Brazilian Last Names

These Brazilian last names cover the everyday names shared by huge numbers of families, like Silva, Santos and Souza, and the rarer names of old colonial, indigenous and immigrant lines, listed A to Z with their meanings.

278 real surnames with meanings, A to Z.

A

Abdalla

Arabic for servant of God

Arabic
Abreu

Portuguese place-name surname; meaning uncertain

Portuguese
Accioly

From Florentine Acciaiuoli; steel workers

Italian
Aguiar

Place of eagles

Portuguese
Albernaz

Possibly from Arabic; meaning uncertain

Portuguese
Albuquerque

From Alburquerque, a Spanish town; popularly explained as white oak

Portuguese
Almeida

From Arabic al-maida, the table or plateau

Portuguese
Alves

Son of Álvaro

Portuguese
Amaral

Possibly from a place with bitter cherry trees

Portuguese
Anchieta

Basque place name; family of Saint José de Anchieta

Spanish
Andrade

Galician place-name surname

Portuguese
Anunciação

Annunciation; a devotional name

Portuguese
Aragão

From the kingdom of Aragon

Portuguese
Araripe

From Tupi; the name of a plateau in Ceará

Tupi
Araújo

Galician-Portuguese place-name surname

Portuguese
Arruda

Rue plant; also a place name

Portuguese
Assad

Arabic for lion

Arabic
Assis

From Assisi; devotion to Saint Francis

Portuguese
Assunção

Assumption of the Virgin Mary

Portuguese
Ataíde

From a Portuguese place name

Portuguese
Azevedo

Holly grove; from a place name

Portuguese

B

Bandeira

Flag or banner

Portuguese
Barbalho

Possibly from barba, beard; meaning uncertain

Portuguese
Barbosa

Bearded; from a Portuguese place name

Portuguese
Barreto

Cap; a cap maker or wearer

Portuguese
Barros

Clay or mud; clay pits

Portuguese
Bastos

Thick or dense; from a place name

Portuguese
Batista

Baptist; from John the Baptist

Portuguese
Becker

Baker; one who baked bread

German
Belchior

Portuguese form of Melchior, one of the Magi

Portuguese
Bertolini

Diminutive of Bertolo, a form of Bartholomew

Italian
Bezerra

Heifer; young cow

Portuguese
Bianchi

White or fair-haired

Italian
Bittencourt

Portuguese form of Norman Béthencourt

Portuguese
Borba

From Borba, a town in Alentejo

Portuguese
Borges

Burgess; a town dweller

Portuguese
Braga

From the city of Braga

Portuguese
Bragança

From Bragança, seat of the royal house

Portuguese
Brandão

Possibly from a Germanic name meaning sword

Portuguese
Braun

Brown; for brown hair or clothing

German
Brito

Briton; or from Brito, a place in Portugal

Portuguese
Brum

Azorean surname, possibly of Flemish origin

Portuguese
Bruno

Brown-haired or dark-skinned

Italian
Buarque

Possibly from a Portuguese place; meaning uncertain

Portuguese
Bulcão

Azorean surname, possibly Flemish; meaning uncertain

Portuguese
Bulhões

Possibly from French Bouillon; Saint Anthony's family name

Portuguese

C

Cabral

Goat pasture; from a place name

Portuguese
Camargo

From Camargo, a place in Cantabria

Portuguese
Camelo

Camel; an old nickname

Portuguese
Caminha

From Caminha, a town in Minho

Portuguese
Campos

Fields; one who lived in open country

Portuguese
Cardoso

Thistly place; land full of thistles

Portuguese
Carneiro

Ram; a shepherd's nickname

Portuguese
Carvalho

Oak tree; from a place name

Portuguese
Castro

Hillfort; from Latin castrum

Portuguese
Cavalcante

Brazilian form of Italian Cavalcanti; horseman

Portuguese
Cavalcanti

Florentine family name; horse riders

Italian
Chaves

Keys; from the town of Chaves

Portuguese
Coelho

Rabbit; an old nickname

Portuguese
Coimbra

From the city of Coimbra

Portuguese
Colombo

Dove; from the Latin columba

Italian
Conceição

Conception; from the Immaculate Conception

