Volkov
The origin of the surname Volkov
Volkov comes from volk, “wolf.”
What kind of surname is Volkov?
As a descriptive surname (or nickname name), the surname Volkov arose from a personal characteristic — a physical trait, a quality of temperament, or a distinguishing feature of its first bearer. Communities have always coined nicknames, and in the age before fixed surnames these vivid, affectionate or teasing labels — referring to hair colour, stature, complexion or character — frequently became hereditary. Descriptive surnames give an unusually human glimpse of an ancestor, hinting at how they looked or how they were regarded by the people around them.
How Russian surnames work
Russian surnames are overwhelmingly patronymic in form, built with the possessive suffixes “-ov”/“-ev” and “-in” (“belonging to”), as in Ivanov (“Ivan's”) and Petrov. A distinctive feature is grammatical gender: a family's surname takes an “-a” ending for women (Ivanov / Ivanova). Some names are occupational (Kuznetsov, from “smith”) or descriptive, but the patronymic pattern dominates.
Frequently asked questions
What does the surname Volkov mean?
The surname Volkov means Of the wolf. Volkov comes from volk, “wolf.”
Where does the surname Volkov come from?
Volkov is a surname of Russian origin.
What kind of surname is Volkov?
Volkov is a descriptive surname, originally describing a physical or personal characteristic.
How common is the surname Volkov in the United States?
Volkov ranks #39,560 among U.S. surnames (2010 U.S. Census), recorded for about 523 people.