I too, love surnames. I have several dictionary sized books about them, including one for Calabria. TWO points I'd love to add to the conversation are: Italy has more surnames than any other country,!
And seco, the soppranome. The most frustrating part of the official birth records is that the names people went by are not written there ( like Botticelli) particularly in towns where there weren't a lot of surnames, the soprannomi were really important. When i went to my grandfather's home town, they asked me, which Torchia? Luckily I knew. With each year, more and more of these soprannomi are disappearing..
I have a great grandfather who was known as "lasciami" and I just love it. Thanks for a fun article
“Lasciami”? Too funny, I love it too! Yes, the soprannomi were absolutely necessary; our branch of the Giudici in the Valceresio was called Bandirale. Probably every judge *ever* had the name Giudici! I didn’t know that about the number of surnames--very interesting! Thanks for chiming in!
When I first came to Italy I found it really strange that married women here retained their surnames. But that just came from my ignorance of European cultures, and how societies generally are constructed. I also loved tracing my ancestral heritage in the UK - it's absolutely fascinating digging up one's lineage, from a point of not knowing who my great grand parents were, to tracking back to the 1640s. Your article is so interesting and informative. I've studied a lot of art history and always get confused with single names - Titian, Caravaggio, Giorgione etc, and your post has unpicked the subject very well. Thank you.
Glad to hear I've connected with another genealogy fan! Hope you'll keep going beyond the 1640s if you can. Were all your ancestors in the UK? Glad to help with the artists' names—I could go on and on! I love those little glimpses into their lives. Thanks so much for joining me here!
Unfortunately I've pretty much hit the records wall at 1640s. My ancestors were indeed all in the UK, and mostly from quite a small geographic area in south west - the county of Somerset. Until, the 1640's when it was revealed that the male line came from Scotland. With a name of Bell (as in the Scotch whisky brand) there's no real surprise there!
this is REALLY interesting! Thank you for all this info - I had no idea!! I mean, I knew about Leonardo da Vinci (the "da" gives it away) but Botticelli? too funny.
My maternal grandmother's name is Koenig. German, king. Fantastic. My grandfather's name was Stolper. Again, German but what does it mean? Best as anyone has been able to figure out, it may mean "to stumble." Not the most flattering... :)
And there are so many more artists with fun nicknames; I may have to do a follow-up. I like the balance in your family--a king on one side and a stumbling _________ (bum? drunk? someone with a limp? 😉) on the other. No insult intended, just teasing you!
Wonderful and informative article, Cheryl. For years, my research into my grandfather’s immigration to Colorado was at a standstill. I finally enlisted the help of a wonderful local historian. We phonetically misspelled my family name, Chiovitti, into every conceivable English translation. Like magic, we were able to locate records and documents from the early 1900’s in Denver!
My father's surname was originally Peter. Apparently this word was used as a nickname for a man's genitals and created some mocking by rude children. So the name was changed to Peters. Not sure why they thought having more than one man's genitals would stop the mocking. LOL!
I love the idea of honouring people or family through continuing a name. My brothers second name is Stephen, after my mother’s brother who passed away on a boating tragedy.
My name, Heather, was picked by my brother. My parents gave him two options and he picked Heather!
I do too, except when your family tree is full of people with the same name and it gets really confusing! But yes, in the case of your family's Stephens, very appropriate. And how fun that your parents gave your brother a say in his sister's name—very generous of them. Thanks for commenting!
I too, love surnames. I have several dictionary sized books about them, including one for Calabria. TWO points I'd love to add to the conversation are: Italy has more surnames than any other country,!
And seco, the soppranome. The most frustrating part of the official birth records is that the names people went by are not written there ( like Botticelli) particularly in towns where there weren't a lot of surnames, the soprannomi were really important. When i went to my grandfather's home town, they asked me, which Torchia? Luckily I knew. With each year, more and more of these soprannomi are disappearing..
I have a great grandfather who was known as "lasciami" and I just love it. Thanks for a fun article
“Lasciami”? Too funny, I love it too! Yes, the soprannomi were absolutely necessary; our branch of the Giudici in the Valceresio was called Bandirale. Probably every judge *ever* had the name Giudici! I didn’t know that about the number of surnames--very interesting! Thanks for chiming in!
When I first came to Italy I found it really strange that married women here retained their surnames. But that just came from my ignorance of European cultures, and how societies generally are constructed. I also loved tracing my ancestral heritage in the UK - it's absolutely fascinating digging up one's lineage, from a point of not knowing who my great grand parents were, to tracking back to the 1640s. Your article is so interesting and informative. I've studied a lot of art history and always get confused with single names - Titian, Caravaggio, Giorgione etc, and your post has unpicked the subject very well. Thank you.
Glad to hear I've connected with another genealogy fan! Hope you'll keep going beyond the 1640s if you can. Were all your ancestors in the UK? Glad to help with the artists' names—I could go on and on! I love those little glimpses into their lives. Thanks so much for joining me here!
Unfortunately I've pretty much hit the records wall at 1640s. My ancestors were indeed all in the UK, and mostly from quite a small geographic area in south west - the county of Somerset. Until, the 1640's when it was revealed that the male line came from Scotland. With a name of Bell (as in the Scotch whisky brand) there's no real surprise there!
Time for a research trip to Scotland, no? :-)
haha - brrrrr - too cold (even in summer 😆)
I have always been fascinated by names and surnames, so this post was a treat. Thank you for sharing.
this is REALLY interesting! Thank you for all this info - I had no idea!! I mean, I knew about Leonardo da Vinci (the "da" gives it away) but Botticelli? too funny.
My maternal grandmother's name is Koenig. German, king. Fantastic. My grandfather's name was Stolper. Again, German but what does it mean? Best as anyone has been able to figure out, it may mean "to stumble." Not the most flattering... :)
And there are so many more artists with fun nicknames; I may have to do a follow-up. I like the balance in your family--a king on one side and a stumbling _________ (bum? drunk? someone with a limp? 😉) on the other. No insult intended, just teasing you!
😁 Exactly! Good balance indeed, even if one side apparently lacked in balance. 😆
Whoops, totally missed that pun! 😂
what a great abundance of historic info.
Thanks for reading, Felice (you happy person)! ;-)
Wonderful and informative article, Cheryl. For years, my research into my grandfather’s immigration to Colorado was at a standstill. I finally enlisted the help of a wonderful local historian. We phonetically misspelled my family name, Chiovitti, into every conceivable English translation. Like magic, we were able to locate records and documents from the early 1900’s in Denver!
Thanks, Peggy! Yes, misspellings and transmutations can open many doors. I'm glad you got results!
My father's surname was originally Peter. Apparently this word was used as a nickname for a man's genitals and created some mocking by rude children. So the name was changed to Peters. Not sure why they thought having more than one man's genitals would stop the mocking. LOL!
Ha! I think the word still does carry that connotation. You'd think they'd have gone with something safer like Peterson, but what do I know?
I agree!
I love the idea of honouring people or family through continuing a name. My brothers second name is Stephen, after my mother’s brother who passed away on a boating tragedy.
My name, Heather, was picked by my brother. My parents gave him two options and he picked Heather!
Thanks for sharing a bit about your family!
I do too, except when your family tree is full of people with the same name and it gets really confusing! But yes, in the case of your family's Stephens, very appropriate. And how fun that your parents gave your brother a say in his sister's name—very generous of them. Thanks for commenting!