Drago
A surname with likely Romance roots, often linked to the word for “dragon.”
The #9,875 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 94,273 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Drago is most likely from a Romance word for “dragon,” ultimately from Latin draco. In medieval naming, such a word could be used as a nickname, a badge-name, or a descriptive surname for someone associated with a dragon emblem or a forceful temperament. In some cases it may also reflect direct use of the personal name Drago/Draco in older Romance and Latin contexts.
History
The historical excerpts suggest the name was already in use in England by the early modern period, though they do not give a full origin story. The form is especially natural in Italian- and Iberian-language settings, where surnames and given names derived from dragon-words are well attested. Modern bearers are found across the Mediterranean diaspora and in English-speaking countries.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The Latin word behind Drago also gave English the word "dragon."
From the historical record
“curs in the H.R., but the nearest approach to this that I have seen in modern times is Drago, a name which existed at Ely about a century since. Several families of Drake bear as arms the wyvern, or two-legged dragon ; and it is worthy of remark that in”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom