Montalvo
A Spanish surname most likely taken from a place name built on words meaning “mountain” and “slope” or “hill.”
The #1,531 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 13,164 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Montalvo is a Spanish surname formed from a place name. It is usually explained as coming from elements related to Latin mons, "mountain," and a term like albus/altus or a local Romance form referring to a high place or slope, giving the sense of "high hill" or "mountain slope." Because surnames of this type often began as identifiers for people from a particular town or estate, Montalvo is best understood as a locational name.
History
The surname is well known in Spain and later spread widely through the Spanish-speaking world. One famous bearer was Alonso Díaz de Montalvo, a noted Spanish jurist of the 15th century, which helped keep the name visible in historical records. In modern times it is especially common in Latin America and among Hispanic families elsewhere.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Alonso Díaz de Montalvo was often remembered as an authority on law in late medieval Spain, so the surname appears early in scholarly and legal history.
From the historical record
“Montalembert 30. Montalivet 267, 371. *Montalvo 441. MontaAies 371. Montanus 344. *Montargil 440. *Montauban 371. Montaus! er 371.”
— Die Personennamen, insbesondere die Familiennamen