Galla History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Italy

From the historical and enchanting Italian region of Tuscany emerged a multitude of noble families, including the distinguished Galla family. During the Middle Ages, as populations grew and travel between regions became more frequent, the people of Tuscany found it necessary to adopt a second name to identify themselves and their families. 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 were characterized by a profusion of derivatives coined from given names. Although the most common type of family name found in Tuscany is the patronymic surname, which is derived from the father's given name, the nickname type of surname is also frequently found. Nickname surnames were derived from an eke-name, or added name. They usually reflected the physical characteristics or attributes of the first person that used the name. The surname Galla is a name for a person with some of the attributes associated with a bird, such as a fine voice or sexual prowess. The name, which was also very popular in Spain during the Middle Ages, is derived from the Latin word Gallus which means rooster.

Early Origins of the Galla family

The surname Galla was first found in northern Italy which today incorporates the provinces of Cremona, Brescia, Pisa and the city of Florence. The earliest records of the surname Galla date back to Florence, where the Galigai family can be traced to 1039.

Early History of the Galla family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Galla research. The years 1381, 1497, 1510, 1528, 1540, 1564, 1576, 1590, 1595, 1615, 1624, 1632, 1636, 1671, 1714, 1737, 1850 and 1868 are included under the topic Early Galla History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Galla Spelling Variations

Surnames that originated in Italy are characterized by an enormous number of spelling variations. Some of these are derived from regional traditions and dialects. Northern names, for instance, often end in "o", while southern names tend to end in "i". Other variations come from the fact the medieval scribes tended to spell according to the sound of words, rather than any particular set of rules. The recorded variations of Galla include Galli, Gallo, Gall, Gallis, Gallelli, Gallello, Galletti, Galigai, Gallico, Galelei, Galladei, Galeota, Galizzi, Gallego, Gallini, Gallino, Gallucci, Galluccio, Galluzzi, Gallus, Galliussi, Gallozzi, Gallotti, Galloni, Gallone, Gallarini and many more.

Early Notables of the Galla family

Prominent among members of the family was

Francesco Galeota, born in 1497 in Naples, who was a poet and a nobleman. Eighteen members of the Galilei family of Florence became priests between 1381 and 1528. Giulio Cesare la Galla (1576-1624), w...

Galla migration to the United States +

In the immigration and passenger lists were a number of people bearing the name Galla

Galla Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Elias Galla, who landed in Jamestown, Va in 1624 [1]

Galla Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Johann Galla, who arrived in North America in 1854 [1]
Hirsch Galla, aged 45, who immigrated to the United States, in 1893

Galla Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Joseph Galla, who landed in Arkansas in 1900 [1]
Ernesto Guito Galla, aged 23, who settled in America from Fivizpano, Italy, in 1909
Guiseppe Galla, aged 6, who immigrated to America from Gioiosa, Italy, in 1909
Alberto Galla, aged 34, who settled in America from Mondore, Italy, in 1910
Guiseppina Galla, aged 17, who landed in America from Gambatesa, Italy, in 1912
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Galla (post 1700) +

Roxanne Galla (b. 1975), American model and actress from Houston, Texas
Lieutenant Edward J. Galla, U.S. Navy medical doctor and leader of support personnel at Byrd Station, 1959, eponym of Mount Galla, Antarctica

Citations +

Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)