Resumen: Los registros de población gitana elaborados a raíz de la Real Pragmática de 1783 conforman el principal documento sobre esta minoría de todo el Antiguo Régimen. Este artículo analiza los apellidos o nombres de familia que tenían las 12.037 personas gitanas incluidas en esos censos, de las que 756 habían fallecido. En total aparecen 567 diferentes, una gran variedad, que se ve muy reducida si atendemos a los apellidos más comunes, pues 20 de ellos identifican a la mitad (53%) de la población gitana y 57 (un 10%), al 75%. El peso de los apellidos más populares es mayor aún que el que se da en el total de la población española, que destaca en Europa por este rasgo. Los apellidos gitanos de 1785 eran todos españoles y en su mayoría, castellanos. Los más populares eran de dos tipos: primero, los patronímicos que compartían con la población mayoritaria, como Fernández, Jiménez, Rodríguez, Muñoz, García, etc., y segundo, aquellos que, aún siendo de origen español, se han ido asociando con la minoría gitana hasta percibirse como elementos de identidad étnica, sobre todo en algunas regiones: Heredia, Vargas, Cortés, Reyes, Maya, Montoya, Moreno, Santiago, Gabarri, etc. La mayoría de los apellidos pudieron haber sido adoptados por los gitanos en el bautismo y también como resultado de matrimonios mixtos. Seguramente, la mayor frecuencia de algunos apellidos se correlaciona con la antigüedad de su adopción. Este trabajo ofrece el más completo listado de apellidos gitanos del que se dispone hasta la fecha.Abstract: The last Royal Order addressed to Spanish Gypsies in 1783 required that local authorities listed all Gitanos residing in their counties ("partidos"). By mid 1785 a Census had been collected that included data on 12.037 persons, 756 of whom had died. These lists form the most important document on the Gitano minority the Ancien Régime. Unfortunately, they have not been studied in depth. As a first outcome of such a study, this paper analyzes the family names that Gitanos bear in these censuses. In total there are 567 different surnames, a large number for such a population, although the 20 more popular include half of the people listed (53%), and 55 (10% of names) identify 75% of all people. The concentration of the population in the most popular surnames is higher than in the Spanish population at large, already noted in Europe for this bias. All Gitano surnames of 1785 are of Spanish origin, and have suffered the Christianization and Castilianization of most family names in the country. The most popular were common patronymics as Fernández, Ximénez, García, Rodríguez, Muñoz…, and also surnames of Spanish origin that have become associated with Gitano identity in some regions such as Heredia, Vargas, Cortés, Reyes, Montoya, Moreno, Santiago, Maya, Amaya, Gabarri, etc. Baptism and mixed marriages are the most likely source for the adoption of such surnames by this minority that likely experienced some "name drift" and "name inbreeding". Thus, the frequency of some Gitano surnames is probably related to their earlier adoption.

The last Royal Order addressed to Spanish Gypsies in 1783 required that local authorities listed all Gitanos residing in their counties ("partidos"). By mid 1785 a Census had been collected that included data on 12.037 persons, 756 of whom had died. These lists form the most important document on the Gitano minority the Ancien Régime. Unfortunately, they have not been studied in depth. As a first outcome of such a study, this paper analyzes the family names that Gitanos bear in these censuses. In total there are 567 different surnames, a large number for such a population, although the 20 more popular include half of the people listed (53%), and 55 (10% of names) identify 75% of all people. The concentration of the population in the most popular surnames is higher than in the Spanish population at large, already noted in Europe for this bias. All Gitano surnames of 1785 are of Spanish origin, and have suffered the Christianization and Castilianization of most family names in the country. The most popular were common patronymics as Fernández, Ximénez, García, Rodríguez, Muñoz, and also surnames of Spanish origin that have become associated with Gitano identity in some regions such as Heredia, Vargas, Cortés, Reyes, Montoya, Moreno, Santiago, Maya, Amaya, Gabarri, etc. Baptism and mixed marriages are the most likely source for the adoption of such surnames by this minority that likely experienced some "name drift" and "name inbreeding". Thus, the frequency of some Gitano surnames is probably related to their earlier adoption.