DebbieBozkurt wrote: 20 Mar 2025, 00:00 Profession from Military roles, thought number 3 should be Boatman but I thought that was Barcoiolo and the writing looks at least a g or j Thanks

I believe the first is Barcagnolo (Boatman), next is Industriante (Industrialist), & the last Barbitore (Barber)...

It's all relative (no pun intended). I have some paper trail back to the 1700s in Sicily but other people go back even further and I'm jealous of them. I believe my ancestral church had old records lost in earthquakes.

If I recall correctly, you're stuck in the 1800s. Maybe you'll get a ...

That's counterintuitive unless your paternal surnames are that much more common than your maternal surnames, resulting in much larger family sizes.


Some of them definitely are. Others not so much, but even the family trees are equally uneven. I am kinda jealous of people who can trace their ...

I have both Sicilian (paternal) and Norwegian/Viking (maternal) blood. I meant which is better for me to brag about. I suspect your answer is the same!

In my case, the Sicilian might have Viking origins as well (though surname DNA suggests ancient Celtic background for my Sicilian roots.

I ...

It's interesting that neither my mother nor my grandfather had the disease. My cousin's father was my mother's sister meaning we had a common grandfather - maternal for me and paternal for him.

So, the disease went from grandfather's brother to grandfather's son to grandfather's grandson. My ...

My 1st cousin has - and his father and his father's paternal uncle had - a congenital hand disease. They're all in the same surname line (not mine).

The disease is said to be most prominent in Northern Europeans. By paper trail, my cousin is 25% Norwegian, his father was 50% Norwegian, and his ...

My 1st cousin has - and his father and his father's paternal uncle had - a congenital hand disease. They're all in the same surname line (not mine).

The disease is said to be most prominent in Northern Europeans. By paper trail, my cousin is 25% Norwegian, his father was 50% Norwegian, and his ...

I have deeper Sicilian roots (still unconnected by paper trail but confirmed through DNA) on my maternal side. My mother and great-grandmother were named Modesta. It was not a common first name in my grandparent's home commune (in Lazio SE of Rome), so it could very well have been a holdover from ...

Based on my vital record searches & ethnicity results for genealogy websites, Southern Italy ranges from Lazio/Abruzzo & southward. Anything north of that is considered Northern Italy. There is no "central" (at least not officially that I know of). While there is some overlap between the two, these ...

Check out the "trulli" (round stone structures with cone-shaped stone roofs) found in Puglia (Apulia). Some can be rented out to tourists...

The surname "Di Macco" is most commonly found in Rome and Gaeta in Lazio, and Ercolano in Campania. Those locales would be the best places to start your search...

It appears the first is "Kalina". The second appears to be "Russia/Siena" if that makes any sense...

darkerhorse wrote: 15 Dec 2024, 02:07 My great-aunt used to refer to olive pits as "bones".

Is this common nomenclature among Italians or maybe just a family thing?"

We used "bones" for any large seed (such as stonefruits) -- olives included...

I visited Sicily in October-November of 1992.

One day there was a noticeable heavily armed law enforcement presence in Siracusa, with multiple officers paroling the streets apparently searching for suspects. I asked one official it was safe to walk back to my hotel and he grinned and said ...

Without names, locations or relatives it is practically impossible. About all you can do (if your mother will not cooperate) is to go back and research any trees of DNA relatives from your paternal side. Start by researching any Italian surnames in their trees (supposing there are any). You can use ...