Meaning of the surname Balam
Balam is a Maya surname of the indigenous type meaning "jaguar". It is a regional surname. The jaguar was the emblem of Maya rulers; the Chilam Balam books carry the name.
Maya surnames from Yucatán and Campeche (Pech, Canul, Chan, Ek, May, Uc, Poot, Tun) and Nahuatl surnames from central Mexico. Yucatán is the one region of Mexico where indigenous surnames dominate the top of the list.
In Mexico a person carries two surnames, the father's and then the mother's, so Balam appears as either half of a pair: Balam García, López Balam. Read how the two-surname system works.