45,552 Global Cantu Family Members

Cantu Family History

This is a surname of ancient Spanish and Portuguese derivations although its origins are believed to be Roman (Latin). 'Canto' in Latin means a singer or a song, but it is said that in this case the surname is from an earlier word (although of the same spelling) which described someone who lived in an area of stony or clay ground, or possibly an area from which building materials were extracted such as a quarry or pit. It is also claimed that the name may also be occupational and describe a stone mason or quarryman. 'Canto' can also be the Iberian spelling of 'Cantus' meaning 'the rim' of a wheel, suggesting that early name holders were wheelwrights, although the same word could also describe the corner of a street...