de la Puente
A Spanish surname meaning “of the bridge,” originally attached to someone who lived near or came from a bridge.
The #2,420 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 20,630 Americans shares it.
Etymology
This surname comes from Spanish puente, “bridge,” ultimately from Latin pons, pontis. The name is therefore locational or topographical: it originally identified a person living by a bridge, near a bridge crossing, or in some cases from a place called Puente. Forms with the preposition de la literally mean “of the bridge.”
History
Historical sources show the surname in medieval and later Spanish lineages, and it also appears in Spain’s wider naming pattern of surnames built from landmarks such as bridges, fountains, gates, and wells. The name spread into Hispanic communities in the Americas, where it remains in use today. Some older reference works also compare it with French du Pont and other bridge-based surnames.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
A bridge-related surname is one of the most common kinds of place-based names in European naming traditions, because bridges were important landmarks and meeting points.
From the historical record
“PUCKLER ((©.), Buchler. {v. Pauernfeindt.) PUENTE, de la (Sp.)' of the Bridge, {v. du Pont.) PUGH (ilJ.), Pew (0.), Ap Hugh, Son of Hugh. PURDEY (®.), Proud, Surly, Rude; also a little thick-set fellow. PUTNAM or Puttenham (QE-)? -^ome of the pits or wells. PUTTEN, van der (SI.), of the Wells. PUYFERRE, de (f.), of…”
— Surnames