De Maria
A surname meaning “of Mary” or “from Mary,” common in Italian and other Romance-language traditions.
The #9,361 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 88,848 Americans shares it.
Etymology
De Maria is a Romance surname built from the preposition de, meaning “of” or “from,” plus Maria, the Latin form of Mary. In Italian naming practice, it most often means “of Mary” and may have begun as a devotional or identifying name connected with the Virgin Mary, or as a designation for someone associated with a place, house, or family called Maria. In some cases it can also be understood as a patronymic or matronymic-style surname formed from a personal name.
History
The surname is especially associated with Italy and Italian diaspora communities, where names beginning with De- often arose in the medieval and early modern periods. It may appear with or without a space or apostrophe in records, reflecting local spelling habits and later bureaucratic standardization. In emigrant communities, the form was often simplified into Demaria as a single word.
Origin
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Variant spellings
Fun fact
Because Maria is such a widespread devotional name, surnames built from it can be hard to pin to one single family origin without local records.