Vampire Last Names

These vampire last names mix real surnames with dark meanings, old aristocratic family names from Central and Eastern Europe and a few clearly marked original names, each listed A to Z with its meaning and origin.

198 real and invented surnames with meanings, A to Z.

A

Andrássy

Of András, Andrew; Hungarian counts

Hungarian
Apafi

Transylvanian princely family

Hungarian
Ashcroft

Small field by ash trees

English
Ashmourne

Original fantasy name; ash and mourning

Fantasy
Auersperg

Austrian princes, from Auersperg castle

German

B

Bánffy

Son of the ban, a border governor

Hungarian
Basarab

Wallachian dynasty; possibly Cuman, father ruler

Turkish
Báthory

From the Bátor estate, a name meaning brave; Hungarian noble house

Hungarian
Batthyány

Hungarian noble house of the western borderlands

Hungarian
Beauchamp

Beautiful field

English
Beauregard

Beautiful view

French
Belcrova

Original fantasy name; beautiful blood, Slavic krov

Fantasy
Bethlen

Transylvanian princely family, from Bethlen town

Hungarian
Blackmore

Dark moor

English
Blackthorne

Dweller by a blackthorn

English
Blackwood

Dark wood

English
Blood

Possibly Welsh ab Llwyd, son of the gray one

Welsh
Borja

From Borja in Aragon; Italianized as Borgia

Spanish
Brukenthal

Transylvanian Saxon barons of Sibiu

German

C

Cantacuzino

Byzantine Kantakouzenos; later Wallachian and Moldavian boyars

Greek
Carew

Fort, Welsh caer

Welsh
Černín

Bohemian counts; from černý, black

Czech
Chernenko

Son of the dark one

Ukrainian
Chernyshev

Son of Chernysh, the dark one

Russian
Coffin

Possibly bald, or a basket maker

English
Colonna

Column; Roman princes

Italian
Contarini

Venetian patricians; possibly from conte, count

Italian
Corbett

Little raven

English
Corbin

Little crow or raven

French
Corvaleth

Original fantasy name; from corvus, raven

Fantasy
Corvino

Little raven

Italian
Corvo

Raven

Italian
Courtenay

From Courtenay in France; Earls of Devon

English
Cravenmoor

Original fantasy name; craven moor

Fantasy
Crimsonvale

Original fantasy name; the crimson valley

Fantasy
Crowley

Irish Ó Cruadhlaoich, hardy hero

Irish
Czartoryski

From Czartorysk; Polish-Lithuanian princes

Polish

D

Dacre

From a Cumbrian stream name, trickling

English
Darke

Dark hair or complexion

English
Delacroix

Of the cross

French
Devereux

From Évreux in Normandy

English
Draevenholt

Original fantasy name; dark raven hold

Fantasy
Dravonne

Original fantasy name; soft French-style ending

Fantasy
Duskmourne

Original fantasy name; dusk and mourning

Fantasy

E

Eisenstein

Iron stone

German
Esterházy

Hungarian princely house, from the Eszterház estate

Hungarian

F

Falkenstein

Falcon rock, a castle name

German
Farkas

Wolf

Hungarian
Farnese

From Farneto, oak grove; dukes of Parma

Italian
Fekete

Black

Hungarian
Frangipani

Bread breakers; a Roman noble house

Italian
Frost

White-haired or cold

English

G

Golitsyn

From golitsy, leather gloves; Russian princes

Russian
Gonzaga

From Gonzaga near Mantua; dukes of Mantua

Italian
Graves

Steward, or dweller by a grove

English
Grenville

From Grainville in Normandy

English
Grimm

Fierce or stern

German
Grimshaw

Grim's copse; Grim may mean a specter

English
Grimvald

Original fantasy name; grim ruler

Fantasy

H

Harcourt

From Harcourt in Normandy

English
Harrach

Austrian counts, from a place name

German
Harrow

Heathen shrine

English
Havránek

Little rook

Czech
Hawksmoor

Hawk's moor

