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The Most Popular Italian Baby Names for 2019

min read

By Activebeat

Are you looking for a traditional Italian name for your little one on the way?  Whether you are expecting a boy or a girl, it is no wonder that so many parents are drawn to Italian baby names, even if they don’t have Italian roots!

Here are 25 of the most adorable Italian baby names that will melt your heart.  I hope you will find a name that is absolutely perfectto!

25. Alessandro (ah-lay-SAHN-droh)

The name Alessandro is both a given name and surname, and is the Italian form of the name Alexander. The name means: “defender of mankind”.  Having a little girl?  If so, an equally sweet alternative to this boy name is Alessandra.

Most famously known with the name Alessandro include: Alessandro Del Piero (athlete), Alessandro Juliani (actor), and Alessandro Nivola (actor).

24. Aria (AHR-ee-ah)

The name Aria is a girl’s name of Italian origin.  The name means “air, song or melody”.  Of late, the name was popularized by one of the characters in the popular Game of Thrones series.

In 2017, the name Aria was #20 on the list of most popular names, and it continues to climb the list. Most famously known with the name Aria is actress and singer, Aria Wallace.  She is best known for her performances on iCarly, and has made guest appearances on The Bernie Mac Show, Charmed, and That ’70s Show.

23. Camilla (kah-MIL-ah)

The name Camilla is derived from the Latin camilla (virgin of unblemished character).  A common nickname is Cami.

Most famously known with the name Camilla include: Camilla Luddington (actress), Camilla Belle (actress), and Camilla Parker Bowles (duchess).  Actor Stanley Tucci chose the name Camilla for his daughter, born in 2002.

22. Caprice

The name Caprice is derived from the Italian capriccio, meaning: “faniciful”.  It is a very cute name for a little girl, but it has also been used as a boys name too.

Most famously known with the name Caprice include: Caprice Bourret (model) and Caprice Coleman (wrestler).

21. Christian (KRIS-tchin)

The name Christian is derived from the Latin christianus, meaning: “a Christian, a follower of Christ”.  Though this is most commonly used as a boys name, it has also been used for girls, too.

Most famously known with the name Christian include: Christian Bale (actor), Christian Slater (act0r), and Christian Serratos (actress).  The name is also popular among celebs including: Sean Combs (musician), Mel Gibson (actor/filmmaker), Michael Madsen (actor), as well as Eddie Murphy (actor), who all chose the name Christian for their sons.

20. Dario (dah-REE-oh)

The name Dario is a masculine given name, meaning: “possessor of good”.  Dario is the Italian form of the name Darius.

Most famously known with the name Dario include:  Dario Medrano (reality star) and a handful of athletes including: Dario Saric (basketball player), Dario Benedetto (soccer player) and Dario Franchitti (race car driver) — to name just a few.

19. Deangelo (dee-AN-jah-loh)

The name Deangelo is an Italian baby name meaning: “from the angel” or “of the angels”.  It is sometimes spelled DeAngelo or D’Angelo (which is the American way of spelling the name).

Most famously known with the name DeAngelo include athletes: DeAngelo Williams, DeAngelo Hall, DeAngelo Peterson, DeAngelo Tyson, and Deangelo Lamont Parker (rapper).

18. Donte (DAHN-tay)

The name Donte is the Italian version of the Latin name Dante.  The name Dante is a contracted form of the Italian Durante which means “steadfast, enduring”.

Most famously known with the name Donte include: Donte DiVincenzo (basketball player), and footballers: Donte Moncrief, Donte Whitner, Donte Green and Donte Stallworth.

17. Emilia (eh-MEE-lee-ah)

Emilia is a feminine name derived from “Aemilia”, the feminine from of the the Latin name “Aemilius”.  The name means to “rival, excel or emulate”.

Most famously known with the name Emilia include: actresses, Emilia Clarke, Emilia Fox, Emilia McCarthy, Emilia Jones and Emilia Schule.  Patrick Monahan (lead singer of the band Train) chose the name for his daughter born in 1997.  More recently, Stanley Tucci (actor/writer/producer/film director) chose the name Emilia for his daughter born in 2018.

16. Gia (Jee-ah)

The name Gia is a girls name of Italian origin meaning “God’s gracious gift”  It has been growing in popularity and moving up the list fast.

Most famously known with the name Gia is Gia Carides (actress) and Gia Coppola (director), who was inspired by the work of her aunt, Sofia Coppola.  In 2008, Matt Damon (actor) chose the name Gia for his daughter, and in 2010, Mario Lopez Jr (actor/tv star) named his daughter Gia, too.   In 2018, Gary Clark Jr (musician) and wife Nicole Trufio (model), chose the name Gia for their first born.

15. Giada (JAH-dah) or (jee-AH-dah)

Giada is a sweet name for a baby girl.  The name means “jade” in Italian.  Common nicknames of the name Giada include Gia and Gigi.

Most famously known with the name Giada is celebrity chef on the Food Network, Giada De Laurentiis.

14. Giorgio (JOHR-joh)

Giorgio is a male Italian given name (and sometimes a surname) which means: “George”.  The name is derived from the Greek ‘georgos’ (earthworker, farmer).

Most famously known with the name Giorgio include: Giorgio Armani (fashion designer), Giorgio Chiellini (athlete) and Giorgio Cantarini (actor).

