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There is no question, as well as parts of names (ie: Di Mattia to Mattia, etc). I have researched the sites you linked already. In some cases, names are explained to a pretty precise origin, some are a little cloudy.darkerhorse wrote: ↑14 Apr 2021, 21:00 I think the spelling and pronunciation of surnames also changed as people moved around Italy, especially among illiterates.
For example, someone migrating from the mainland to Sicily might find "c" changed to "z", "l" changed to "d", and "o" changed to "u",and vice versa with a migrant from Sicily to the mainland.
Zorli: 4GGm (I researched her name & found a close match in Bern, Switzerland). No other info or family ties. Can't recall now how I connected the dots, but there was documentation somewhere. I think through MyHeritage.darkerhorse wrote: ↑15 Apr 2021, 02:17 How far back have you documented these family names in Italy?
"Zorli" had a son born abt 1820, so her birthdate range should be around 1775-1800 (the one I found with the same name in Switzerland was born in 1784).
Yes, the origins are intriguing, such as Zorli and Marsili. Since Zorli might be a take on Zorloni, which refers to those sheepskin chaps of Northern shepherds, that might tie in to the possible relative from Switzerland.PippoM wrote: ↑15 Apr 2021, 09:07 According to Italian White Pages, both Zorli and Topani seem to be very local to that area.
I think Parish registers would help a lot determining the origin of the surname.
I reconstructed a wide tree of my wife's family, thanks to them having settled in a small village in Viterbo area, where most marriages took place within the communuity, and I could observe the "birth" of several surnames from about 1650 to 1750, and the transformation of patronymics into actual surnames. Also, I could see how many of them came from areas I would never think (such as, for instance, Switzerland).
And that would not always explain the "meaning" of it. A friend of mine has his surname suddenly risen (in Umbria) as a nickname, but is still wondering WHY his ancestor had it, as no conjectures can be done, for instance, from dialect, or from names of places.
Not yet. Do you have links..?darkerhorse wrote: ↑15 Apr 2021, 13:59 Have you checked marriage allegati and Catasti/Riveli for earlier records?