English
Hemovane

Original fantasy name; blood banner

Fantasy
Holló

Raven

Hungarian
Holloway

Sunken road

English
Hunyadi

From Hunyad Castle in Transylvania

Hungarian

K

Károlyi

Of Károly, Charles; a Hungarian noble house

Hungarian
Karvolak

Original fantasy name; Slavic-sounding raven house

Fantasy
Kemény

Hard or stern

Hungarian
Kinsky

Bohemian counts, from Vchynice

Czech
Knell

Dweller by a knoll

English
Kochubey

Ukrainian-Russian nobles of Tatar descent

Ukrainian
Kolowrat

Old Bohemian noble house; wheel-turner, possibly

Czech
Komnenos

Byzantine imperial house

Greek
Krasiński

From Krasne, beautiful place

Polish
Kreutz

Cross, dweller by a wayside cross

German
Kruk

Raven

Polish

L

Laskaris

Byzantine emperors of Nicaea

Greek
Lenoir

The black

French
Lobkowicz

Bohemian princes, from Lobkovice

Czech
Lockwood

Enclosed wood

English
Loredan

Venetian patricians; possibly from laurel

Italian
Lovelace

Loveless, lacking love

English
Lovell

Wolf cub

English
Lubomirski

From Lubomierz; Polish princes

Polish
Lucreval

Original fantasy name; light's valley, ironically

Fantasy
Lugosi

From Lugos, a town in the Banat

Hungarian
Lusignan

French crusader house, tied to the Melusine legend

French

M

Malatesta

Bad head, a stubborn person; lords of Rimini

Italian
Mallory

Unlucky or ill-fated

English
Mavros

Black

Greek
Mazepa

Ukrainian; possibly a clumsy or awkward person

Ukrainian
Metternich

From Metternich near Koblenz

German
Montague

Pointed hill

English
Montefeltro

Mount Feretrius; dukes of Urbino

Italian
Montespan

From Montespan in Gascony

French
Montmorency

Hill of Maurentius; French dukes

French
Mordaunt

Biting, sharp-tongued

English
Moreau

Dark-skinned

French
Morosini

Venetian patricians; dark-complexioned

Italian
Morozov

Son of frost

Russian
Mortemart

From Mortemart; possibly dead marsh

French
Morthaven

Original fantasy name; haven of the dead

Fantasy
Mortimer

Dead or stagnant water, from Mortemer

English
Mortlock

Possibly from Mortlake, a Surrey place

English
Morvane

Original fantasy name; blends mort and vane

Fantasy
Morwraith

Original fantasy name; death wraith

Fantasy
Mournhollow

Original fantasy name; hollow of mourning

Fantasy
Mowbray

From Montbray, Normandy

English

N

Nachtveil

Original fantasy name; night veil

Fantasy
Nádasdy

From Nádasd, a reedy place; Hungarian magnates

Hungarian
Nightingale

Night singer

English
Noctavian

Original fantasy name; night plus an imperial ending

Fantasy
Nocterra

Original fantasy name; night and earth

Fantasy
Nyxmoor

Original fantasy name; night moor, after Nyx

Fantasy

O

Obolensky

From Obolensk; Russian princes

Russian
Obsidiane

Original fantasy name; from obsidian, black glass

Fantasy
Ördög

Devil, a Hungarian nickname

Hungarian
Orlov

Son of the eagle

Russian
Orsini

Little bears; Roman princes

Italian
Ossoliński

From Ossolin; Polish magnates

Polish

P

Palaiologos

Old word; the last Byzantine imperial house

Greek
Pálffy

Son of Pál, Paul; Hungarian counts

Hungarian
Percy

From Percy-en-Auge, Normandy

English
Pernštejn

Bohemian-Moravian lords, from Pernštejn castle

Czech
Poniatowski

From Poniatowa

Polish
Potocki

From Potok, stream

Polish

R

Rabe

Raven

German
Rabenstein

Raven rock, a castle name

German
Radziwiłł

Lithuanian-Polish princes; from a given name

Polish
Rákóczi

Transylvanian princes, from the village of Rákóc

Hungarian
Rasputin

From rasputye, crossroads

Russian
Ravenhill

