Arena
A name of Spanish and Italian origin, often linked to sand or a sandy place.
The #5,209 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 46,040 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Arena comes from Latin arena, meaning “sand,” especially fine sand. In surname use, it was likely applied to someone who lived near sandy ground or a sandy place, or as a topographic name for such a feature. The same word also became the common term for an enclosed space for games or combat, but that sense is separate from the surname’s likely origin.
History
The surname is especially associated with southern Italy and Spanish-speaking areas, where place-based surnames from landscape features were common. In Italy, Arena is well established as a surname and also appears in place names, which may have reinforced its use. The form is also found in the Americas through Italian and Spanish migration.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Latin arena originally meant “sand” before it came to mean the sand-covered floor of a combat or performance space, which is why English uses the same word for a sports venue.
From the historical record
“Arcos. Plural de Arco. Arenales. Muchos sitios poblados de arena. Arenas. El conjunto de partículas desprendidas de las rocas i peñascos, i aumentadas comunmente en las orillas del mar i de los rios,”
— Diccionario de los apellidos