107 Czech Last Names With Meanings And History

Czech people have some of the most unique last names which are originated mostly from German, Czech And Slovak.

Family names always count as an important part of the heritage and have been passed down through generations. Unlike other surnames, Czech names tend to carry a legacy within the name.

Czech is a language used in the country called the Czech Republic. Czech based surnames are greatly influenced by gender. For example, a woman's last name should have a feminine kind of ending. And just like this, there are many interesting histories attached to Czech surnames. Also, the variations in the spellings of these surnames are what makes them very unique and distinguishable! The last names can differ by religion, origin, occupation, and various other characteristics. So, we present to you the list of some of the popular and unique Czech surnames with their meanings and history.

For more last names, take a look at Serbian Last Names and Swedish Last Names.

The vibrant nature of Czech surnames is what makes them stand out in a crowd. And this is the quality which made some of the Czech last names very famous. We present to you the list of such popular Czech names.

1. Benes and the name is derived from the first name Benedikt meaning "blessed".  Czech basketball player and coach Ivan Benes has this last name.

2. Cermak meaning "name of the bird".

3. Cerny meaning "a dark haired man". This last name is linked with well known Czech writer Adolf Cerny.

4. Dvorak meaning "a man from a yard". This name is very famous in Moravia and commonly used surname in Czech lands.

5. Fiala meaning "viola". This surname got famous due to Czech actor Karel Fiala.

6. Hajek meaning "bush; forest".

7. Horak meaning "a man from the hills; highlander".

8. Huba meaning "cheeky, sharp-tongued person".

9. Jelinek meaning "stag; deer".

10. Kadlec and the name is derived from the occupation weaver. A famous person associated with this last name is the Czech football player, Václav Kadlec.

11. Kovar meaning "smith".

12. Kral (Slavic origin) meaning "king". Grammy award winner, Ivan Kral who is a Czech songwriter, filmmaker, and producer has made this last name very famous.

13. Kratochvil meaning "an amusing man".

14. Kucera meaning "curly".

15. Maly (Polish origin) meaning "small by the heigh".

16. Marek (Slavic origin), derived from the first name Markus. The Well-known Czech football player Josef Marek is known by this last name.

17. Nedv meaning "bear". Nemec surname is usually adopted by Germans as their first names.

18. Nekola meaning "stubborn person".

19. Novak (Slavic origin) meaning "newly settled neighbor; a new man". Novak is considered to be the most popular Czech last name. This name is also associated with popular American actor and director, B.J. Novak.

20. Novotny meaning "a newcomer".

21. Pokorny meaning "humble; tame". This surname is associated with Czech chess master Amos Pokorny.

22. Pospisil meaning "who was in a hurry".

23. Prochazka meaning "who came back from the Wander; stroll; walk". This name was usually given to those who had an occupation of traveling tradesmen.

24. Ruzicka meaning "little rose'.

25. Schovajsa (Moravian origin) meaning "hide yourself".

26. Soucek meaning "knot". This last name is considered to be among the famous surnames used in the Czech Republic.

27. Stastny (Slavic origin) meaning "happy".

28. Svoboda meaning "freeman; free owner".

29. Vesely meaning "cheerful". Czech football player Bohumil Vesely carries this name.

30. Vlcek meaning "little wolf".

31. Zeman meaning "esquire". This surname is referred to those who are a member of the lowest based nobility having a coat of arms.

The Czech Republic is a small country in Europe where different kinds of individuals find their habitats. So, in order to recognize them, there are certain unique surnames too. Some of these unique Czech last names are listed below:

32. Beran (Polish origin) meaning "stubborn; ram".

33. Cech meaning "newcomer". It is considered to be the name given to inhabitants of Cechy.

34. Cervenka meaning "red in the face".

35. Chalupa meaning "cottage". This surname is linked with the famous Czech ice hockey player, Milan Chalupa.

36. Chvatal meaning "to hurry".

37. Cizek meaning "siskin; type of bird".

38. Fiala meaning "violet; flower". This name is associated with a person who lived in a place where violet flowers had grown.

39. Hajek meaning "thicket". Famous Czech table tennis player Bohumil Hajek carries this surname.

40. Hlavacek meaning "head".

41. Holub meaning "pigeon". Czech doctor and explorer Emil Holub is known by this last name.

42. Horacek meaning "mountain".

43. Hruby meaning "course; crude". Considered to be one of the famous Czech names. Peter Rudolph Hruby was a Czech writer.

