Herrera Family History

Spanish: habitational name from any of various places in the provinces of Seville and Badajoz named Herrera from a word meaning ‘iron smithy blacksmith's forge’ (a derivative of hierro ‘iron’ Latin ferrum). In the US it is also found among Native Americans (Pueblos) in NM. Compare De Herrera and Errera.

Jewish (Sephardic): adoption of the Spanish surname (see 1 above) at the moment of conversion to Roman Catholicism. After the return to Judaism (generations later) some descendants retained the name their families used as Catholics.

In some cases possibly also French: habitational name from a place in Pyrénées-Atlantique. The placename is a Gascon form of Ferrière ultimately a derivative of Latin ferraria ‘iron-mine iron-forge’.