| Macias (or more commonly Macías) is a Spanish surname found to varying degrees in Europe and Latin America. Within Spain, its frequency is highest in Extremadura, followed by Andalusia, the Canary Islands and Castile and León. In Mexico, there are concentrations in Los Altos de Jalisco, Tamaulipas, and along the Texas-Mexico border.
There is no singular theory as to the origin of Macías. A long-standing argument over its origin revolves around whether or not it is of a Sephardi origin. Some argue that Macías originates from the Spanish version of the Hebraic term for the Messiah, while others hold that Macías (pronounced [maˈθias] in some areas in Spain) actually is the Spanish version of the Biblical name, Matias or Matthew. Given that the Sephardim used surnames that were in many cases identical to those of their Gentile neighbors, it can be reasoned that certain Macías members were Sephardi without the surname Macias being exclusively Sephardi.
According to John Woodward (with reference to the Heraldic coat of arms): "Dice, Cards, and other Instruments of Amusement.--Gules, three dice in perspective argent, marked (for six in front, three on the sinister side, two on the top) sable, is the coat of Mathias in England; of a family of the same name in France, and of Quintana in Spain. For the former families the allusion is clear to the 'lot' cast by which St. Matthias was chosen to the office of the Apostolate. Macías, in Spain, similarly bears: Gules, six dice (two, two, and two) all marked for sixes sabel (Piferrer, Nobiliario de España, vol. ii., No. 1113)." |
