The Meaning and Origin of the Last Name 'Colon'

The common Spanish surname, Colon, most commonly derives from the Spanish given name Colón, meaning "dove," from the Latin colombus, colomba. As a personal name, it was favored by early Christians because the dove was considered to be the symbol of the Holy Spirit. The Colon last name is comparable to the Italian and Portuguese surname Colombo.

Etymology

The Colon surname may also have English origins, being a variant of Colin derived from the Greek personal name Nicholas, meaning "power of the people," from the elements nickan, meaning "to conquer," and laos, or "people." The surname is considered to be of Spanish and English origin.

In the 17th and 18th centuries, it was discovered that several Colon families moved to the Caribbean Islands and the Central American region. Colon is known as the 53rd most common Hispanic surname. According to Public Profiler: World Names, the majority of individuals with the Colon surname live in the United States, followed by additional concentrations in countries like Spain, Luxembourg, Belgium, and France. 

Alternate Surname Spellings

• Coulon
• Collon
• Coulons
• Coulomb
• Coulom
• Coullon
• Coullons
• Coulhon
• Coulombs
• Decoullons
• Decoulons

Famous People With the Surname

• Cristóbal Colón aka Christopher Columbus: Famous Italian explorer best known for his "discovery" of the "New World."
• Carlos Colón: Retired Puerto Rican professional wrestler. He is the father of wrestlers Carly Colón, known professionally as Carlito, and Eddie Colón, known professionally as Primo Colón. He is also the uncle of WWE wrestler Epico, whose birth name is Orlando Colón.
• Ashley Colon: Puerto Rican artist singer originally from Jamaica. She started her career in the tropical music band Las Chicas del Clean, translating to "the girls of the clan."

Genealogy Resources

• 100 Common Hispanic Surnames & Their Meanings
  Garcia, Martinez, Rodriguez, Lopez, Hernandez. Are you one of the millions of people sporting one of these top 100 common Hispanic last names?
• COLON Family Genealogy Forum
  Search this popular genealogy forum for the Colon surname to find others who might be researching your ancestors, or post your own Colon query.
• FamilySearch - COLON Genealogy
  Find records, queries, and lineage-linked family trees posted for the Colon surname and its variations.
• COLON Surname & Family Mailing Lists
  RootsWeb hosts several free mailing lists for researchers of the Colon surname.
• DistantCousin.com - COLON Genealogy & Family History
  Free databases and genealogy links for the last name Colon.

Use the resource First Name Meanings to find the meaning of a given name. If you can't find your last name listed, you can suggest a surname be added to the Glossary of Surname Meanings and Origins.

References: Surname Meanings and Origins

• Cottle, Basil. Penguin Dictionary of Surnames. Baltimore, MD: Penguin Books, 1967.
• Menk, Lars. A Dictionary of German-Jewish Surnames. Avotaynu, 2005.
• Beider, Alexander. A Dictionary of Jewish Surnames from Galicia. Avotaynu, 2004.
• Hanks, Patrick and Flavia Hodges. A Dictionary of Surnames. Oxford University Press, 1989.
• Hanks, Patrick. Dictionary of American Family Names. Oxford University Press, 2003.
• Smith, Elsdon C. American Surnames. Genealogical Publishing Company, 1997.