Goya Foods was founded in 1933 (some sources claim 1936), by Prudencio Unanue Ortiz (1886–1976) from Valle de Mena, Spain. Prudencio immigrated to Puerto Rico, where he met and married Carolina Casal (1890–1984), also a Spanish immigrant; they later moved to New York City. The family had originally opened a small store called "Unanue and Sons" in 1922; however, it was converted to wholesale in the mid 1930s. Prudencio purchased the "Goya" name from a Moroccan sardine company because he believed that his last name was too difficult to pronounce for American customers and also liked the association to Spanish artist Francisco Goya.