Raven hill

English
Ravenscroft

Raven's enclosed field

English
Rohan

Breton ducal house, from Rohan

French
Rožmberk

Rose mountain; lords of South Bohemia

Czech

S

Sableheart

Original fantasy name; black heart

Fantasy
Saint-Germain

Of Saint Germain; recalls the deathless count of legend

French
Sanguerre

Original fantasy name; blood and war

Fantasy
Sanguinel

Original fantasy name; from Latin sanguis, blood

Fantasy
Sapieha

Lithuanian-Polish magnates; possibly from sapać, to pant

Polish
Sárkány

Dragon

Hungarian
Schwarzenberg

Black mountain; Bohemian-Austrian princes

German
Sexton

Church officer who dug graves

English
Sforza

Force; a Milanese ducal house

Italian
Sheremetev

Russian counts; from a Tatar-derived nickname

Russian
Sinclair

From Saint-Clair, Normandy

Scottish
Smertin

From smert, death; possibly a protective nickname

Russian
Sobieski

From Sobieszyn

Polish
St. Clair

From Saint-Clair, holy and bright

English
Starhemberg

Austrian princes, from Starhemberg castle

German
Šternberk

Star mountain; Bohemian lords

Czech
Strange

Foreigner or newcomer

English
Strigovar

Original fantasy name; from strigoi, the Romanian undead

Fantasy
Stroganov

From strogat, to plane or scrape

Russian
Szapolyai

Hungarian magnates, from Zápolje in Slavonia

Hungarian
Székely

A Székely, the Hungarian-speaking people of Transylvania

Hungarian
Szevarin

Original fantasy name; Hungarian-style spelling

Fantasy

T

Tarnowski

From Tarnów, thorn place

Polish
Teleki

Transylvanian counts; from telek, plot of land

Hungarian
Tenebrisk

Original fantasy name; from tenebrae, darkness

Fantasy
Thököly

Hungarian noble house of Upper Hungary

Hungarian
Thorne

Dweller by a thorn bush

English
Thornevale

Original fantasy name; thorn valley

Fantasy
Thurzó

Magnates of Upper Hungary

Hungarian
Trubetskoy

From Trubchevsk; Russian princes

Russian

U

Umbrevane

Original fantasy name; shadow banner

Fantasy

V

Vadas

Hunter, or place full of game

Hungarian
Valdrakov

Original fantasy name; ruler of dragons, Slavic style

Fantasy
Valois

From Valois; a royal house

French
Vane

Banner or weathervane

English
Vantorescu

Original fantasy name; Romanian-style ending

Fantasy
Velkaris

Original fantasy name; Slavic-sounding great house

Fantasy
De Vere

From Ver in Normandy; Earls of Oxford

English
Vesperine

Original fantasy name; of the evening

Fantasy
Veyrakov

Original fantasy name; Russian-style patronymic

Fantasy
Villiers

Farmstead, Old French; English dukes

English
Visconti

Viscounts; lords of Milan

Italian
Vitéz

Valiant knight or warrior

Hungarian
Volkonsky

From the Volkona river; Russian princes

Russian
Volkov

Son of the wolf

Russian
Voron

Raven

Ukrainian
Voronov

Son of the raven

Russian
Vorontsov

From voron, raven; Russian counts

Russian
Vorvassy

Original fantasy name; Hungarian-style noble ending

Fantasy
Vrána

Crow

Czech

W

Wallenstein

From Waldstein, forest stone; Bohemian-German general's family

German
Wesselényi

Transylvanian barons, from Veselé

Hungarian
Wilk

Wolf

Polish
Winter

Cold-natured, or born in winter

English
Wiśniowiecki

From Wiśniowiec, cherry place

Polish
Wolfe

Wolf

English
Wrona

Crow

Polish

Y

Yusupov

Son of Yusuf; Russian princes

Russian

Z

Zamoyski

From Zamoście, a place beyond the bog

Polish
Zrínyi

Croatian-Hungarian noble house, from Zrin castle

Hungarian

Generate random vampire surnames

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Results (6)

