Orlando
An Italian and literary surname from the heroic name Orlando, ultimately linked to the famous medieval Roland tradition.
The #2,865 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 24,531 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Orlando is best understood as a surname taken from the personal name Orlando, the Italian form of Roland. Roland itself goes back to a Germanic name commonly interpreted as meaning "fame" or "renown" plus "land" or "territory," though older explanations vary. In English-language surname books, Orlando is treated mainly as a name inherited from the given name rather than from an occupation or place.
History
The name gained wide literary prestige through the medieval Roland cycle and especially through Ariosto's Renaissance epic Orlando Furioso. As a surname, it is most naturally explained as a patronymic or name-based surname arising from an ancestor called Orlando. In English-speaking countries it is comparatively uncommon as a family name, but familiar because of the given name and literary associations.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Ariosto's Orlando Furioso helped make Orlando one of the most famous heroic names in European literature, far beyond its use as a surname.
From the historical record
“loadson.— Bapt ' the son of Ro- land.' Roland or Orlando was the nephew of the great Charles, who fell at Roncesvalles. theDi”
— A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with special American instances