South American Submitted Surnames

South American names include those from Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Uruguay, and Venezuela.
usage
​
Submitted names are contributed by users of this website. The accuracy of these name definitions cannot be guaranteed.
Balbino Spanish, Portuguese, Italian
From the given name Balbino.
Baldo Italian, Spanish
From the given name Baldo.
Baldomero Spanish
From the given name Baldomero.
Baldovino Spanish
Hispanic (mainly Philippines and Colombia) and Italian: from the personal name Baldovino from ancient Germanic Baldowin (see Baldwin ).
Ballon Spanish
Theoretically it could be a variant of vallón, from valle ‘valley’, but neither form is attested as a vocabulary word or as a place name element. Alternatively, it could be a Castilian spelling of Catalan Batlló, Balló, nicknames from diminutives of batlle ‘dancing’.English: variant spelling of Balon.
Balmaceda Spanish, Basque
From Balmaseda, the name of a town and municipality in the province of Biscay, in the Basque Country of Spain. It is derived from Spanish val meaning "valley" and Basque mahatseta meaning "vineyard"... [more]
Baltasar Spanish
From the given name Baltasar.
Baltazar Spanish, Portuguese
From the given name Baltazar.
Balza Spanish (Archaic), Belgian (Archaic), Filipino (Hispanicized, Archaic)
Derivation (Belzer, Balzac, Balzer, etc.) of the given name Balthazar, meaning "one of the three wise men."
Bandeira Portuguese
Portuguese cognate of Bandera.
Bandera Spanish, Italian
Status name for a bearer of flags or standards, from Spanish bandera meaning "flag, banner". It is also a variant of Italian Bandiera, a cognate of the Spanish name.
Banegas Spanish
Spanish: variant of Benegas a patronymic composed of Arabic or Jewish ben 'son' + the medieval personal name Egas .
Banez Spanish
Spanish (Báñez): shortened form of Ibáñez
Banuelos Spanish
Spanish (Bañuelos): habitational name from any of various places, primarily Bañuelos de Bureba in Burgos, named for their public baths, from a diminutive of baños ‘baths’ (see Banos)
Barba Spanish
Spanish: nickname for a man noted for his beard, from barba ‘beard’ (Latin barba).
Barbero Spanish
Spanish occupational name for a barber-surgeon (see Barber), Spanish barbero, from Late Latin barbarius, a derivative of barba ‘beard’ (Latin barba).
Barbosa Portuguese
denoting a person who lived by land that contained overgrown leafy vegetation from the portuguese word barba "leaf" + oso/osa (adjective suffix); variant of Barboza
Barcelona Catalan, Spanish
Habitational name from Barcelona, the principal city of Catalonia. The place name is of uncertain, certainly pre-Roman, origin. The settlement was established by the Carthaginians, and according to tradition it was named for the Carthaginian ruling house of Barca; the Latin form was Barcino or Barcilo.
Bárcenas Spanish
This indicates familial origin within the eponymous neighborhood of the Castilian municipality of Espinosa de los Monteros.
Barreira Portuguese, Galician
From several habitations in Galicia and Portugal, from barreira meaning "clay or loam hollow".
Barreiro Galician, Portuguese
Barreiro is a habitational name from any of numerous places in Galicia (Spain) and Portugal named with a derivative of barro 'clay loam'.
Barreiros Portuguese, Galician
Habitational name from any of various places in Galicia called Barreiros, from Portuguese and Galician barreiro meaning "slough, clay".
Barrera Spanish, Catalan
Either a topographic name for someone who lived near a gate or fence, from Spanish and Catalan barrera meaning "barrier", or a topographic name for someone who lived by a clay pit, from Spanish barrero, derived from the Spanish word barro meaning "mud, clay".
Barreto Portuguese
Occupational name for a cap maker. Comes from barreto which means ‘cap’.
Barria Spanish
Variant of Barrio.
Barrientos Spanish
Habitational name from a place in León named Barrientos, possibly derived from an Asturleonese word meaning "loamy".
Barrios Spanish
Habitational name from any of the numerous places named with Spanish barrio "outlying suburb (especially an impoverished one), slum", from Arabic barr "suburb, dependent village". It may also be a topographic name for someone originating from a barrio.
Barroso Spanish, Portuguese
Derived from the Spanish word 'barrera' which means 'barrier'.
Bartolomé Spanish
From the given name Bartolomé.
Basileo Galician, Italian, Spanish
From the given name Basileo.
