133+ Most Popular Greek Last Names Or Surnames With Meanings

Greek last names are unlike any other surnames in the world.

They are long. They are musical. They carry suffixes that tell you exactly where a family came from and who they descended from. And when you learn what they actually mean, you realize that every Greek surname is basically a sentence. Papadopoulos does not just mean Papadopoulos. It means son of the priest. Katsaros does not just mean Katsaros. It means curly-haired one.

Greek hereditary surnames only became widespread during the Byzantine era and were formalized during Ottoman rule and after Greek independence in the 19th century. Before that, Greeks used patronymics, meaning they identified themselves as the son or daughter of their father. That tradition is still alive in every Greek surname today.

And the suffixes tell the whole story. The -opoulos suffix comes from the Peloponnese and means descendant of. The -akis suffix is Cretan and carries a diminutive affection, like little or child of. The -idis suffix belongs to northern Greece and Pontic Greeks and means son of. The -atos suffix is from the Ionian islands. The -ou suffix just means of or belonging to.

Here are 133+ common Greek last names with their meanings and origins.

The Most Common Greek Surnames

These are the names you will encounter most often in Greece and in Greek communities worldwide. About 60 percent of all Greek surnames are patronymics, meaning they started out telling you who someone’s father was. The most common surname in Greece, Papadopoulos, is carried by over 59,000 people, meaning roughly one in every 188 Greeks shares it.

1. Papadopoulos — Son of the priest. The single most common Greek surname, reflecting centuries of Orthodox Christian tradition where priestly families held enormous social influence. Breaks down as papas meaning priest and -poulos meaning son of.
2. Georgiou — Son of George or of Georgios. Derived from Georgios, the Greek form of George, meaning farmer or earth-worker.
3. Dimitriou — Child of Demetrios. Demetrios is the Greek form of Demetrius, tied to Demeter, the goddess of the harvest.
4. Ioannou — Of John or son of Ioannis. Derived from the genitive case of the Greek name Ioannis, meaning God is gracious.
5. Nikolaou — Victor of the people. From Nikolaos, the Greek form of Nicholas.
6. Konstantinou — Of Konstantinos. Reflecting the enormous influence of Byzantine Emperor Constantine on Greek identity.
7. Petrou — Of Petros. Petros is the Greek form of Peter, meaning rock.
8. Andreou — Of Andreas. Andreas is the Greek form of Andrew, meaning manly and strong.
9. Christodoulou — Servant of Christ. One of the most deeply religious Greek surnames.
10. Antoniou — Of Antonis. Antonis is the Greek form of Anthony.
11. Michaelou — Of Michail. The Greek form of Michael.
12. Stavros — Cross in Greek. Connected to the crucifixion and deeply rooted in Orthodox Christian tradition.
13. Alexiou — Of Alexios. From the Greek name meaning defender.
14. Anastasiadis — Descendant of Anastasios. Anastasios means resurrection.
15. Philippou — Of Philippos. Philip means lover of horses in Greek.

-Opoulos Surnames From The Peloponnese

The -opoulos suffix is one of the most recognizable features of Greek naming tradition. It means descendant of or son of and is most common in the Peloponnese region of southern Greece. When you see a long Greek name ending in -opoulos, you are looking at a name that has been telling a family’s story for centuries.

16. Papadopoulos — Already mentioned. Son of the priest. The most iconic -opoulos surname.
17. Georgopoulos — Son of Georgios. A variation of the Georgiou surname with the Peloponnese suffix.
18. Nikolopoulos — Son of Nikolaos.
19. Antonopoulos — Son of Antonios.
20. Christopoulos — Son of Christos. Christos means anointed one in Greek.
21. Michalopoulos — Son of Michalis.
22. Vassilopoulos — Son of the king. Vasilis means king or royal in Greek.
23. Stavropoulos — Son of Stavros. Cross son.
24. Zafiropoulos — Sapphire son. Zafiri means sapphire in Greek.
25. Panagiotopulos — All-holy son. Panagiota means all-holy or all-sacred.
26. Gianopoulos — Son of Giannis. Giannis is the most popular Greek form of John.
27. Theodoropoulos — Son of Theodoros. Theodoros means gift of God.
28. Alexopoulos — Son of Alexios. Defender son.
29. Andreoupoulos — Son of Andreas. Manly and brave son.
30. Karamanlis — A compound name. Kara is a Turkish prefix meaning black or brave. One of Greece’s most famous political surnames, carried by two Greek Prime Ministers.

