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Castro History Etymology Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables World Ranking

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Suggested Reading Citations

Castro History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Italy
Spain

Etymology of Castro

What does the name Castro mean?

The surname Castro is one of the oldest and most distinguished families of Spain. The original bearer of the name Castro, which is a local surname, once lived, held land, or was born in one of the places named Castrothe, which is the name of many places in Spain. The place-name Castro is derived from the Latin word "castrum," which means "fortress." During the Reconquista, there were numerous fortresses in the Iberian Peninsula that were used as a refuge for the Christian troops who fought against the Muslim Moors. The fortresses also protected the civilian population and the new settlers in the area.

Early Origins of the Castro family

The surname Castro was first found in Castile, an important kingdom of medieval Spain.

Early History of the Castro family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Castro research. Another 148 words (11 lines of text) covering the years 1236, 1239, 1240, 1242, 1325, 1355, 1380, 1441, 1495, 1558, 1569, 1570, 1580, 1600, 1617, 1631, 1633, 1656 and 1687 are included under the topic Early Castro History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Castro Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Castro, Castrillo, Castrelo and others.

Early Notables of the Castro family

Prominent among members of the family

Inês de Castro (1325-1355), a Galician noblewoman best known as lover and posthumously-recognized wife of King Peter I of Portugal
Fernando de Castro (c. 1380-1441) a 15th-century Portuguese nobleman, diplomat and military figure. Fernando de Castro was the 1st Lord of Paul de Boquilobo. He was a member of the royal council of Jo...
Alfonso y Castro (1495-1558), was a theologian, a native of Zamora in Spain, and at an early age entered the Franciscan order at Salamanca. 1
Guillén de Castro y Mateo (1569 - 1631) was a Spanish dramatist of the Spanish Golden Age. Balthazar (Isaac) Orobio de Castro (c.1617-1687), was a Portuguese Jewish philosopher, physician and religiou...
Sebastian Castro or Sebastianus a Castro was a Flemish painter specialized in marine painting who was active in Antwerp between 1633 and 1656
Jean de Castro was a composer and lutist. In 1570 he was at Lyons, and in 1580 chapelmaster to the Prince of Juliers. He composed many sets of madrigals, odes, sonnets, and sacred songs (1569-1600). (...

Castro World Ranking

In the United States, the name Castro is the 282^nd most popular surname with an estimated 96,993 people with that name. 2 However, in France, the name Castro is ranked the 1,771^st most popular surname with an estimated 3,451 people with that name. 3 And in South America, the name Castro is the 13^rd popular surname with an estimated 173 people with that name. 4

Castro migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Castro Settlers in United States in the 16th Century

Martín de Castro to America in 1513
Pero Castro to America in 1513
Sebastiano de Castro to Peru in 1535
Juan Castro, who sailed to Guatemala in 1536
Vaca de Castro, a judge, was sent from Spain to Peru in 1541 by Charles V to advise Pizarro concerning the government of his province
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Castro Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

William Castro, who arrived in Virginia in 1666 5

Castro Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Baltasar De Castro, who arrived in America in 1811 5
Alvaro De Castro, who landed in America in 1812 5
Martin De Castro, who landed in America in 1813 5
Pero Castro, who arrived in America in 1813 5
Antonio De Castro, who arrived in America in 1815 5
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Castro Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Ambrosio Castro, who arrived in Texas in 1909 5
Angel Castro, who landed in Texas in 1909 5
Benign Castro, who landed in Alabama in 1925 5

Contemporary Notables of the name Castro (post 1700) +

Juana de la Caridad "Juanita" Castro Ruz (1933-2023), Cuban-American activist and writer as well as the sister of Fidel and Raúl, both former presidents of Cuba, and Ramón, a key figure of the Cuban Revolution
Morris Fidanque de Castro (1902-1966), American politician, Secretary of the U.S. Virgin Islands, 1945-50; Governor of U.S. Virgin Islands, 1949-54 6
Juan José Castro (1895-1968), Argentine composer and conductor
Jason Castro (b. 1987), American acoustic/folk-pop singer-songwriter 7
Bernadette Castro (b. 1944), New York politician and businesswoman
Raúl Castro (b. 1931), President of the Cuban Council of State
Ida L. Castro, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from New Jersey, 1980, 2004 8
George Castro, American politician, Candidate for Mayor of Hialeah, Florida, 2011 8
Estevan Castro, American politician, Member of California State Assembly, 1857-58, 1863-65 (3rd District 1857-58, 6th District 1863-65) 8
Charles Castro, American politician, Candidate for New York State Senate 13th District, 2002 8
... (Another 32 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Castro family +

Flight 191

Ms G Di Castro (d. 1979), American passenger from Matteson, Illinois, USA, who flew aboard American Airlines Flight 191 and died in the crash 9

USS Arizona

Mr. Vicente De Castro, American Officer's Steward Third Class working aboard the ship "USS Arizona" when she sunk during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on 7th December 1941, he died in the sinking 10

Citations +

Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
"List of most common surnames in South America." Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_most_common_surnames_in_South_America
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)
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 2) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
Jason Castro. (Retrieved 2010, September 27) Jason Castro. Retrieved from http://www.JasonCastroMusic.com
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 20) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
Flight 191's Victims - latimes. (Retrieved 2014, April 16) . Retrieved from http://articles.latimes.com/1985-08-04/news/mn-4349_1_fort-lauderdale-area
Pearl Harbour: USS Arizona Casualties List Pearl Harbour December 7, 1941. (Retrieved 2018, July 31st). Retrieved from http://pearl-harbor.com/arizona/casualtylist.html