Where the Lena surname comes from
Lena comes from a woman’s name. The most widely followed theory derives it from Maddalena (Magdalene), or from the medieval Alena, by dropping the first part of the word. From Maddalena to Lena is a short step: it is the same pet form that still shortens that name in families today. The surname was probably born from the name of a woman forebear, a Lena remembered in the family’s memory.
Beware of namesakes
If you search for Lena worldwide you find huge numbers, but almost none of them are Italian: in many countries it is a name that arose on its own. The PDF tells how to tell them apart. The booklet also presents three Lenas who left their mark, from music to film to sport.
Where the Lenas live today
Lena is a surname of the North, with a medium spread: about 6,000 people carry it in Italy. Its heartland is the northeast, between Veneto and Friuli-Venezia Giulia, and it is also strong in Lombardy and northern Tuscany. In Fossalta di Portogruaro, in the Venice area, it reaches its highest concentration. Old clusters also live in Sicily and Lazio. The PDF has the region-by-region map and the countries around the world.
Variants
The PDF records no widespread variants of the Lena surname.
FAQ
What does the surname Lena mean?
It comes from a woman’s name, shortened with affection from Maddalena or from the medieval Alena. It is a matronymic surname: born from the name of a woman forebear, not from the father’s.
Is Lena a Venetian surname?
Largely, yes. Its heartland is the northeast, between Veneto and Friuli-Venezia Giulia, but it is also strong in Lombardy and northern Tuscany. Old and independent clusters also live in Sicily and Lazio.
Is the surname Lena Italian?
The Italian one is, but Lena also exists in many other countries as a name that arose on its own, for example in Indonesia, central Africa and Albania. The worldwide figures do not concern the Lenas of Italy.
How many Lenas are there in Italy?
About 6,000 people, according to a cautious estimate. Outside Italy the true Italian Lenas are few, the result of emigration between the 1800s and 1900s.
Are all Lenas related?
No. A name this simple and common could arise independently in several corners of Italy. To trace your own family’s story you need birth records and parish registers.
Is Lena a noble surname?
No. There is no record of an old noble house of Lena: it was mostly a surname of ordinary people, born from a personal name.
Is there a Lena family coat of arms?
No. No documented coat of arms valid for all Lenas is on record, and a coat of arms covering a whole surname does not exist. Anyone selling one online is offering a modern invention.
Where do I start looking for my Lena ancestors?
With the exact town of the family. In Veneto civil records begin in 1871; before that you search the parish registers, kept after the Council of Trent in 1563.