Portuguese
Conti

Counts; a count's retainer

Italian
Cordeiro

Lamb

Portuguese
Correia

Leather strap; a belt maker

Portuguese
Costa

Coast or slope

Portuguese
Cotrim

From a Portuguese place; meaning uncertain

Portuguese
Coutinho

Small enclosed estate

Portuguese
Couto

Enclosed estate or private land

Portuguese
Cruz

Cross; a devotional name

Portuguese
Cunha

Wedge; from Cunha, a place in Portugal

Portuguese

D

Damasceno

From Damascus; a devotional name

Portuguese
Dias

Son of Diogo

Portuguese
Diniz

Son of Dinis, Denis

Portuguese
Duarte

Portuguese form of Edward; rich guardian

Portuguese

E

Espíndola

Portuguese form of Genoese Spinola

Portuguese
Esposito

Exposed; a name given to foundlings

Italian

F

Falcão

Falcon; a falconer or fierce person

Portuguese
Farah

Arabic for joy

Arabic
Farias

From Faria, a place in Portugal

Portuguese
Fernandes

Son of Fernando; bold journey

Portuguese
Ferrari

Blacksmith, from Italian ferro, iron

Italian
Ferreira

Place of iron; ironworks

Portuguese
Figueiredo

Fig grove; from a place name

Portuguese
Fischer

Fisherman; one who caught fish

German
Fonseca

Dry spring; from a place name

Portuguese
Fontana

Fountain or spring

Italian
Fontes

Springs or fountains

Portuguese
Freire

Friar; one who served a friary

Portuguese
Freitas

Broken stones; a rocky place

Portuguese
Frota

Fleet; possibly of naval origin

Portuguese

G

Gallo

Rooster; a nickname for a proud man

Italian
Galvão

Portuguese form of Gawain

Portuguese
Godinho

Little Goth; or diminutive of Godo

Portuguese
Gomes

Son of Gomo, possibly from Gothic guma, man

Portuguese
Gonçalves

Son of Gonçalo; Germanic for battle

Portuguese
Greco

Greek; one from Greece

Italian
Guerra

War; a nickname for a fighter

Portuguese
Guimarães

From Guimarães, the cradle of Portugal

Portuguese
Gusmão

Portuguese form of Guzmán, from a place name in Burgos, Spain

Portuguese

H

Haddad

Arabic for blacksmith

Arabic
Hartmann

Strong or hardy man

German
Hayashi

Forest; woods in Japanese

Japanese
Hoffmann

Farm steward or manor worker

German
Hollanda

From Holland; a Dutch-descended Brazilian lineage

Dutch

I

Inoue

Above the well

Japanese
Ito

Wisteria of Ise

Japanese

J

Jafet

Arabic form of Japheth

Arabic
Jaguaribe

From Tupi; river of jaguars

Tupi
Jatene

Lebanese-Brazilian surname; meaning uncertain

Arabic
Jatobá

From Tupi jatobá, a hardwood tree

Tupi
Jesus

A devotional name from Jesus

Portuguese
Junqueira

Place of rushes

Portuguese

K

Kalil

Arabic Khalil, friend

Arabic
Kato

Increasing wisteria in Japanese

Japanese
Khoury

Arabic for priest

Arabic
Kimura

Tree village in Japanese

Japanese
Klabin

Lithuanian-Jewish surname; meaning uncertain

Jewish
Klein

Small; a nickname for a short person

German
Kobayashi

Small forest in Japanese

Japanese
Koch

Cook; one who cooked professionally

German
Kowalski

Of the blacksmith; common among Polish-Brazilians in Paraná

Polish
Krause

Curly-haired; an old nickname

German

L

Lacerda

The bristle; a nickname for a hairy person

Portuguese
Lang

Tall; a nickname for a tall person

German
Leitão

Suckling pig; an old nickname

Portuguese
Leite

Milk; a nickname for a milk seller

Portuguese
Lemos

From Lemos, a Galician district

Portuguese
Lima

From the Lima river in Portugal

Portuguese
Lins

From German Lintz; a Pernambuco family

Portuguese
Lira

Lyre; possibly a musician's name

Portuguese
Lobato

Wolf cub; an old nickname

Portuguese
Lombardi

From the Lombardy region

Italian
Lopes

Son of Lopo; wolf

Portuguese
Loureiro

Laurel tree; from a place name

Portuguese
De Luca

Son of Luca

Italian
