55 Most Common French Last Names and Meaning

French is spoken in 51 countries around the world. It is estimated that about 35% of English words come from French. As such, I have hand-picked the 55 most common French last names with meanings included.

List Of Common French Last Names:

Durand

Durand means enduring and is from the Latin name Durandus. French former footballer Alain Durand played as a midfielder for Troyes.

Martin

Martin means ”god of war” or ”dedicated to Mars.” In France it has its origins in Martin of Tours who is the patron saint of soldiers and conscientious objectors.

Lefebvre

Lefebvre comes from the Old French fevre that means ”craftsman.” The English Feaver has roots in Lefebvre.

Bernard

It is from the West Germanic Bernhard that is symbolizing strong as a bear. About 1 in 400 Frenchmen is named Bernard.

Roux

Roux is from the Old French rous and means ”red” or ”red-haired.”

Dubois

It means ”from the woods” and has origins in the French phrase du bois. It is also spelled Du Bois or DuBois. Guillaume Dubois was a French cardinal and a minister in the administration of Philippe II. Cardinal Guillaume Dubois is played by Jean Rochefort in the movie ”Que la fête commence…”

Vincent

It is the name of the French bishop, Vincent of Digne. It comes from Latin vincere and means ”to conquer.”

Mathieu

Mathieu is linked to the Hebrew Mattithiah which is symbolizing ”gift of Yahweh.” It also originates in the Ancient Greek Matthaios.

Mercier

Mercier is an occupational name that means ”merchant.” It comes from the Latin merciarius (”one who trades”). The English version is Mercer.

Michel

It is the French variant of Michael. Michel has Hebrew origins and is meaning ”one who is like God.” In the Bible Michael is the chief of the angels and archangels

Robert

Robert has its origins in the Old Germanic Hrodebert (shining with glory).

Bertrand

It means “a stately hero” and also has Germanic roots. French film director Bertrand Blier bore this name.

Facts about the French language

The French language has many words that don’t have an English translation.

French is the fifth most widely spoken language in the world. The majority of people speaking French do not live in France.

French is the official language of the United Nations.

French is an official language in 26 countries.

Richard

Richard is from Old High German ”Ricohard” and has a meaning that I like, “strong in rule.” Riccardo is the variant in Italian, Ricardo in Spanish and Portuguese and Rickard in Swedish. Richard I was the Count of Rouen.

Fournier

Fournier is a French occupational name for ”baker.” It comes from the Latin furnarius.

Rousseau

Rousseau means red-haired or red and is from the French word ”roux.”

Lecomte

Lecomte is from the Old French word “conte” that means “count.” It was a nickname for someone in the service of a count.

Petit

Petit means little or small. It is pronounced “puh-TEE” and it was popular in the medieval era in France as a nickname.

READ MORE: 30 Chinese Boy Names

Blanc

”Fair” or ”white.” Laurent Blanc played 97 games for the French football national team.

Leroy

Leroy means “the king” and has Norman roots. Lee Roy and Leeroy are other forms.

Dumont

It is from the Old French du mont that means “of the mount.” Dumont is in the top 50 most common last names in France.

Moreau

Moreau has its origins in the Old French word more (dark-skinned). It was initially used as a nickname for someone with dark skin.

Bellamy

Bellamy is from the Latin bellum/bellus and combines the words beau/bel (that means ”handsome”) and ami (”companion”).

Lacroix

“The cross.” Gérald Lacroix was made a cardinal in 2014 and has served as Archbishop of Quebec.

Gauthier

It is symbolizing “powerful warrior” or “ruler of the army.” Gauthier de Costes was a French novelist who wrote several long heroic romances.

Simon

Simon means listening or to hear. Simonne is a French feminine form of Simon.

How to pick a good French name for your baby

Ask family and friends for ideas.

Don’t forget to consider nicknames.

You may want to double-check the meaning of the French name.

Laurent

Laurent finds its origins in the French language and is Roman Laurentius which means “from Laurentum.” The feminine form of Laurent is Laurence.

Perrin

It means stone or rock. Perrin is a diminutive of Pierre or Peter. Peter comes directly from the Greek Petros.

Morel

Morel means “dark” and fits well for Gothic parents (I also wrote an article about Gothic names).

Fontaine

It is a topographic surname for someone who lived near a well or a spring. La Fontaine and de La Fontaine Fountain are all common variants.

Girard

Girard comes from Germanic elements ger (that means ”spear”) and hard (strong).

André

André is a variation of the Greek Andreas and is meaning warrior or brave.

Lefèvre

Lefèvre is one of the most common surnames in France. It is an occupational name referring to “the ironworker.”

Guerin

Guerin has its origins in the Old French guarin and is symbolizing “to watch” or ”to guard.”

Lévesque

Lévesque is the equivalent of English Bishop.

Hardy

Hardy comes from ”hardi” and means “courageous” that has roots in the Old Frankish hardjan (“to make hard”).

Dupont

“Of the bridge.”

Chevalier

Chevalier is from the Latin word caballarius (rider).

Kaplan

Kaplan has origins in the Norman word “caplain”. In Turkey it means ”tiger.”

Tremblay

Tremblay (”someone who lived near a group of aspen trees”) is common in French-speaking Canada.

Gouin

Gouin (”white”) originated in the province of Brittany and is a cognate of the Welsh Gwyn. Alexandre Goüin was deputy for the department of Indre-et-Loire.

Lambert

Famous throughout the land.

Gagnon

Gagnon is from the verb gaaignier and is symbolizing “to work the land” or “to cultivate.” It is also common in North America.

Lavoie

Lavoie dates to the year 900 and means “the way.” Alexandre Lavoie plays for HDD Olimpija Ljubljana.

Beaugendre

“Handsome son-in-law.”

Garneau

It has roots in the seigneury of Garneau in the region of Poitou. Legarnault and Garneault are variations that I like.

Clair

Clair comes from the Latin clārus and means “bright” or “clear.”

Dufour

”Of the oven.”

Lagrange

”Someone who lived by a granary.” Anne-Marie Lagrange has been a member of the Academy of Sciences since 2013.

Cloutier

Its roots are Zacharie Cloutier, a carpenter who immigrated to New France in 1634. It means ”nail seller.”

Laval

It is an alternative spelling of Duval which comes from the Norman “Devall” and is meaning “of the valley.”

Desmoulins

Desmoulins (“from the mill”) was initially a nickname for someone who lived by the mill.

Garon

Garon comes from the Germanic Garo (“ready”). Jesse Garon Presley was the identical twin brother of Elvis Presley. Elvis was actually born 35 minutes after Jesse.

Dumas

It means “of the estate” or “of the farm” and has roots in the term “du mas”. Alexandre Dumas is the author of The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo. His published works totalled 100K pages.

Hector

Hector is from the Greek ekhein (“hold in check”). It is a rare surname in France.

Kouchner

Kouchner is a cognate of the English language Kushner that is from the Yiddish name קושנער.