FerrignoItalian Derived from the Italian adjective ferrigno meaning "made of or resembling iron" (a derivative of Latin ferrum meaning "iron"), applied as a nickname to someone who was very strong or thought to resemble the metal in some other way... [more]
FibonacciItalian A notable bearer is the mathematician Leonardo Fibonacci (1170-1240), the creator of the Fibonacci sequence.
FicheraItalian From Sicilian fichera "fig tree", a nickname for someone who grew or sold figs, or perhaps lived near them.
FicoItalian from fico "fig" (from Latin ficus) applied as a metonymic occupational name for someone who grew or sold figs a topographic name for someone who lived in an area where figs grew or a habitational name from a place called with this word such as the district so named in Valderice Trapani province Sicily.
FieriItalian A notable bearer is American restaurateur and television host Guy Fieri (1968-).
FiermonteItalian Meaning uncertain. It possibly consists of the medieval Italian given name Fiero and the Italian word monte meaning "mountain", which would give this surname the meaning of "Fiero's mountain".
FilosaItalian Southern Italian: Probably an occupational nickname for a fisherman, from Sicilian filuòsa ‘fishing net’. Also from the subphylum: Filosa. These are known as euglyphids, filose (which means stringy or thread-like), amoebae with shells of siliceous scales or plates, which are commonly found in soils, nutrient-rich waters, and on aquatic plants.
FinocchioItalian From Italian finocchio "fennel", a nickname for someone who grew or sold the plant. In modern Italian, the word is a derogatory slang term for a gay man. The meaning "fine eye, keen eyesight" has also been suggested.
FinottiItalian Derived from the Medieval Italian given name Fino or also given to someone whose ancestors were named Delfino or Ruffino.
FiordeliseItalian (Rare) Derived from Italian fiordaliso "cornflower". In heraldry, however, fiordaliso is the Italian term for Fleur-de-lys, the symbol for the King of France (until the French Revolution). This surname either could have been ornamental, or could have referred to Italians loyal to the French Kingdom / Empire, even those among the king's guard.
FiorelliItalian The surname Fiorelli was first found in Bolgna (Latin: Bononia), the largest city and the capital of Emilia-Romagna Region. The famous University of Bolgna was founded in the 11th century, by the 13th century the student body was nearly 10,000... [more]
FlorisItalian Cognate to Flores, or a toponym from Sardinian floris "flowers". Possibly from the Latin cognomen Florens meaning "prosperous, flourishing".
FoschiItalian From Italian fosco "dark, murky (colour); gloomy", a nickname referring to the bearer's hair colour or mood. May also stem from the given name Fuscus, of the same meaning.
FragolaItalian apparently from fragola "strawberry" probably applied as either a topographic name for someone who lived by a patch of wild strawberries a metonymic occupational name for a grower or seller of soft fruits or a nickname for someone with a conspicuous strawberry mark.
FrancescoliItalian Variant form of Francesco. This name is borne by the former Uruguayan soccer star Enzo Francescoli (1961-).
FrancesconeItalian Ancient family of Navelli, which recognizes as its progenitor that Francis, called "Francescone", who, between 1227 and 1230, was awarded the title of Baron by Emperor Frederick II, for having juggled leveraging troops with success and honor in the Sixth Crusade.
FrascatoreItalian (Rare) Meaning uncertain. It is possibly derived from (or related to) Italian frasca meaning "bough, branch", which might possibly indicate that the surname had first started out as a nickname for someone who worked as a woodcutter or as a forester... [more]
FresiaItalian (Modern, Rare) The surname is the 202,062nd most commonly held family name internationally It is held by around 1 in 3,535,927 people. This last name is mostly found in Europe, where 71 percent of Fresia reside; 59 percent reside in Southwestern Europe and 59 percent reside in Italic Europe... [more]
FrigerioItalian Possibly from the Lombard name for hackberry.
FruscianteItalian Derived from the Italian adjective frusciante meaning "rustling, swishing, whishing", which itself is derived from the Italian verb frusciare meaning "to rustle, to swish, to whish". The surname had probably started out as a nickname for someone who made a rustling or whishing sound whenever they walked, which was probably caused by the clothes that they were wearing (in that the clothes must have been made of a certain fabric that is prone to making some noise when touched in any way).... [more]
FucciItalian From the plural of Fuccio, a short form of any of various personal names with a root ending in -f (as for example Rodolfo, Gandolfo) to which has been attached the hypocoristic suffix -uccio, or alternatively from a reduced form of a personal name such as Fantuccio, Feduccio.
FumagalliItalian Means "smoke the rooster" in Italian, from fuma "to smoke" and gallo "rooster". Refers to filling a henhouse with smoke to keep the chickens quiet when stealing them, thus making this a name probably given to chicken thieves.
