Lebanese Last Names

These Lebanese last names are real family names from Lebanon's towns and mountain villages, listed A to Z with Arabic script and meanings. Many recall a trade, a church role or an ancestor, and their French style spellings travelled with Lebanese families worldwide.

169 real surnames with meanings, A to Z.

A

Abboud عبود

Devout worshipper

Arabic
Abdallah عبد الله

Servant of God

Arabic
Abdel Samad عبد الصمد

Servant of the Eternal

Arabic
Abdo عبده

His servant; short for Abdallah

Arabic
Abi Chedid أبي شديد

Of Father Chedid, the strong one

Arabic
Abi Nader أبي نادر

Of Father Nader, the rare one

Arabic
Abi Rached أبي راشد

Of Father Rached, the rightly guided

Arabic
Abi Saab أبي صعب

Of Father Saab, the tough one

Arabic
Abou Chakra أبو شقرا

Father of the fair-haired one; Druze family

Arabic
Abou Haidar أبو حيدر

Father of Haidar

Arabic
Abou Jaoude أبو جودة

Father of Jaoude, generosity

Arabic
Abou Khalil أبو خليل

Father of Khalil

Arabic
Akl عقل

Reason, mind

Arabic
Antoun أنطون

Anthony

Arabic
Aoun عون

Help, aid

Arabic
Arida عريضة

Broad

Arabic
Aridi العريضي

Possibly from arid, broad; Druze family

Arabic
Arslan أرسلان

Lion; Druze princely family

Turkish
Assaad الأسعد

Most fortunate

Arabic
Assaf عساف

Possibly from biblical Asaph; Keserwan family

Arabic
Attar عطار

Perfumer, spice seller

Arabic
Ayoub أيوب

Job

Arabic
Azar عازار

Lazarus; God has helped

Arabic
Aziz عزيز

Dear, beloved

Arabic

B

Baroud بارود

Gunpowder

Arabic
Bassil باسيل

Basil; kingly

Arabic
Bazzi بزي

Shia family of Bint Jbeil, meaning uncertain

Arabic
Berri بري

Possibly from barri, of the open land

Arabic
Beydoun بيضون

Possibly from abyad, white or fair

Arabic
Bitar بيطار

Farrier, veterinarian

Arabic
Boulos بولس

Paul

Arabic
Boutros بطرس

Peter

Arabic
Bustani البستاني

Gardener

Arabic

C

Chahine شاهين

Falcon

Arabic
Chalhoub شلهوب

Possibly flame

Arabic
Chami شامي

From Damascus or the Levant

Arabic
Chammas شماس

Deacon

Arabic
Chamoun شمعون

Simeon

Arabic
Chedid شديد

Strong, intense

Arabic
Chehab شهاب

Meteor, shooting star

Arabic
Chidiac الشدياق

Subdeacon, from Syriac

Arabic

D

Dagher داغر

Possibly bold or rushing

Arabic
Dahdah الدحداح

Short, stocky person

Arabic
Daher ضاهر

Apparent, manifest

Arabic
Daou ضو

Light

Arabic
Deeb ديب

Wolf

Arabic
Doumit ضومط

Dometius, a saint's name

Arabic

E

Edde إده

Maronite family name of uncertain origin

Arabic
Elias إلياس

Elijah

Arabic

F

Fadlallah فضل الله

Grace of God

Arabic
Fakhoury فاخوري

Potter

Arabic
Fares فارس

Knight, horseman

Arabic
Farhat فرحات

Joys

Arabic
Fattal فتال

Rope maker

Arabic
Frangieh فرنجية

Frankish, European; Maronite family of Zgharta

Arabic

G

Geagea جعجع

Possibly from ja'ja', clamor; Bsharri Maronite family

Arabic
Gemayel الجميل

Diminutive of beautiful; Maronite family of Bikfaya

Arabic
Gerges جرجس

George

Arabic
Ghanem غانم

Successful; winner of spoils

Arabic
Ghazal غزال

Gazelle

Arabic
Ghosn غصن

Branch, bough

Arabic
Gibran جبران

Possibly from jabr, mending or restoring

Arabic

H

Haddad حداد

Blacksmith

Arabic
Hage الحاج

Pilgrim to Mecca or Jerusalem

Arabic
Haidar حيدر

Lion

Arabic
Hakim حكيم

Wise; physician

Arabic
Halabi حلبي

From Aleppo

Arabic
Hallak حلاق

Barber

Arabic
Hamadeh حمادة

Praiseworthy; Druze families of Mount Lebanon and a Shia clan of the Bekaa

Arabic
Hamdan حمدان

Praise

Arabic
Hamieh حمية

Zeal, protective pride

Arabic
Hanna حنا

John

Arabic
Harb حرب

War

Arabic
Harfouche حرفوش

Shia family of Baalbek, meaning uncertain

Arabic
Hariri الحريري

Silk maker or silk merchant

Arabic
Hayek حايك

Weaver

Arabic
Hitti حتي

Maronite family name of uncertain meaning

Arabic
Hobeiche حبيش

Possibly from habash, Abyssinian; Maronite family

Arabic
Hobeika حبيقة

Possibly from habaq, basil

Arabic
Husseini الحسيني

Descendant of Hussein

Arabic

I

Ibrahim إبراهيم

Abraham

Arabic
Issa عيسى

Jesus

Arabic
Itani عيتاني

Beirut Sunni family name of uncertain origin

Arabic

J

Jaafar جعفر

