Mastro/Maestri as honorifics

[VotM]

While researching church records for a cousin of mine, I came across the following lines in a marriage from 1770:

"... matrimonio contraendo inter Mro. [Maestro] Josephu Samperi filio Leg. et Naturale Mri. [Maestri] Philippi et Anna Belfiare spousu parte ex una et Concetta Scandura partier huius filia Leg. et Naturale Mri. [Maestri] Philadephi et Vincenzie Lanzafame spousa ex alia nulloque Leg. impedimento detetto ..."

Was it traditional to apply the plural of "Maestro" to a married couple if the husband was a teacher, master craftsman, etc.? Or did "Maestro" also have a more generic meaning to indicate a person of importance?

Also, Maestro Josephu Samperi was 23 at the time of his marriage. Would this have been enough time for him to establish himself in a profession? Or, again, was this simply signalling the importance of Josephu's family? (An aside: several months later, at the birth of his first child, Josephu Samperi is referred to with the honorific "Don"; his newborn daughter and his wife with "Donna".)

Thanks in advance!

[erudita74]

I’ve seen the plural “maestri” used for a married couple in church records as well. Aside from the various websites which give definitions of the honorific titles, I found the following in a book called Women, Gender, and Transitional Lives by Prof Donna Gabaccia. I will tell you though that, anything I see concerning the titles, indicates that the meanings of these titles have changed over the years, so I don’t know if what she says is pertinent to the 1700s, as she is talking about the title “maestra” in reference to women in a particular town in 1900.

She says that the feminine form of the word-or maestra-is an honorific title used in everyday conversation to address an educated or skilled woman. So, if the woman was a master spinner, for example, she may have recruited local children as workers or directed them to shops for training or, in more recent times, to factories. This title would basically be the equivalent of the male title, maestro, used for masons, shoemakers, carpenters, or any other artisan or craftsman who was in a occupation which required skill and expertise. She also states that the title, which she translates as “mistress,” but which does not mean “mistress,” as we would normally define the word, refers to a woman who is older.

So, if used in the plural, as maestri, the title doesn’t mean that the man and woman do the same kind of work. It just means they are both in professions or occupations which require skill and expertise which have been acquired, either through education, or through years of working at their particular occupations.

Erudita

[PippoM]

If I understand, you think that "M(agist)ri" in this record is referred to both husband and wife?
If so, I think you are wrong. That "M(agist)ri" is not a plural, but a singular genitive "del Maestro"/"of the Master".
Had it been referred to to the couple, it would have been "Magistrorum".

[VotM]

Thanks for the insights!

Pippo, your explanation makes sense given the designation is applied to each set of parents. One of the pitfalls from guessing at abbreviations and cherry-picking from online Latin translations on my part. :-/

Does anyone have a feel for the relative significance of "Maestro" vs. "Don" in 18th century Siciily? My inclination from what little I've read is to treat the latter as a general honorific for a person of importance or notable position; the former appears specific to someone of education or skill.

[erudita74]

Thanks, Pippo. Very helpful info.
Erudita

[PippoM]

You both are welcome!

[arturo.c]

Does anyone have a feel for the relative significance of "Maestro" vs. "Don" in 18th century Siciily?

I had a colleague originally from Sicily who once told me about his hometown, where in the old times (probably until before WWII) on Sunday morning only the prominent people of the town (those likely to be formally addressed as "Don" or "Donna") had the right to stroll in the town square, while the craftsmen and their dependents, collectively addressed as the "Maestranza", had to wait until the afternoon to take their stroll in the square...

[VotM]

Thanks, arturo.c! That's one of the types of distinction I was looking for.