Italian names hold
deep provenance. In 509 B.C., Rome had become one of the first democratic
nations on Earth. They are the direct decedents of Etruscans, French and the
Greeks who were conquerors at heart. Through Italian history you can see how
the names of people clearly reflect their love for God, war and beauty.
Italians are known for their sensual and romantic nature that permeates
throughout their culture.
Ancient
Meanings
Many people have
been choosing baby names for decades while referring to archaic meanings as
well as the beautiful sounds the Italian language makes. Since the 70s, the
most popular Italian baby names have been topping the charts in places like
Germany, United States and UK. The most popular being a girl’s name, Sofia.
Sofia is actually Greek in origin but was brought to Italy before 509 B.C. by
the ever popular twin kings Romulus and Remus. These twin kings were thought to
be direct decedents of Mars the Greek God and were brought up by female wolves.
In a fury, Romulus killed Remus and became the one and only king. This war
driven time came up with many names that exude this idea of conquering and
invading.
These war-like
names may sound beautiful to us today, but they were seen as strong and
intimidating names. Allesandro, meaning defender of mankind, happens to be the
second most popular Italian name. This trend goes down the list all the way to
the #15th most popular Italian boy’s name, Edoardo, meaning guardian
of prosperity which still shows the masculinity that Romulus radiated
throughout the centuries. Italians also took names, as most cultures do, and
adapt them into their own. This has happened with names like Leonardo. Most
people think that it is an Italian name, but it is actually German in
derivation. Of course this name was taken by the Italians purely because of the
meaning, lion strong. Italians want to name their sons with meanings of
courage, boldness and brawn, but for their daughters they choose very different
meanings.
Celestial
Beauty Embraced
Italian girl names
are representative of what they are. Women are beautiful and angelic creatures
in the mind of an Italians due to their love of the Virgin Mary. This religious
connotation brings forth meanings that will conjure the spirit of God and the
femininity of the surrounding nature. Aurora, the 3rd most popular
Italian girl’s name that is Latin in derivation, is the Roman goddess of dawn.
The beautiful dance that the sun plays upon the sky and earth is alluring to
all, and the Italians continue to carry this name on throughout the ages. From
the Aurora Borealis to the Disney character on Sleeping Beauty, the name is
used in different cultures today.
Faux-Pas
Names that are so
richly cherished are also very sacred to Italians. Names that sound so very
beautiful to non-Italians usually are considered old fashioned and out of date
and you will not be seeing them used as much in Italy today. Like Aetius and
Hadriana; these names are not that popular. Also, the trend in many countries
to make names sound unique by changing the spelling from ‘Marcus’ to ‘Markus’
is extremely frowned upon in Italy.
