Davanzo

It would derive from a nickname based on the archaic Venetian term davanzo, which meant "in excess", "left over" or "arrived in surplus", and was used to refer to a person considered dispensable. It possibly alluded to the last child born in a very numerous family.

Davanzo is an Italian surname documented by Rossoni, spread mainly in the Veneto, especially in the provinces of Venice and Treviso. It presents important nuclei in Musile di Piave, San Donà di Piave, Venice, Quarto d'Altino, Noventa di Piave, Fossalta di Piave, Jesolo, Meolo and Ceggia, as well as in Roncade, Treviso, Breda di Piave, Ponte di Piave and Salgareda. It also has a nucleus in Trieste and Monfalcone, and another in the province of Bari, particularly in Andria and Acquaviva delle Fonti.

The variant D'Avanzo is characteristic of southern Italy, especially of the provinces of Naples and Avellino (Campania) and of Bari (Puglia). According to Rossoni, while Davanzo would have its origin in the aforementioned nickname derived from the Venetian word davanzo, D'Avanzo would be a patronymic form in which the particle D' means "son of", indicating descent from a person named Avanzo.

The form Del Avanso, present in some Argentine records, constitutes a graphic deformation of the original surname. It probably arose from the erroneous separation of Davanzo into two words and from the substitution of the letter z by s, a phenomenon favoured by the seseo characteristic of Rioplatense Spanish.