DonnarummaItalian Composed of Italian donna "lady" (from Latin domina "lady, mistress") and a short form of Rummeneca, a Neapolitan variant of the feminine given name Domenica, meaning "Sunday" and also deriving from Latin dominus "lord"... [more]
DucaItalian from the title of rank duca "duke" (from Latin dux genitive ducis "leader") an occupational name for someone who lived or worked in the household of a duke or a nickname for someone who gave himself airs and graces like a duke... [more]
DucaRomansh Derived from Romansh duca "duke, prince".
DulcamaraItalian given to my great great grandfather who was left on the doorstep of a church in Chiavari Italy. The priest took inspiration from names of plants in the garden. This one came from the plant in English would mean 'bitter sweet nightshade'
EvolaItalian Perhaps a topographic name from Italian ebbio, a type of plant known as danewort in English (genus Sambucus), itself derived from Latin ebullus; alternatively, it may have been a habitational name for a person from a minor place named with this word... [more]
FaddaItalian Possibly from fada "fairy, fate", or from Sardinian fadda "error", itself from Latin falla "mistake, failure, trick".
FalaguerraItalian Possibly means "make war" in Italian, from fare "to make, to provoke" and guerra "war". Alternately, from a given name of the same origin. ... [more]
FalangaItalian From Sicilian falanga "plank, temporary bridge; fence".
FalascaItalian Possibly from a dialectical word falasca meaning "straw", referring to someone's build or hair, or possibly an occupation of making things out of straw.
FantasiaItalian From Italian fantasia meaning "imagination", possibly a nickname for a person who had a vivid imagination, or from the personal name Fantasia, the feminine form of Fantasio. Known bearers include American sociologist Rick Fantasia and Australian footballer Orazio Fantasia (1995-).
FaragunaCroatian, Italian Derived from Istro-Romanian fară gună, meaning "without a shepherd's goat-skin cloak".
FariaPortuguese, Italian Faria is a Portuguese surname. A habitational name from either of two places called Faria, in Braga and Aveiro. ... [more]
FataItalian Means "fairy" in Italian, ultimately derived from Latin fatum "fate, destiny", possibly a nickname for a healer, or someone believed to use magic. In some cases, it could instead be a variant of Fato, a short form of given names such as Bonifatius meaning "good fate".
FaticaItalian From Italian fatica "hard work, effort, labour; fatigue".
FeraItalian Probably related to modern Italian fiero "fierce, savage, raging; bold, daring; proud", by way of Latin ferus "wild, fierce; untamed" or fera "wild beast".
FerramoscaItalian From Latin word ferrum meaning "iron" and Italian word mosca meaning "housefly". A notable bearer of this name was Italian professional violinist Francesco Ferramosca (1893-1932).
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.
FlammiaItalian From Latin flammeus "flaming, fiery; flame-coloured", probably referring to the bearer's red hair.
FontanarosaItalian Denoted a person who came from one of the various places in Italy with this name or similar, derived from Italian meaning "red fountain".
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.
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]
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.
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.
GebbiaItalian From Sicilian gebbia "irrigation cistern", itself from Arabic جُبّ (jubb) "cistern, well".
GenerosaItalian, Portuguese, Spanish Means "generous" in several languages, derived from Latin generosus "well-born, noble". It could also be from the given name Generoso, of the same origin.
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]
GermanottaItalian Possibly derived from a diminutive form of the feminine given name Germana. 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".
GessaItalian Possibly a variant of Chessa. Alternately, may be from a Sardinian term for "mulberry".
GioiaItalian Means "joy, delight" in Italian. Can derive from the given name Gioia, from a nickname, or from any of several toponyms in southern Italy.
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".
GonellaItalian From Italian gonnella "skirt", derived from Latin gunna "leather garment", in Old Italian referring to a unisex garment similar to a long tunic that probably originated as military garb... [more]
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’.
GraceffaItalian Meaning uncertain, possibly from a southern Italian place name in the comune of Aragona in the province of Agrigento, Sicily, Italy.
IbbaItalian Meaning uncertain, possibly from Sardinian v-ibba "settlement" (compare Deidda), or from Latin ibi "that place, there".
IencaItalian (Rare) Allegedly derived from Italian giovenca "heifer". A heifer is a young cow that has not yet had a calf. Mount Jenca and Jenca Valley are located near Gran Sasso d'Italia in the Abruzzo region in Italy.
IngaItalian, Spanish Possibly from Sicilian inga "ink", an occupational name for a scribe. Alternatively, it could derive from the Germanic given name Inge.
IngogliaItalian Means "belonging to the family of Goglia" in Italian, derived from the prefix in- meaning "belonging to the family of" combined with the name Goglia... [more]
IsabellafItalian, Spanish, Hebrew originating from the Hebrew name Elisheba, meaning “Devoted to God” and "God is my oath”... [more]
LamendolaItalian, Sicilian nickname or more often a habitational name from places named with the dialect term amendola, mendola, mendula "almond" (also "almond tree").
LanaItalian, Spanish Means "wool" in Spanish and Italian. Occupational name for a wool merchant.
LanciaItalian From Latin lancea, meaning "spear", given to those who made, sold or used spears. A famous bearer of this surname is Vincenzo Lancia (1881-1937), who established the Lancia car brand in 1906.