Lustosa

From a Portuguese place name; possibly shiny

Portuguese

M

Macedo

Apple orchard; from a place name

Portuguese
Machado

Axe; an axe maker or woodcutter

Portuguese
Magalhães

From Magalhães, a place; Magellan's surname

Portuguese
Maia

From Maia, near Porto

Portuguese
Maluf

Arabic for familiar or well-known

Arabic
Mancini

Left-handed, from Italian mancino

Italian
Mangabeira

Mangaba tree; from a Tupi fruit name

Portuguese
Maranhão

From Maranhão; possibly a tangle or the Marañón river

Portuguese
Marino

Of the sea

Italian
Marques

Son of Marcos

Portuguese
Martins

Son of Martim; dedicated to Mars

Portuguese
Mascarenhas

From a Portuguese place name

Portuguese
Matarazzo

Southern Italian surname; meaning uncertain

Italian
Matos

Woods or scrubland

Portuguese
Matsumoto

Base of the pine tree

Japanese
Mattar

Arabic for rain

Arabic
Medeiros

Place of haystacks

Portuguese
Meireles

From a Portuguese place name

Portuguese
Melo

From Melo, a place in Portugal

Portuguese
Mendes

Son of Mendo

Portuguese
Menezes

From Meneses, a place in Spain

Portuguese
Miranda

From a place name such as Miranda do Douro; of uncertain origin

Portuguese
Monteiro

Huntsman or forester

Portuguese
Morais

From a place name, possibly from mulberry trees

Portuguese
Moreira

Mulberry tree; from a place name

Portuguese
Moretti

Dark-skinned; little Moor

Italian
Mota

Mound or motte

Portuguese
Moura

Moorish woman; or from the town of Moura

Portuguese
Mourão

From Mourão, a town in Alentejo

Portuguese
Müller

Miller; one who ran a mill

German

N

Nakamura

Middle village in Japanese

Japanese
Nascimento

Birth; a devotional name for the Nativity

Portuguese
Nassif

Arabic Nasif, just or fair

Arabic
Negreiros

From a Portuguese place name

Portuguese
Neumann

Newcomer; a new settler

German
Neves

Snows; from Our Lady of the Snows

Portuguese
Nóbrega

From Nóbrega, a place in Minho

Portuguese
Nogueira

Walnut tree; from a place name

Portuguese
Nunes

Son of Nuno

Portuguese

O

Oliveira

Olive tree; from a place name

Portuguese

P

Pacheco

Old Iberian nickname; meaning uncertain

Portuguese
Paiva

From the Paiva river in Portugal

Portuguese
Paixão

Passion; a devotional name for Christ's Passion

Portuguese
Paula

From the name Paula; a devotional surname

Portuguese
Pedrosa

Stony place; from a place name

Portuguese
Peixoto

Possibly little fish, from peixe; an old nickname

Portuguese
Pellegrini

Pilgrims; descendants of a pilgrim

Italian
Penteado

Combed; a nickname for neat hair

Portuguese
Pereira

Pear tree; from a place name

Portuguese
Pessoa

Person; possibly a notable individual

Portuguese
Pimenta

Pepper; a spice trader's nickname

Portuguese
Pimentel

Possibly from pimenta, pepper; a noble place-name surname

Portuguese
Pinto

Chick; or painted, spotted

Portuguese
Pires

Son of Pero, a form of Pedro

Portuguese
Portela

Small mountain pass

Portuguese
Porto

Port or harbor

Portuguese
Potiguara

From Tupi; shrimp eaters, an Indigenous people

Tupi
Prado

Meadow; one who lived by a meadow

Portuguese
Prestes

Possibly from preste, priest

Portuguese

Q

Quaresma

Lent; for a child born in Lent

Portuguese
Queiroga

Heather-covered land; from a place name

Portuguese
Queiroz

Place of heather

Portuguese

R

Ramos

Branches; from Palm Sunday

Portuguese
Rangel

Possibly from a Portuguese place; meaning uncertain

Portuguese
Rebouças

From a Portuguese place name; meaning uncertain

Portuguese
Reis

Kings; from the feast of the Epiphany

Portuguese
Ressurreição

Resurrection; a devotional name

Portuguese
Rezende

From Resende, a Portuguese town

Portuguese
Ribeiro

