115 Ancient Roman Surnames and Their Origins

Roman last names carry the weight of an empire that shaped law, language, and legend. Many trace back to a person’s trade, a physical trait, or the region a family called home, so each one tells a small story about who these people were.

This list gathers 115 Roman surnames, from famous names like Aurelius and Caesar to quieter, everyday choices, with the meaning and origin behind each so you can see where it came from and what it once signaled.

Browse the full list below and find the one that fits, whether you are naming a character, tracing your roots, or just drawn to the sound of ancient Rome.

115 Amazing Roman Last Names (For All the Family)

Start your own empire with these impressive Roman family names that fit any warrior.

1. Adrianus: A stately choice tied to Hadria, the Adriatic port town that also gave the sea its name and the emperor Hadrian his.
2. Aemilius: The name of the gens Aemilia, one of the oldest patrician clans of Rome, often traced to aemulus, meaning “rival.”
3. Aeneas: Belongs to the Trojan hero of the Aeneid by Virgil, the mythic ancestor whom Romans credited with founding their bloodline.
4. Albinus: A cognomen from albus, “white,” carried by the general Clodius Albinus, who briefly claimed the imperial throne.
5. Albus: Meaning “white” or “bright,” this surname starting with A reads clean and luminous.
6. Amabilia: A Late Latin name from amabilis, meaning “lovable,” that carries genuine softness and warmth.
7. Amadeus: Formed from ama and Deus for “love of God,” and famously worn by composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
8. Amato: An Italian name meaning “beloved,” from Latin amatus, that also marks a river and town in Calabria.
9. Anatolia: A place name from the Greek anatole, “sunrise” or “east,” suiting families with roots in Asia Minor.
10. Antonius: The clan name of Mark Antony (Marcus Antonius), the ally of Caesar and partner of Cleopatra, and the root of the modern Anthony.
11. Aries: The Latin word for “ram” and the first sign of the zodiac, bold and headstrong by reputation.
12. Arria: Worn by Arria the Elder, the Roman matron remembered for her calm courage facing death; its meaning is uncertain.
13. Atticus: Means “from Attica,” the region around Athens, and recalls the close friend of Cicero, Titus Pomponius Atticus.
14. Augustus: From augere, “to increase,” it became the honorific title of the first emperor of Rome and every emperor after him. Augustus ruled for 41 years, from 27 BC until his death in AD 14 at age 75 ⁽¹⁾.
15. Aurelius: From aureus, “golden,” and borne by Marcus Aurelius, the Stoic philosopher-emperor who wrote the Meditations.
16. Avitus: Means “ancestral” and was carried by the short-reigning fifth-century emperor Avitus.
17. Balbus: A cognomen meaning “stammerer,” worn by Cornelius Balbus, the first foreign-born man to reach the Roman consulship.
18. Barbara: From the Greek barbaros for “foreigner,” later the name of an early Christian saint and martyr.
19. Benedictus: Means “blessed” and belongs to Saint Benedict, the founder of Western monasticism.
20. Blandus: From blandus, “charming” or “smooth-spoken,” once carried by the rhetorician Rubellius Blandus.
21. Blasius: Glossed as “lisping,” it later became the name of Saint Blaise, patron of throat ailments.
22. Brutus: This famous Latin name means “heavy” or “dull,” yet it belongs to the two most famous Bruti, one who founded the Republic and one who ended Caesar.
23. Byzantine: Taken from Byzantium, the city that became Constantinople and the seat of the later Eastern Roman Empire.
24. Caecillius: Tied to the gens Caecilia and the powerful Metelli, from caecus, meaning “blind.”
25. Caelius: From caelum, “sky” or “heaven,” and shared with the Caelian, one of the seven hills of Rome.
26. Caesar: The cognomen of the Julian clan and of Julius Caesar himself, later an imperial title that gave us Kaiser and Tsar.
27. Candida: From candidus, “white” or “pure,” and the name of an early martyr honored in Naples.
28. Carina: From carus, “dear” or “beloved,” and also the keel-shaped constellation of the southern sky.
29. Cassius: The clan of Gaius Cassius Longinus, a leading assassin of Caesar; from cassus, “empty” or “hollow.”
30. Castor: One half of the heavenly twins with Pollux, a horseman and protector of sailors in Roman myth.
31. Catallus: Recalls the lyric poet Catullus, whose sharp love poems survive; the name comes from catulus, “puppy.”
