Rial (surname)
Encyclopedia
Rial is a surname, family name, or last name (i.e., apellido in Spanish). The surname "Rial" is a very old family name and people with that last name can be found in small numbers in several countries of the western world that use the English language (e.g., Scotland, Canada, The United States) and found in significant numbers in Spanish and Portuguese speaking countries, namely, Spain, several Caribbean countries, and in several North and South American countries. The surname "Rial" is correctly pronounced in modern English like the English words "dial" and "vial" with the accent-stress placed on the first vowel of the diphthong "ia" (i.e., the letter "i"). The surname is correctly pronounced in modern Spanish like the Spanish words "dial" and "vial" where the accent-stress is placed on the final vowel of the diphthong (i.e., the letter "a") which proceeds the final consonant (i.e., the Spanish letter "ele").
Strong speculation indicates that the surname Rial as described here had its origin in the Celtic region
of the Iberian Peninsula
during the Roman occupation of Spain which occurred from about 140 BCE until about 400 CE. This Celtic region which is now called Galicia is located in the northwestern territory of European Spain
and it was formerly named Gallaecia by the Roman occupiers. Galicia is one of the four Autonomous Regions in Spain and Spanish Celtic roots extend beyond Galicia into the western end of The Asturias
(one of the four Autonomous Regions) and also into northeastern Portugal
.
(ría in Spanish) is an estuary, often with deep water that provides access to the high seas from inland areas on the coasts of The Asturias, Galicia, and Portugal. These ria regions have been used or occupied for many centuries and from these rias, sailors and fishermen can enter the Atlantic coastal waters. The locations of all the rias on the Iberian Peninsula can be seen on a modern map of Spain and Portugal.
Today, the greatest concentration of people with the surname Rial in Spain is found in Galicia in or near the city of Pontevedra
which is very near the Ria de Vigo. In 2007, approximately 700 people with the surname Rial could be found in the telephone listings in the white pages of Pontevedra, Galicia. Today, large numbers of former Galicians and their families can be found near the Rio de la Plata region of Argentina
and Uruguay
with smaller numbers in Puerto Rico
, Cuba
, Mexico
, and Brazil
, and very few in the countries of Great Britain
, The United States, and Canada
. There are so many Galician-related people living in the Rio Plata region that ethnic European people are often referred to as Gallegos (meaning Galicians in Spanish), whether their roots are Galician or not.
genealogy material from Rial genealogy files show that some people with the surname Rial are listed that had lived in the middle 1850's in Scotland
and in Northern Ireland as Scots Irish. Some of these Rial's may have emigrated from the lowlands of Scotland or from Ulster county, Northern Ireland, to the USA in the nineteenth century.
In terms of numbers, the surname Rial is currently found to be very rare in the USA. The probability of occurrence of the surname Rial in the USA near the year 2000 was determined as follows. In 1995 there were approximately 1000 listings of the surname Rial in the USA in one compilation of the national white pages. At that time, the USA population was approximately 280 million and assuming that the approximate 1000 listings included an average of four people per listing, a reasonable estimate of Rials living in the USA would have been 4000. This is a probability of occurrence of people with the surname Rial in the USA to be about 1.4E-5 which means that the surname Rial was or still is extremely rare in the USA. Today, most of the Rial's in the USA are either English speakers with Scottish or Scots-Irish Anglo Celtic first names or are Spanish speakers with Spanish first names. Many people with the Rial surname are often listed in large city telephone directories (e.g., New York City telephone directory white pages).
Strong speculation indicates that the surname Rial as described here had its origin in the Celtic region
Celtiberians
The Celtiberians were Celtic-speaking people of the Iberian Peninsula in the final centuries BC. The group used the Celtic Celtiberian language.Archaeologically, the Celtiberians participated in the Hallstatt culture in what is now north-central Spain...
of the Iberian Peninsula
Iberian Peninsula
The Iberian Peninsula , sometimes called Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe and includes the modern-day sovereign states of Spain, Portugal and Andorra, as well as the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar...
during the Roman occupation of Spain which occurred from about 140 BCE until about 400 CE. This Celtic region which is now called Galicia is located in the northwestern territory of European Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
and it was formerly named Gallaecia by the Roman occupiers. Galicia is one of the four Autonomous Regions in Spain and Spanish Celtic roots extend beyond Galicia into the western end of The Asturias
Asturias
The Principality of Asturias is an autonomous community of the Kingdom of Spain, coextensive with the former Kingdom of Asturias in the Middle Ages...
(one of the four Autonomous Regions) and also into northeastern Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
.
