Medrano
A Spanish surname probably tied to a place name, especially a settlement or estate called Medrano in northern Spain.
The #858 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 7,669 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Medrano is a Spanish surname of locational origin, referring to someone from a place called Medrano. The name is associated with old place-names in Spain, and the surname is especially known in Castilian and northern Spanish noble lineages. The exact deeper meaning of the place-name itself is not securely established in the excerpts and is often treated as a historical place-name rather than a transparent common noun.
History
The surname appears in medieval Spanish records and is associated with a noble family, including references to a "Señor de Argoncillo" connected by marriage to the Medrano line. It remained established in Spain and later spread to the Americas through Spanish migration. In modern usage it is most common in Hispanic communities, especially in Spain and Latin America.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Medrano is also the name of a municipality in La Rioja, Spain, which helps explain the surname’s place-based origin.
From the historical record
“mozus (1184). — Petro menor (1203). — Don Ro- drigo Gonzalvez el ninno (1255). — Don Jolian Martiniz de Medrano el mayor y D. Jolian Mar- tiniz de Medrano el jóveíi (1328). — Pet)v cari- llo {llS7).—Eg¡la genro de Fronildo (1009).— Petrus sobrino {llb%). — Petrus 7ieptus(120b). — Munio neto (1165). — P. ominguez el…”
— Ensayo histórico etimológico filológico sobre los apellidos castellanos