Basilio Italian, Spanish
From the given name Basilio.
Baskir Turkish (Rare), South American (Rare)
Used by Jewish families that were running away from anti-semites. It's meaning is 'printer' or 'pressures are...'
Bastían Spanish
From the given name Bastían.
Bastidas Spanish
Possibly related to the French word "bastide", referring to fortified towns built in Southern France in the Middle Ages.... [more]
Batista Portuguese, Spanish
Portuguese cognate of Bautista as well as a Spanish variant.
Batres Spanish
This indicates familial origin within the eponymous Manchego municipality.
Baviera Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Catalan
Means "Bavaria" in Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, and Catalan. Indicating for someone from Bavaria a state in Germany.
Baylon Spanish
Spanish: variant of Bailón ( see Bailon ).
Bea Spanish
Habitational name from a place of this name in Teruel.
Beatriz Spanish, Portuguese
From the given name Beatriz.
Becerra Spanish, Galician
Nickname probably for a high-spirited person from becerra "young cow, heifer". It may also have been a metonymic occupational name for a cowherd.
Bedoya Spanish
Castilianized form of Bedoia. Name for someone from Bedoña, in the Spanish province Gipuzkoa. Bedoña likely comes from Basque bedi "pasture grazing" and -oña, suffix for a place name.
Bega Spanish
Variant of Vega.
Bejar Spanish
From the town of the same name in Spain
Belalcázar Spanish
It indicates familial origin within the eponymous Andalusian municipality with the coordinates 38°34′31″N 5°10′02″W.
Belchior Portuguese
From the given name Belchior.
Belisario Italian, Spanish
From the given name Belisario.
Belrio Spanish
From the Spanish word meaning "beautiful river".
Benavides Spanish
Patronymic name from the Medieval personal name Ben Avid, of Arabic origin, derived from ibn Abd meaning "son of the servant of God".
Benedito Portuguese
From the given name Benedito.
Benício Portuguese (Brazilian)
Spanish form of Benedict, from the Late Latin name Benedictus, which meant "blessed". A notable bearer is Puerto Rican actor Benicio del Toro (born 1967).
Benigno Spanish, Italian
From the given name Benigno.
Benitez Spanish (Americanized), Filipino
Unaccented form of Benítez primarily used in America and the Philippines.
Benito Spanish
From the given name Benito.
Bentancur Spanish
One of the variants of Bettencourt or Bethencourt.
Berlanga Spanish
From the village or castle named "Berlanga de Duero" from Soria, Spain. Berlanga itself was derived from "berlain" which comes from the name of a precious stone derived from the Greek. So it could be related to stones.
Bermejo Spanish
Originally a nickname for a man with red hair or a ruddy complexion, from Spanish bermejo "reddish, ruddy" (itself from Latin vermiculus "little worm", from vermis "worm", since a crimson dye was obtained from the bodies of worms).
Bermudo Spanish
From the given name Bermudo.
Bernárdez Spanish
Means "son of Bernardo".
Bernardez Spanish
Unaccented variant of Bernárdez.
Berto Italian, Spanish
From the given name Berto.
Bessa Portuguese
Origin in the name Beça surname of medieval ancestry
Betances Spanish, American (Hispanic)
Unexplained; probably related to Betanzos, the name of a town near A Coruña in Galicia.
Beteta Spanish
This indicates familial origin within the eponymous Manchego municipality.
Bethencourt French, English, Portuguese (Rare)
Bettencourt and Bethencourt are originally place-names in Northern France. The place-name element -court (courtyard, courtyard of a farm, farm) is typical of the French provinces, where the Frankish settlements formed an important part of the local population... [more]
Bettencourt French, English, Portuguese (Rare)
Bettencourt and Bethencourt are originally place-names in Northern France. The place-name element -court (courtyard, courtyard of a farm, farm) is typical of the French provinces, where the Frankish settlements formed an important part of the local population... [more]
Bezerra Portuguese
Means "young cow, heifer" in Portuguese.
Bezos Spanish
From bezo meaning "thick lips" in Spanish, referring to a person with blubber or thick lips.
Bibiano Spanish
From the given name Bibiano.
Bilbao Spanish
Spanish: Habitational Name From The City Of Bilbao In Biscay Basque Country.
Bispo Portuguese
Means "bishop" in Portuguese, ultimately from Greek ἐπίσκοπος (episkopos).
Bitencourt Brazilian, Portuguese (Brazilian), French (Rare), English
BITENCOURT, derives from Bittencourt, Bettencourt and Bethencourt; They are originally place-names in Northern France. The place-name element -court (courtyard, courtyard of a farm, farm) is typical of the French provinces, where the Frankish settlements formed an important part of the local population... [more]
Biurrarena Spanish, Basque
Means apple in Basque.
Blancanieves Spanish (Rare)
Means "Snow White" in Spanish.
Blancarte Spanish
Likely a variant of Blanchard.
Blas Spanish
From the given name Blas.
Blasquez Spanish
From the medieval diminutive Velasco, from the Basque word 'bela' meaning "crow", and the diminutive suffix 'sko'.
Bocanegra Spanish
Spanish: nickname from boca ‘mouth’ + negra ‘black’, denoting a foul-mouthed or abusive person. In the form Boccanegra, this surname has also been long established in Italy.
Bocorny Brazilian (Latinized, Rare)
Brazilian corrupted form of Pokorny.
Bohórquez Spanish
Denoted a person from Bohorques, a minor place in the Spanish province of Santander.
Bolaño Spanish
Is a Hispanic surname derived from the spanish word for "stone cannonball" or "stoneshot".
Bolar Spanish
Topographic name for someone who lived on a patch of soil of a particular type known as tierra bolar.
Bolsonaro Portuguese (Brazilian)
Brazilian Portuguese cognate of Bolzonaro; in the case of former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro (1955-), his Italian great-grandfather had the spelling changed from Bolzonaro upon emigrating to Brazil in the late 19th century.
Bomba Portuguese, Spanish, Polish, Ukrainian, Czech, Slovak
From bomba "bomb", (Latin bombus), hence probably a nickname for someone with an explosive temperament, or a metonymic occupational name for an artilleryman.
Bonba Basque, Spanish
From Basque bonba meaning "bomb", (Latin bombus), hence probably a nickname for someone with an explosive temperament, or a metonymic occupational name for an artilleryman.
Bonifacio Portuguese, Spanish
From the given name Bonifacio.
Bonilla Spanish
From the area of Spain of the same name
Bonito Italian, Spanish
From the given name Bonito.
Borges Portuguese, Spanish
Possibly from Old French burgeis meaning "town-dweller" (see Burgess). Alternately, it may have denoted someone originally from the city of Bourges in France.
Borquez Spanish
Likely shortened from Bohórquez.
Borrero Spanish
Occupational name from borrero 'executioner'.
Botelho Portuguese, Portuguese (Brazilian)
From the Portuguese word botelho, which can denote a measure of grain, a grain sack, or seaweed, and was probably applied as an occupational name for a grain dealer or a gatherer of kelp or seaweed.
Botella Spanish
From the Spanish word meaning "Bottle".
Bracamontes Spanish
Probably a habitational name from the French town of Bracquemont near Dieppe.
Braga Portuguese
The first man to own this name was a feudal lord on Portugal, near to the region of Coimbra. Could also come from the other surname "Bragança".
Bragado Portuguese, Spanish
This surname is a Spanish word which means "gritty", refering to a bull. ... [more]
Bragança Portuguese
From the city of Bragança in Portugal. It's also the name of the Royal House that ruled Portugal from 1640 to 1910.
Branco Portuguese, Central African
from the the portuguese word Branco meaning "white", referring to someone with light skin and/or hair
Brandão Portuguese
From the given name Brandão (see Brendan).
Briones Spanish
This indicates familial origin within the eponymous Riojan municipality.
Brito Portuguese
The Brito family has its original roots in the village of Brito, around 1033 of the Christian era, where Dom Hero de Brito, lord of many estates in Oliveira, Carrazelo and Subilhães, all located between the Ave River and Portela dos Leitões, a very rich region and where the Solar dos Brito was located.
Brizuela Spanish
This indicates familial origin within the eponymous neighborhood of the Castilian municipality of Merindad de Valdeporres.
Bruno Portuguese
From a Germanic personal name, Brun.
Buendía Spanish
Probably a habitational name from Buendía in Cuenca province, Spain.
Bugalho Portuguese
Portuguese surname Bugalho can be written in two different ways, with a U or with a O after de first letter. This because of different pronunciation from South and North. So with U South and with O North.... [more]
Buitrago Spanish
This indicates familial origin within either of 2 eponymous municipalities: the Castilian one in El Campo de Gómara or the Manchego municipality of Buitrago del Lozoya in Sierra Norte, Comunidad de Madrid.