Belcrova

Original fantasy name; beautiful blood, Slavic krov

Fantasy
Mazepa

Ukrainian; possibly a clumsy or awkward person

Ukrainian
Morosini

Venetian patricians; dark-complexioned

Italian
Ashcroft

Small field by ash trees

English
Montague

Pointed hill

English
Darke

Dark hair or complexion

English

Saved names

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What makes a surname feel like a vampire

Folklore gave vampires a rough geography long before novels and films did. The Romanian strigoi, the Greek vrykolakas and the Slavic upir all come from Eastern and Southeastern Europe, so surnames from Romania, Hungary, Serbia and the Balkans carry that old world weight almost automatically. Add the idea of a titled family that has outlived its servants, its castle and its century, and you get the second strand: aristocratic names, often with a particle like von or de, that suggest land, money and a very long memory.

The third strand is meaning. Plenty of ordinary English and Scottish surnames sound grim because of what they describe. Blackwood is a dark forest, Ravenscroft is a raven's enclosure, and Mortimer comes from a Norman place name meaning still or dead water. None of these families had anything to do with the undead, which is exactly why they work. A real name with a shadowy meaning feels lived in, where a name invented purely to sound spooky can feel like a costume.

Real family names and the original ones

Most of the list is made of real surnames, and the meaning column tells you where each one comes from. Some are Hungarian or Czech, such as Hunyadi, from Hunyad Castle in Transylvania. Some belong to noble houses with a grim reputation, such as Báthory, the Hungarian family whose most famous countess became the subject of blood legends. Others are English or Scottish names chosen for their dark sound. Real surnames are safe to use in fiction, and readers find them believable because they are.

A smaller group of names were written for this site, because real surnames do not cover every mood a writer needs. These are marked as original in the list, so you always know which is which. Use them when you want a name that no real family carries, for a game world or a city that exists only in your story. If you are writing historical fiction set in eighteenth century Transylvania, stick to the real names and check the origin against your setting.

How to pick vampire last names for a story

Start with the age of your vampire. A creature turned in the fifteenth century would carry a name from that time and place and may never have changed it, which makes a Hungarian or Wallachian name a quiet clue for readers. A younger vampire, turned in 1920s London or New Orleans, would have an ordinary surname of the period and might borrow grander ones over the decades. Use the letter filter to browse one section at a time, and the search box to test a sound you already have in mind.

Then think about how the name will be said out loud. Vampire names often lean on hard consonants and long vowels, and a surname of two or three syllables tends to carry more menace than a clipped one. Say the full name with a first name, then imagine it spoken by a frightened servant or a jealous rival. If you still cannot decide, the small generator under the list pulls a few names at random, and the fantasy generator linked on this page adds hundreds more.

Frequently asked questions

Are the vampire last names on this page real?

Most of them are. The list is built mainly from real surnames with dark meanings or old European roots, plus some original names written for this site. Original entries are marked in the list, so you can choose depending on whether your story needs real history or invented flavour.

Where do vampire legends come from?

Most modern vampire stories draw on folklore from Eastern and Southeastern Europe, including the Romanian strigoi, the Greek vrykolakas and the Slavic upir. Reports of vampire panics in Serbia and the Habsburg borderlands in the 1720s and 1730s spread across Europe and fed later Gothic fiction, which is why names from that region still feel right.

Can I use these names in a game or a novel?

Yes. Real surnames are not owned by anyone, and the original names on this list were written for readers to use. It is still worth a quick search before you publish, because a name shared with a famous living person or a well known fictional character can distract readers.

What makes a good surname for a vampire character?

Look for three things: a place of origin that fits the character's age, a meaning with a hint of darkness, and a sound that is easy to say with menace. A name like Ravenscroft or Hunyadi ticks all three, while a very common name can work as a disguise for a vampire hiding in plain sight.