González is a Spanish surname of Germanic origin, the second most common (2.16% of the population) in Spain, as well as one of the five most common surnames in Argentina, Chile, Mexico, Paraguay, and Venezuela, and one of the most common surnames in the entire Spanish-speaking world. As of 2017, it is the 13th most common surname in the United States.

Origin

González is a Spanish name. Its origins trace back to a Visigothic name combining the words gunþo (guntho) (battle or war) and alf (elf); the Latinized form was Gundisalv. As the Spanish language developed, the name transformed into Gonzalo and its surname derivative González. Some believe the name to mean "war hall", as evidenced by the castle in a field of blood on its family crest and the Visigothic cultural origins of the nation of Spain. González is also taken to mean "son of Gonzalo", "noble warrior", "soldier" or "castle guard". Common spellings include: Gonzalez (no acute accent), Gonzáles, Gonzales, Gonzalés, González and Gonçalves. The variant Consolus appears among people descended from a Spaniard with the surname Gonsález who settled in the Dutch colony of New Amsterdam.

Geographical distribution

As of 2014, 31.8% of all known bearers of the surname González were residents of Mexico (frequency 1:44), 10.8% of Spain (1:49), 10.0% of Venezuela (1:34), 7.4% of Argentina (1:66), 7.1% of the United States (1:584), 6.7% of Colombia (1:81), 5.1% of Cuba (1:26), 4.2% of Chile (1:48), 3.1% of Paraguay (1:27), 2.7% of Guatemala (1:68), 1.7% of Panama (1:27), 1.7% of Nicaragua (1:42), 1.4% of the Dominican Republic (1:85), 1.1% of El Salvador (1:67) and 1.1% of Ecuador (1:171). In Spain, the frequency of the surname was higher than national average (1:49) in the following autonomous communities: In Cuba, the frequency of the surname was higher than national average (1:26) in the following provinces:

People named González

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