-Akis Surnames From Crete And The Islands

The -akis suffix is the most distinctive marker of Cretan identity. It began as a diminutive, like a term of endearment, meaning little one or child of. Over time it became associated with Cretan pride. When you hear a name ending in -akis, you can be fairly certain the family has Cretan roots.

31. Papadakis — Son of the priest in the Cretan tradition. The Cretan form of Papadopoulos.
32. Manousakis — Son of Manousos. Manousos is a Cretan form of Manuel.
33. Stavrakis — Cretan form of Stavros. Little cross.
34. Vasilakis — Son of Vasilis or Basil in the Cretan tradition.
35. Drakakis — Son of Drakos. The Cretan dragon surname.
36. Katsarakis — Cretan form of Katsaros. Curly-haired one.
37. Galifianakis — Made globally famous by comedian Zach Galifianakis. Tied to Crete. The exact meaning traces back to a Cretan village name.
38. Petrocheilos — Cretan surname meaning Peter the lips. A very specific descriptive name.
39. Papoutsakis — Shoemaker in the Cretan tradition.
40. Marinakis — Little Marinos. Son of the sea in Cretan form.

-Idis And -Iadis Surnames From Northern Greece

The -idis suffix belongs primarily to northern Greece, Macedonia, Thrace, and Pontic Greeks who came from the Black Sea region. Many of these families were part of the population exchange between Greece and Turkey in 1923, when over a million Greeks from Anatolia and Pontus resettled in northern Greece, bringing their naming traditions with them.

41. Nikolaidis — Son of Nikolaos. The northern Greek form.
42. Papadimitriou — Already partly mentioned. Son of the priest Dimitrios. A compound surname.
43. Anastasiadis — Descendant of Anastasios.
44. Theodoridis — Son of Theodoros. Gift of God’s son.
45. Alexandridis — Son of Alexandros. Defender of men.
46. Arvanitidis — Descendant of an Arvanite. Arvanites were Albanian-speaking Greek communities.
47. Iraklidis — Son of Heracles. A claim to mythological lineage.
48. Andreiadis — Son of Andreas. The northern form.
49. Michailidis — Son of Michail. The Pontic form of the Michael surname.
50. Sotiriadis — Son of Sotirios. Sotirios means savior in Greek.

Occupational Greek Surnames

Many Greek surnames came directly from the job a family did. Just like Miller in English or Ferraro in Italian, these Greek occupational names tell you exactly what your ancestor spent their days doing. Some of them trace back to the Ottoman period when Greek craftsmen and traders worked in specialized guilds.

51. Pappas — Priest in Greek. A variant of the papas element found in many surnames. One of the most common occupational surnames in Greek-American communities.
52. Katsaros — Curly-haired. A descriptive nickname that became a surname, technically occupying the nickname category but so common it earned its place here.
53. Bakirtzis — Coppersmith. From the Turkish word for someone who works with copper. A surname tied to the skilled metalworking traditions of Ottoman-era Greeks.
54. Hasapis — Butcher in Greek. A straightforward occupational name.
55. Diakos — Deacon in Greek. A member of the lower clergy. Made famous by Athanasios Diakos, a hero of the Greek War of Independence.
56. Zographos — Painter or miniaturist in Greek. From zoe meaning life and graphein meaning to write or paint.
57. Laskaris — A kind of soldier. The name of a Byzantine noble family from the 13th century.
58. Economou — Steward or manager. Traditionally associated with those who managed estates or resources.
59. Sarris — Reaper. Someone who harvested grain.
60. Papoutsakis — Shoemaker. From the Greek word for shoe.
61. Tsalikis — From a Turkish word for a type of craftsman.
62. Mangas — From a Greek slang word for a tough, street-smart man. Now a surname.
63. Bouras — From Latin origin, referring to a coarse reddish-brown woolen cloth. An occupational name for someone in the wool trade.
64. Arampatzis — Troublemaker. From the Turkish arampač. Not exactly a flattering surname but a fascinating one.
65. Kapetanios — Captain in Greek. A naval or military leadership name.