Bulgaria Italian, Spanish
Originally an ethnic name or regional name for someone from Bulgaria or a nickname for someone who had visited or traded with Bulgaria, which is named after the Turkic tribe of the Bulgars, itself possibly from a Turkic root meaning "mixed".
Burciaga Spanish
Hispanic (Mexico): Probably A Topographic Name Of Basque Origin But Unexplained Etymology.
Burgos Spanish
Surname from a place named Burgos of Spain.
Burruchaga Spanish, Basque
From "Pais Vasco" in Spain.
Bustamante Spanish
Habitational name for someone originally from the town of Bustamante in Cantabria, Spain, derived from Latin bustum Amantii meaning "pasture of Amantius".
Butragueño Spanish
Originally denoted someone who was from either the town of Buitrago del Lozoya in Madrid, or from Buitrago in Soria, Castile and León, Spain, both derived Spanish buitre meaning "vulture" (see Buitrago)... [more]
Cab Spanish
Diminutive of Cabello, Cabrera, or Cabral.
Caba Spanish, Catalan
Variant of Cava.
Cababa Spanish
Spanish (Cabaña) and Portuguese: habitational name from a place named with Spanish cabaña ‘hut’, ‘cabin’ (Late Latin capanna , a word of Celtic or Germanic origin).
Cabaco Spanish, Filipino
From spanish word cabaco means "horse"
Caballé Spanish
Used by the Spanish Opera singer Montserrat Caballé.
Caballo Spanish, Spanish (Latin American)
Derived from the Spanish word cabello, ultimately derived from the Latin word caballus, meaning "horse". This denoted someone who worked in a farm that took care of horses, or someone who had personality traits attributed to a horse, such as energetic behaviour.
Cabaña Spanish, Portuguese
Habitational name from a place named with Spanish cabaña ‘hut’, ‘cabin’ (Late Latin capanna, a word of Celtic or Germanic origin).
Cabañas Spanish, Portuguese
Habitational name from a place named with Spanish cabaña or Portuguese cabanha ‘hut’, ‘cabin’.
Cabeleira Portuguese
Likely originates from the Portuguese word "cabeleira," which means "head of hair" or "hairpiece." It might have been used as a nickname to describe someone with a notable or distinctive head of hair... [more]
Cadena Spanish
From Aguilar de Campoo, a district of Villalon in Valladolid.
Cádiz Spanish
Habitational name for a person from the city of Cádiz in southwestern Spain.
Caetano Portuguese
From the given name Caetano.
Cahué Spanish
Variant of Cahuet.
Caixeta Portuguese (Brazilian)
Portuguese common name for Tabebuia cassinoides, a tree native to Central and South America.
Cajigas Spanish, Filipino
Topographic name from the plural of Spanish cajigo, derived from quejigo meaning "gall oak".
Calabaza Spanish, Indigenous American
Nickname from ‘calabaza’ meaning pumpkin squash. This is commonly used by Pueblos (Native Americans) in New Mexico.
Calado Portuguese, Spanish (Philippines)
Menas "silent, quiet" in Portuguese and "soaked drenched" in Spanish.
Calatayud Spanish
From the city in Spain, in province of Zaragoza within the autonomous community Aragón. The name Calatayud came from the Arabic قلعة أيوب Qal‘at ’Ayyūb, "the qalat (fortress) of Ayyub".
Caldeira Portuguese
Name given to a maker of kettles or other cooking vessels.
Caldeira Portuguese
Portuguese cognate of Caldera.
Caldeirao Portuguese
From Portuguese meaning "cauldron".
Caldera Spanish
Derived from Spanish caldera meaning "basin, crater, hollow", ultimately from Latin caldarium or caldaria both meaning "hot bath, cooking pot". The word also denotes a depression in volcanoes, and it is commonly used as an element for surnames denoting streams or mountains.
Calero Spanish
Metonymic occupational name for a burner or seller of lime, from calero ‘lime’.
Calisto Portuguese, Spanish
From the given name Calisto.
Calixto Spanish, Portuguese
From the given name Calixto
Calvete Spanish
It means bald. It's a surname of the Galician origin.
Calzada Spanish (Latin American)
Means "road" in Spanish.
Calzadilla Spanish
habitational name from any of the places called (La) Calzadilla, named with a diminutive of calzada 'paved road'
Calzado Spanish
Means "calced" in Spanish.
