian

  • Monasterio

    Monastery, from places so named

    Spanish

  • Mönch

    Monk

    German

  • Monje

    Monk

    Spanish

  • Monk

    Monk, or a servant at a monastery

    English

  • Monkhouse

    Worker at the monks' house

    English

  • Monkman

    Servant of the monks

    English

  • Monks

    Of the monk, a monastery worker

    English

  • Münch

    Monk, a southern German form

    German

  • Munk

    Monk

    Nordic

N

  • Nazareth

    From Nazareth, the hometown of Jesus

    Indian

  • Nikolsky

    Of Saint Nicholas, often from a parish church

    Russian

  • Noel

    Christmas, from Old French noel, for someone born then

    English

  • Nowell

    Christmas, from Old French noel

    English

  • Nunn

    Nun, a nickname or a convent servant

    English

O

  • Obispo

    Bishop

    Spanish

  • Opat

    Abbot

    Czech

  • Organista

    Church organist

    Polish

P

  • Pabst

    Pope, a nickname

    German

  • Palmer

    Pilgrim who brought a palm from the Holy Land

    English

  • Pap

    Priest

    Hungarian

  • Papa

    Pope, or father, a nickname

    Italian

  • Papadakis

    Son of the priest, Cretan form

    Greek

  • Papadopoulos

    Son of the priest

    Greek

  • Papageorgiou

    Son of Father George, a priest

    Greek

  • Papandreou

    Son of Father Andrew, a priest

    Greek

  • Papanikolaou

    Son of Father Nicholas, a priest

    Greek

  • Papas

    Priest

    Greek

  • Pape

    Priest, a Low German word

    German

  • Papp

    Priest

    Hungarian

  • Paradis

    Paradise, also a church forecourt

    French

  • Parson

    Parson, the parish priest

    English

  • Parsons

    Of the parson, the parish priest

    English

  • Pascoe

    Cornish, from Pasco, Easter, for someone born then

    English

  • Pask

    Easter, from Old French pasque

    English

  • Pastoor

    Pastor, parish priest

    Dutch

  • Pèlerin

    Pilgrim

    French

  • Pellegrino

    Pilgrim

    Italian

  • Pentecost

    For someone born at Whitsun (Pentecost)

