In this blog post, we want to show you some of the names that in ancient times were in common use, and hearing them in the streets was something quite frequent. They often have been passed down from generation to generation through marriage and naming practices: at one time it was practically obligatory to give children the traditional Sicilian names of their grandparents, while now this custom is partly lost. Today in Sicily, people prefer names borrowed from abroad, and they can get sometimes very creative (and often with the wrong syntax!).
This topic is an incredibly interesting subject and, above all, it allows us to take a trip in the past, showing us how in Sicily the preferences in naming have incredibly changed. You may recognize some of the following, but it’s extremely difficult to find someone from the latest generations (starting from the millennials, even less when we have a look at Generation Z) that has been named with one of the following – rare, but not impossible. Some of the traditional Sicilian names for boys and girls today have been completely forgotten, or are even considered ugly!
Sicilian Names from the past
Masculine
- Cateno
- Cono
- Gesualdo
- Gerlando
- Castrenze
Feminine
- Petronilla
- Brigida
- Catena
- Girolama
- Palma
Do you know anyone from Generation X or Millennials that is named this way? If yes, Kudos to them – it’s great to keep the traditions alive! Let us know in the comment!
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My Grams was a Catena. My parents changed the spelling of mine name to Catina
I had an uncle, Leterio LaSpina, who was born in Messina around 1902/3. I have never heard of the name Leterio before, is it still in use?
My dads name is Cono and my sons name is Cono
My grandmother`s name was Brigida(Bridget). When I was born she wouldn`t let me named with her name. Instead she asked my parents to name me Beatrice.
My Aunt is Girolama
My brother-in-law was Castrenze
my grandfathers name was Liborio,
never heard it since
My mother was Palma. My father’s sister was Gaetana
My great grandmother’s name was Cristanzia. Has anyone ever heard of it. Am guessing at the spelling