Bueno
A Spanish surname from the adjective bueno, meaning “good.”
The #2,140 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 18,230 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Bueno comes from the Spanish adjective bueno, “good,” ultimately from Latin bonus, “good.” As a surname it most likely began as a nickname for someone thought to be good, kind, honest, or otherwise morally worthy. In some cases it may also reflect a hereditary byname already established in medieval Spanish naming.
History
The sources show Bueno among Spanish surnames formed from personal qualities, and medieval examples such as D. Diego López el Bueno and Pedro González el Bueno illustrate its early use as an epithet. It is also found in Portuguese and in Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking Jewish naming traditions, sometimes in compound forms such as Bueno de Mesquita. The surname remains common in the Spanish-speaking world and is well represented in the Americas.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Bueno is one of several surnames that preserve an ordinary adjective as a family name, alongside forms like Malo and Rico.
From the historical record
“de las buenas o malas cualidades i de otras circunstancias, como Jóven, Mozo, Lijero, Calvo, Romo, Zafo. Mármol, Cabezudo, Bueno, Malo, Zorrilla, Valiente, Brioso, Ver- £onzoso, Cortés, Bonifaz, Rico; muchísimos de la vida ayrícola t pastoril, como Labrador, Pastor, Cabrero, Bo- yero, Vaquero, Cabañero, Colmenero…”
— Diccionario de los apellidos