Laínez
A Spanish patronymic surname meaning “son of Lain,” ultimately tied to the medieval name Lain or Laín.
The #8,720 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 82,070 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Laínez is a Spanish patronymic surname formed with the suffix -ez, meaning “son of.” It points back to the medieval personal name Lain or Laín, so the surname originally meant “son of Lain.” The name appears in older historical and genealogical traditions about medieval Castilian lineages.
History
The surname is especially associated in old Spanish genealogical writing with descendants said to come from Laín Calvo, a legendary ancestral figure in medieval Castile. Later Spanish usage preserved Laínez as a hereditary family name rather than a simple patronymic descriptor. It is now a recognized Spanish surname, also found in the Americas through Spanish migration.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Some old genealogical sources use Laínez as the patronymic form for descendants of the legendary Laín Calvo.
From the historical record
“guna modificacion o añadidura, especialmente con la ter-. Minacion, 3. que significa de, como Lopez de Lope, Diaz. de Diego, Lainez de Lain, Perez de Pedro, Martinez de: Martin, Fernandez de Fernando: vaxios de la profesion ue oficio. a que se dedicaban, como Escribano, Barbero, Moli- pero, Zapatero, Herrero…”
— Diccionario de los apellidos