Top 100+ Argentinian Last Names With Meanings

Georgia Stone
Dec 12, 2023 By Georgia Stone
Originally Published on Dec 01, 2020
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The roots of most of the common surname are Spanish or Native Argentinian, though those are rarer.

This is because the Spanish colonized the land currently known as Argentina from the sixteenth century.

Before the Spanish arrived, there were some very rich indigenous societies. Presently, there are as yet numerous Argentinians who hold closely their local language, traditions, and names.

You can also see our articles on African last names or Vietnamese last names, for more inspiration.

Popular Argentinian Last Names

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People started to utilize last names around the twelfth century, as the population developed and it got important to have the option to recognize one family from another. During their colonization of Argentina Spain imported their family naming conventions to Argentinian names. A few of the most common surnames or Argentinian last names are listed here below.

1. Acosta (Spanish origin) means "coast".

2. Aguirre (Basque origin) means "prominent".

3. Alvarez (Spanish origin) means "son of Álvaro", a popular surname. One of the most common last names.

4. Arias (Spanish origin) means "skill".

5. Benitez (Spanish origin) means "son of Benito", a popular family surname from the 19th century.

6. Cabrera (Spanish origin) means "goatherd". Famous last name bearer: Spanish baseball player Al Cabrera. One of the most common last names.

7. Caceres (Spanish origin) means "from the city of Cáceres".

8. Cardozo (Spanish origin) means "thistle", a famous and top family surname.

9. Carrizo (Spanish origin) means "cheek".

10. Castillo (Spanish origin) means "castle". Famous last name bearer: American professional baseball player Frank Castillo. One of the most common last names.

11. Castro (Latin origin) means "a castle or Fort". Another of the top Argentina names.

12. Coronel (Spanish origin) means "column of troops".

13. Diaz (Spanish origin) means "son of Diego". Famous name bearer: Cameron Diaz. Also, one of the top Argentinian names.

14. Dominguez (Spanish origin) means "son of Dominic".

15. Fernandez (Germanic origin) means "son of Fernando". One of the most common last names.

16. Ferreyra (Indian origin) means "blacksmith".

17. Flores (Spanish origin) means "flower".

18. Garcia (Germanic origin) means "bear". Famous last name bearer: Australian actor Adam Garcia. One of the most common last names.

19. Gimenez (Basque origin) means "son".

20. Godoy (French origin) means "ruler".

21. Gomez (Spanish origin) means "man". Another of the top Argentinian names.

22. Gonzalez (Spanish origin) means "war hall".

23. Gutierrez (Spanish origin) means "son of Gutierre". Famous last name bearer: Mexican Formula One racing and Mercedes test driver Esteban Manuel Gutiérrez.

24. Herrera (Spanish origin) means "ironworks". Makes it to the famous surnames.

25. Juarez (Spanish origin) means "serious".

26. Ledesma (Spanish origin) means "broad" or "wide".

27. Lopez (Spanish origin) means "son of Lope". Famous last name bearer: American actress and pop singer Jennifer Lopez. One of the top last names.

28. Luna (Spanish origin) means "moon". Such last names can also be used as the first name in many family and cultures.

29. Martinez (Spanish origin) means "son of Martín". One of the top common surnames.

30. Medina (Hebrew origin) means "from the city".

31. Molina (Latin origin) means "mill".

32. Morales (Spanish origin) means "mulberry tree". One of the top common surnames

33. Moreno (Spanish origin) means "moor". For a century, such last names have been use by aristocrats and members of royal upbringing.

34. Muñoz (Spanish origin) means "son of Muño". One of the top common surnames

35. Navarro (Basque origin) means "plain next to mountains". Famous last name bearer: Venezuelan singer Aida Navarro.

36. Nuñez (Spanish origin) means "grandfather". One of the top common surnames

37. Ojeda (Spanish origin) means "leaves".

38. Ortiz (Spanish origin) means "son of Orti".

39. Peralta (Latin origin) means "high rock".

40. Pereyra (Spanish origin) means "pear".

41. Perez (Spanish origin) means "son of Pero". One of the top common surnames

42. Ponce (Greek origin) means "ocean".

43. Quiroga (Roman origin) means "a roman citizen".

44. Ramirez (Germanic origin) means "son of Ramiro". One of the top common surnames

45. Ramos (Spanish origin) means "branches".

46. Rios (Spanish origin) means "river".

47. Rodriguez (Spanish origin) means "son of". A very famous and top surnames.

48. Rojas (Spanish origin) means "red".

49. Romero (Spanish origin) means "someone who is on a religious journey".

50. Ruiz (Spanish origin) means "son of Roderick".

51. Sanchez (Spanish origin) means "son of Sancho". Makes it to the famous surnames.

52. Silva (Portuguese origin) means "forest, woodland or jungle". Makes it to the famous surnames.

53. Sosa (Portuguese origin) means "from the saltwater”.

54. Suarez (Spanish origin) means "son of Soeiro".

55. Torres (Spanish origin) means "towers".

56. Vargas (Spanish origin) means "steep slope". Makes it to the famous surnames.

57. Vazquez (Spanish origin) means "son of Vasco".

58. Vega (Spanish origin) means "one who lives on the plain". Makes it to the famous surnames.

59. Vera (Russian origin) means "truth or faith".

60. Villalba (Spanish origin) means "farmstead".

Argentinian Last Names From Famous/Notable People

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In Spanish culture, the child can use both his parents' last names. The center name – or first family name – is often the one that is used by the father, while the second name, or last name, is typically the mother's family name.

Did you know: the most common last surname in South America is Garcia and Gonzalez is the most common last name in Argentina.

61. Peron: María Eva Duarte, or as known as María Eva Duarte de Perón, was the first lady of Argentina. She was married to President Juan Perón and died in 1952.

