Peña
A Spanish surname meaning “rock” or “cliff,” originally used for someone living near a prominent rocky place.
The #227 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 2,361 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Peña is a Spanish word for a rock, cliff, or crag, and the surname usually began as a locational name for someone who lived by such a feature. The word ultimately goes back to Latin pinna, used in the sense of a peak or rocky point. In older sources, the form is sometimes explained as a place-name element found in many Spanish toponyms.
History
The surname is common across Spain and later spread widely through the Spanish-speaking world. It often appears with the article as de la Peña or La Peña, especially in older records and noble or regional name forms. In modern usage, the spelling without the tilde, Pena, is also common outside Spanish contexts, including in the United States.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Many Spanish place names contain peña because rocky heights were a common landmark for naming settlements.
From the historical record
“CO. Edinburgh. ' Crichton ! thonsh noir ihy nh^ ■ Bol pena the liMj aleer aod itnp 'Sir Alexander CrirhtoB (1763- , ma a fiafire of Scotland ' :”
— A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with special American instances