SURNAMES IN ITALY

Surname Sassano

Origin and meaning

From the name of the town of Sassano, province of Salerno. Also derived from the Latin first name "Sassius", sassano = property of Sassius.

E. De Felice notes that this surname derives from the place name Sassano, a locality in the province of Salerno, in the region of Campania, and considers it infrequent.

E. Rossoni offers a more detailed picture. He identifies zones of presence in San Martino in Pensilis and Campomarino, in the Campobasso area, and in San Nicandro Garganico, San Marco in Lamis, Foggia and Apricena, in the Foggia area. He further notes another focus in the Potenza area, between Marsico Nuovo, Potenza and Paterno. According to Rossoni, the nuclei of Molise and Apulia derive from names of rural farms, while those of Basilicata point back to place names such as Sassano di Avigliano, in the Potenza area, or else to Sassano itself, in the Salerno area.

Taken together, the surname presents multiple independent lines of origin (ceppi), arisen in different regions without a direct relation between them.

Geographic distribution: Campania (rare)

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

This entry brings together what 3 authors propose about the origin of the surname. In some cases they agree and reinforce a single hypothesis; in others, they contribute different views worth considering.

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
  • Research conducted by Surnames in Italy, the English-language project of Ancestros Italianos, based on the bibliography cited in the references.