Zelaya Surname Meaning & Origin
What the Zelaya last name means, where the surname began and how it spread.
Order your pack and our heraldry team researches and paints the Zelaya coat of arms for you.
Meaning and origin of the Zelaya last name
Meaning of the Zelaya last name: meadow. Zelaya is a Basque surname from zelai, 'meadow', for a family living by a meadow or from a place called Zelaia. The last name is common in Honduras and Nicaragua. A curious detail: Celaya, a city in Mexico, carries the same Basque word in a Spanish spelling.
Arms associated with the Zelaya name
In Spain a coat of arms was tied to the family house, and heraldry associated with the Zelaya surname follows that custom.
Get your full Zelaya family history
This is only a glimpse of the Zelaya story. The full Zelaya history report goes much deeper into where the name began, who carried it and how the family spread, and it comes with a museum-style painted Zelaya coat of arms. Get the full Zelaya report.
Zelaya name FAQ
What does the Zelaya name mean?
Meadow. Common variants include Celaya, Zelaia.
Where does the Zelaya surname come from?
It originates in Spain, and is also found in Mexico, the United States and Colombia.
Is there a Zelaya coat of arms?
Arms were granted to individuals rather than to everyone with a surname. Herald Lab paints a personalized Zelaya coat of arms in museum style, based on historic heraldry.
Sources: Roberto Faure, María Asunción Ribes & Antonio García, Diccionario de apellidos españoles (Espasa, 2001); Dictionary of American Family Names (Oxford).