Palma
A surname that usually comes from the word for a palm tree or palm frond, and sometimes from a place-name called Palma.
The #1,735 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 14,962 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Palma ultimately comes from Latin palma, meaning both “palm of the hand” and “palm tree.” As a surname, it is usually locational or descriptive: it could refer to someone from a place named Palma, or to a house, sign, or landscape marked by a palm tree. In Romance-language usage, the same word also helped generate related forms and place-names across Spain, Italy, and Portugal.
History
The name is common in southern Europe and in Spanish- and Italian-speaking communities, especially where place-names called Palma exist. Historical surname lists and onomastic works place Palma alongside other surnames formed from local geography or settlement names. In some cases it may also have been influenced by the symbolic Christian use of palm branches.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Because Latin palma could mean both “palm tree” and “the palm of the hand,” the same root produced a wide family of words in Romance languages, including terms related to applause and hand gestures.
From the historical record
“(from Falestipe) {M.E. palmer(e;O.E.palm + the agent, suff. -ere ; Lat. palma, a palm-tree] Ralph le Palmere.— /f«»rf. Rolls.”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)