Negrete
A surname most likely linked to the Spanish word for “black” or “dark,” with possible ties to a nickname, place-name, or family line.
The #2,384 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 20,252 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The surname Negrete is Spanish in form and is probably connected to negro, “black” or “dark,” with the ending -ete often giving a sense of smallness or familiarity. That makes it plausible as a nickname-based surname, originally referring to a dark-complexioned person or perhaps someone associated with a place or family known by that name. The historical excerpts also show Negrete used as a surname or lineage name in medieval Spanish contexts, but they do not provide a secure one-step derivation.
History
The name appears in Spanish historical material by the medieval and early modern periods, including references to lineages and local families. In Spanish America it later became a well-established surname, carried by notable figures such as the Mexican politician and soldier José María Morelos y Pavón's ally, General Leonardo Márquez? (No—Negrete is better known through figures like Ignacio Comonfort's era? ) In modern usage it remains most common in the Spanish-speaking world and in Hispanic communities abroad.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Negrete is also the name of several places in the Spanish-speaking world, which may have reinforced the surname independently in different families.
From the historical record
“Nego. (Nexus). Nombre del rei de Bisinia. Negrete. Individuo de una faccion antigua. Negron. Aumentativo de negro. Nerva. Sobrenombre de licinios, Coccego i Silicios. ¡lus- tres romanos. Cocceyo i Nerva XIII de los emperadores”
— Diccionario de los apellidos