Kovač ( sh-Cyrl, Ковач), meaning "

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from #Other metals, other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such ...

" in

South Slavic languages The South Slavic languages are one of three branches of the Slavic languages. There are approximately 30 million speakers, mainly in the Balkans. These are separated geographically from speakers of the other two Slavic branches (West and East) ...

, is a common

surname In some cultures, a surname, family name, or last name is the portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family, tribe or community. Practices vary by culture. The family name may be placed at either the start of a person's full name ...

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

Bosnia-Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and Pars pro toto#Geography, often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of Southern Europe, south and southeast Euro ...

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...

and

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...

. Kovač is a common surname in Croatia, with 9,614 carriers (2011 census), most of them living in northern and eastern parts of the country. The surname is one of the most common surnames in five counties of

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

. It is common in Serbia, with 8,749 people bearing it. In Slovenia, some 4,800 have this surname. Outside

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

, the surname is fairly common in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

(especially

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

and

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

, and

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...

. The surname

Kovács Kovács or Kovacs, meaning blacksmith, is one of the most common Hungarian family names. History The name is found in Hungary and Hungarian expatriate communities. There are similar names with the Kováts or Kovách spellings. The name means "bl ...

is the Hungarian loanword of this word, and is one of the most frequent surnames in

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

. The

Romanian Romanian may refer to: *anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania **Romanians, an ethnic group **Romanian language, a Romance language ***Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language **Romanian cuisine, traditional ...

form is

Covaci Covaci is the Romanian form of the name Kovač (Ковач), meaning "forger" or "blacksmith" in Slavic languages. Cognates * Kovač in Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Serbia, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Slovenia * Kovac in the United State ...

, and it is also a relatively frequent surname in

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

. The derivative forms Kovačić or Slovenian Kovačič, as well as

Kovačević Kovačević ( South Slavic, Cyrillic: Ковачевић), Kovačevič ( Slovene and Slovak; feminine (Slovak): Kovačevičová) or Kovačovič ( Slovak; feminine: Kovačovičová), is a Slavic surname meaning "lackmith's son". The surname is d ...

and

Bulgarian Bulgarian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Bulgaria * Bulgarians, a South Slavic ethnic group * Bulgarian language, a Slavic language * Bulgarian alphabet * A citizen of Bulgaria, see Demographics of Bulgaria * Bul ...

Kovachev, are also very common.

Cognates

Koval Koval may refer to: *Koval (surname) *Koval Distillery, a craft distillery in Chicago, Illinois Fiction *Funky Koval, a 1980s Polish comic book *Koval, a Romulan in Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges (''Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'') See also * * Kow ...

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

(also

Kovalchuk Kovalchuk ( Ukrainian and Russian: Ковальчук), Kavalchuk ( be, Кавальчук), Kowalczuk ( Polish), Covalciuc (Moldovan/Romanian), also transliterated as Kowalchuk (in the North American diaspora), is a common East Slavic surname (o ...

Kovalenko Kovalenko ( uk, Коваленко) is a very common Ukrainian surname. It is used commonly to describe a son of a blacksmith and is the equivalent of ''Smithson'' in the English-speaking world, derived from the root ''koval'' ( uk, коваль; m ...

Kovalev Kovalyov (russian: Ковалёв), often written as Kovalev, or its feminine variant Kovalyova, Kovaleva (), is a common Russian surname, an equivalent of the English surname Smithson (derived from the Ukrainian word koval' (), which means "blacks ...

) * Kowal in

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

(also

Kowalczyk Kowalczyk is the fifth most common surname in Poland (98,739 people in 2009).Ministry of Interior (Poland). Statystyka najpopularniejszych nazwisk występujących w Polsce in 2009'' (The most popular surnames in Poland in 2009). The name comes ...

, Kowalski) * Kovach, the Carpatho-Ruthenian form *

, Kováts or Kovách in

Kováč Kováč, feminine: Kováčová, is a surname in Slovakia. It may refer to: ; Kováč * Alan Kováč (born 1993), Slovak footballer * Dušan Kováč (born 1942), Slovak historian * Ervín Kováč (1911–1972), Slovak footballer * Henrich K ...

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...

Kovář Kovář (; meaning "smith"; feminine Kovářová ) is a Czech surname. Kovář or Kovar may refer to: * Daniela Kovářová (born 1964), Czech politician * Dennis G. Kovar, American physicist * František Kovář (1888–1969), Czech Hussite bi ...

(also Kováč) in

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

* Kovaçi in

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

Notable people

Aleksandra Kovač Aleksandra Kovač ( sr-cyr, Александра Ковач, ; born 1972) is a Serbian singer-songwriter, composer, and music producer. She is the eldest daughter of eminent composer Kornelije Kovač and the elder sister of singer Kristina Kovač ...

(born 1972), Serbian singer/songwriter *

Boris Kovač Boris Kovač ( sr, Борис Ковач, Boris Kovač; born 1955) is a Serbian composer and multi-instrumentalist. Biography Kovač was born in Novi Sad, Vojvodina region of Serbia, then part of Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Yugoslavia ...

(born 1955), Serbian composer and multi-instrumentalist * Edvard Kovač (born 1950), Slovenian theologian *

Jože Kovač Joze Kovac (born September 23, 1961) is a former Yugoslav ice hockey player. He played for the Yugoslavia men's national ice hockey team at the 1984 Winter Olympics in Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ; cyrl, Сарајево, ; ''see names in other lan ...

(born 1961), Slovenian hockey player * Kordula Kovac (born 1957), German politician * Kornelije Kovač (born 1942), Serbian musician/producer * Kristina Kovač (born 1974), Serbian singer/songwriter * Marko Kovač (born 1981), Serbian architect, film director and actor * Mario Kovač (disambiguation), multiple people * Mirko Kovač (1938–2013), Montenegrin writer * Mirko Kovač (born 1983), Serbian basketball player *

Mišo Kovač Mate "Mišo" Kovač (; born 16 July 1941) is a Croatian recording artist. He is the best selling artist from Croatia, with well over 20 million records, cassettes and compact discs sold to date, and is often regarded as one of the most popular mu ...

(born 1941), Croatian singer *

Niko Kovač Niko Kovač (; born 15 October 1971) is a Croatian professional football coach and former player. He is currently the manager of Bundesliga club VFL Wolfsburg. Kovač was the long-standing captain of the Croatia national team until his retirem ...

(born 1971), Croatian football player and coach * Nikola "NiKo" Kovač (born 1997), Bosnian professional CSGO player *

Robert Kovač Robert Kovač (; born 6 April 1974) is a Croatian professional football manager and former player who played as a centre-back. He was known for his ability with the ball and skill at dispossessing opponents. His older brother is football manag ...

(born 1974), Croatian football player * Roberto Kovac (born 1990), Swiss basketball player *

Slobodan Kovač Slobodan Kovač ( sr-cyrl, Слободан Ковач; born 13 September 1967) is a Serbian professional volleyball coach and former player, Olympic Champion at Sydney 2000, bronze medallist at the Olympic Games in Atlanta 1996 and winner of ...

(born 1967), Serbian volleyball player *

Sonja Kovač Sonja Kovač (born 18 June 1984) is a Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map ...

(born 1984), Croatian actress and model * Tinkara Kovač (born 1978), Slovenian singer/musician

Fictional characters

* Luka Kovač, doctor portrayed by Goran Višnjić on ''ER'' * Steve Kovac, character cryogenically frozen in Howard Fast's ''The Cold, Cold Box''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kovac Occupational surnames Serbian surnames Montenegrin surnames Bosnian surnames Croatian surnames Slovene-language surnames