Show ContentsMelo History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Etymology of Melo

What does the name Melo mean?

The Portuguese surname Melo, is of toponymic origin, deriving from a place name where the original bearer resided or held land. The original name of the family's ancestral town was Merlo, which is an archaic form of "melro," the Portuguese word for "blackbird." The surname Melo thus means "one who hailed from Melo."

Early Origins of the Melo family

The surname Melo was first found in Portugal in the town of the same name. The Melo family is descended from Pedro Formarigues, who was called "de Riba de Vizela" as he was owned many estates in Riba de Vizela.

Early History of the Melo family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Melo research. Another 96 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1597, 1608, 1627, 1651 and 1666 are included under the topic Early Melo History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Melo Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: De Melo, Melo, Melos and others.

Early Notables of the Melo family

Prominent members of the family include

  • Mem Soares de Melo, who was lord of Melo and Gouveia and whose descendants retained the surname Melo
  • Dom Francisco de Melo (1597-1651) was a Portuguese nobleman who served as a Spanish general during the Thirty Years' War

Melo Ranking

In the United States, the name Melo is the 5,864th most popular surname with an estimated 4,974 people with that name. 1 However, in France, the name Melo is ranked the 8,971st most popular surname with an estimated 500 - 1,000 people with that name. 2


Melo migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Melo Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Merced Melo, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1851 3

Contemporary Notables of the name Melo (post 1700) +

  • Richard Melo (b. 1968), American author and book reviewer
  • Jorge Silva Melo (1948-2022), Portuguese actor, theatre director, writer, playwright and translator, founder of the Teatro da Cornucópia with Luís Miguel Cintra in 1973
  • Guilherme de Melo (b. 1931), Portuguese journalist, novelist, and activist
  • Don Francisco de Melo (1597-1651), Portuguese nobleman and general
  • Márcio de Sousa e Melo (1906-1991), Brazilian air force general
  • Abel Ignacio Cuevas Melo (1965-2023), Mexican politician from the National Action Party
  • Geraldo José da Câmara Ferreira de Melo (1935-2022), Brazilian businessman and politician, Governor of Rio Grande do Norte from 1987 to 1991
  • Jose Armando R. Melo (1932-2020), Filipino lawyer and jurist who served as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines from 1992 to 2002
  • Jóse Carlos Melo (1930-2017), Brazilian Roman Catholic prelate, Archbishop of Maceió (2002–2006)
  • Fabricio Paulino de Melo (1990-2017), Brazilian professional NBA basketball player for the Boston Celtics
  • ... (Another 23 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)


  1. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  2. http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
  3. 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)


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