Family name origins & meanings
- Italian : from Greek prōtos ‘first’, hence a name bestowed on the first born (male) child, or in some cases possibly a short form of an occupational or status name formed with this element, such as Protonotaro, literally ‘first notary’.
- Altered spelling of French Proteau or Protot, from a pet form of Protasius.
- A Proteau from the Anjou region of France is documented in Quebec City in 1676; <xref>Bleau</xref> is an associated secondary surname.