Stream, small river

Arabic
Jabbour جبور

Possibly from jabbar, mighty

Arabic
Jaber جابر

Consoler, restorer

Arabic
Jreige جريج

Local form of George

Arabic
Jumblatt جنبلاط

Druze family, possibly from Kurdish Janbulad, soul of steel

Arabic

K

Kallas كلاس

Lime burner

Arabic
Kanaan كنعان

Canaan

Arabic
Karam كرم

Generosity; also vineyard

Arabic
Karami كرامي

Generous, noble

Arabic
Kassab قصاب

Butcher

Arabic
Kassem قاسم

Divider, distributor

Arabic
Kassis قسيس

Priest

Arabic
Khalifeh خليفة

Successor, caliph

Arabic
Khalil خليل

Close friend

Arabic
Khayat خياط

Tailor

Arabic
Khazen الخازن

Treasurer; Maronite noble family of Keserwan

Arabic
Khoueiry خويري

Little priest

Arabic
Khoury خوري

Priest; common among Christian clergy families

Arabic

L

Lahoud لحود

Maronite family name of uncertain origin

Arabic

M

Maalouf معلوف

Well-fed; large Christian family long associated with Zahle

Arabic
Maatouk معتوق

Freed, liberated

Arabic
Makhoul مخول

Possibly entrusted or endowed

Arabic
Mansour منصور

Victorious

Arabic
Maroun مارون

Maron, patron saint of the Maronites

Arabic
Masri مصري

From Egypt

Arabic
Matar مطر

Rain

Arabic
Merhi مرعي

Possibly from mar'a, pasture; well tended

Arabic
Mikati ميقاتي

Timekeeper for prayer times

Arabic
Mikhael ميخائيل

Michael

Arabic
Mouawad معوض

Compensated

Arabic
Moussa موسى

Moses

Arabic
Moussawi الموسوي

Descendant of Imam Musa al-Kazim

Arabic
Mrad مراد

Wish, desire

Arabic

N

Naccache نقاش

Engraver, decorative painter

Arabic
Nader نادر

Rare, precious

Arabic
Naimy نعيمة

Comfort, blessing

Arabic
Najem نجم

Star

Arabic
Najjar نجار

Carpenter

Arabic
Nakhle نخلة

Palm tree

Arabic
Nasr نصر

Victory

Arabic
Nasrallah نصر الله

Victory of God

Arabic
Nassar نصار

Helper, supporter

Arabic
Nassif ناصيف

Possibly from nasif, just or fair

Arabic
Nehme نعمة

Grace, blessing

Arabic
Njeim نجيم

Little star

Arabic
Nohra نهرا

Light, from Syriac nuhro

Arabic

O

Obeid عبيد

Little servant of God

Arabic
Osseiran عسيران

Shia family of Sidon, meaning uncertain

Arabic

R

Raad رعد

Thunder

Arabic
Rached راشد

Rightly guided

Arabic
Rahbani الرحباني

Of the monks

Arabic
Rahme رحمة

Mercy

Arabic
Rizk رزق

Sustenance, God's provision

Arabic
Rizkallah رزق الله

Provision of God

Arabic

S

Saab صعب

Difficult, tough

Arabic
Saad سعد

Good fortune

Arabic
Sabbagh صباغ

Dyer

Arabic
Sabra صبرا

Cactus; patience

Arabic
Sakr صقر

Falcon

Arabic
Salam سلام

Peace

Arabic
Salameh سلامة

Safety, well-being

Arabic
Saliba صليبا

Cross

Arabic
Sarkis سركيس

Sergius

Arabic
Sarraf صراف

Money changer

Arabic
Sayegh صايغ

Goldsmith

Arabic
Semaan سمعان

Simon

Arabic
Sfeir صفير

Possibly from safir, whistle; Maronite family

Arabic
Siniora السنيورة

Said to come from Italian signora, lady

Arabic
Sleiman سليمان

Solomon

Arabic
Solh الصلح

Reconciliation, peace

Arabic
Sursock سرسق

Greek Orthodox Beirut family of uncertain origin

Arabic

T

Tabet ثابت

Firm, steadfast

Arabic
Talhouk تلحوق

Druze family of Mount Lebanon, meaning uncertain

Arabic
Tannous طنوس

Anthony

Arabic
Taouk طوق

Collar, ring

Arabic
Tohme طعمة

Food, morsel

Arabic
Touma توما

Thomas

Arabic
Tueni تويني

Greek Orthodox family name of uncertain meaning

Arabic

W

Wehbe وهبة

Gift

Arabic

Y

Yacoub يعقوب

Jacob

Arabic
Yazbeck يزبك

Druze family name, possibly of Turkic origin

Arabic
Yazigi اليازجي

Scribe, from Turkish yazıcı

Turkish
Youssef يوسف

Joseph

Arabic

Z

Zahra زهرة

Flower

Arabic
Zein زين

Beauty, grace

Arabic
Zgheib زغيب

Little fuzzy one, from zaghab, down

Arabic

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Results (6)

Mansour

منصور

Victorious

Arabic
Assaf

عساف

Possibly from biblical Asaph; Keserwan family

Arabic
Saad

سعد

Good fortune

Arabic
Aridi

العريضي

Possibly from arid, broad; Druze family

Arabic
Maalouf

معلوف

Well-fed; large Christian family long associated with Zahle

Arabic
Chedid

شديد

Strong, intense

Arabic

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Lebanese last names and their meanings