Cámara Spanish
Occupational name for a courtier or servant who could access the private quarters of a king or noble, from Spanish cámara meaning "room, chamber".
Câmara Portuguese
Portuguese cognate of Cámara.
Camarena Spanish
Topographic name for someone who lived by a granary.
Camargo Spanish
Habitational name for someone from a place in Andalusia called Camargo.
Camilo Spanish, Portuguese
From the given name Camilo.
Camino Spanish
Derived from the Spanish word for "path", or "walkway". This could have been used to denote a person who lived near a path, or one who built paths for a living.
Campus Spanish
Derived from the Latin word campus, meaning "field". It denoted someone who either lived in a field or worked in one.
Canabrava Brazilian
Cana is the short form of 'cana de açucar' that means "sugar cane", and Brava is the feminine form of 'bravo' that means "angry". There is a municipality in the state of Mato Grosso, Brazil, called Canabrava do Norte, and according to oral tradition, the origin of the name is due to the disease and subsequent death of some animals after eating a plantation of sugar cane.
Canales Spanish
Spanish: habitational name from any of several places called Canales, from canales, plural of canal ‘canal’, ‘water channel’, from Latin canalis.
Cancer Various, Indonesian, Spanish
From Latin “Crab”. Mostly used in Indonesia.
Cancino Spanish
A name for a person who first held the position of Chancellor.
Cancio Spanish
A name for a person who first held the position of Chancellor.
Candela Spanish, Italian, Sicilian, Catalan
Either an occupational name for a chandler (a candle maker or candle seller) or a nickname for a tall thin person, derived from candela meaning "candle" (from Latin candela).
Candelario Spanish
From the given name Candelario
Canela Spanish
Derived from the word 'canela' meaning cinnamon in Spanish. It Could also be a variant of the Catalan surname Candela.
Canelo Spanish
From spanish canela meaning "cinnamon".
Cañete Spanish (Philippines), Spanish (Latin American)
Habitational name for a person from any of the places in Spain called Cañete, such as Cañete de las Torres (Seville), Cañete la Real (Málaga) and Cañete (Cuenca).
Cangussu Brazilian
The surname Cangussu has its origins in the Tupi-Guarani language and is a variation of Akangu’su, which means "jaguar".
Canhoto Portuguese
Means "left-handed" in Portuguese.
Canizales Spanish (Latin American)
This surname came from around the beginnings of 1800 in south regions of Colombia where sugar cane was cultivated. It's a variation of Cañizales, that literally means "sugar cane fields".
Canomanuel Spanish
The first part of this surname is possibly derived from Spanish cano "hoary, white-haired, grey-haired". The second part is derived from the given name Manuel... [more]
Cantor Spanish
Occupational name for a singer.
Canuto Italian, Filipino, Spanish
From an Italian nickname derived from canuto meaning "white-haired".
Caraballo Spanish
Occupational name for a knight or a knight's servant.
Carbajal Spanish, Judeo-Spanish
Probably a habitational name denoting someone originally from any of the multiple locations called Carbajal in León, Asturias, or Zamora in Spain. Alternatively, it may be of pre-Roman origin from the word carbalio meaning "oak", denoting someone who either lived near an oak tree or who was like an oak tree in some way.... [more]
Carbonero Spanish
Famous bearers are Carlos Carbonero, a Colombian footballer who plays as a midfielder for Sampdoria on loan from Fénix and Sara Carbonero, a Spanish sports journalist.
Carcelén Spanish
This indicates familial origin within the eponymous Manchego municipality.
Cardenal Spanish, Spanish (Latin American)
Spanish cognitive of Cardinal. This surname is common in Nicaragua.
Cardenete Spanish
This indicates familial origin within the eponymous Manchego municipality.
Cardo Spanish, Italian
From cardo "thistle, cardoon" (from Latin carduus) either a topographic or occupational name for using wool carder thistles, or from the given name Cardo a short form of given names Accardo, Biancardo, or Riccardo.
Carillo Spanish, Italian
From a diminutive of the given name Caro.
Carino Italian, Spanish, Portuguese
From the given name Carino.
Carlos Spanish, Portuguese
Derived from the given name Carlos.
Carneiro Portuguese, Galician
Means "ram" in Portuguese and Galician, either used as an occupational name for a shepherd or a habitational name for someone from any of various places called Carneiro.
Carneiro Portuguese (Brazilian)
Originally from Portugal.
Carpintero Spanish
Means "carpenter" in Spanish.
Apply this search to the main name collection