Alonzo
A Spanish-derived surname and given name, ultimately tied to the royal name Alfonso and its older form Ildefonso.
The #1,758 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 15,159 Americans shares it.
Etymology
This surname comes from the Spanish personal name Alonzo, a shortened form of Alonso, which in turn is a shortened form of Alfonso. Older scholarship often connected Alfonso with a Gothic name meaning roughly 'ready for help' or 'noble and eager,' though the exact path is debated. The excerpted source specifically traces Alonzo back through Alfonso and Alonso, and ultimately links the whole group to the older name Ildefonso.
History
Alonzo is best known as a Hispanic given name and surname, especially in Spanish-speaking regions and among families of Spanish or Latin American background. The name gained wider recognition through royal and literary use of the Alfonso/Alonso forms, which helped make it prestigious across the Iberian world. In English-speaking countries, Alonzo has also appeared as a given name and occasionally as a surname, often reflecting Spanish or Hispanic ancestry.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
In older naming traditions, Alonzo is part of a chain of forms that moved from Ildefonso to Alfonso to Alonso and then to Alonzo.
From the historical record
“the same as the gipsy name Alamina. ALONZO. A name derived from root of Alphonso. ALPHONSO. This name is usually derived from the Gothic helpuns (say hialp-uns), our help ; but to arrive at PK^NOMINA. 7 the origin of the name we must compare it with the Spanish names Ildefonso, Alfonso, Alonso, which all represent…”
— Praenomina; or, the etymology of the principal Christian names of Great Britain and Ireland