Show ContentsGonzález History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The mountainous borders of Spain contain the origins of the prestigious surname González. The earliest forms of hereditary surnames in Spain were the patronymic surnames, which are derived from the father's given name, and metronymic surnames, which are derived from the mother's given name. The surname González is made up of two elements: "Gonzalo," a personal name thought to be derived from the Visigothic "Gundesaelf," meaning "battle elf," and "-ez," the Spanish patronymic suffix.

Early Origins of the González family

The surname González was first found in Castile, where the name originated in Visigothic times.

Early History of the González family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our González research. Another 96 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1086, 1366, 1382, 1391, 1407, 1464, 1492, 1503, 1612 and 1674 are included under the topic Early González History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

González Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: González, Gonzalez, Gundisalvez, Gonsalviz, Gonzálvez, Gonzalvez, Gonçalve, Gonzales, Gonzalo, Gozalo, Monsalve, Monsabre, Gosalviz, Gosalvez, Goçalez, Gunzáloz, Gunzaloz, Galbis, Gálvez and many more.

Early Notables of the González family

Prominent among members of the family

  • Fernán González, perhaps the best known of the early Counts of Castile, who died in 970. The family were hereditary Counts of Castile, and became connected to Castilian royalty when Count Rodrigo Gonz...

González World Ranking

In the United States, the name González is the 38th most popular surname with an estimated 412,842 people with that name. 1 However, in Canada, the name González is ranked the 891st most popular surname with an estimated 6,012 people with that name. 2 And in Quebec, Canada, the name González is the 798th popular surname. 3 France ranks González as 114th with 25,258 people. 4 South America ranks González as 3rd with 426 people. 5


United States González migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

González Settlers in United States in the 16th Century
  • Pedro González de Prado voyaged to Chile in the 1540s
  • Andrea González, traveled to Peru in 1562
  • Diego González, went to Hispaniola in 1562
  • Catalina González, who settled in Honduras in 1562
  • Juan González,sailed to Mexico in 1563
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
González Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Bernardo Gonzalez, who landed in Puerto Rico in 1803 6
  • Pero Gonzalez, who landed in America in 1811 6
  • Leonor Gonzalez, who arrived in America in 1812 6
  • Macias Gonzalez, who landed in America in 1814 6
  • Bartolome Gonzalez, who landed in America in 1814 6
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
González Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
  • Bruno Gonzalez, who landed in Alabama in 1922 6

West Indies González 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
González Settlers in West Indies in the 16th Century
  • Gonzalo González, who settled in Cuba in 1566
González Settlers in West Indies in the 19th Century
  • Bernal Gonzalez, who arrived in Dominican Republic in 1835 6

Contemporary Notables of the name González (post 1700) +

  • Dennis González (1954-2022), American jazz trumpeter, artist, and educator from Abilene, Texas
  • Ernie Gonzalez (1961-2020), American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour in the 1980s
  • Andy González (1951-2020), American New York City-based double bass player
  • Nicholas James Gonzalez M.D. (1947-2015), American physician, known for developing the Gonzalez regimen (or Gonzalez protocol), an alternative cancer treatment
  • Richard "Pancho" González (1928-1995), World No. 1 tennis player
  • Sara G. de Gonzalez, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Puerto Rico, 1972 8
  • Fernando Suárez González (b. 1933), Spanish politician and jurist
  • Fernando Blas González Delgado (1947-2024), Spanish journalist, writer and politician
  • Miguel Ángel Gonzalez Suarez (1947-2024), known as Miguel Ángel, was a Spanish footballer
  • Miguel González (1938-2022), Spanish basketball player at the 1960 Summer Olympics
  • ... (Another 47 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Arrow Air Flight 1285
  • Mr. Roberto Gonzalez (1966-1985), American Private 1st Class from Quebradilla, Puerto Rico, USA who died in the Arrow Air Flight 1285 crash 9


  1. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  2. "Surnames Meanings, Origins & Distribution Maps - Forebears." Forebears, https://forebears.io/surnames
  3. "The first 1,000 family names by rank, Quebec (in French only)" Institut de la statistique du Quebec, https://statistique.quebec.ca/en/document/family-names-in-quebec/tableau/the-first-1000-family-names-by-rank-quebec
  4. http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
  5. "List of most common surnames in South America." Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_most_common_surnames_in_South_America
  6. Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
  7. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
  8. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 11) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
  9. American War Memorials - Flight 1285. (Retrieved 2016, August 24) . Retrieved from http://www.uswarmemorials.org/html/monument_details.php?SiteID=317&MemID=550


Houseofnames.com on Facebook