The Rias of Galicia
In the northwestern coastal regions of the Iberian Peninsula which face the Atlantic Ocean on the west and northwest and the Sea of Cantábrica on the north are many deep, navigable channels called "rias". A RiaRia
A ria is a coastal inlet formed by the partial submergence of an unglaciated river valley. It is a drowned river valley that remains open to the sea. Typically, rias have a dendritic, treelike outline although they can be straight and without significant branches. This pattern is inherited from the...
(ría in Spanish) is an estuary, often with deep water that provides access to the high seas from inland areas on the coasts of The Asturias, Galicia, and Portugal. These ria regions have been used or occupied for many centuries and from these rias, sailors and fishermen can enter the Atlantic coastal waters. The locations of all the rias on the Iberian Peninsula can be seen on a modern map of Spain and Portugal.
Derivation of the surname "Rial" in Galicia
The coastal regions of Galicia have always been used by seafaring people and those regions provide great quantities of seafood for the country and for export. From ancient times, the people who worked or went to sea from these rias were called "the people of the ria" or "the ria people", and eventually those people were designated by the single word "rial" which evolved into the permanent family surname of Rial. Thus, the "Rial's" were people who always worked in or were associated with rias. In Galicia, there were and still are several versions of the use of the word ria as applied to the "ria people". One is "los de la ría" (Spanish for the people of the ria) or "os da ria" (Galician for the people of the ria). Another common use of the surname Rial is "O Rial" (meaning "The Rial" in Galician) which is used to designate the place of the Rial parish or Rial clan. From the foregoing, it is strongly believed that the surname Rial has a Celtic origin that came into existence in the Celtic Region of Galicia.General distribution of the surname "Rial" in the Western World
Near the Atlantic coastal area of Galicia between Galicia's capitol of Santiago de Compostela in the north to its southern border with Portugal can be found at least three villages named "Rial" on current maps (ref. 3, op cit) and at least one village named O Rial. Also, the surname Rial can be found of the official list of recognized Galician surnames at Xenealoxia. The distribution of the Rial surname (apellido) in Galicia and in other parts of Spain can also be further found in Xenealoxia (op cit) under "Rial" which indicated approximately 1360 "Rial's" listed in Galicia out of approximately 3850 "Rial's" listed for all of Spain.Today, the greatest concentration of people with the surname Rial in Spain is found in Galicia in or near the city of Pontevedra
Pontevedra
Pontevedra is a city in the north-west of the Iberian Peninsula. It is the capital of both the comarca and province of Pontevedra, in Galicia . It is also the capital of its own municipality which is, in fact, often considered as an extension of the actual city...
which is very near the Ria de Vigo. In 2007, approximately 700 people with the surname Rial could be found in the telephone listings in the white pages of Pontevedra, Galicia. Today, large numbers of former Galicians and their families can be found near the Rio de la Plata region of Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
and Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
with smaller numbers in Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
, Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
, Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, and Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, and very few in the countries of Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
, The United States, and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. There are so many Galician-related people living in the Rio Plata region that ethnic European people are often referred to as Gallegos (meaning Galicians in Spanish), whether their roots are Galician or not.
Rial in the United States of America
The land contained within The United States of America would have been an unusual destination for early emigration from Galicia because most Galician emigrants desired to emigrate to regions where the Galician or Spanish languages and cultures were well established, like the Rio Plata region of Argentina mentioned above. Recent releases of some United KingdomUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
genealogy material from Rial genealogy files show that some people with the surname Rial are listed that had lived in the middle 1850's in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
and in Northern Ireland as Scots Irish. Some of these Rial's may have emigrated from the lowlands of Scotland or from Ulster county, Northern Ireland, to the USA in the nineteenth century.
In terms of numbers, the surname Rial is currently found to be very rare in the USA. The probability of occurrence of the surname Rial in the USA near the year 2000 was determined as follows. In 1995 there were approximately 1000 listings of the surname Rial in the USA in one compilation of the national white pages. At that time, the USA population was approximately 280 million and assuming that the approximate 1000 listings included an average of four people per listing, a reasonable estimate of Rials living in the USA would have been 4000. This is a probability of occurrence of people with the surname Rial in the USA to be about 1.4E-5 which means that the surname Rial was or still is extremely rare in the USA. Today, most of the Rial's in the USA are either English speakers with Scottish or Scots-Irish Anglo Celtic first names or are Spanish speakers with Spanish first names. Many people with the Rial surname are often listed in large city telephone directories (e.g., New York City telephone directory white pages).