Show ContentsCampani 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 Campani. 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 Campani is a common occupational name for a person who worked on church bells. The name literally means "a small church-bell" or "the bell-ringer."

Early Origins of the Campani family

The surname Campani was first found in the city of Padua, with earliest records of this lineage dating back to 1081, when Patavino Campanati was a lawyer of the Sacred Palace, or "Sacro Palazzo" in Padua.

Early History of the Campani family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Campani research. The years 1139, 1161, 1280, 1450, 1475, 1520, 1550, 1620, 1695, 1750, 1751, 1776, 1783, 1786, 1797, 1801, 1818, 1827 and 1830 are included under the topic Early Campani History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Campani 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 Campani are Campana, Campani, Campanelli, Campanio, Campanino, Campanini, Campanale, Campanile, Campanili, Campanato, Campanati, Campanella, Campanazzi, Campanaro, Campanari and many more.

Early Notables of the Campani family

Prominent among members of the family was the Campana family of Gorizia, who were Counts; Cino Campana of Osimo was a prominent lawyer and judge; Federico Campana was a castle owner in the area around Ancona; Muzio Campana was a military commander of the troops of the Duke of Urbino; Stefano Campanella was Bishop of Mileto in 1139; Soffrido Campanella was Bishop of Cassano in 1161; Paolo Campanella was Bishop of Pozzuoli around this time; Aldovrandino Campanati was a well known judge in 1280 in Padua; Antonio Campanazzi was a lawyer in 1450 in Bologna; Giovanni Campanella was Bishop of Minervino...
Another 167 words (12 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Campani Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Campani family

An inquiry into the early roots of North American families reveals a number of immigrants bearing the name Campani or a variant listed above: L. Campanio, who arrived in Mississippi in 1820 at the age of 30; and Lazaro Campanio, who settled in New Orleans, Louisiana, in 1820 at the age of 30..



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