Sousa Surname Meaning & Origin
What the Sousa last name means, where the surname began and how it spread.
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Meaning and origin of the Sousa last name
Meaning of the Sousa last name: "from the Sousa river". Sousa is a Portuguese surname from the lands along the Sousa river, near Porto, held by a powerful medieval lineage. The Brazilian spelling Souza is very common. It is also common in Angola. The last name is widespread in Portugal and Brazil.
Arms associated with the Sousa name
Portuguese heraldry loves canting arms that echo a name, a custom seen in coats of arms linked with Sousa.
Get your full Sousa family history
This is only a glimpse of the Sousa story. The full Sousa history report goes much deeper into where the name began, who carried it and how the family spread, and it comes with a museum-style painted Sousa coat of arms. Get the full Sousa report.
Sousa name FAQ
What does the Sousa name mean?
"from the Sousa river". Common variants include Souza, Sosa.
Where does the Sousa surname come from?
It originates in Portugal, and is also found in Brazil, Angola and the United States.
Is there a Sousa coat of arms?
Arms were granted to individuals rather than to everyone with a surname. Herald Lab paints a personalized Sousa coat of arms in museum style, based on historic heraldry.
Sources: José Pedro Machado, Dicionário Onomástico Etimológico da Língua Portuguesa (Lisboa, 1984); Dictionary of American Family Names (Oxford).