Show ContentsManzella History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Venice, one of the oldest and most beautiful island regions of Italy, is the esteemed birthplace of numerous prominent families, including the family that bears the surname Manzella. Although people were originally known only by a single name, it became necessary for people to adopt a second name to identify themselves as populations grew and travel became more frequent. The process of adopting fixed hereditary surnames was not complete until the modern era, but the use of hereditary family names in Italy began in the 10th and 11th centuries. Italian hereditary surnames were developed according to fairly general principles and they are characterized by a profusion of derivatives coined from given names. Although the most common type of family name found in Venice is the patronymic surname, which is derived from the father's givenname, names derived from occupations are also found. Occupational surnames, which are less common than other types of surnames in Italy, date back to the feudal era. However, under the Feudal System, occupational names did not become hereditary until the offices themselves became hereditary. It was only after an occupation was inherited by several generations in lineal descent that occupational names came to be applied to entire families, and so became a hereditary surname. The surname Manzella is a common occupational name for a person who raised steers having being derived from the Italian word Manzo, meaning steer. During the Middle Ages, Italian society was primarily based on agriculture and accordingly agricultural occupations were quite frequently shown in the development of these surnames.

Early Origins of the Manzella family

The surname Manzella was first found in Friuli (Venetian: Friul), an area of northeastern Italy, with Patriarca di Aquileia Volserico Manzano in 1083.

Early History of the Manzella family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Manzella research. The years 1500, 1785 and 1860 are included under the topic Early Manzella History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Manzella Spelling Variations

There are many variations of most of those Italian names that originated in the medieval era. Some of these come from regional differences, like the tradition of ending northern names in "o" and southern names in "i". Others come from inaccuracies in the recording process, which were extremely common in the eras before dictionaries standardized spelling. Some of the spelling variations of Manzella are Manzo, Manzano, Manzoni, Manzonni, Manzonne, Mansone, Manzu, Manzuoli, Manzuolo, Manzi, Manzoli, Manzolo, Manzano, Manzelli, Manzina, Manzini and many more.

Early Notables of the Manzella family

Prominent among members of the family was Torpe di Federico del Mansone of Sicily, a priest in Pisa for 7 years. His son acquired the position after his death. Pier Angelo Manzoli, a poet and philosopher in Ferrara in 1500; Cianciano Manzano was commander of the castle of Manzano, which stands in Friulì. The Manzini family of Modena was one of the most powerful families in the city...
Another 68 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Manzella Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Manzella Ranking

In the United States, the name Manzella is the 15,423rd most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 1


United States Manzella migration to the United States +

An inquiry into the early roots of North American families reveals a number of immigrants bearing the name Manzella or a variant listed above:

Manzella Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
  • Anna Manzella, aged 1, who immigrated to the United States from Bagheria, in 1901
  • Antonio Manzella, aged 44, who landed in America from Romaguano, Italy, in 1904
  • Angela Manzella, aged 28, who landed in America from Montemaggia Palerno, in 1905
  • Antonino Manzella, aged 16, who immigrated to the United States from Partinico, Sicily, in 1909
  • Anna Manzella, aged 4, who landed in America from Cogliaro, Italy, in 1910
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Manzella (post 1700) +

  • Thomas Samuel Manzella Jr. (b. 1983), American Major League shortstop
  • Jennie Manzella, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from New York, 1988 2
  • Frank D. Manzella, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from New York, 1932 2
  • Dominic Manzella, American politician, Burgess of Laureldale, Pennsylvania, 1960 2


  1. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  2. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 16) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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