SURNAMES IN ITALY

Surname Arditi

Origin and meaning

The authors agree that the surname was formed from the medieval name Ardito (Arditus), from the adjective ardito ("very brave, bold").

E. De Felice specifies that the name was already medieval. He notes that the surname is distributed throughout Italy, but is common only in the Venetias —where Ardìt is peculiar— and in the south.

E. Rossoni adds that the name Arditus is documented in Florence in a deed of 1432.

Variants

Geographic distribution: All of Italy; the Venetias and the South more frequent

📍 You can view how this surname is distributed in Italy: View distribution in Italy (Cognomix)

Comparative analysis based on 2 authors: where they agree, the hypothesis is strengthened; where they differ, the alternative interpretations are presented.

Sources

This entry of the Italian Surname Meanings dictionary is based on the following specialized onomastic sources:

  • De Felice, E. (1978). Dizionario dei cognomi italiani. Milano: Mondadori.
  • Rossoni, E. (2002). Origine e storia dei cognomi italiani. Retrieved from https://www.cognomiitaliani.org