SURNAMES IN ITALY

Surname Pelà

Origin and meaning

F. De Laurentiis and E. Rossoni agree that the surname may derive from a nickname applied to bald people, that is, without hair.

F. De Laurentiis adds that it also has as its base the occupational name Pelà, formed from pela-, derived from the verb pelare, "to remove the skin" from animals and men.

Geographic distribution: Veneto

📍 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
  • De Laurentiis, F. (2003). Cognomi occhiobellesi. Storia, curiosità, significati e classifiche. Occhiobello: Teatro Polivalente di Occhiobello (T.P.O.). Retrieved from https://web.archive.org/web/20030516113456/http://www.comune.occhiobello.ro.it/cognomi/