Valencia
A surname taken from the Spanish city of Valencia, originally meaning someone from that place.
The #475 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 4,411 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Valencia is a habitational surname from the city of Valencia in eastern Spain. The city name goes back to Latin Valentia, from valens, meaning “strong,” “vigorous,” or “powerful.” As a surname, it would originally have identified a person who came from Valencia or who was associated with that place.
History
The surname spread through Spain and later into the wider Spanish-speaking world, where it remains common. It is also found in the Americas through Spanish colonial migration and later movement between regions. In some cases, related forms such as Valenzuela developed as separate place-based surnames.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Valencia is one of many Spanish surnames that preserve the name of a major city as a family identifier.
From the historical record
“the Scottish courts. DENIO. Local. Denia, a city of Valencia, in Spain; De Nby&n, from Noyon, a town of France. DENMAN. A denizen; in Welsh, Dinman, the place of a fortress, from din, a fortress, and man, a place. Denman, Saxon, the man of the valley ; a dweller in the vale.”
— An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names