Family name origins & meanings
- Greek : from a term of address, barbas, indicating either respect for an older man or friendly familiarity, from Italian barba ‘uncle’, ‘man with a beard’ (see Barba). It may also be a reduced form of surnames beginning with Barba, for example Barbagiannis ‘Uncle John’.
- Portuguese and Spanish : from the plural of barba ‘bearded’ (Latin barba ‘beard’), a nickname for a bearded man.
- Hungarian (Barbás) : see Barabas.