Saldivar
A Spanish surname usually linked to a place-name, likely meaning someone from a “salvage” or “sheltered” place in older Iberian usage.
The #2,097 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 17,898 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Saldivar is generally treated as a Spanish surname of locational origin, from a place-name in Spain or the Basque-speaking north. It is often explained from elements related to Spanish "sal" or older Basque/Iberian place-name material, with the second element commonly compared to Basque "ibar," meaning "valley" or "river meadow." Because medieval place-name forms vary a lot, the exact root is not certain, but the surname clearly began as a name for someone associated with a particular locality.
History
The surname is found in Spain and later in Spanish-speaking parts of the Americas, especially through colonial-era migration and later movement within Mexico, the Southwest, and other regions of the United States. In modern records it is often written without an accent, though some bearers use Saldivar and others Saldívar. The name is best known in the public eye through a number of contemporary Hispanic families and public figures, but its surname history is much older than any one modern bearer.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
This surname is common enough in the U.S. today to rank in the low two-thousands in the 2010 Census, reflecting how widely Spanish-language surnames are represented in American records.