Descriptive Greek Surnames

Before photography or official records, the easiest way to identify someone was to describe them. Greek descriptive surnames tell you what your ancestor looked like, how they moved, what color their hair was, or what kind of personality they had. These surnames are tiny portraits of people who lived centuries ago.

66. Katsaros — Already mentioned. Curly-haired. The most famous Greek descriptive surname.
67. Kokkinos — Red in Greek. Someone with red hair or a ruddy complexion.
68. Chloros — Green in Greek. Possibly a complexion description or a nickname tied to the color of the landscape.
69. Mavros — Black in Greek. Dark-haired or dark-skinned.
70. Leukos — White in Greek. Fair-haired or pale-skinned.
71. Glezos — Blue-eyed in Greek. A striking surname that describes a rare feature among Greeks.
72. Kontos — Short in Greek. One of the most direct descriptive surnames. Families with this name could have surnames like Kondogiannis meaning Short John or Kondopavlos meaning Short Paul.
73. Mallos — Trowel in Greek. Possibly a nickname for someone who moved like they were spreading plaster.
74. Levidis — Attached in Greek.
75. Drakos — Dragon or ogre in Greek. Possibly a nickname for someone fierce or intimidating.

Geographic Greek Surnames

About 25 percent of all Greek surnames come from places. Villages, islands, regions, and even countries. These surnames anchored families to specific locations and traveled with them through centuries of migration. You can almost hear the geography in the syllables.

76. Kritikos — Someone from Crete in Greek. One of the clearest geographic surnames.
77. Mykonios — From Mykonos. The island famous for its whitewashed buildings and windmills.
78. Thessalonikios — From Thessaloniki. Named after the second-largest city in Greece.
79. Smyrnios — Someone from Smyrna. The great Greek city in what is now Izmir, Turkey.
80. Voulgaris — Meaning of Bulgarian. Possibly marking someone’s origin from Bulgaria.
81. Gekas — Derived from Albania. A surname marking Arvanite ancestry.
82. Athinganos — Gypsy. Marking someone’s Romani ancestry.
83. Ponticos — From Pontus. The Black Sea region from which Pontic Greeks came.
84. Samothrakis — From the island of Samothraki.
85. Corfiote — From Corfu. The Ionian island surname form.

Religious And Church-Related Greek Surnames

The Greek Orthodox Church has been the center of Greek identity for over a thousand years. It shaped the country through the Byzantine Empire, kept the Greek language and culture alive during four hundred years of Ottoman rule, and organized Greek communities everywhere they settled in the world. So it is no surprise that religious surnames are among the most common in Greece.

86. Papadopoulos — Already at the top. Son of the priest. The most iconic religious surname.
87. Pappas — Already mentioned. Priest.
88. Diakos — Already mentioned. Deacon.
89. Christodoulou — Already mentioned. Servant of Christ.
90. Stavros — Already mentioned. Cross.
91. Anastasiou — Of Anastasios. Resurrection.
92. Sotiriou — Of Sotirios. Savior.
93. Hadjis — A Muslim or Christian who has made a pilgrimage. From the Arabic Hajj. In the Greek context, a pilgrim to Jerusalem.
94. Panagakos — From Panagiota. All-holy.
95. Archangelos — Archangel in Greek. A name tied to the great Orthodox feast days of the archangels.
96. Evangelou — Of the evangelist. Connected to the four gospel writers.
97. Apostolos — Apostle in Greek. Connected to the twelve apostles of Jesus.
98. Efstratiadis — Son of Efstratios. Good army in Greek. A saint’s name.
99. Athanassiou — Of Athanasios. Immortal in Greek. The name of a major saint of the Orthodox Church.
100. Theotokas — Bearer of God. A deeply sacred name in Greek Orthodoxy.

