Messana History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

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Family Crest Download (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

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From the ancient and beautiful Italian island of Sicily emerged a variety of distinguished names, including the notable surname Messana. 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 were characterized by a profusion of derivatives coined from given names. Although the most traditional type of family name found in the region of Sicily is the patronymic surname, which is derived from the father's given name, local surnames are also found. Local names, which are the least frequent of the major types of surnames found in Italy, are derived from a place-name where the original bearer once resided or held land. Often Italian local surnames bore the prefix "di," which signifies emigration from one place to another, and does not necessarily denote nobility. The Messana family lived in the Italian province and town of the same name. The city of Messina is situated in northeast Sicily on the homonymous strait which is the channel separating the Italian peninsula from the island of Sicily.