Ojeda
A Spanish surname probably tied to a place name, likely referring to a holly or prickly thicket.
The #1,633 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 14,005 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Ojeda is generally understood as a Spanish locational surname, formed from a place-name rather than from a personal nickname or occupation. It is commonly linked with the Spanish word oja or hoja-related forms, ultimately from Latin folia/folium, though older surname dictionaries often treated such place-names cautiously and without full certainty. In practice, the name is usually explained as referring to a spot characterized by holly, brush, or some other leafy or thorny growth.
History
The surname is long established in Spain and is especially associated with Spanish-language naming traditions. It is also known in the Hispanic world through the fame of the 16th-century conquistador Alonso de Ojeda, which helped keep the name visible in historical records. The name later spread to Latin America and, much more recently, to the United States through Hispanic migration.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Alonso de Ojeda, one of the best-known early bearers of the surname, gave his name to the Gulf of Venezuela's Ojeda region in some historical references.
From the historical record
“Mama, Ozello, Cortez, Pedro Alvarado, De Leon, Sandoval, Francis Pizaryo, Valverde, Escobar, Ponce De Leon, Her- nando De Soto, Balboa, Ojeda, Iturbide, Antonio Lopez, Santa-ana, Juarez, Paredes, Miramon, Bustamente, Romero, Diaz, Cortina, Maximillian, Carlotta, - La Salle, Marquette, Hennepin, Joliet, Duquesne…”
— A Grammar of American Surnames