32. Cato: From catus, “shrewd” or “wise,” and worn by Cato the Elder and the unbending Cato the Younger.
33. Cestus: Named for the caestus, the leather-and-metal boxing glove worn by Roman fighters.
34. Christianus: A late Roman name meaning “follower of Christ,” dignified and openly devout.
35. Cicero: Means “chickpea,” a humble nickname carried by the greatest orator of Rome, Marcus Tullius Cicero.
36. Clarus: From clarus, “clear” or “famous,” and the root of the girl names Clara and Clare.
37. Claudius: The clan of the emperor Claudius; from claudus, “lame,” though the family itself was anything but weak.
38. Cornelius: One of the grandest clans of Rome, home to Scipio Africanus; from cornu, meaning “horn.”
39. Corvinus: From corvus, “raven,” and tied to the legend of Valerius Corvus, aided in battle by the bird.
40. Crepereius: An old gens of Sabine roots and uncertain meaning, now hard to find and pleasantly unusual.
41. Decimus: The praenomen for “tenth,” worn by Decimus Brutus, one of the assassins of Caesar.
42. Delphi: Named for the Greek sanctuary of Apollo, whose famed oracle sat there; its name shares a root with delphys, “womb.”
43. Domitius: From domitus, “tamed,” and the clan of Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus, an ancestor of Nero.
44. Drusus: A cognomen of the Claudian house borne by the general Nero Claudius Drusus, said to come from a slain enemy chief.
45. Ephesus: The great Greek city of Asia Minor under Roman rule, home to the famed Temple of Artemis.
46. Fabius: From faba, “bean,” and the clan of Fabius Maximus, the general who wore Hannibal down by patient delay.
47. Falto: A rare cognomen of the Quinctian house whose meaning is uncertain, giving it real scarcity.
48. Faunus: The horned Roman god of the wild and the countryside, a protector of flocks and forests.
49. Faustus: From faustus, “fortunate,” worn by the son of Sulla and later immortalized in the Faust legend.
50. Flaccus: Means “floppy” or “flabby,” yet it was the family name of the poet Horace, Quintus Horatius Flaccus.
51. Flamen: The title of a Roman priest devoted to a single god, giving the name a solemn, sacred weight.
52. Flavius: From flavus, “golden,” the name of the Flavian dynasty of emperors and a classic Roman name for a fair-haired family.
53. Florentius: From florens, “blooming,” a fitting pick for a growing family and the name of several saints.
54. Fulgentius: From fulgens, “shining,” carried by Saint Fulgentius of Ruspe, a noted early theologian.
55. Gallus: Means both “rooster” and “a Gaul,” and belonged to the poet and soldier Cornelius Gallus.
56. Geminius: From geminus, “twin,” sharing its root with the constellation and zodiac sign Gemini.
57. Gordian: From Gordium, city of the legendary knot, and the name of three third-century emperors.
58. Hadrianus: From the town of Hadria, and the family name of Hadrian, the emperor who walled off northern Britain.
59. Heraclius: The name of the Byzantine emperor Heraclius, drawn from the Greek hero Herakles.
60. Hilarius: From hilaris, “cheerful,” and the name of Saint Hilary of Poitiers.
61. Horatius: The clan of Horatius Cocles, who held the bridge against an army, and of the poet Horace.
62. Hortensius: From hortus, “garden,” and the name of Quintus Hortensius, the orator who rivaled Cicero.
63. Italus: The legendary king said to have given Italy its name, ideal for a family proud of Italian roots.
64. Janus: The two-faced god of doorways, beginnings, and endings, whose name opens the calendar as January. NASA named a moon of Saturn Janus for this god; it completes one orbit every 17 hours ⁽²⁾.
65. Julius: From the Julian clan of Julius Caesar, traced to Iulus, son of Aeneas, and glossed as “youthful.”
66. Junius: Tied to the goddess Juno and the month of June, and to the founding hero Junius Brutus.
67. Juventus: From Juventas, goddess of youth, giving it a bright, energetic spirit.
68. Laelius: The clan of Gaius Laelius, the loyal friend of Scipio and the model for the essay on friendship by Cicero.
69. Laurentius: From Laurentum and the victory laurel, and the name of the martyr Saint Lawrence.
70. Livius: The clan of the historian Livy, Titus Livius, whose gloss “envious” comes from the verb liveo.
71. Lorenzo: The Italian form of Laurentius, meaning “from Laurentum” or “laurel,” warm and lyrical.
72. Lucilius: From lux, “light,” and worn by Gaius Lucilius, the father of Roman verse satire.
73. Magnus: Means “great” and was the honorific of Pompey the Great, Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus.
74. Manlius: The clan of Manlius Capitolinus, whose alarmed geese saved Rome; often linked to mane, “morning.”
75. Marcellus: A diminutive of Marcus, from Mars, borne by the general who took Syracuse and by the young heir of Augustus.
76. Martini: An Italian family name rooted in Martinus and the war god Mars, familiar across modern Italy.
77. Martinus: From Mars, god of war, and the name of Saint Martin of Tours, who shared his cloak with a beggar.
78. Maximus: Means “greatest,” a title earned by Fabius Maximus and later worn by the hero of the film Gladiator.
79. Mors: The Latin personification of death, stark and unforgettable for a family drawn to the dramatic.
80. Octavius: Means “eighth” and was the birth name of Octavian, before he became the emperor Augustus.
81. Orbius: An obscure plebeian gens sometimes linked to orbus, “bereaved” or “orphaned.”
82. Otho: The name of the emperor Otho, who reigned only months in the chaotic Year of the Four Emperors.
83. Ovidius: From ovis, “sheep,” and the clan of the poet Ovid, author of the Metamorphoses.
84. Pacheco: A Spanish and Portuguese surname of pre-Roman Iberian origin, often read as “peaceful.”
85. Paulus: From paulus, “small,” yet borne by the great general Aemilius Paullus and by Saint Paul.
86. Pollux: The immortal twin of Castor and a champion boxer among the gods, adored in Roman ritual.
87. Pompeius: The clan of Pompey the Great, from an Oscan root meaning “five.”
88. Porcius: From porcus, “pig,” and the family name of Cato, Marcus Porcius Cato.
89. Postumulenus: A rare Roman name related to postumus, “last-born,” and quite the mouthful to say.
90. Priscus: Means “ancient,” the cognomen of the early king Tarquinius Priscus, rich with a sense of heritage.
91. Quirinius: Linked to Quirinus, the deified Romulus, and to Governor Quirinius of the Nativity story; often glossed “spear.”
92. Romano: This Italian surname simply means “Roman” and carries the weight of the whole ancient city.
93. Romeo: Originally meant “pilgrim to Rome,” and lives on through the young lover in Shakespeare.
94. Rufus: Means “red” or “red-haired,” a common Roman nickname worn by the philosopher Musonius Rufus.
95. Sabinus: Points to the Sabines, the central Italian people the early Romans absorbed into their city.
96. Salvius: From salvus, “safe” or “whole,” and the family name of the emperor Otho, Marcus Salvius Otho.
97. Scipione: The Italian form of Scipio, “staff” or “walking stick,” and the name of the greatest war heroes of Rome.
98. Senaca: Recalls the Stoic philosopher Seneca, tutor to Nero; the name comes from senex, “old.”
99. Severus: Means “stern,” the cognomen of the tough soldier-emperor Septimius Severus.
100. Sextus: Means “sixth,” a praenomen worn by Sextus Pompey, son of Pompey the Great.
101. Soranus: Points to the town of Sora and recalls Soranus of Ephesus, an influential ancient physician.
102. Tatius: The name of Titus Tatius, the Sabine king who ruled Rome jointly with Romulus.
103. Tiberius: Drawn from the river Tiber and worn by the second emperor of Rome, Tiberius.
104. Titan: Evokes the primordial giants who ruled before the gods, grand and full of raw power. NASA named a moon of Saturn Titan for these giants; Pioneer 11, the first spacecraft through the Saturn system, flew past it in 1979 ⁽³⁾.
105. Tullius: The clan of the king Servius Tullius and of Cicero, Marcus Tullius Cicero; glossed “supporter.”
106. Ulpius: The clan name of the emperor Trajan, Marcus Ulpius Traianus, an animal-inspired name sometimes tied to the wolf.
107. Umbrius: Points to Umbria, the green heart of central Italy, for a family with roots there.
108. Valentinus: From valens, “strong” and “healthy,” and the name behind Saint Valentine.
109. Valerius: From valere, “to be strong,” and the clan of Valerius Publicola, an early champion of the Republic.
110. Venator: The Latin word for “hunter,” sharp-eyed and ready for the chase.
111. Venti: The Latin word for the winds, personified as the Roman wind gods who drive the seas.
112. Virgilius: The family name of Virgil, the greatest poet of Rome and author of the Aeneid; often read as “flourishing.”
113. Vita: Means “life,” a warm and hopeful Latin name full of promise.
114. Volpi: An Italian family name from volpe, “fox,” clever and quick like its namesake.
115. Vulcan: Honors Vulcan, the Roman god of fire and the forge, and the source of the word volcano.

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