Dos Santos
A Portuguese surname meaning “of the saints,” originally marking devotion or a person associated with a religious feast or place.
The #5,656 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 50,309 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Dos Santos is a Portuguese surname built from the preposition dos, meaning “of the,” and santos, meaning “saints.” It ultimately reflects Latin sanctus, “holy” or “saint.” As a surname, it usually began as a religious or devotional name, often given to someone born on a saint’s day or linked with a church, feast, or religious dedication.
History
The name is especially common in Portugal, Brazil, and other Lusophone communities, where it has long been used as a devotional surname. In Portuguese naming practice, surnames beginning with Dos, Da, or De often preserve older prepositional forms attached to religious or place-based terms. It is also found widely in diaspora communities because of Portuguese and Brazilian migration.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Surnames built from religious phrases like Dos Santos are very common in Portuguese-speaking countries, and many were originally connected to baptismal or feast-day naming customs.