Sousa
A Portuguese surname originally tied to a place-name, ultimately meaning “from Sousa.”
The #2,370 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 20,078 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Sousa is a Portuguese surname derived from a place name in northern Portugal, most famously the Sousa River and the surrounding region. The place-name is usually explained from a pre-Roman or very early local river-name, though the exact older root is uncertain. In surname use, it simply marked someone as coming from that locality.
History
The name spread widely in Portugal and later across the Portuguese-speaking world through migration and colonial-era settlement. It is common in Portugal, Brazil, and communities of Portuguese descent elsewhere. A well-known bearer was the Portuguese explorer and colonial administrator D. João de Sousa; the surname also appears in several noble and aristocratic Portuguese lines.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Because Portuguese surnames often preserved a place of origin, de Sousa and Sousa can function much like “of Sousa” or “from Sousa” in older records.