SURNAMES IN ITALY

Surname Beretta

Origin and meaning

According to E. Rossoni, it is a surname specific to northern Italy. It could derive from a nickname related to a dialectal term for a cap or beret.

It is a surname fairly well known in Brianza. It has its origin in the Bergamo locality of Beretta, today called San Gregorio. It is thought to be related to beveretta —a diminutive of bevera, "watercourse"—, also because the oldest forms found are preceded by the definite article and the Bergamo locality, in documents of the 15th century, is defined as "comune of the Beretta". They appear in the edict of 1385 by which Giangaleazzo Visconti pardoned the Guelph families that had supported his rival, the Count of Savoy.

Geographic distribution: Northern Italy

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

Drawing on 2 authors, this entry presents the different hypotheses about the origin of the surname, avoiding a single oversimplified explanation.

Sources

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

  • Rossoni, E. (2002). Origine e storia dei cognomi italiani. Retrieved from https://www.cognomiitaliani.org
  • Research conducted by Surnames in Italy, the English-language project of Ancestros Italianos, based on the bibliography cited in the references.