    English

  • Pfaff

    Priest, or a priest's household member

    German

  • Pilger

    Pilgrim

    German

  • Pilgrim

    Pilgrim to a holy shrine

    English

  • Pokrovsky

    Intercession of the Mother of God

    Russian

  • Ponomarenko

    Son of the sexton

    Ukrainian

  • Ponomarev

    Son of the sexton

    Russian

  • Pontifex

    Latin for pontiff or high priest

    English

  • Pope

    Pope, a nickname for a pious or pompous man

    English

  • Popov

    Son of the priest

    Russian

  • Popovych

    Son of the priest

    Ukrainian

  • Preobrazhensky

    Transfiguration, a clergy family surname

    Russian

  • Prestegard

    Priest's farm, the parsonage

    Nordic

  • Preston

    Priests' farmstead

    English

  • Prestwich

    Priests' dwelling or farm

    English

  • Del Prete

    Of the priest

    Italian

  • Prete

    Priest

    Italian

  • Priest

    Priest, or servant of a priest

    English

  • Priestley

    Priest's woodland clearing

    English

  • Prior

    Prior, deputy head of a monastery

    English

  • Priore

    Prior of a monastery

    Italian

  • Probst

    Provost, head of a chapter or church

    German

  • Protopopov

    Son of the archpriest

    Russian

R

  • Romei

    Pilgrims to Rome

    Italian

  • Romer

    Pilgrim who had journeyed to Rome

    English

  • Romero

    Pilgrim to Rome

    Spanish

  • Rood

    Dweller by a rood, the crucifix

    English

  • Rozhdestvensky

    Nativity, a clergy family surname

    Russian

S

  • Sacristán

    Sacristan, keeper of the sacristy

    Spanish

  • Salib

    Cross, a Coptic Christian surname

    Arabic

  • Sexton

    Sexton, keeper of church and graveyard

    English

  • Shammas

    Deacon

    Arabic

  • Sigrist

    Sacristan, a Swiss German word

    German

  • Stavropoulos

    Son of Stavros, the Cross

    Greek

  • Stavrou

    Of the Cross, from Stavros

    Greek

  • Sunday

    For a child born on the Lord's day

    English

T

  • Taggart

    Son of the priest

    Irish

  • Temple

    Worker at a Knights Templar estate

    English

  • Templer

    Knight Templar or Templar tenant

    English

  • Templeton

    Farmstead of the Knights Templar

    Scottish

  • Ter-Petrosyan

    Ter marks a priestly family; son of Petros

    Armenian

  • Troitsky

    Holy Trinity, a clergy family surname

    Russian

U

  • Uspensky

    Dormition of the Mother of God

    Russian

V

  • Vardapetyan

    Son of the vardapet, a church doctor

    Armenian

  • Vescovi

    Of the bishop

    Italian

  • Vescovo

    Bishop

    Italian

  • Vicary

    Vicar, a priest serving for a rector

    English

  • Vickers

    Of the vicar, a vicar's servant

    English

  • Voskresensky

    Resurrection, a clergy family surname

    Russian

  • Vozdvizhensky

    Exaltation of the Holy Cross

    Russian

Generate random christian surnames

Filter by first letter, length and rarity, add a first name to preview the full name, then copy or save your favorites.

Results (6)

  • Goodspeed

    God speed you, a well-wishing nickname

    English

  • Küster

    Sexton, church custodian

    German

  • Chappell

    Dweller by a chapel

    English

  • Vardapetyan

    Son of the vardapet, a church doctor

    Armenian

  • McCleary

    Son of the cleric

    Irish

  • MacVicar

    Son of the vicar

    Scottish

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    How Christian last names grew from church life

    Churches were the centre of medieval village life, and many families were named for living near one. Church, Kirk and Kirkland mean church, or land by a church, while Chappell and Temple point to a chapel or a religious house. Cross and Crouch, from an old word for a cross, named people who lived by a wayside cross. Kirkpatrick means the church of Saint Patrick, a place name in south west Scotland that became a well known family name.

    Other names describe church roles. Clark and Clarke come from clerk, a man in minor orders who could read and write. Parsons served a parson, Vickers a vicar, and Sexton comes from sacristan, the keeper of church vessels. Bishop, Abbott, Monk and Pope were often nicknames or names for servants in a church household, since celibate clergy were not supposed to have children to pass them on.

    Pilgrims, feasts and holy days

    Pilgrimage left its mark on English names. A palmer was a pilgrim who carried a palm branch home from the Holy Land, so Palmer often named someone who had made that journey. Pilgrim itself became a surname too. Holliday comes from holy day and may have named a child born on a religious feast, and Christmas, Noel and Pascoe, a Cornish name linked to Easter, follow the same idea.

    The name Christian itself is a surname on the Isle of Man, where it comes from the Gaelic Mac Christin, and it became famous through Fletcher Christian of the Bounty. Christie, from Christian or Christopher, is common in Scotland. Across Europe the same root gives Christensen and Kristiansen in Scandinavia, Chrétien in France and Cristiani in Italy. All of them go back to the Latin christianus, a follower of Christ.

    Choosing a name with Christian heritage

    These names suit many uses. A village mystery can place its vicar in a house called Kirkland, and a historical novel can give a returning crusader the name Palmer. Virtue first names such as Grace, Faith, Hope and Constance pair naturally with them, as in Grace Palmer or Faith Kirkland, and gentle traditional names like Thomas or Ruth sit well beside Clarke or Parsons.

    Keep in mind that a surname with church roots says nothing about a person's faith today. Many of these names are now completely ordinary. Parents sometimes use one as a middle name, church historians use them to trace old parishes and roles, and game designers use them for clerics and pilgrims. Use the letter bar to browse and read the meaning beside each name.

    Frequently asked questions

    Are Christian last names only used by Christians?

    No. These names formed in Christian societies, but surnames pass down regardless of belief. People with names like Clarke, Palmer or Church today may follow any faith or none. The names are a record of history and local life rather than a statement of religion.

    Why does Palmer relate to pilgrims?

    In the Middle Ages, pilgrims returning from the Holy Land often carried a palm branch or palm leaf as proof of their journey, and they were called palmers. The word became a nickname and then a surname for those who had made the pilgrimage.

    What does Clark have to do with the church?

    Clark comes from clerk, originally a cleric or man in minor church orders. Because clerics were among the few people who could read and write, the word later meant any scholar or secretary, and the surname named families with that skill.

    Do families really carry the name Christian?

    Yes. Christian is an old surname on the Isle of Man, from the Gaelic Mac Christin, and it is also found in England and North America. Fletcher Christian, who led the mutiny on the Bounty, came from a Cumbrian family with Manx roots.

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