Pimentel (surname)

Pimentel is a Portuguese and Spanish surname of Jewish origin, whose nobles initially belonged to the illustrious Portuguese Benavente family. Another branch was established in Spain, in which its members comprised the House of Pimentel, a Spanish noble family of Portuguese origin, who also became established and distinguished in the Kingdom of Castile. Pimentel denotes pepper plants and spices, suggesting an occupation (pepper farmer) or a location (where pepper grows) as the origin of the name. Furthermore, archival inquisition files in Lisbon, Portugal, affirm that many Sephardic Jewish (New Christian) Pimentels, were prominent spice traders during Portugal's monopoly of the spice trade, throughout the 16th & early 17th centuries.

Coat of arms of the House of Pimentel

Individuals with this surname

• Abraham Cohen Pimentel (died 1697), Portuguese Sephardic Dutch Rabbi
• Alejandro Sanchez Pimentel (born 1959), Dominican basketball-player
• Antonio Pimentel Tlahuitoltzin (16th century), ruler of Texcoco
• António de Serpa Pimentel (1825-1900), Portuguese Prime Minister
• Aquilino "Nene" Pimentel Jr. (1933-2019), Filipino human rights activist
• Aquilino "Koko" L. Pimentel III (born 1964), Filipino politician and lawyer
• Daniel Kenedy Pimentel Mateus dos Santos (born 1974), Portuguese footballer
• David Pimentel (1925–2019), environmental science professor
• Diego Carrillo de Mendoza y Pimentel (died 1631), Spanish viceroy
• Eleonora Fonseca Pimentel (1752-1799), Italian poet and revolutionary)
• Eloá Pimentel, hostage victim
• Esmeralda Pimentel (born 1989), Mexican actress and model
• Fernando Álvarez de Toledo y Pimentel (1507-1582), Spanish duke
• Fernando Pimentel (born 1951), Brazilian politician and economist
• Gaspar de Guzmán y Pimentel (1587-1645), Spanish duke and prime minister
• Genaro Gongora Pimentel (born 1937), Mexican jurist
• George C. Pimentel (1922-1989), American inventor of the chemical laser
• Gerardo García Pimentel (1983-2007), Mexican journalist
• Henriëtte Pimentel (1876-1943), Dutch teacher and nurse murdered at Auschwitz
• Isaías Pimentel (1933-2017), Venezuelan tennis player
• Jessica Pimentel (born 1982), American actress and musician
• Jesús Pimentel (born 1940), Mexican boxer
• Joel Pimentel, founding member of Miami boy band CNCO
• Jose Pimentel Ejercito (born 1963), Filipino politician
• Lito Pimentel (born 1963), Filipino film and television actor
• Luisa Pimentel-Ejercito (born 1930), Filipino politician and first spouse
• María Josefa Pimentel, Duchess of Osuna, 12th Duchess of Benavente (1752-1834)
• Mickey Pimentel (born 1985), American football player
• Miguel Jontel Pimentel (born 1985), American singer
• Osvaldo Lenine Macedo Pimentel, known as Lenine, (born 1959), Brazilian singer
• Pepe Pimentel (1929–2013), Filipino television personality and game show host
• Richard Pimentel (born c. 1948), American disability rights activist
• Rodrigo P. Pimentel, American political analyst and DREAMer
• Rodrigo R. Pimentel (born 1972), Brazilian police officer
• Ronald Pimentel (born 1985), football player
• Sávio Bortolini Pimentel (born 1974), Brazilian footballer
• Stolmy Pimentel (born 1990), Dominican baseball player
• Thiago Pimentel Gosling (born 1979), Brazilian footballer
• Timothy Mark Pimentel Eigenmann (born 1981), Filipino actor known as Sid Lucero
• Valentín Pimentel (born 1991), Panamanian footballer

History

Ancestry of the surname has been linked to Petrus Martini Pimentel (b. 1252) and João Afonso Pimentel, a Portuguese knight. The name spread throughout the Portuguese Empire and the subsequent Portuguese diaspora.

The name is associated with the history of the Jews in Portugal, specifically the conversos to Catholicism during the Portuguese Inquisition. Tribunal records now maintained in the Torre do Tombo National Archive contain hundreds of examples of New Christian Pimentels accused of heresy and relapsing into Judaism. Pimentels of Sephardic origin have been in Spain, Portugal (Azores, Madeira), Amsterdam, Hamburg, Paris, London, Sardinia, Sicily, Livorno (Italy), Brazil, Cape Verde, Angola, New England, Florida, California USA, the Balkans, the Netherlands Antilles, Guyana, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Peru, Jamaica, Goa India, the Philippines, New York and Latin America.