Show ContentsCampanella 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 Campanella. 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 Campanella 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 Campanella family

The surname Campanella 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 Campanella family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Campanella 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 Campanella History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

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

Early Notables of the Campanella 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 comm...

Campanella Ranking

In the United States, the name Campanella is the 14,674th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 1


United States Campanella migration to the United States +

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

Campanella Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
  • Carmine Campanella, aged 34, who immigrated to America from Deliceto, Italy, in 1904
  • Alfonso Campanella, aged 13, who landed in America from Lercara, Italy, in 1906
  • Andrea Campanella, aged 25, who immigrated to the United States from Morolo, Italy, in 1906
  • Alfredo Campanella, aged 29, who landed in America from Messina, Italy, in 1907
  • Candeloro Campanella, aged 16, who immigrated to the United States from Reggio Calabria, Scilla, in 1909
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Campanella (post 1700) +

  • Joseph Anthony Campanella (1924-2018), American Daytime and Primetime Emmy Award and Tony award nominated character actor, known for his roles in Days of Our Lives
  • Roy Campanella 11 (b. 1948), American television director and producer
  • Joseph Arthur Campanella (1930-1967), professional American football player
  • Rob Campanella, American musician
  • Frank Campanella (1919-2006), American character actor
  • Alyssa Campanella (b. 1990), beauty pageant titleholder from the United States
  • Roy Campanella (1921-1993), American baseball player
  • Vincent Campanella, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Ohio, 1916 2
  • Angelo Campanella (1748-1815), Italian painter and engraver
  • Vito Campanella (b. 1932), Italian painter
  • ... (Another 4 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)


  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 6) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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