Cisneros Family Crest, Coat of Arms and Name History

Cisneros Surname Name Meaning, Origin, History, & Etymology
This last name is a Spanish habitational name that denoted or referred to a person who was from Cisernos, a town/village in the province of Palencia, derived from the Spanish word cisne meaning “swan”, via the Old French and Latin, ultimately from the Greek kyknos. Recall, the Romans ruled in the Spanish peninsula from 98-395 AD, known as Hispania. Today, Palencia is an autonomous community of Castile and Leon, located in the north of the central Spanish plateau known as Meseta Central, in the middle of the Carrion river valley. The place may have been so named because of the abundance of swans there in medieval times. Swans were intentionally bred by humans as a source of food and feathers. According to Medievalists.net, “Swans have been a tempting food since Biblical times, but in Leviticus 11:18, Israel was prohibited from eating swans because they were considered “unclean,” which is interesting considering that the mute swan was the medieval symbol of love, but that didn’t stop medieval people from eating them“.

Spelling variants or names with similar etymologies include: Sisneros, Zisneros, Cisnerios (Portugal, Brazil), Ciseneros, Cisnerros, Cisnero, Cisnaros, and Cisnneros.  The name first established itself in the Kingdom of Murcia which existed in southeastern Spain on the Mediterranean coast which existed in the early Middle Ages (officially between 1011-1266 AD). According to Wikipedia, Murcia was “founded with the name of Medinat Mursiya in AD 825 by Abd ar-Rahman II, emir of Al-Andalus” after the Moors invaded the Spanish peninsula in 711 AD. It is interesting to note the name is also present in Italy, and was first found in Murano, an island near Venice.

One of the earliest documented bearers of this surname was Dona Ana Cisneros, who was born prior to 1575 AD. Another early bearer was Pedro Cisneros who died in 1500 AD in San Nicolas de Bari, Avila, Spain. Another was Diego de Sisneros who was born around 1608 AD and had a son named Bartolome. Bartolome was born in what is today Albuquerque, New Mexico. Francisco Jiminez de Cisneros was born in 1426 AD in Torrelaguna, Castile.

Popularity & Geographic Distribution
The last name Cisneros ranks 850^th popularity in the United Status as of the 2000 Census. The name ranks particularly high in the following four states: California, Texas, New Mexico, and Colorado. In all four aforementioned states, the name ranks in the top 500.

In Spain, the name ranks 1,099^th. In the Philippines, it ranks 5,699^th. The surname Cisneros frequency/commonness ranks as follows in the Latin and South America: Mexico (174^th), Guatemala (497^th), Honduras (602^nd), Panama (311^th), Colombia (1,193^rd), Venezuela (406^th), Argentina (408^th), Nicaragua (357^th), Ecuador (167^th), Cuba (265^th), Peru (213^th), Chile (2,164^th), Bolivia (281^st), Uruguay (863^rd), Dominican Republic (1,607^th), Costa Rica (293^rd), Paraguay (5,924^th) and El Salvador (245^th).

Cisneros Family Tree & Cisneros Genealogy

Some bearers of this surname during the time of the Middle Ages to the early modern period include:
1) Baltasar Hidalgo de Cisneros y de la Torre, Virrey del Río de la Plata was born in Murcia, Espana (Spain) in 1758 and he married Ines Gaztambide y Ponce.
2) Fernando Gutiérrez de los Ríos Cisneros was born prior to 1511 AD in Cordoba, Andalusia, Spain, the son of Juan Gutierrez de los Rios Mendoza and Elena Enriquez de Cisneros Vaca de Castro
3) Juan Rodriguez de Cisneros Manzanedo, Senor de Cisneros was born c. 1306 AD in Spain, the son of Arias Gonzales de Cisneros and Mencia Gonzales Manzanedo
4) Dona Ana Cisneros was born around 1575, married Francisco de Cisneros Castro, and had a son named Diego de Cisneros Castro y Guzman
5) Salvador Cisneros was born in 1703 and had three issue named Juan Luis, Juan Antonio, and Martina
6) Antonio de Sisneros was born in Zuni Pueblo, New Mexico, married Josefa Lujan Chavez, and had issue named Juana, Cristobal Martin Serrano, Hermengildo, and Felipe Neri
7) Jacinto Sisneros was born in Nueva Espana (Spain) in 1759 and married Maria Josefa
8) Alonso Rodrigues Cisneros was born in 1575 AD, married Maria Ynes de Anaya Almazen, and had a daughter named Ana Maria
9) Bartolome Cisneros or Sisneros was born in  Zuni, Nuevs Spain (Mexico) in 1630, married Ana Gutierrez de Salas, and had several issue with her
10) Felipe Neri Cisneros was born around 1725, married Maria Jiron, and had a son named Hermenegildo.