Trade names are among the most familiar. Haddad means smith, Najjar carpenter, Sabbagh dyer, Hallak barber and Bustani gardener. Khoury means priest, and it is widespread because Eastern churches allow married village priests, whose descendants took the title as a surname. Hage marks a family whose ancestor made a pilgrimage. Other names describe appearance or character, such as Dahdah, a short and stocky person, or come from wishes and virtues, such as Rizk, meaning provision or good fortune.

Many names grew from an ancestor's given name. Boutros is Peter, Hanna is John, Tannous comes from Antonius, Youssef is Joseph and Moussa is Moses. Names such as these are common among Christian families, while Muslim families often carry names built on Arabic given names, like Saad, Hamdan or Kassem. Each entry in the list above gives the meaning, so you can see which names come from trades, which from ancestors and which from nicknames.

Villages, churches and extended families

Lebanese surnames are closely tied to place. Many families trace themselves to a single mountain village, and people still say which village their family is from even after generations in Beirut or abroad. Some surnames are shared by most of one village, while others belong to a single extended family. Church and community registers, whether Maronite, Orthodox, Melkite, Sunni, Shia or Druze, are often the best source for how a name moved over time.

Old Beirut families such as Itani, Salam, Daouk, Sinno and Tabbara are long associated with the city itself. In the mountains, Druze families like Hamadeh and Abou Chakra have deep local roots. Names beginning with Abou or Bou, meaning father of, are common too, as in Abou Jaoude or Bou Khalil. They began as a nickname for a man through his eldest son, and over time the whole family took the name.

French spellings and families abroad

Because Lebanon was under French mandate after the First World War and French remains widely used, many names are spelled the French way. The sound sh is written ch, as in Chamoun or Chidiac, and the sound u is written ou, as in Khoury or Moussa. The same name can therefore look quite different in English, French and Spanish records. Khoury also appears as Khouri, Khory and Coury, and Haddad sometimes appears as Hadad.

Lebanese families emigrated in large numbers from the late nineteenth century to the Americas, West Africa and Australia. Along the way, names were respelled by immigration officers or adapted by families themselves. In Mexico, for example, one well known family turned Salim into Slim, while in the United States some names were shortened or translated. If you are researching a family abroad, search for several spellings and check whether the name was once longer.

Frequently asked questions

Which Lebanese last names are most familiar?

Names such as Khoury, Haddad, Hanna, Nassar, Khalil, Saad, Karam, Azar, Harb and Najjar are widely found in Lebanon and among Lebanese families abroad. There is no single official ranking, and some names are far more common in particular regions or religious communities.

What does Abou or Bou mean in a name?

Abou means father of, and Bou is a shortened form. It began as a respectful way of addressing a man through his eldest son, such as Abou Khalil, father of Khalil. In some families the nickname stuck and became the surname for later generations.

Why are Lebanese names spelled with ch and ou?

These spellings follow French conventions, a legacy of the French mandate period and of French education in Lebanon. Ch stands for the English sh sound and ou for the English u sound, so Chamoun is pronounced Shamoon and Khoury sounds like Khoori.

Why do so many families carry the name Khoury?

Khoury means priest. In the Maronite, Orthodox and Melkite churches, village priests may marry, so many families descend from a priest and adopted the title as their surname. Because this happened independently in many villages, most Khoury families are not closely related.