The Spanish-language surname Molinero literally meaning "miller" may refer to:
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Molina is a Spanish occupational surname. Molina is Latin for 'mill' and is derived from another Latin word, mola ('millstone'). The surname originated from the early Middle Ages, referring to a person who operates a mill or a millstone. Other Spanish surnames, like Molinero (literally: 'miller'), have also originated in the work and management of a mill. Spanish municipalities like Molina de Segura (Murcia) or Molina de Aragón (Castilla-La Mancha) still nowadays include millstones or mill blades in their respective coats of arms (cf. coat of arms of Molina de Segura and Coats of arms of Molina de Aragón).
A bloodline of Molinas, in the Christian Kingdom of Castile, originated from ennoblement when Manrique Pérez de Lara, of the House of Lara, in April 1154 issued a fuero to the town of Molina, nowadays called Molina de Aragón.
A miller is a person who operates a mill, a machine to grind a grain (for example corn or wheat) to make flour. Milling is among the oldest of human occupations. "Miller", "Milne" and other variants are common surnames, as are their equivalents in other languages around the world ("Melnyk" in Russian, Belarusian & Ukrainian, "Meunier" in French, "Müller" or "Mueller" in German, "Mulder" and "Molenaar" in Dutch, "Molnár" in Hungarian, "Molinero" and "Molina" in Spanish, "Molinaro" or "Molinari" in Italian, "Mlinar" in South Slavic languages etc.). Milling existed in hunter-gatherer communities, and later millers were important to the development of agriculture.
The materials ground by millers are often foodstuffs and particularly grain. The physical grinding of the food allows for the easier digestion of its nutrients and saves wear on the teeth. Non-food substances needed in a fine, powdered form, such as building materials, may be processed by a miller.
Molnár (or Molnar) is a Hungarian surname meaning "miller". The name may be a loanword from Old Germanic (with the same meaning), which is also the same in Slavic, Russian/Belarusian/Ukrainian(млынар) Czech/Slovak(mlynár) Polish(młynarz) and also same in Finno-Ugric, Finnish/Estonian(miller) Hungarian(molnár); however, it is most likely derived from an ancient steppe language thats why it's found able in every Indo-European and Finno-Ugric languages.
The word itself shares a common ancestry with numerous similar surnames across Europe, such as the Dutch Molenaar, the Italian Molinari, the Danish and Norwegian Møller, and the Spanish Molinero, all meaning “miller”.