Some marriages involving the Cisneros last name include:
1) Pedro Cisneros married Catalina Velasco in La Asuncion, Villanubla, Valladolid, Spain in November 1568
2) Diego Cisneros married Maria de Torres in San Martin Y San Benito El Viejo, Valladolid, Spain in November 1560
3) Juan Crisostomo Cisneros married Maria Matea Pena, daughter of Juan Andres Dolores and Maria Ygnacia Pena,  in Yhualapan, Mexico in November 1841
4) Domingo Cisneros married Juana De La Cruz in Santa Maria, Asuncion, Tlaxiaco, Oaxaca, Mexico in January 1698
5)  Francisco Cisneros married Bibiana Alvarado, daughter of Doroteo Alvarado and Juana Morales, in Fresnillo, Zacatecas, Mexico in August 1883
6) Mariano Cisneros married Rafaela Vega in Cameron, Texas in July 1869
7) Domingo Cisneros married Luisa Rodriguez in Laredo, Webb, Texas in February 1882
8) Joasphita Cisneros married Lucas Gonzales in Saguache, Colorado in January 1884
9) George S. Cisneros married Anna Conley Delaney in Manhattan, New York in February 1898
10) Francisco Cisneros married Natividad Garza in Hidalgo, Texas in November 1882

Romano Cisneros was born in Rito, Colorado around 1804. He married Maria de Carmen Ortega, and was the father of the following children: Ramon, Selidonia, Antonio de Jesus, Juan Cenon, Juana, Juan de Jesus, and Vitervo. His son, Juan Cenon Cisneros, was born in Colorado around 1833. He married Ana Maria Copas and had the following issue: Viviana Copas, Jose Ramone, Jose Concepcion, Maria Josefa, and Jesus Maria. Jesus M. was born in New Mexico in 1860. In 1884, in Huerfano, Colorado, he married Maria Rumalda Martinez, daughter of Jose Antonio Martinez and Maria Viviana Vallejos, and had the following children with her: Jose Salome, Domecinda, Ana Modesta, Juan de Dios, Juan de Jesus, Maria Damiana, Virginia, Regina Victoria, Lucinda, Maria Lucila, Maria Elena, Vaiden de Jesus, Eloiza Celina, Cristobal Celestino, and Victoria Ernestina. His daughter, Maria Elena (Helen) Cisneros was born in Santa Clara, Colorado in 1903. In 1937, she married Epifanio Virgil and had two daughters with him born in the 1930s and 1940s. She passed away in 2004.

Early American and New World Settlers
Some of the earliest settlers in the New World bearing this name include Francisco Cisneros (Colombia 1534), Pedro Cisneros de Guzman (Peru 1534), Gonzalo Cisneros (Panama 1535), Juan Cisneros (Dominican Republic 1535), and Melchor Cisneros de Avila (Mexico 1577)

