Question About Italian Naming Patterns

[heggar]

MaddalenaNYC and JohnArmellino:

Thank you both for your input!

[MaddalenaNYC]

John, as I have said, the naming was after the grandparents first and foremost. Then up for grabs.

We are from Northern Italy. In my father's family, the first son (his eldest brother) was named after the paternal grandfather. The second son was named after--who knows- Giovanni. Not from the maternal side.

The third son, my father,was named after his father.

[JohnArmellino]

Hi Maddalena - Like your father, I was also named after my father. My grandmother was not pleased! Naming traditions (as well as other traditions) vary considerably from time to time and place to place.

[nickintexas]

Of course there are always exceptions and variations...but the pattern Maddalena said is pretty common. It is also the cause of confusion sometimes just like your two Giuseppe's. My GGF was Carmine. Both of Carmine's sons named their first-born sons Carmine....etc....after a while you have to keep really good records to keep all the same-named people organized! Sometimes, you can find nicknames that were used when multiple people shared the same name in the same small town. The first of that generation of Carmines born was always called 'Old' Carmine and the younger Carmine got stuck with "Little" ...even when he himself was a grandfather!

[DebiHarbuck]

Love that, Nick! In my family, we have that problem with Pietro/Peter. Growing up I knew Big Pete, Middle Pete, Little Pete, and Re-Pete. Re-Pete is almost 50 now...and no one has named a child Peter in our family in a long time.

[heggar]

nickintexas:

Yes I know what you mean, about the confusion. We have so many Vitos in the family that we call them by their first & middle names, which so far has worked out -- that is, unless all the middle names start repeating too! For now, I'm assuming that my two Giuseppe Lacovara ancestors probably were cousins named after a grandfather....but of course I can't enter that into my tree until I get more information.

[heggar]

DebiHarbuck; Love your Re-Pete story! Guess I can see why nobody else used the name Peter again...where else can you go with that name, after "Re-Pete"?