MeconeItalian (Modern, Rare) Giuseppe Meconi (Febuary 1860-April 21,1921) was born in San Massimo, Campbasso Province, Italy. Giuseppe arrived in Pennsylvania, United States in the late 1880s and married Elizabeth Magyar in 1885... [more]
MediciItalian Patronymic or plural form of Medico. Medici is the family name of one of Italy's most powerful families.
MedicoItalian Occupational name for a physician, Italian medico (Latin medicus, from medere "to heal").
MeloniItalian From Italian mela ("apple", from Latin malum) or melone ("melon", from Latin melopepo), both ultimately from Ancient Greek μῆλον (mêlon), meaning "apple", "fruit from a tree"... [more]
MendolaItalian topographic name for someone who lived by an almond tree or trees or a habitational name from any of the places called with the dialect term amendolamendula "almond almond tree" (see Amendola ). Compare Lamendola.
MerlinoItalian Either from the given name Merlino the Italian form of Merlin, a diminutive of Merlo, or for someone who came from Merlino in the Milano province.
MesinaItalian From Sardinian mesina "keg, small barrel", probably given as a nickname to someone with a round or fat build.
MessiAfrican, Arabic, Italian Famous bearer of this surname is Lionel Messi (born 1987-), an Argentinian footballer of Italian descent.
MezzasalmaItalian From Italian mezza "half" and salma, an archaic term for a small unit of land, indicating that the bearer was not very wealthy. Salma also coincides with an Italian word meaning "corpse".
MinagroSicilian Minagro: A Sicilian surname, with Latin & Greek etymological origins. Min: from Latin minusculus/little or small — Agro: from both Latin agro/field & Greek αγρό agro/field
MinelliItalian Patronymic or plural form of Minello, a pet form of the personal name Mino, which is a short form of a personal name formed with the hypocoristic suffix -mino, such as Adimino, Giacomino, Guglielmino, etc.
MinervinoItalian a habitational name from either of two places, Minervino di Lecce or Minervino Murge, in the provinces of Lecce and Bari, which take their names from ancient temples dedicated to the Roman goddess Minerva.
MirabellaItalian, Sicilian Italian (Campania and Sicily): habitational name from Mirabella Eclano in Avellino or Mirabella Imbaccari in Catania, or from various places with the name Mirabello, all named from medieval Latin mira, "viewpoint", and bella, "beautiful"... [more]
MiragliaItalian From the Old Sicilian military title miraglia di mari meaning "admiral".
ModiglianiItalian Used by Sepharditic Jews, this surname comes from the Italian town of Modigliana, in Romagna. Famous bearers of this surname include painter Amedeo Modigliani (1884–1920) and Nobel Prize in Economics recipient Franco Modigliani (1918–2003).
MolinaroItalian Occupational name for a miller, derived from Italian mulino meaning "mill".
MolinaroloItalian Probably from a person's occupation, with molino/mulino meaning "mill" in Italian. The second part may come from rullo, meaning "a roller" or "I roll."
MonacoItalian Nickname for someone of monkish habits or appearance, or an occupational name for a servant employed at a monastery, from Italian monaco "monk" (from Greek monachos "monk", "solitary").
MonetaItalian Possibly originating from a nickname given to those who lived near a temple dedicated to Juno Moneta. A famous bearer of this surname is Nobel Prize for Peace recipient Ernesto Teodoro Moneta (1833–1918).
MonetaItalian from moneta "money" probably applied as either a nickname for a rich man or as a metonymic occupational name for a moneyer or money lender.
MonopoliItalian Italian: habitational name from a place called Monopoli in Bari province from Greek monē polis ‘single town’.
MontalbanoItalian Habitational name from Montalbano di Elicona in northeastern Sicily (earlier simply Montalbano), Montalbano Jonico (Matera province), or the district of Montalbano in Fasano, Brindisi.
MontaleItalian From Latin mons ("mountain"), this surname was originally given as a nickname to people who lived on hills and mountains. A famous bearer of this surname is Italian poet and writer Eugenio Montale (1896-1981), winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1975.
MontaltoItalian, Portuguese Habitational name from any of various places called Montalto or Montaldo especially Montalto Uffugo in Cosenza province in Italy or from a place in Portugal called Montalto from monte "hill" and alto "high" (from Latin altus).
MontapertoItalian My father tells me this name means "open mountain." It seems to have come from a small area around Agrigento in Sicily, Italy.
MontecalvoItalian Habitational name from any of various places called Montecalvo ("bald mountain") especially Montecalvo Irpino in Avellino province, from the elements monte "mountain" and calvo "bald".
MontefioreItalian, Jewish Derived from Montefiore, which is the name of several places in Italy. For example, there is Castle Montefiore in the town of Recanati (province of Macerata), the municipality of Montefiore Conca (province of Rimini) and the municipality of Montefiore dell'Aso (province of Ascoli Piceno)... [more]
MonteleoneItalian From various place names, meaning "mountain lion", or "mountain of the lion".
MontesanoItalian From Italian monte meaning "mountain" and sano meaning "healthy".
MonteverdeItalian Habitational name from any of various places called Monteverde, for example in Avellino province, from monte meaning "mountain" + verde meaning "green".
MonteverdiItalian Derived from Italian monte meaning "mountain" and verdi meaning "green"; literally means "green mountain".
MontisciItalian Originated in Sardinia, Italy in the 17th century given to fishermen
MontoneItalian nickname from montone "ram" (from Medieval Latin multo genitive multonis). Or a habitational name from any of numerous places called Montone ("big mountain").
