what is the historical difference between the surnames Varga vs. Vargas?

Answer 1

After some research, I can't find much about the surname "Varga" at all. "Vargas" is a traditionally Spanish surname (sometimes Vargaz) and might also have Celtic roots.

I did, however, find an interesting story related to Peruvian-born American painter Alberto Vargas. When Vargas was hired by Esquire, they used his illustrations under the name "Varga" in order to retain more creative control. (He later sued them and lost, because "Varga" is different than "Vargas"). That might be the origin of "Varga" in the vernacular, but as to Varga as a surname...

You can check a few facts here:
http://www.onegreatfamily.com/surname/VARGA
and
http://www.onegreatfamily.com/surname/VARGAS.

Comparing the statistics, one can see that there are about 5,000 "Varga"-named people in the US and well over 100,000 named "Vargas."

Here are the Varga stats:
VARGA Family Statistics:
Born since 1900: 111
Born in the 1800s: 22
Born in the 1700s: 3
Born in the 1600s: 0
Born in the 1500s: 0
Born before 1500: 2
Unknown Birth Date: 46
1990 U.S. Census count: ~5,000

And the Vargas facts:
VARGAS Family Statistics:
Born since 1900: 260
Born in the 1800s: 94
Born in the 1700s: 182
Born in the 1600s: 24
Born in the 1500s: 2
Born before 1500: 9
Unknown Birth Date: 392
1990 U.S. Census count: ~102,500

Best of luck!

Answer 2

you may want to ask this in the genealogy section...peace...