62. Maradona: Diego Armando Maradona is a former Argentine football player and is currently the coach of a famous Argentinian football club. He is one of the best football players to ever grace the Spanish football field.

63. Messi: Lionel Andrés Messi is the name of Argentine footballer who is a fan favorite, He is known for his footwork and is a forward and skipper in both Spanish club Barcelona and the Argentina public group.

64. Darin: One could be excused for imagining that Ricardo Darin is maybe the main entertainer in Argentina, given the amount he multiplies in Argentine film.

He comes from a long queue of entertainers and made his performance center introduction at ten years old with his folks. Darin has featured in a stunning number of what is viewed as a portion of Argentina's best movies.

65. Mortensen: Viggo Mortensen of 'Lord of the Rings' movie acclaimed may not be Argentine, however. He did live in Argentina for various years as a kid and talks familiar porteno Spanish, something which may astonish a significant number of his fans. Mortensen is a superstar Hollywood entertainer, yet he is likewise an artist, photographer, painter, and essayist.

66. Francis: Pope Francis is the name of the 266th pope of the Catholic Church and is known for this religious administration in Rome.

He is the sovereign of the Vatican City State and Jesuit pope. He is the first person from the America to become a pope as well as the first one from the Southern Hemisphere to hold the office since Syrian Gregory III.

67. Queen Maxima of the Netherlands: Máxima Zorreguieta Cerruti is the current sovereign of the Netherlands. She was born in Buenos Aires in 1971.

Rare Argentinian Surnames

Understanding the family names and last names can assist you with finding and recognizing your ancestors in Argentine records. In Argentina people uses Argentinian names that are inspired by various other origins including Latin American surnames, South American surnames, central American last names.

68. Acuña (Latin origin) meaning "wedge". This is one of the earliest Spanish surnames recorded in the New World.

69. Aguero (Old Latin origin) meaning "well-watered (settlement)". This Latin surname is one of the simple names.

70. Arce ( Spanish origin) meaning "stony place". One of the most rare last names.

71. Avila (Spanish origin) meaning "from Davila, a topographic name for someone from a town or village, da vila".

72. Ayala (Hebrew origin) meaning "female deer", or "hillside or pasture".

73. Barrios (Spanish origin) meaning "outlying suburb" or "dependent village".

74. Blanco (Spanish origin) meaning "white". Another of the rare last names.

75. Bravo (Spanish and Portuguese origin) meaning "fierce", "violent", or "courageous".

76. Bustos (Spanish origin) meaning "meadow", or "willow".

77. Campos (Spanish and Portuguese origin) meaning "fields". One of the uncommon last names.

78. Chavez (Ancient Portuguese origin) meaning "keys".

79. Cruz (Iberian origin) meaning "cross". The surname name also refers to either the Christian cross or the figure of transecting lines or ways.

80. Delgado (Spanish origin) meaning "thin and skinny". One of the rare last names.

81. Duarte (Old English origin) meaning "rich guard", or "guardian of his property".

82. Escobar (Spanish origin) meaning "for someone who lived in a place overgrown with a broom".

83. Farias (Portuguese and Spanish origin) meaning "beacon", or "lighthouse".

84. Franco (Italian, Portuguese and Spanish origin) meaning "frank".

85. Guzman (Spanish origin) meaning "good man".

86. Hernandez (Spanish origin) meaning "son of Hernán".

87. Ibañez (Old Hebrew origin) meaning "God's mercy".

88. Leguizamon (Spanish origin) meaning "not "known".

89. Leiva ( Spanish and French origin) meaning "great".

90. Lucero (Spanish origin) meaning "light", or "star".

91. Maidana (Spanish origin) meaning "a history of that has originated from an unknown background".

92. Mansilla (Latin origin) meaning "mansion".

93. Martin (Roman origin) meaning "of Mars".

94. Mendez (Spanish origin) meaning "son of Mendo, Menendo, or Mem".

95. Mendoza (Basque origin) meaning "cold mountain"

96. Miranda (Spanish and Portuguese origin) meaning "worthy of admiration".

97. Montenegro (Spanish and Portuguese origin) meaning "black mountain".

98. Moyano (Spanish origin) meaning "habitational name for someone from Moya".

99. Olivera (Catalan, Portuguese, and Spanish origin) meaning "olive tree".

100. Paez (Portuguese origin) meaning "a Chibchan people of Colombia in the north-western part of South America"

101. Roldan (German origin) meaning "fame and success".

102. Soria (Spanish and Jewish origin) meaning "a habitational name from the city of Soria in Castile".

103. Soto (Latin origin) meaning "small wood".

104. Toledo (Spanish and Jewish origin) meaning "a finely tempered sword of a kind made in Toledo, Spain".

105. Valdez (Spanish origin) meaning "son of Valdo/Waldo".

106. Velazquez (Spanish origin) meaning "son of Velasco".

Kidadl has lots of great name articles to inspire you. If you liked our suggestions for Argentinian last names then why not take a look at Brazilian last names, or for something different take a look at Peruvian last names.

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Written by Georgia Stone

Bachelor of Arts specializing in French with Film Studies, Bachelor of Arts (Year Abroad) specializing in Literature, History, Language, Media, and Art

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Georgia StoneBachelor of Arts specializing in French with Film Studies, Bachelor of Arts (Year Abroad) specializing in Literature, History, Language, Media, and Art

Georgia is an experienced Content Manager with a degree in French and Film Studies from King's College London and Bachelors degree from Université Paris-Sorbonne. Her passion for exploring the world and experiencing different cultures was sparked during her childhood in Switzerland and her year abroad in Paris. In her spare time, Georgia enjoys using London's excellent travel connections to explore further afield.

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