Carrillo
A Spanish surname that likely began as a nickname or kinship byname, later inherited as a family name.
The #340 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 3,388 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The surname Carrillo is generally linked to Spanish carrillo, a word that can mean the cheek or jaw area, and in older usage could also function as a nickname. Some 19th-century writers also suggested a relation to a familiar form like carillo/cariello, later fixed as a hereditary surname. The form is ultimately tied to Spanish vocabulary, though the exact path into surname use is not entirely certain.
History
Carrillo is an old and widespread Hispanic surname, well represented in Spain and throughout Latin America. Historical writers sometimes treated it as a nickname surname, while others connected it with kinship terms or diminutive forms, showing that its early development was already obscure in later scholarship. It is common enough today to be familiar across the Spanish-speaking world and in the United States.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The surname has a long scholarly trail: older onomastic writers debated whether it came from a nickname, a diminutive, or an early kinship form before it settled into a stable family name.
From the historical record
“que guía las mulas o bueyes que los tiran. Carrillo. La parte carnosa de la cara desde la mejilla hasta lo bajo de la quijada. Carrizo. Planta especie de caña que se cria entre mucha humedad i de que se usa para cubrir los techos”
— Diccionario de los apellidosNotable people named Carrillo
- André Carrillo (b. 1991)
Sourced from Wikidata; linked to their Wikipedia page.