LOPEZ
The lofty frontiers of Spain incorporate the foundations of the esteemed family name "Lopez." The earliest
works of ancestral surnames in Spain were the patronymic surnames, which are obtained from the mother's given name. Spanish patronymic names appeared as early as the mid-9th century. The name "Lopez" is composed of two elements. The given name Lope, which itself originated from the Latin word "lupus" meaning "Wolf" and the Spanish patronymic suffix "ez" ending in Spanish surnames is indicative of personal name origin. The meaning of the family name Lopez maybe interpreted as "Son or descendant of Lope.
MOLINA
The Spanish family name Molina is classified as being of habitation origin. Habitation names are those names which are derived from either the location of the place of residence of the inibial bearer or from the name of the town or village from whence he hailed. In this particular instance, the family name Molina designated the original bearer as someone who hailed from any of the places named Molina that are located in Spain. Before the inception of a structured system of family names, a person's place of residence served as a convenient means of identification. Shipping lists of Spanish emigrants to the New World show that by the sixteenth century, the vast majority of Spanish names were firmly established as hereditary family names. It is interesting to note, however, that some of these emigrants bore surnames which differed from that of their fathers, indicating that in those particular instances the names had not yet crystallized into hereditary surnames.
One of the earliest references to this name is a record of one Luis Molina (1535-1600), a philosopher, theologian and member of the Jesuit order. Notable bearers of the surname Molina include Rodrigo Molina, a physician mentioned in 1554, Alfonso Molina, a Franciscan friar who died in 1584, Diego Molina, a poet cited in 1650, Antonio Molina(1715-1785), a member of the Dominican order, and Francisco Molina, a bishop born in 1766. Other bearers of this name who distinguished themselves include Gregorio Molina (1800-1833), a calligrapher and member of the Parish order, Ignacio Molina (1830-1908), an engineer, and Juan Jose Molina, a writer and editor born in 1838. The coat of arms described below was granted to a family bearing the name Molina whose members hailed from Spain.
BLAZON OF ARMS: Azure, a mill wheel argent.
TRANSLATION: Azure (blue) represents truth and loyalty
Argent (white or silver) denotes purity
and innocence.
The mill wheel stands for industry.
CREST: Three ostrich feathers
ORIGIN: Spain