44. Jelen (Polish origin) meaning "stag".

45. Jezek meaning "hedge-hog".

46. Kalas (Gaelic origin) meaning "strife". Tomáš Kalas is a Czech footballer.

47. Kovarik meaning "smith".

48. Kolář (German origin) meaning "wheel wright". Jiří Kolář was a Czech poet.

49. Kratochvil meaning "pastime".

50. Kraus (German origin) meaning "curly". Jan Kraus is a Czech actor.

51. Krejci meaning "tailor". Czech volleyball player Cyril Krejci is known by this family name.

52. Kysely meaning "sour".

53. Matejka, and derived from the first name Matej.

54. Musil meaning "must". Czech skier Cyril Musil carries this last name.

55. Navratil meaning "to return". This surname got famous due to Czech football player Jakub Navratil.

56. Nemec (German, Slavic origin) meaning "mute, foreigner".

57. Nosek (Polish origin) meaning "little nose".

58. Skala meaning "strong as a rock".

59. Slavik (Slavic origin) meaning "nightingale".

60. Stepanek, and derived from the first name Stephen.

61. Strnad meaning "bunting". Famous American writer Jan Strnad (from Czech origin) has this last name.

62. Tichý meaning "calm". This surname is associated with a famous Czech photographer, Miroslav Tichý.

63. Zelenka meaning "green".

Czech surnames find their way back from historic times and are very ancient. Here, we present you with some of the ancient Czech surnames list:

64. Adamik - This last name is considered to be the Czech form of Adam.

65.  Beranek meaning "little ram; male lamb'. Czech football coach Miroslav Beranek has this surname.

66. Bernard (German origin) meaning "brave".

67. Bobal (Slavic origin) meaning "bean".

68. Bucek meaning "beach tree".

69. Czech meaning "Czech". This name is used to refer to those who are part of the Czech Republic.

70. Cermak meaning "redstart; a bird name".

71. Cerveny meaning "red".

72. Cipra (Czech origin), derived from Cipriano, referring to an inhabitant from Cyprus.

73. Ctvrtnik meaning "one-quarter of land". This Czech name is denoted as a measure of land and is given to those who owned this much of a land area.

74. Doubek meaning "small oak".

75. Dusek meaning "soul".

76. Dvorak meaning "manor". This last name is associated with famous Czech composer Antonin Dvorak.

77. Fischer (German origin) meaning "fisher". Jan Fischer is a Czech politician.

78. Hrabe meaning "count".

79. Hruska meaning "a pear". This surname is given to those who had grown or sold pears.

80. Janousek, derived from the first name Jan.

81. Jedlicka meaning "fir tree".

82. Jehlicka meaning "needle". This name is derived from the occupation of tailors.

83. Kladivo meaning "hammer". It is used as a nickname for a blacksmith.

84. Kohout meaning "rooster".

85. Kopecky and is referred to as those who originated from the hills.

86. Kostelecky meaning "church". Famous Czech racing driver Jaroslav Kostelecky has this surname.

87. Kriz (Slavic origin) meaning "from the cross".

88. Kúdela (English origin) meaning "reincarnator". This last name is linked with Czech football player Ondřej Kúdela.

89. Masopust (Czech origin) meaning "carnival". Josef Masopust was a famous Czech football player.

90. Martinek, and derived from the first name Martin meaning "war-like".

91. Pesek, derived from the first name Peter, meaning "stone".

92. Polak (German origin) meaning "pole; a person from Poland". Famous Czech ice hockey player Roman Polak has this surname.

93. Sedlacek meaning "farmer".

94. Soukup meaning "who bought something". This surname is linked with Czech kickboxer Jan Soukup.

Slovak surnames are from the country of Slovakia however, many Slovak names are also common Czech surnames. Some of these such Slovak family names are listed below:

95. Bartos meaning "son of Talmay".

96. Brabec (Czech origin) meaning "sparrow". Jakub Brabec is a Czech footballer.

97. Bosko (Slavic origin) meaning "barefoot".

98. Hornik (Slavic origin) meaning "miner". This last name is derived from the occupation of mining.

99. Kaluza (Slavic origin) meaning "puddle". It is known to be the Slovene form of Kaluza.

100. Klement (Slavic origin) meaning "merciful; gentle".

101. Král (Czech origin) meaning "king". Alex Král is a Czech midfielder.

102. Reznik (Slavic origin) meaning "butcher". This last name is associated with famous Czech rapper Reznik.

103. Ryba (Slavic origin) meaning "fish". This is usually given to those with an occupation of a fisher.

104. Simon (Slavic origin) meaning "listen".

105. Skalicky (Slavic origin) meaning "rock". This name is derived from the place named Skalice, situated in the Czech Republic.

106. Slovak (Slavic origin) meaning "from Slovakia".

107. Zima (Slavic origin) meaning "winter". This name is given as a nickname to those having a chill personality.

Kidadl has lots of great names articles to inspire you. If you liked our suggestions for Czech Last Names then why not take a look at Mexican Last Names, or for something different take a look at Last Names Beginning With G.