MontoroSpanish, Italian A Spanish habitational name from any of the places called Montoro in particular those in Córdoba or Teruel provinces. Italian habitational name from any of the places called Montoro in particular Montoro Inferiore and Montoro Superiore in Avellino province.
MonzoItalian Possibly a variant of Monsu, which may be an occupational name for a cook, Calabrian munsu, or a nickname or title from Milanese monsu ‘sir’, ‘lord’, ‘gentleman’.
MorabitoItalian Ultimately from Arabic مُرَابِط (murabit) "holy man, one who preaches in the street; soldier stationed in an outpost", from which comes Sicilian murabitu "moderate, sober" and murabbiu "teetotal".
MoreschiItalian Nickname for a dark-skinned person, derived from the Medieval Latin word moro, actually from the Latin Maurus, meaning, "dark-skinned".
MoscatelliItalian The name Moscatelli has its origins in a type of grape called Moscatel. This grape has its origin in ancient Egypt or Greece, but it was in Italy that it became famous. Here the farmers that planted the grape became known as the Moscatelli.
MoscatoItalian Variant of the personal name Muscato, also Americanized spelling of Greek Moskatos, a metonymic occupational name for a grower of muscat grapes.
MoseleItalian, German (Austrian) This surname is to be found in north-eastern Italy, more specifically in the Vicenza and Verona provinces. Families with this name are certain to be originally from the mountain town of Asiago, situated on a plateau north of Vicenza and now a well-known skiing resort... [more]
NegroItalian, Spanish, Portuguese, Jewish Nickname or ethnic name from negro "black" (Latin niger), denoting someone with dark hair or a dark complexion.
NegroItalian, Spanish, Galician, Portuguese, Jewish Nickname or ethnic name from negro "black" (continuation of Latin niger), denoting someone with dark hair, dark eyes, a dark complexion, someone who wore dark clothes, someone who worked a job in the night, or was otherwise associated with the night.
NegronSpanish, Italian This surname is a most likely variant of the word and name Negro.
NocitoItalian from Latin nucetum (Italian noceto) "walnut orchard" applied as either a topographic name for someone who lived by such a place or as a metonymic occupational name for someone who worked in one.
NoviItalian Derived from Italian novello and ultimately derived from Latin novellus meaning "new". "Novi" also means "new" in several Slavic languages.
NurchisItalian Denoting someone from Nure or Nurra in Sardinia, which were possibly derived from the pre-Roman root words nur meaning "fire" or "stones, heap" and the suffix -ke meaning "earth" or "dwelling".
OcchiItalian From Italian occhio "eye", a nickname for someone with good eyesight, or with distinctive eyes.
OcchibelliItalian Probably from Italian occhio "eye" and bello "beautiful, good", as a nickname for someone with keen eyesight or attractive eyes. May also originate from a place of the same name.
OcchibiancoItalian Means "white eye" in Italian, most often given to foundlings.
OcchiboveItalian Probably means "ox eyes, cow eyes", from Italian occhio "eye" and bove "ox", perhaps a nickname for someone with large, dark eyes.
OcchiochiusoItalian Probably from Italian occhio "eye" and chiuso "closed, shut", perhaps a nickname for someone who was blind, or known for being lazy.
OlivaItalian, Spanish Of uncertain origin: derived either from a nickname to those who picked, worked with or sold olives, or from the given name Oliva.
OlivoItalian, Spanish Topographic name from olivo "olive tree" or occupational name for someone who sold olives. Or from the given name Olivo given to someone born on Palm Sunday.
OppedisanoItalian Italian: habitational name for someone from Oppido Mamertino in Reggio Calabria, so named from Latin oppidum ‘fortified place’, ‘stronghold’. The original settlement was destroyed by an earthquake in 1783 ; it was rebuilt on a site further south.
OrfanelliItalian Means "little orphans" in Italian, ultimately from Ancient Greek ὀρφᾰνός "without parents; bereft". Given to children raised in an orphanage.
OrruItalian From Sardinian orrù "bramble", itself from Latin rubus "bramble, blackberry bush".
OrsiItalian Patronymic or plural form of Orso. It may also be an Italianized form of Slovenian Uršic, metronymic from the female personal name Urša, short form of Uršula (Latin Ursula), or a patronymic from the male personal name Urh, Slovenian vernacular form of Ulrik, German Udalrich
OrtolanoItalian, Spanish occupational name for a cultivator or seller of fruit and vegetables ortolano "gardener" from a derivative of orto "vegetable garden" (from Latin hortus "garden"). The term was also used in the medieval period to denote both a cleric with a fervant devotion to pastoral work and a rough or uncouth person and in some instances may have been applied as a nickname in either sense... [more]
PalermoItalian From the name of the capital city in Sicily.
PalladioItalian Andrea Palladio (1508-1580) was an Italian Renaissance architect active in the Venetian Republic. He designed churches and palaces, but he was best known for his country houses and villas. The architectural treatise, The Four Books of Architecture, summarizes his teachings... [more]
PallominyItalian Old surname first used in northern Italy,was derived from the old latin word "palominus", used to refer to a yellowish horse. The lastname Pallominy, originally spelled "Pallomini", was used to denote a heard of those horses in the medieval Italy ( circa 1350 AD), more especifically in the city of Florence and its surroundings.
PalmaSpanish, Catalan, Galician, Portuguese, Italian Spanish, Catalan, Galician, Portuguese, and southern Italian: habitational name from any of various places named or named with Palma, from Latin palma ‘palm’. ... [more]
PalmeroItalian The Palmero family lived in the territory of Palma, which is in Campania, in the province of Naples. The surname Palma was also a patronymic surname, derived from the personal name Palma, which was common in medieval times... [more]