FusiItalian Italian: of uncertain origin; it could be Greek, compare modern Greek Soyses, or alternatively, Caracausi suggests, of Arabic or Hebrew origin.
FusilloItalian From Italian fuso "spindle", referring to their occupation, or a nickname based on the bearer's build. Also the name of a type of pasta.
GaetaItalian Derived from the town of Gaeta, in the province of Latina, in Lazio, central Italy. It can also derive from the given name Gaetano which shares its origin.
GaglianoItalian Habitational name from a few places in Italy, which all derived from the Latin personal name Gallius
GalanoItalian A Campanian name from Greek γαλανός (galanós) "light blue, pale blue", denoting someone with blue eyes.
GalanteItalian, French, Jewish Comes from the ancient French word "galant" meaning someone in love or who has fun. In the case of Mordecai Galante, a Spanish exile in 16th century Rome, his courteous manners won for him from the Roman nobles the surname "Galantuomo" (gentleman), from which Galante was eventually derived.... [more]
GalbuseraItalian From Latin gallicusalbusagger, "white Gallic Field".
GaleaSpanish, Italian, Maltese From Spanish galea "galleon, warship" presumably a metonymic occupational name for a shipwright or a sailor. Italian habitational name from Galea in Calabria.
GarauItalian Possibly from a Sardinian modification of the given name Gherardo. Alternately, it may be from a Spanish surname derived from Basque garau "grain, wheat".
GasparrinoItalian (Tuscan) Gasparinus de Bergamo was a Italian Teacher who tutored The Future Popes of Italy and was a Secertary for Pope Martin V in the late 1400.
GattoItalian Derived from Old Italian gatto meaning "cat", ultimately from Late Latin cattus. This was a nickname for a person who resembled a cat in some way.
GemitoItalian From a misspelling of genito "to be born", given to sculptor Vincenzo Gemito upon being abandoned at an orphanage as an infant.
GenarroItalian The surname "Gennaro" has Italian origins and is commonly associated with the given name "Gennaro," which is derived from the Latin name "Ianuarius," meaning "January." The name is often linked to St... [more]
GennarelliItalian Ancient and illustrious Piedmontese family, originally from Polonghera but residing in Cherasco, which is decorated with the titles of: Counts of Cocconato, Lords of Cocconito and Consignori of Marcorengo.
GenovaItalian habitational name from Genoa (Italian Genova) in Liguria which during the Middle Ages was one of the great seaports of the Mediterranean and a flourishing mercantile and financial center... [more]
GentilisItalian (Latinized) Latinized form of Gentili. The Italian-born Oxford professor and jurist Alberico Gentili (1552-1608) was known as Albericus Gentilis in Latin.
GermanottaItalian Possibly derived from Germano by adding a diminutive suffix. Most common in the Messina area in Sicily. A famous bearer of the surname is singer Lady Gaga (Stefani Germanotta).
GerosaItalian Denoted someone from the town of Gerosa in Lombardy, or perhaps a nickname from geros (modern ghiaioso) "gravelly".
GiamattiItalian (Anglicized) Americanized form of Giammattei. Famous bearers include brothers Paul Giamatti (1967-) and Marcus Giamatti (1961-), both American actors.
GiglioItalian From the personal name Giglio, from giglio "lily" (from Latin lilium), a plant considered to symbolize the qualities of candor and purity.
GilioItalian Tuscany. One variation of the surname Giglio meaning ""lily"". ... [more]
GilliItalian Patronymic form of the personal name Gillio, a vernacular derivative of Aegilius, which itself is a later form of the given name Aegidius.
GioveItalian From Giove ("Jupiter") the name of the chief Roman deity perhaps a nickname for someone who habitually swore per Giove "by Jove". From Sicilian ggiòve iòvi "Thursday" applied as a personal name for someone born or baptized on that day of the week... [more]
GiovinazziItalian Giovinazzi is an Italian surname derived from "giovane", meaning "young," possibly referring to a youthful person.
GirondaItalian Possibly from a variant of Italian ghironda ‘barrel-organ’.
GiudiceItalian Occupational name for an officer of justice, Italian giudice " judge" (Latin iudex, from ius "law" + dicere "to say"). In some cases it may have been applied as a nickname for a solemn and authoritative person thought to behave like a judge.
GogliaItalian Nickname or a metonymic occupational name for a person who used leaves from a kind of plant to bind grafts, derived from the Italian dialectal goglia.
GolaItalian Topographic name from gola "mountain hollow, cavity".
GonzagaSpanish, Portuguese, Italian (Archaic) Habitational name for someone from a location called Gonzaga in Mantua, Italy. This was the name of an Italian family that ruled Mantua from 1328 to 1708.
GorgaItalian Topographic name from Sicilian gorga, Catalan gorg(a) ‘place where water collects’, ‘mill pond’, ‘gorge’.