Costa History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms 

Origins Available: 
  France 
  Italy 
  Portugal 
  Spain 


The name Costa and its many variations originate in the numerous places in Portugal named da Costa or Costa having derived from the Portuguese word 'costa,' which means coast or shore. Alternatively, the name could have been derived from the Latin word "costa," meaning "rib".

Early Origins of the Costa family

The surname Costa was first found in at Quinta da Costa, in the region of Guimaraes, and dates from the reign of King Afonso Henriques in the 12th century.

Don Joao Ribeiro Gaio, Bishop of Malaca, wrote a lyric poem extolling the bravery of the Costa family. An excerpt from the work states, "With ribs he defended himself, breaking the sword of his enemy, his beloved at his side, even though she also died."

In some cases, the family was Cristãos-novos, or New Christians who converted from Judaism to Catholicism by state edict at 1497. But there are multiple cases where individuals returned to Judaism including Uriel da Costa (c. 1585-1640) the Portuguese philosopher and Catherine Rachel da Costa (1679-1756) whose family fled to London during the Spanish Inquisition.

Costa Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Da Costa, Costa, Costas, De Costa, De la Costa, Dalla Costa and many more.

Early Notables of the Costa family

Prominent members of the family include

Costa World Ranking

In the United States, the name Costa is the 1,076th most popular surname with an estimated 27,357 people with that name. 1 However, in Canada, the name Costa is ranked the 963rd most popular surname with an estimated 5,601 people with that name. 2 And in France, the name Costa is the 387th popular surname with an estimated 10,900 people with that name. 3 South America ranks Costa as 54th with 74 people. 4



Costa migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Costa Settlers in United States in the 16th Century
Costa Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
Costa Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
Costa Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Costa migration to West Indies +

The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association. 7
Costa Settlers in West Indies in the 19th Century

Contemporary Notables of the name Costa (post 1700) +
Fastest Delivery Possible

Digital Products on Checkout, all other products filled in 1 business day

Money Back Guarantee

Yes, all products 100% Guraranteed

BBB A+ Rating

The Best Rating possible

Secure Online Payment

Entire site uses SSL / Secure Certificate