Famous Greek Surnames That Made History

Some Greek surnames became part of world history because of the extraordinary people who carried them. These names appear on the covers of books, in the histories of nations, in the world of music, shipping, and sport.

101. Onassis — Made famous by Aristotle Onassis, the shipping magnate who married Jacqueline Kennedy. One of the wealthiest men of the 20th century.
102. Karamanlis — Already mentioned. The surname of two Greek Prime Ministers. Konstantinos Karamanlis led Greece out of the military junta and into democracy.
103. Theodorakis — God’s gift in Greek. Made famous by composer Mikis Theodorakis, who wrote the music for Zorba the Greek and was nominated for the Nobel Prize nine times.
104. Kazantzakis — Cauldron tinker from Turkish origin with ties to Crete. The surname of Nikos Kazantzakis, who wrote Zorba the Greek and The Last Temptation of Christ.
105. Tsitsipas — The surname of tennis star Stefanos Tsitsipas. Rare, used by fewer than 200 people, and of unknown meaning.
106. Papadreou — Son of Andreas. The surname of two Greek Prime Ministers, Georgios Papandreou and his son Andreas Papandreou.
107. Callas — The Americanized form of Kalogeropoulos, the original surname of opera legend Maria Callas.
108. Venizelos — The surname of Eleftherios Venizelos, the statesman who doubled the size of Greece in the early 20th century and is considered one of the greatest leaders in modern Greek history.
109. Elytis — The pen name taken by Nobel Prize-winning poet Odysseas Alepoudelis.
110. Seferis — The pen name of Nobel Prize-winning poet Giorgos Seferiadis. Seferis became one of the most celebrated literary surnames in Greece.

Mythological Greek Surnames

Some Greek families carry surnames that reach all the way back into Greek mythology. These are the names of heroes, monsters, and gods, worn by modern families who may not even know the epic stories attached to their last names.

111. Drakos — Dragon or ogre. Already mentioned but belongs here too.
112. Iraklidis — Descendant of Heracles. The great hero of Greek mythology.
113. Aetos — Eagle. A symbol of strength and vision tied to Zeus himself.
114. Athanasiou — Of Athanasios. Immortal. Connected to the idea of the immortal gods.
115. Achilleas — Connected to the hero Achilles. Used as both a first and last name in Greece.
116. Odysseas — Connected to the hero Odysseus. Used as both a given name and surname.
117. Hephaistou — Of Hephaestus. The Greek god of the forge. Tied to craftsmen and metalworkers.
118. Areos — Of Ares. The Greek god of war.
119. Apollonios — Of Apollo. The god of the sun, music, and poetry.
120. Hermou — Of Hermes. The messenger of the gods.

Short Greek Surnames

Not every Greek surname is long. Some Greek families carry surnames of one or two syllables that are just as rich in history as the longest compound names.

121. Gros — Big. A descriptive surname.
122. Gori — From an Old Greek word meaning old or aged.
123. Melas — Black in Greek.
124. Neas — New in Greek. A name for someone new to a place.
125. Paras — A diminutive of Paraskevas. Friday in Greek, since Paraskevas means Friday.
126. Rois — Royal in Greek.
127. Savas — From Sabas. A saint’s name widely used across Greece.
128. Soulis — A form of Souliotis. Someone from the Souli region.
129. Tolis — A nickname-based surname from Anatolios. Eastern.
130. Volos — Named after the port city of Volos in central Greece.
131. Xenos — Stranger or newcomer in Greek. A surname for someone who arrived from elsewhere.
132. Yiorgos — The Greek form of George. Also used as a surname in some communities.
133. Zisis — He who lives. From the Greek word for life, zoe.

Wrapping Up

So there you have it. 133+ common Greek last names with their meanings, their regional roots, and the stories behind them.

What makes Greek surnames so extraordinary is that every single one of them is built from pieces you can take apart and understand. A priest. A place. A physical feature. A hero’s name. A trade. When you read a Greek surname, you are reading a sentence someone’s ancestor wrote for their descendants centuries ago.

Greece gave the world philosophy, democracy, the alphabet, and the Olympics. And it gave the world surnames that still carry all of that history inside them.

Save this to your Pinterest board so you can come back to it anytime!