Search Etymological origin of Italian surnames

BRESCI | BRESCIA

Bresci has a Tuscan core in the provinces of Florence, Prato and Pistoia, and a small stock in the Cosenza area, Brescia is widespread in Puglia with a probable secondary stock in the Neapolitan and Catanzaro areas, they should derive from the toponym Brescia. additions provided by Stefano Ferrazzi On the origin of these surnames converge at least two hypotheses, which, added together, justify the high spread within the country (especially in southern Italy). Beginning with the northern and central-northern strains, a connection with the Lombard toponym Brescia is very likely, which, in reality, can also apply to several southern families. In the South, however, it must be said that in many cases the Bresci and Brescia surnames are not of Italian origin, but of Albanian origin, and arise from an Italianization of the term Arbëreshë or Arbresha (also used as personal name), which in mother tongue Albanian means precisely: from the etymological point of view, however, it should be noted that the adaptation in Brescia actually arises from the apheresis of Abbrescia (see Abbrescia), although the reference to the Lombard toponym allowed the surname Brescia to spread to a greater extent ; furthermore, just out of curiosity, we can add that there is a close relationship between the Albanian and Brescia surnames, both born from the same term, although the former suffers from a real Latinization rather than a popular adaptation. Before concluding, however, it is important to point out that the term Arbëreshë does not apply to modern Albanians (who call themselves Shqiptar), but only to those families who, following the Ottoman occupation of Albania (1478), decided to abandon their country and emigrate to Italy, founding large Albanian-Italian communities mostly in the South (in reality it seems that this emigration was already underway in an era prior to the war against the Ottomans). additions provided by Giovanni Vezzelli In his Italian toponymy § 79, GB Pellegrini connects Brixia (Brescia) with a well-known Celtic voice, akin to trouble. Also Olivieri, DTL 109, mentions this name and others of a likely Celtic origin such as Brexa in Spain, Bressa in Gallia and Bressanone (Alto Adige). But many scholars, especially Alessio 1948, tend to refer this toponymic theme in the sense of a fortress, to the pre-European pre-European style. The Gröhler I, 198 under the Gallic Brixus, Brixius = saltus, reported to the Gallic brica, brig, also mentions our Brixia. If, on the other hand, we want to see an Albanian origin in Brescia, then for F. Altimari Albanian onomastic traces in the Calabrian community of Gizzeria (http://www.catanzaroarberia.org/it/testi.php?id_section=3&id=14) the cognominal form Brescia / Abbrescia, also present in the Albanian-speaking community of Calabria, certainly represents a form of Italianized adaptation, with exchange of alveodental liquids l ~ r, of the original surname Blescia [alb. Blesha] and does not come from the popular ethnonym briesh (m.) ~ Bresh (f.) - derived in turn from the ethnic interior Albanian (ar) bëresh - widespread in northern Calabria, in the Romance area and not albanophone, to indicate the Albanian in Italy.

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