Antonia History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Italy

Antonia is one of the surnames to have emerged from the beautiful and historical Italian region of Tuscany. 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. This process of adopting fixed hereditary surnames in Italy began in the 10th and 11th centuries, but it was not completed until the modern era. The patronymic surname, which is derived from the father's given name, was one of the most common names created at that time in the region of Tuscany. The surname Antonia came from the given name Antonius, which in English is known in the forms Anthony and Antony. The given name Antonius means inestimable or strength. The Antonia family surname has its roots in the ancient Roman period and possibly earlier, in the Etruscan period. The most famous member of this family is Marc Antony (Marcus Antonius), the famous Roman general, politician and orator born in 83 B.C. Antony was of a distinguished family related to Julius Caesar. After Caesar's assassination Antony aroused the masses against the conspirators who murdered his relative and patron. Perhaps the most memorable aspect of his life was his love affair with Cleopatra, Queen of Egypt. The tragic end of this couple has been the subject of much literature, including one of Shakespeare's plays.

Early History of the Antonia family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Antonia research. The years 1355, 1372, 1374, 1430, 1540, 1617, 1643, 1668, 1684, 1697, 1700, 1725, 1726 and 1732 are included under the topic Early Antonia History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Antonia Spelling Variations

Italian surnames have a surprising number of forms in comparison with other European surnames because they reflect the regional variations and the many dialects of the Italian language, each of which has its distinctive features. For example, in Northern Italy the most standard Italian surname suffix is "I", whereas in Southern Italy the most typical surname suffix is "O". Sardinian is very different from other forms of Italian and in fact, it is considered to be its own distinct language. Additionally, spelling changes frequently occurred because medieval scribes, church officials, and the bearers of names, spelled names as they sounded rather than according to any specific spelling rules. As a consequence of the major changes in the Italian language and in the local spellings of Italian surnames that occurred over the course of history, there are numerous variations for the surname Antonia. These spelling variations include Antony, Anthony, Antni, Antnia, Antnio, Antoni, Antonia, Antonio, De Antoni, Di Antonio, Antonèllo, D'Antonio, Antonello, Antonelli, Antonetti, Antonetto, Antonietti, Antonazzi, Antonazzo, Antoniutti, Antonioli, Antuoni, Antonino, Antonicelli, Antonucci, Antognini, Antognetti, Antognoli, Toni, Tony, Tonelli, Tonicello, Tonello, Tonino, Tonini, Tonizzo, Tonolli and many more.

Early Notables of the Antonia family

Prominent among members of the family was

Antonia of Baux (c. 1355-1374), the second Queen consort of Frederick III, King of Sicily (1372-1374.) Antonio de Messina, was a painter in Messina, born in 1430. He specialized in still life, his mos...

Antonia migration to the United States +

Amongst the settlers in North America with this distinguished name Antonia were

Antonia Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Juan Antonia, who arrived in New Orleans, La in 1813 1
Pedro Antonia, aged 56, who landed in New Orleans, La in 1831 1
Constantine Antonia, aged 28, who arrived in Texas in 1895 1

Antonia Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Dillaria Antonia, who landed in Arkansas in 1906 1

Contemporary Notables of the name Antonia (post 1700) +

Mother Antonia (1926-2013), American Roman Catholic Religious Sister and activist
Princess Antonia of Prussia (b. 1955), great-granddaughter of Wilhelm II, German Emperor and the wife of the current Duke of Wellington
Princess Antonia of Luxembourg (1899-1954), member of the Luxembourgish House of Nassau-Weilburg and the last Crown Princess of Bavaria
Princess Antónia of Portugal (1845-1913), Portuguese princess of the House of Braganza, daughter of Queen Maria II of Portugal
María Antonia Blasco Marhuenda (b. 1965), Spanish molecular biologist
Claire Antonia Forlani (b. 1972), English actress, best known for her roles in Mallrats, Basquiat and Meet Joe Black
Annalie Antonia Longo (b. 1991), New Zealand female association football player
Gilda Antonia Guillén (1959-2006), Cuban writer and poet
Dr. Antonia Pantoja (1922-2002), Puerto Rican-born, American educator, social worker, feminist, civil rights leader and recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom
Dame Antonia "A.S." Byatt DBE (1936-2023), pen name of Dame Antonia Susan Duffy, an English postmodern novelist, poet and Booker Prize winner, one of the 50 greatest British writers since 1945

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)