Stream or brook

Portuguese
Ricci

Curly-haired, from Italian riccio

Italian
Richter

Judge; a village magistrate

German
Rinaldi

Son of Rinaldo; wise ruler

Italian
Rocha

Rock or cliff

Portuguese
Rodrigues

Son of Rodrigo; famous ruler

Portuguese
Romano

From the city of Rome

Italian
Rosa

Rose; from a devotional or place name

Portuguese
Rossi

Red-haired, from Italian rosso

Italian
Russo

Red-haired; southern Italian form

Italian

S

Sá

From Sá, a Portuguese place; hall

Portuguese
Saad

Arabic for good fortune

Arabic
Sacramento

Sacrament; a devotional name

Portuguese
Safra

Possibly from Aramaic safra, scribe

Jewish
Saito

Purifying wisteria in Japanese

Japanese
Saldanha

From Saldaña, a town in Palencia

Portuguese
Sales

Halls; or from Saint Francis de Sales

Portuguese
Salgado

Salted; an old nickname

Portuguese
Sampaio

From Saint Pelagius, São Paio

Portuguese
Santana

Saint Anne; a devotional name

Portuguese
Santos

Saints; a devotional name for All Saints

Portuguese
Sarkis

Arabic form of Sergius

Arabic
Sarmento

Vine shoot

Portuguese
Sato

Helping wisteria in Japanese

Japanese
Scarpa

Shoe; a shoemaker

Italian
Schmidt

Smith; a metal worker

German
Schneider

Tailor; one who cut cloth

German
Schröder

Tailor or cutter

German
Schulz

Village mayor or headman

German
Seixas

Pebbles; from a place name

Portuguese
Sena

Possibly from Siena, or a Portuguese place

Portuguese
Serra

Mountain range; one who lived in the hills

Portuguese
Shimizu

Pure water in Japanese

Japanese
Silva

Forest or woodland; from Latin silva

Portuguese
Silveira

Bramble thicket; from a place name

Portuguese
Siqueira

Dry land; from a place name

Portuguese
Soares

Son of Soeiro

Portuguese
Sobral

Cork-oak grove; from a place name

Portuguese
Sousa

From the Sousa river; the standard modern Portuguese spelling

Portuguese
Souza

From the Sousa river in Portugal; an older spelling kept in Brazil

Portuguese
Suzuki

Bell tree in Japanese

Japanese

T

Tabajara

From Tupi; the name of an Indigenous people

Tupi
Takahashi

High bridge in Japanese

Japanese
Tanaka

In the rice field

Japanese
Tavares

From Tavares, a place in Portugal

Portuguese
Taveira

Tavern; or a Portuguese place name

Portuguese
Teixeira

Place of yew trees

Portuguese
Temer

Lebanese-Brazilian; possibly from Arabic tamr, dates

Arabic
Tenório

From a Galician place name

Portuguese
Toledo

From the Spanish city of Toledo

Portuguese
Trindade

Trinity; a devotional name

Portuguese

U

Uchôa

Portuguese form of Basque Ochoa, wolf

Spanish

V

Valadares

Walled places; from a place name

Portuguese
Valente

Brave; a nickname for a bold person

Portuguese
Varela

Rod or staff; also a Galician place

Portuguese
Vasconcelos

Portuguese place-name surname from Braga

Portuguese
Veloso

Hairy or velvety

Portuguese
Viana

From Viana do Castelo

Portuguese
Vieira

Scallop shell; a pilgrim's badge

Portuguese
Vilela

Small village; from a place name

Portuguese

W

Wagner

Wagon maker or carter

German
Wanderley

From Dutch van der Ley; a Pernambuco family

Dutch
Watanabe

Ferry crossing area

Japanese
Weber

Weaver; one who wove cloth

German
Werner

Germanic for guard and army

German
Wolff

Wolf; from a nickname or given name

German

X

Xavier

From Basque etxe berri, new house

Portuguese
Ximenes

Portuguese form of Jiménez

Portuguese

Y

Yamada

Mountain rice field

Japanese
Yamamoto

Base of the mountain

Japanese
Yoshida

Lucky rice field

Japanese

Z

Zanini

Little Gianni; a Venetian form of John

Italian
Zimmermann

Carpenter; one who worked timber

German

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Results (6)

