| ![Show Contents]() Arnao History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
- Origins Available:
 Italy Venice, one of the oldest and most beautiful regions of Italy, is the esteemed birthplace of numerous prominent families, and of a family that bears the surname Arnao. Although people were originally known only by a single name, it became necessary for them 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. Arnao was a surname derived from an occupation. Occupational surnames, which are less common than other types of surnames in Italy, date back to the feudal era. The surname Arnao is an occupational name for a the personal name Arnoaldi, which is itself derived from the Frankish name "Arnuwalda." The Frankish given name Arnuwald, which is composed of two elements, arnu, which means eagle, and walda, which means powerful, was given to a person who was as powerful as an eagle. Early Origins of the Arnao familyThe surname Arnao was first found in the cities of Venice and Vicenza where Arnaldo Arnaldi was the first person bearing this surname. Arnaldo from Arezzo, born in 1052, dedicated his life to the church. As a result of his loyalty, Enrico III granted him all imperial concessions to the church in Siena. This meant that Arnaldo could essentially treat the church as his second home. Early History of the Arnao familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Arnao research. Another 64 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1358, 1364, 1465, 1532, 1613, 1640, 1721, 1724 and 1750 are included under the topic Early Arnao History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Arnao Spelling VariationsThere 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 Arnao are Arnaldi, Arnaldo, Arnao, Arnaud, Arnaudi, Arnaudo, Arno, Arnold, Arnoldi and many more. Early Notables of the Arnao familyProminent among members of the family was Alberto Arnoldi (or di Arnoldo) (fl 1364) an Italian sculptor and architect from Florence, know for his colossal sculpture of the Madonna and Child with two angels for the Loggia del Bigallo in Florence; he later directed the works of Florence Cathedral about 1358; Bartholomaeus Arnoldi, OSA (1465-1532), an...
Another 56 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Arnao Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Migration of the Arnao familyAn inquiry into the early roots of North American families reveals a number of immigrants bearing the name Arnao or a variant listed above: Anna Arnaldi, aged 21, who arrived at Ellis Island from Bresimo, Austria in 1907; Guiseppe Arnaldi, aged 22, who arrived at Ellis Island from Brioglia in 1907.
| Contemporary Notables of the name Arnao (post 1700) | + |
- Ruth Arnao, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Pennsylvania, 2000 1
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