Felipe
A Spanish and Portuguese surname from the personal name Felipe, meaning “lover of horses.”
The #5,462 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 48,469 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Felipe is taken from the given name Felipe, the Spanish form of Philip. The name ultimately comes from Greek Philippos, made from philo- “loving” and hippos “horse,” so the literal sense is “lover of horses.” As a surname, it usually began as a patronymic name identifying someone as the son or family member of a man named Felipe.
History
The surname is most at home in Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking areas, where it developed from the widespread Christian personal name Felipe. Historical forms and references in older genealogical and onomastic works sometimes note variants such as Filipo or Felipinho-like diminutives in related traditions, but the core surname form remains straightforward. In English-language records it is often encountered through Hispanic or Lusophone migration.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The same Greek roots behind Felipe also gave English the name Philip, so the surname literally preserves an ancient compliment about horses.
From the historical record
“crático, se apoderó de Argos, donde repartió las tierras, se hizo dueño de la Mesenia, tuvo una armada numerosa, ¡ hasta llegó a poseer ciudades en Creta. Sostuvo a Felipe de Macedonia. Los romanos le vencieron en 194 1 la liga Agrea en 1093, ¡los Elolios, sus aliados, le asesinaron. Nadal. Anticuado, Navidad.”
— Diccionario de los apellidos