Queiroga

Heather-covered land; from a place name

Portuguese
Brum

Azorean surname, possibly of Flemish origin

Portuguese
Wagner

Wagon maker or carter

German
Macedo

Apple orchard; from a place name

Portuguese
Braun

Brown; for brown hair or clothing

German
Coimbra

From the city of Coimbra

Portuguese

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Silva, Santos and the meanings of everyday names

A small group of names covers a remarkable share of Brazil. Silva comes from the Latin word for forest or woodland, Santos means saints and is often linked to All Saints Day, and Souza, also spelled Sousa, comes from a river in northern Portugal. Oliveira means olive tree, Pereira pear tree and Ferreira a place of iron or an ironworks. Rodrigues, Alves, Gomes, Martins and Lopes are patronymics meaning son of Rodrigo, Álvaro, Gomo, Martim and Lopo.

Lima and Costa are place names, meaning a river in Portugal and a coast or slope, while Ribeiro means a stream and Carvalho an oak. Many families took these names in Portugal centuries before sailing to Brazil, and many others received them in Brazil through baptism, marriage records or, for enslaved Africans and their descendants, from owners and godparents. That history is one reason a few names are shared so widely, and why sharing a name rarely means sharing an ancestor.

Brazilian last names rare enough to stand out

Rarer names in the list tend to come from a few sources. Some belong to old colonial families of the northeast, such as Cavalcanti, from a Florentine family that settled in Pernambuco, Albuquerque, a Portuguese town name carried by early colonists, and Wanderley, from a Dutch-era officer who stayed on. Others come from Tupi words, like Jaguaribe, often explained as river of jaguars, and Araripe, which shares its name with a plateau in the northeast. Some families adopted such names after independence as a patriotic statement.

Another group of rare names is really a matter of spelling. Before the spelling reforms of the twentieth century, names were often written with doubled consonants, y or extra accents, as in Hollanda, Accioly and Uchôa, and many families kept those old forms on their documents. In real life you will also meet Mello, Britto and Motta beside the more common Melo, Brito and Mota. Choosing the older form is an easy way to give a common name a rarer, more traditional look.

Devotional names and tips for using the list

Religious names are one of the most Brazilian features of the list. Nascimento refers to the birth of Christ, Conceição to the Immaculate Conception, Assunção to the Assumption of Mary and Anunciação to the Annunciation, while Santana honours Saint Anne, and Trindade (Trinity), Ressurreição (Resurrection) and Paixão (the Passion) also appear. Many were chosen at baptism, and they were often given to people who had no inherited surname, including enslaved and freed Africans, which helps explain how common they became.

Brazilians usually carry more than one surname, so a list entry is one piece of a full name. When you search, you can type without accents, since the box treats Conceição and Conceicao the same, and it also checks meanings, so typing tree or saint gathers related names. Sousa and Souza appear as separate entries, so type a short piece such as sou when you are unsure of a spelling. For a character, pairing one common name with one rare one, as in Ana Cavalcanti Pereira, sounds natural.

Frequently asked questions

What are the most common Brazilian last names?

Silva is by far the most frequent, followed by names such as Santos, Oliveira, Souza, Rodrigues, Ferreira, Alves, Pereira, Lima and Gomes. The exact order varies between sources and years, but these ten turn up in almost any Brazilian classroom or office.

Why is Silva so common in Brazil?

Silva was already widespread in Portugal, and colonists, converts, freed people and later immigrants all took it or were given it in Brazil. Because it carried no particular social mark, it spread easily through baptism and civil records. Today it is so common that sharing it says almost nothing about family connection.

Are Brazilian last names from Tupi still used?

Yes, though they are a small group. Names such as Jaguaribe and Araripe come from Tupi words and places, and a few families adopted indigenous names in the nineteenth century as a sign of national pride. Many Indigenous Brazilians today carry Portuguese names or use the name of their people, such as Terena or Guajajara, as a surname.

Is Souza or Sousa the correct spelling?

Both are correct. Sousa is the standard Portuguese form, while Souza is an older spelling that stayed common in Brazil and is often the form on birth certificates there. Whatever appears on a person's documents is the right spelling for that person, so families of the same origin can spell it differently.