Italian citizenship by descent

Over 25 million Italians have emigrated between 1861 and 1960 with a migration boom between 1871 and 1915 when over 13,5 million emigrants left the country for European and overseas destinations.
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Soleri
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Joined: 25 Oct 2004, 00:00
Location: Cape Town, South Africa
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Italian citizenship by descent

Post by Soleri »

Hi everyone,

I am new to this list. I am from Cape Town, South Africa. My great grandfather was Antonio Soleri, born in 1857 in Arma di Taggia, Imperia province, Italy.

When he immigrated to South Africa and married in 1882 in Cape Town, his name was recorded as Solari (with an "a", not an "e"). When he registered my grandfather in 1905 in Cape Town, his name was recorded as Solarie. When I applied for a confirmation from the Department of Home Affairs in South Africa they confirmed that in his original birth cert. his surname is recorded as Solarie, but when he applied for an identity card in the 1950s, he himself gave his surname as Solari. In other words, Solari and Solarie belongs to the same person. I have the baptismal cert. of my great grandfather with his surname as Soleri.

Is this a big issue when it comes to citizenship? My ggrandfather was illiterate. He signed with an "x". Do they look at this fact when they consider the recognition of citizenship by descent in Italy? Is there a by-law in Italy's citizenship law by descent that covers this kind of problem? I see lots of people with this problem, and in South Africa you cannot make amendments after a person has passed away. They give a confirmation letter that the different names belong to the same person, which is accepted by the Italian consulate.

By the way, I was told by the Italian Consulate in Cape Town that my ggrandfather's baptismal cert. would be accepted, since civil registration in his area only started in 1869. Before this date the church acted as the civil registrar of births, marriages and deaths.

Grazie to all

Nazeem Raffaele Antonio Soleri
Searching for Soleri in Italy and worldwide
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