LasagnaItalian From Italian (lasagna) denoting a popular Italian dish made of stacked layers of thin flat pasta alternating with fillings such as ragù and other vegetables, cheese, seasonings and spices.
LatellaItalian Possibly derived from the Calabrian word tella or tiella, meaning "baking tray, pan", ultimately from Latin tegula "tile". Alternatively, it could be a habitational name from the town of Atella.
LavecchiaItalian Means "the old (one)" or "the old lady" in Italian, a nickname for a man who fussed like an old woman, or for someone from an old family. It can also denote someone from a toponym containing the element vecchia.
LeddaItalian, Sardinian Probably from the former Medieval town of Lella, in northern Sardinia. The transformation of -ll- into -dd- is common in Sardinian.
LeottaItalian Derived from the given name Leotta, an Italian pet form of Leo.
Lo GuastaItalian Variant of Guasti, literally "the broken". Probably used as a nickname for someone with a twisted or deformed limb, used in at least one case for a foundling.
LoiaItalian Most likely a variant of Aloia. May alternately be related to Italian loggia "atrium, open-roofed gallery", Greek λεώς (leos) "the people", or Tuscan loia "dirt, filth on clothes or skin", perhaps a nickname for someone with a profession that often made them dirty, such as mining.
LoveraItalian, Spanish Either a topographic name from lovera "wolf pack" or "wolves’ lair" or a habitational name from a place called Lovera. Spanish variant of Lobera.
LuccaItalian A habitational name from Lucca Sicula in Agrigento province, Sicily, which was called simply Lucca until 1863. It was probably originally named with a Celtic element meaning ‘marshy.’
LucíaSpanish, Italian From the feminine personal name Lucia, feminine derivative of Latin lux meaning "light".
LusaItalian Used by people from Lusa, Italy, a town named after the Roman 'gens lusia'.
MacchiaItalian Topographic name from Italian macchia "thicket, scrub, brush" (from Latin macula "spot, fleck, stain") as well as a habitational name from any of various places named Macchia... [more]
MalatestaItalian Means "bad head" in Italian, a nickname for a stubborn or perhaps malicious person. It could have also indicated the bearer had a misshapen head. ... [more]
ManeraItalian Either a habitational name from any of two places called Manera in the Italian provinces of Cuneo and Como, a nickname and perhaps a metonymic occupational name (from the dialect word manèra meaning "executioner's axe, cleaver" or from Italian manero "well-behaved, skilled"), or derived from the given name Mainiero (ultimately from Frankish Maginhari, composed of the Ancient Germanic elements magin "strength, might" and hari, heri "army").
MassaItalian A habitational name from any of the various places named Massa (for example, Massa Lubrense or Massa di Somma, both in the Metropolitan City of Naples, or Massa d’Albe in the Province of L'Aquila), which were all named from the medieval Latin word massa, meaning ‘holding’ or ‘estate’.
MassaraItalian, Greek Either a feminine form of Massaro or from the equivalent occupational or status name in medieval Greek, (massaras meaning ‘peasant’ or ‘share cropper’) which is from the word massaria meaning ‘small farm’.
MatassaItalian Means "hank, skein, coil" in Italian and Sicilian, derived from Ancient Greek μέταξα (metaxa) via Latin mataxa "raw silk; thick string, thread", an occupational name for a silk merchant (compare Metaxas)... [more]
MattaItalian Probably derived from a feminine form of Matto, though other theories include Logudorese Sardinian matta "belly, paunch, entrails" and southern Sardinian matta "plant, tree" (compare Mata).
MattanaItalian From Sardinian mattana "madness, annoyance".
MaxiaItalian Possibly from the dialectical term maxia "magic", or masia "farm, country house".
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.
MesinaItalian From Sardinian mesina "keg, small barrel", probably given as a nickname to someone with a round or fat build.
MeyliafFrench (Modern, Rare) Sound very similar to Mélia in French, with the addition of a “hey” in the middle, added by the Y after the E, giving an exotic touch.
MezzadonnaItalian Means "half a woman" in Italian, from mezza "half" and donna "lady, woman".
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".
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".
MollicaItalian Means "crumb, breadcrumb; soft inner part of bread" in Italian, a nickname for a physically small or unintelligent person, or perhaps someone considered kind and soft-hearted.
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.
NanningaFrisian, Dutch, German Derived from the given name Nanne, a short form of Germanic names containing the element nand meaning "daring, brave, courage"... [more]
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.
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]
PampinellaItalian Uncertain etymology. Possibly derived from Italian pampino "vine leaf" and the diminutive suffix -ella, or perhaps related to pimpinella "pimpernel (plant)" (genus Lysimachia), which derives from Latin bipennella via Catalan pampinella
PancieraItalian from panciera denoting the piece of the armor covering the stomach (from pancia "belly paunch") perhaps used for an armorer or for someone with a large paunch.
PanellaItalian From the name of a kind of fritter or pancake made with chickpea powder. Could be an occupational name for a baker, or perhaps a nickname for someone with a yellowish complexion. Alternatively, can be a diminutive form of Pane.
PanettaItalian Diminutive form of Italian pane "bread", probably an occupational name for a baker.