Nuñez The Meaning, Origin, and Genealogy of the Surname

While Nuà ±ez is a very common last name in Spanish, it has an interesting story—although its not entirely clear what it means. Nuà ±ez is a patronymic surname, meaning it was created by adding letters to the name of a paternal ancestor. Nuà ±ez comes from the given name Nuà ±o and is accompanied by the traditional patronymic suffix -ez. Nuà ±o is of uncertain derivation, although it may be from the Latin nonus, meaning ninth, nunnus, meaning grandfather, or nonnus, meaning chamberlain or squire. Fast Facts on the Nuà ±ez Surname Frequency: Nuà ±ez is the 58th most common Hispanic surname.Surname Origin:  SpanishAlternate Spellings:  Nuà ±es (Portuguese/Galician), Nuà ±o, Nuà ±oz, Nuà ±oo, Neà ±oTo Create a Keyboard à ±/Ñ: On a Windows computer, hold down the alt key while typing 164. For a capital Ñ, its alt and 165. On a Mac, press Option and the n key, then the n key again. For a capital Ñ, hold the shift key while typing the second n. Spelling and Pronunciation While Nuà ±ez is traditionally spelled with the Spanish  Ãƒ ±,  the tilde is not always included when writing out the name. Part of this is due to the fact that English keyboards do not make typing the tilde-accented n easy, so the Latin n is substituted in its place. (Some families simply dropped the accent at some point in time.) Whether it is spelled Nuà ±ez or Nunez, the pronunciation remains the same. The letter à ± signifies a double n letter, which is unique to Spanish. Its pronounced ny just as in  seà ±orita. Famous People Named Nuà ±ez Since Nuà ±ez is such a popular name, you will encounter it often. When it comes to celebrities and well-known people, there are a few who are particularly interesting: Vasco Nuà ±ez de Balboa: Spanish explorer and conquistadorMiguel Nuà ±ez: American actorRafael Nuà ±ez: three-time president of ColombiaSamuel Nuà ±es: Born  Diogo Nuà ±es Ribeiro in Portugal, Samuel Nuà ±es was a physician and  one of the first Jewish  immigrants to the Georgia colony in 1733. Where Do People With the Nuà ±ez Surname Live? According to Public Profiler: World Names, the vast majority of individuals with the Nuà ±ez surname live in Spain, specifically in the Extremadura and Galicia regions. Moderate concentrations also exist in the United States and Argentina, plus small populations in France and Australia. It is also a name commonly found in Mexico and Venezuela. Genealogy Resources for the Surname Nuà ±ez Are you interested in researching your ancestry? Explore these resources targeted specifically to the Nuà ±ez family name. Nuà ±ez Family DNA Project:  Males with the Nuà ±ez or Nuà ±es surname are welcome to join this Y-DNA project. It is geared toward a combination of DNA and traditional genealogy research to explore shared Nuà ±ez heritage.FamilySearch: NUÑEZ Genealogy: Explore over 725,000 historical records and lineage-linked family trees with entries for the Nuà ±ez surname. It is a  free website hosted by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.NUÑEZ Surname Family Mailing Lists:  RootsWeb hosts several free mailing lists for researchers of the Nuà ±ez surname. The archive of posts is a good research tool if youre tracing your family lineage. Sources Cottle B. Penguin Dictionary of Surnames. Penguin Books. 1967.Hanks P. Dictionary of American Family Names. Oxford University Press. 2003.Smith E.C. American Surnames. Genealogical Publishing Company. 1997.