Surnames are the strongest historical tie we have to our ancestors. Though there might be plenty of mystery surrounding less popular last names, they tend to traditionally come from one of the ...

Whether an Italian last name is world-renowned, commonplace, or stems from nature or ancestors' occupations, they're unforgettable. So, brush off your pasta presses because we're diving deep into some ...

Ashkenazic Jews were among the last Europeans to take family names. Some German speaking Jews took last names as early as the 17 th century, but the overwhelming majority of Jews lived in Eastern ...

IrishCentral has put together a list of the top 100 common Irish surnames with a little explanation of where these names come from. If your name does not appear in this list, you may find it in our ...

As with many aspects of Jewish culture, religion, genetics and heritage, the origins of Jewish last names are ensconced in more myth than fact. There are many explanations out there attempting to ...

A draft law on dropping Russian endings from Azeri last names is fueling debate in Azerbaijan about how best to define the country's national identity. As elsewhere in the South Caucasus, Russia's ...

This piece originally ran on jewishcurrents.org. Ashkenazic Jews were among the last Europeans to take family names. Some German speaking Jews took last names as early as the 17 th century, but the ...