Argentinian Last Name Generator

500 surnames as they are found in Argentina, from González, Pereyra and Rossi to Etcheverry, Mac Allister and Mamani. Surnames only, with the accents Argentines write.

About Argentinian last names

Argentina's surnames tell the story of a country built by immigration. The base is Spanish: patronymics such as González, Rodríguez and Fernández arrived with the colonial settlers, and old names took spellings that Argentina made its own, like Pereyra, Ferreyra and Giménez. Basque families were prominent from early on, which is why Aguirre, Echeverría, Urquiza and Anchorena sound so at home on the River Plate.

Between the 1870s and the 1920s millions of Europeans landed in Buenos Aires, and Italians were the largest group. Ligurian names such as Parodi and Repetto, Piedmontese ones such as Giraudo and Ferrero, and nationwide names like Rossi, Bianchi and Ferrari are now everyday Argentine surnames, carried by figures from Messi to Piazzolla. Volga Germans settled Entre Ríos and La Pampa, Swiss colonists farmed Santa Fe, Welsh settlers founded towns in Chubut, and Irish sheep farmers spread across the pampas.

Later arrivals added Syrian and Lebanese names, often respelled the Spanish way (Hadad, Mansur, Sabag), along with Jewish surnames from Eastern Europe, Croatian names ending in -ich and Armenian names in -ian. The list also includes Quechua, Aymara and Mapuche surnames such as Mamani, Quispe and Namuncurá. Argentines normally use one surname, the father's, where most of Spanish America uses two.

How to choose Argentinian last names

• Keep the accents. González, Álvarez and Agüero are written with their marks in Argentina, and leaving them off changes how the name reads in Spanish.
• Give an Argentine character one surname. Unlike Mexico or Spain, everyday Argentine usage gives a person a single family name, usually the father's.
• Let the surname suggest a region. Welsh names fit Chubut, Volga German names fit Entre Ríos, Quechua names fit Jujuy and Salta, and Italian names fit almost anywhere, above all Buenos Aires, Santa Fe and Córdoba.
• Mix origins across a cast. A believable Argentine soccer team or school class has a González beside a Bianchi, an Etcheverry, a Schmidt and a Hadad.
• For a first name to go with it, try our Argentinian name generator, which pairs given names with surnames like these.

Frequently asked questions

What are the most common last names in Argentina?

Spanish patronymics lead by a wide margin: González, Rodríguez, Gómez, Fernández, López, Díaz, Martínez and Pérez sit near the top of any Argentine list. Italian names such as Rossi, Bianchi and Ferrari are also very widespread. We do not print exact figures, because published counts vary with the source and the year.

Why do so many Argentines have Italian last names?

Italy sent more immigrants to Argentina than any other country during the great migration of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Their surnames, from Ligurian Parodi and Repetto to southern Russo and Esposito, passed down the male line and are now fully Argentine. Messi, Ginóbili, Sabatini and Piazzolla are all surnames from that wave.

Do Argentines use two last names?

Usually not. Most Argentines go by a single family name, traditionally the father's, although the law now lets parents choose the order or give both. Compound surnames such as Ramos Mejía exist, but each is one inherited name and not a father and mother pair.

Does an Argentine surname show where a family came from?

It can point to one line of ancestry and nothing more. An Argentine named Schmidt or Jones may have a mostly Spanish or Italian family tree, since a surname follows only one branch. Use the names here for characters and ideas, and turn to civil and parish records for real genealogy.

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All 500 Argentinian last names