Grimaldo
A surname of Germanic origin, historically used in medieval Italy and Spain and associated with the great Genoese Grimaldi family.
The #5,829 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 52,056 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Grimaldo goes back to an old Germanic personal name, usually analyzed as containing the element grima-, often understood as "mask," "helmet," or figuratively "fierce" or "protective," plus an element meaning "rule" or "power." Medieval Latin and Romance forms such as Grimaldus, Grimaldi, and Grimaldo show how the name was adapted in Italy and Spain. The surname is therefore best understood as being based on an inherited personal name rather than a place-name or occupation.
History
Historical references connect Grimaldo with Lombard noble naming traditions and with the later Grimaldi family of Genoa. The form spread through medieval Italy and into Spanish usage, where it survived as both a given name and a surname. The 19th-century sources also treat it as one of several Romance forms descending from a Germanic personal name family.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The name was notable enough in older scholarship to be linked with the Lombard kings and the famous Grimaldi dynasty of Genoa.
From the historical record
“Old German Grimund, 9th cent. — Eng. Grimmond — French Grimont. {Wald, power) Old Germ. Grimoald, 7th cent. — French Grimault — Italian GRiMALDit — Spanish Grimaldo. {Wine, friend) Old German Grimoin, 8th cent. — French Grimoin. {Ward, guardian) Old German Grim wart, Grimoard, 8th cent. — French Grimoard. The…”
— The Teutonic Name-System applied to the family names of France, England and Germany