Where the Romano surname comes from
Romano comes from the Latin Romanus, the man from Rome. But a surname like this wasn’t born in Rome, where everyone was Roman. It was born outside: the newcomer from Rome became “the Roman” to everyone, and the nickname passed to his children.
Other times it came from a town called Romano, or from the first name Romano. That’s why the surname was born many times, in different places, with no single founder.
A castle and a painter
In the Veneto, a family took its name from its castle of Romano and came to rule the March of Treviso. Dante put one of its members in Hell and another in Paradise. In the 1500s, on the other hand, a pupil of Raphael shows through his life how a place surname is born. Their stories are in the PDF.
Where the Romanos live today
Romano is Italy’s 7th most common surname, with about 29,500 families. Its heart is Campania, but it is one of the few southern surnames found truly everywhere. The town where it is number one is in Apulia: Matino, in the Salento. Outside Italy there are more Romanos than in Italy, and not all of them have Italian roots. The map and the countries around the world where they settled are in the PDF.
Variants
From the same root came a plural and two diminutives, each with its own region. The South kept mostly the simple form.
| Surname | Where it is concentrated |
|---|---|
| Romano | Campania, then all of Italy |
| Romani | Lazio, Tuscany |
| Romanelli | Tuscany, Lazio, Apulia, Campania |
| Romaniello | Basilicata, Campania |
FAQ
What does the surname Romano mean?
It comes from the Latin Romanus, “the man from Rome.” It marked someone who came from Rome or from a town called Romano; sometimes it comes from the first name Romano.
Do all Romanos come from Rome?
Not necessarily. The surname was born outside Rome, for the newcomer who arrived from the city. But it could also come from towns like Romano Canavese or Romano d’Ezzelino, or from a personal name.
Is Romano a southern surname?
Its heart is Campania, where it is the region’s third most common surname. But it is Italy’s 7th most common surname and is found everywhere, partly because of the emigration of the 1900s toward Milan and Turin.
Are Romano and Romani the same surname?
They share the same root. Romani is the plural, “the Romano’s folks,” typical of central Italy. Romanelli and Romaniello are diminutives instead, “little Romano.”
Are all Romanos related?
No. The surname was born many times, in different places, with no single founder. To rebuild your own story you need birth records and parish registers.
Is the Romano surname noble?
The surname itself doesn’t mean nobility. The power of the da Romano family of the Veneto ended in 1260, and the recorded coats of arms belong to specific branches. The great majority of today’s Romanos come from the South and have a different story.
Is there a Romano family coat of arms?
Heraldic archives record different coats of arms for Romano families, for example one from Rome and Palermo and one from Bovalino, in Calabria. They look nothing alike. No single coat of arms belongs to every Romano.
