Tena
A surname with several possible origins, including Spanish place-name roots and short-name formation in some European naming systems.
The #9,865 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 94,158 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The surname Tena is not securely explained by the excerpts, and it may have more than one independent origin. In Spanish contexts it can be locational, from place-names called Tena; some Iberian word forms linked to the same spelling also suggest a connection with older regional vocabulary. In other European traditions, the spelling can also reflect shortened or patronymic forms, so the name may not have a single source everywhere it appears.
History
The name is found in Spanish-speaking areas and also appears in historical surname lists from northern Europe, which suggests more than one lineage under the same spelling. Because the excerpts do not give a direct dictionary entry for the surname, its history is best treated as mixed and region-dependent rather than fixed to one origin. Modern bearers are especially common in Spanish-speaking populations, but the surname can occur in different families with unrelated roots.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The same spelling can mask different surname stories: in one family it may be locational, while in another it may come from a shortened ancestral name.
From the historical record
“Sentenat. Centenaire. De Sen- tena : centaine (oc). Sentex. Sensé {sentiex, oil). 438 S«r”
— Dictionnaire des noms (French surnames)Notable people named Tena
- Natalia Tena (b. 1984)
Sourced from Wikidata; linked to their Wikipedia page.