Where the Cavallaro surname comes from
Cavallaro is an occupational surname and comes from the Latin caballus, “horse.” The first Cavallaro was a man who worked with horses. He looked after them, bought and sold them, drove them or rode them to carry messages.
In the Middle Ages the horse plowed, hauled and carried news, and a lot of people worked around it. That’s why the surname was born in many different towns. In the North, in some cases, it may also come from a place. The PDF tells what the trades of the cavallaro were, one by one.
Sentinels on horseback
In the 1500s the southern coasts lived in fear of pirates. Between one watchtower and the next rode a man on horseback, day and night. The PDF tells who the cavallari of the towers were, and what life they led.
Where the Cavallaros live today
The heart of the Cavallaros is Sicily, but the surname also has old roots in Campania, Calabria and Veneto. A trade that existed everywhere gave birth to it in regions far apart. There are about 5,600 families in Italy. The town where it is number one is Milo, on the eastern slope of Mount Etna. About one Cavallaro in three lives outside Italy today. The region-by-region map and the countries around the world they reached are in the PDF.
Variants
The same trade took different forms in central and northern Italy, in Piedmont and in Liguria. The PDF explains where each one comes from.
| Surname | Where it is concentrated |
|---|---|
| Cavallaro | Sicily, Lombardy, Veneto |
| Cavallari | Emilia-Romagna, Lombardy, Piedmont |
| Cavallero | Piedmont, Liguria, Lombardy |
FAQ
What does the Cavallaro surname mean?
“One who works with horses,” from the Latin caballus. The first Cavallaro may have been a stable keeper, a horse trader, a cart driver or a courier on horseback.
Is Cavallaro a Sicilian surname?
Mostly, yes: Sicily is the region where it is most common, and it is the fiftieth surname on the island. It also has old roots in Campania, Calabria and Veneto, though, because the trade existed everywhere.
Are Cavallaro and Cavallari the same surname?
They come from the same trade. Cavallari is the form ending in -i from central and northern Italy, strong in Emilia-Romagna. Until the 1800s the surname was written by whoever kept the register, and the same family can appear in both forms.
Are all Cavallaros related?
No. Every town had someone who worked with horses, and the surname was born many times. To trace your own story you need birth records and parish registers.
Is the Cavallaro surname noble?
No, it is an occupational surname. It was carried by working families: stable keepers, livestock traders, couriers, coast guards.
Is there a Cavallaro family coat of arms?
There is no coat of arms for all the Cavallaros. The surname was born in many towns, each time from a different horseman, and has no single founder.
