Where the De Filippis surname comes from
De Filippis means “of the Filippi,” that is, of the family of a man named Filippo. It’s a patronymic surname: it comes from the name of the founder of the line. Filippo, in turn, comes from the Greek name Philippos.
The surname has a Latin form. Notaries and parish priests kept their registers in Latin, and “the family of Filippo” became de Filippis. The PDF explains what the Greek name meant, and which other surnames the same father gave rise to.
From the Naples of 1799 to the racetrack
Among the De Filippis there are people who left their mark in worlds far apart. A Calabrian mathematician held a government post in revolutionary Naples in 1799, and paid dearly for it. More than a century and a half later, a woman from Naples made her way in an all-male sport, behind the wheel of a Maserati. You’ll find their stories in the PDF, along with that of a family of patriots and artists in Teramo.
Where the De Filippis live today
De Filippis is a surname of Central and Southern Italy. There are about 1,450 families in Italy, concentrated in Apulia and Lazio, almost tied, then in Campania and Abruzzo. The town where it’s strongest is Lenola, in the province of Latina: here it’s the fourth most common surname. About three De Filippis out of ten live outside Italy, often with the surname written as one word. The region-by-region map and the countries around the world they reached are in the PDF.
Variants
The same father gave rise to different surnames, with “De” or with “Di,” in the Latin style or the Italian one. The PDF explains where each one comes from.
| Surname | Where it is concentrated |
|---|---|
| De Filippis | Apulia, Lazio, Campania |
| Di Filippo | Campania, Abruzzo, Lazio |
| De Filippo | Campania, Apulia, Lombardy |
| De Filippi | Lombardy, Apulia, Piedmont |
| Defilippis | Apulia, Lombardy, Piedmont |
FAQ
What does the surname De Filippis mean?
“Of the Filippi,” that is, of the family of a man named Filippo. It’s the Latin form that notaries and parish priests used in their registers. Filippo comes from the Greek Philippos, which by the best-known interpretation means “lover of horses.”
Is De Filippis a surname from Apulia or from Lazio?
Both. Apulia and Lazio are almost tied, and together they hold about six De Filippis families out of ten. In Lazio its heart is the province of Latina; next come Campania and Abruzzo.
Are De Filippis and De Filippo the same surname?
They mean the same thing, “of the family of Filippo.” De Filippis is the Latin form of the registers; De Filippo and Di Filippo are the Italian forms, more common in Campania.
Is it spelled De Filippis, de Filippis or Defilippis?
They’re all forms of the same surname. Until the 1800s it was written by whoever kept the register, often the way they heard it spoken. The joined form, Defilippis, is very rare in Italy but quite common among emigrants to America.
Are all De Filippis related?
No. The name Filippo was extremely common and any Filippo could start a family. Two De Filippis families are almost never related. To trace your own story you need birth records and parish registers.
Is the De Filippis surname noble?
The surname itself doesn’t indicate nobility: it comes from a father’s name, Filippo, carried by a great many families. Almost all De Filippis families never had a coat of arms.
Is there a De Filippis family coat of arms?
A coat of arms belonged to one specific branch, in a specific place and time. If the De Filippis Delfico of Teramo had one, it was theirs. No single coat of arms belongs to every De Filippis.