Several thousand members of the Cisneros family came to the United States through Ellis Island, during the nineteenth century, including:
1) Jose Cisnernos came from Santiago, Chile aboard the Orizaba in 1904
2) Sergia Teresa Cisneros came from Valencia, Venezuela aboard the Philadelphia in 1922
3) Jeronino Murga Cisneros came from Lima, Peru aboard the Almirante in 1913
4) Maria G. Cisneros came from Guadalajara, Mexico aboard the Monterey in 1915
5) Remedios Cisneros came from Mexico aboard the La Bretagne in 1890
6) Francisco Cisneros came from Spain aboard the Henry Chauncey in 1870
7) Edward Cisneros came from Cuba aboard the Rising Star in 1871
8) Manuel J. Cisneros came from Spain aboard the City of Washington in 1883
9)  Gloria Cisneros came from Cuba aboard the De La Salle in 1929
10) Gloria Cisneros came from Havana, Cuba aboard the Pastores in 1923
11) Teresa Cisneros came from Peru aboard the Santa Lucia in 1938
12) Carlos Pablo Cisneros came from Cuba aboard the Carrillo in 1928

Notables
There are hundreds of notable people with the Cisneros surname. This page will mention a handful. Famous people with this last name include:
1) Evelyn Cisneros (1958) was a Mexican-America ballerina who is the first prima ballerina in the United States of Hispanic heritage
2) Adiana Cisneros (1979) is a CEO of the Grupo Cisneros, a privately owned entertainment, tourism, real estate, and digital media company, born in Caracas, Venezeula
3) Baltasar Hidalgo de Cisneros y de la Torre (1756-1829) who was a Spanish naval officer from Catagena, Spain who took part in the Battle of Cape St. Vincent and Battle of Trafalgar, as part of the Spanish resistance to Napoleon’s invasion of 1808, and was also the 11^th Viceroy of the Viceroyalty of the Rio de la Plata
4) Melchor Liñán y Cisneros (1629-1708) was a Roman Catholic Archbishop of Lima and of La Plata o Charcas, colonial officer, and viceroy of Peru
5) Eleonora de Cisneros (1878-1934) was an American opera singer from Manhattan, New York City, who was a major backer of Libery bonds during World War I and sang for the Metropolitan Opera company
6) Gustavo Alfredo Jiménez de Cisneros Rendiles was a Venezuelan businessman and chairman of Grupo Cisneros, born in Caracas
7) Francisco Jiménez de Cisneros (1436-1517) was a statesmen, religious figure, Spanish cardinal, and Grand Inquisitor who was born in Torrelaguna, Castile
8) Al Cisneros (1973) was a musician from San Jose, California who is the singer and bassist for the metal band Sleep that
9) Rudy Cisneros (1981) is a professional middleweight boxer from Chicago, Illinois who competed on “Contender Season 2”, a reality show on ESPN
10) Sandra Cisneros (1954) is a Mexican-American writer born in Chicago, Illinois known for works such as The House of Mango Street and Woman Hollering Creek and Other Stories

Cisneros America Civil War Veterans
There were several soldiers with the last name Cisneros who served in the American Civil War, including the following:
1) Juan Cisneros of the 1^st Regiment New Mexico Infantry (Union)
2) Nestor Cisneros of the 1^st Regiment New Mexico Infantry (Union)
3) Augustin Cisneros of the 1^st Regiment New Mexico Cavalry (Union)
4) Francisco Cisneros of the 4^th Regiment New Mexico Infantry (Union)
5) Victorio Cisneros of Gonzales’ Independent Company (Union)
6) Jose Cisneros of Perea’s Battalion New Mexico Militia Infantry (Union)

Blazons & Genealogy Notes

1) Léon, Estrémadure – D’argent à trois fasces d’azur à la bordure de gueules ch d’une fleur-de-lis du champ au milieu du chef et  de sept flanchis d’or 2 dans les cantons du chef 3 en pointe et 1 à chaque flanc. English: Argent three bars azure a bordure gules charged with a fleur de lys of the field in the middle of the chief and with seven saltorels or 2 in the quarters of the chief 3 in base and 1 in each flank.
2) Castille – De gueules au chevron d’or au chef cousu d’azur chargé de trois étoiles d’argent Supports deux lions. English: Gules a chevron or a chief [stitched to the adjacent colour] azure charged with three etoiles argent Supporters two lions.