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Updated June 9, 2019

Family name origins & meanings

  • Asturian-Leonese and Spanish (Valdés) : habitational name from either of the two places called Valdés in Málaga and Asturies.
  • Catalan (Valdès) : nickname from Catalan valdès ‘Waldensian’, i.e. a member of a Puritan religious sect which was founded in the 12th century by Peter Valdes (died 1205) in southern France. The widespread distribution of the surname in present-day Spain, however, suggests that other sources may also have been involved.

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