Braga
A surname most often tied to the Portuguese and Spanish place name Braga, especially the historic city in northern Portugal.
The #9,557 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 90,754 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Braga is best understood as a habitational surname from the city of Braga in northern Portugal, an ancient Roman settlement. The place name goes back to Latin Bracara Augusta, later simplified in medieval forms to Braga. As a surname, it would originally identify someone who came from that town or from a family associated with it.
History
The city of Braga was an important religious and administrative center in Roman and medieval Iberia, so its name spread widely as a place-based surname. Braga is also found in Italy and other parts of southern Europe, where similar surname formation from a local place name is common. In the Spanish and Portuguese world, the surname is strongly associated with Iberian origin.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Braga is one of Portugal’s oldest cities and was known in Roman times as Bracara Augusta, after which the surname ultimately takes its name.
From the historical record
“la barba. Especie de cabestro... Braga. Metedor por el paño de! :1enzo. Especie de calza- do ancho Bramante. Cordel delgado de cáñamo. Especie de lienzo. Brandis. Cierto casacon grande.”
— Diccionario de los apellidosNotable people named Braga
- Sônia Braga (b. 1950)
Sourced from Wikidata; linked to their Wikipedia page.