Mendoza surname meaning

Mendoza is a Basque place surname. It is associated with places in Álava and the wider Basque region, and its name is commonly analyzed from mendi, “mountain,” and hotz, “cold,” with the article ending—“cold mountain.” A family identified as coming from such a locality could carry the place name into Spanish records.

The surname spread through Castile and then across the Americas, where de Mendoza and Mendoza both appear. Mendotza preserves a Basque form, while Mendonça is a related-looking Iberian spelling with its own history. Type place is clear: the useful meaning is the landscape and locality, not a claim that every bearer descends from one noble house.