Vargo
A surname most often linked to Central or Eastern European naming traditions, probably from a personal name rather than an English word.
The #4,553 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 39,649 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Vargo is usually treated as a surname that developed from a personal name or as a Slavic-form family name adapted in Central Europe. In some cases it may be connected with Slovak or related Slavic naming patterns, while in others it can reflect Hungarian spelling or pronunciation in immigrant records. Because the surname appears across several neighboring naming traditions, its exact root can vary by family line rather than having one single origin for everyone.
History
The name is found in areas of Central and Eastern Europe and became more visible in the United States through 19th- and 20th-century immigration. In American records it may have been standardized in different ways, which can make separate Vargo families hard to connect to one shared ancestral source. The surname is relatively uncommon in the U.S. compared with major European-origin surnames, but it is well established in immigrant communities.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
In U.S. records, Vargo can sometimes sit near surnames like Varga or Wargo because clerks often anglicized similar-sounding Central European names differently.