Meza
A Spanish surname most often linked to a word for a table or a plateau, and sometimes to place names built from that term.
The #639 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 5,800 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Meza is a Spanish surname usually connected with the common noun mesa, meaning "table" and also "flat-topped hill" or "plateau." In surname use, it can point to someone who lived near such a landform or to a place called Meza or Mesa. The spelling with -z- reflects common Spanish surname variation and regional orthography, while the underlying root is Latin mensa, "table."
History
The surname is well established in the Spanish-speaking world and is especially common in Spain and Latin America. In many cases it likely arose independently in different places from local topographic names rather than from a single ancestral line. In the Americas, Meza often appears alongside the related surname Mesa, with the two forms sometimes varying by region and record-keeping.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Because Spanish mesa can mean both a dining table and a flat elevated landform, the surname can have a very down-to-earth or very scenic backstory depending on the family.