13. Giovanni (joh-VAHN-ee)

The name Giovanni is the Italian cognate of the name John, meaning: “God is gracious”.   In other country’s such as France, Poland, England, Mexico, Russia, Canada, United States, Germany, and El Salvador, it is used as a form of the more common name Frederick/Fredrick.

Most famously known with the name Giovanni includes: Giovanni Ribisi (actor) and Giovanni Capitello (director).

12. Lorenzo (loh-REHN-zoh)

Lorenzo is an Italian masculine given name of Latin origin.  It was derived from the Roman surname Laurentius, which meant: “from Laurentum”.

Most famously known with the name Lorenzo include: Lorenzo James Hernie (actor), Lorenzo Lamas (actor) and Lorenzo Cain (athlete). Reality tv star Nicole Polizzi chose the name Lorenzo for her son born in 2012.

11. Luca (LOO-kah)

The name Luca is a cognate of Lucas, which is thought to be a derivative of Lucius.  The name Luca means: “from Lucania”.  Luca would make an adorable name for a little boy or girl.

Most famously known with the name Luca include: Luca Oriel (actor), Luca Manfe (chef), and Luca Padovan (stage actor).   Celebs Rebecca Minkoff (designer) as well as Hilary Duff (actress) and Mike Comrie (athlete), chose the name Luca for their sons born in 2011 and 2012, respectively.

10. Marcella (mahr-SEH-lah) or (marh-CHEH-lah)

The name Marcella is a cognate of the French Marcelle, a feminine form of Marcel, which is from the Latin Marcellus, which is a diminutive form of Marcus.  The name Marcella is an adorable Italian name, meaning: “warlike”.

Most famously known with the name Marcella is Marcella Arguello (comedian).  Marcella was also the leading lady in the story Don Quixote.  The name may seem outdated, but there is no time like the present to bring it back!

9. Matteo (mah-TAY-oh)

Matteo is the Italian form of the given name Matthew.  The name Matteo means: “gift of God”.

Most famously known with the name Matteo is Matteo Bocelli (pop singer), who is the youngest son of the infamous Andrea Bocelli.  Actor Colin Firth also chose the name Matteo for his son born in 2003.

8. Milan (MEE-lahn)

The name Milan is a unique name for either a boy or a girl.  The name is derived from the Slavic element ‘mil’ meaning: “kind, loving, gracious”.

Most famously known with the name Milan is Milan Lucic (hockey player).  Scott Alan Strapp (musician) chose the name Milan for his daughter born in 2007, and Shakira (musician) chose the name for her son born in 2013.

7. Nico (NEE-koh)

Nico is a unisex given name that is the short form of Nicolo and Nicola.  In Italian, the name Nico may also be short for Domenico and Nicodemo.  The name Nico means: “victorious people”.

Most famously known with the name Nico include: Nico Liersch (actor), Nico Rosberg (race car driver), Nico Tortorella (actor), and Nico Santos (actor).  Guy Berryman (musician) and Thandie Newton (actress) both chose the name Nico for their daughters, born in 2006 and 2004, respectively.

6. Rocco (RAH-koh)

The name Rocco is of German and Italian origin, meaning: “rest”.  Common nicknames for Rocco are Rock, and Rocky.

Most famously known with the name Rocco include: Rocco Dispirito (chef) and Rocco Ritchie, who is the famous family member of Madonna (musician) and Guy Ritchie (director). Rocco is also the name of the sons of Kathryn Morris (actress) and Jillian Barberie (newscaster/tv host), born in 2013 and 2010, respectively.

5. Romeo (ROH-mee-oh)

The name Romeo is a boy’s name of Italian origin meaning: “pilgrim to Rome, Roman”.  The name was made famous by William Shakespeare’s tragedy about star-crossed lovers, Romeo and Juliet.

Most famously known with the name Romeo include: Romeo Miller (rapper), Romeo Bar (actor), and Romeo Beckham, son of David Beckham (athlete) and wife Victoria Beckham (singer/designer).

4. Stefano (STEH-fa-noh)

Stefano is the Italian form of the masculine given name, Stephen.  The name Stefano means: “garland, crown”.

Most famously known with the name Stefano includes: Stefano Gabbana (fashion designer) and Stefano Faita (chef).

3. Vanna (VA-nah)

Vanna is an adorable name for a little girl!  It is the feminine form of Giovanni, and is the nickname of the equally adorable name Giovanna.  The Hebrew meaning of the name is “God’s gift”.

Most famously known with the name Vanna is Vanna White, tv show host from the show Wheel of Fortune.  Vanna White as well as Nicole Polizzi (reality tv star) both chose the name Giovanna for their daughters born in 1997 and 2014, respectively.

2. Vera (VEE-rah) or (VEH-rah)

The name Vera is an adorable Italian female given name.  In Italian, the name Vera means: “truth”.

Most famously known with the name Vera include: Vera Farmiga (actress) and Vera Wang (fashion designer).  Reality TV Star/designer, Vern Yip, chose the name Vera for his daughter born in 2011.  You may remember him from the TLC show “Trading Spaces”.

1. Vittorio (vee-TOH-ree-oh)

Vittorio is an Italian male given name taken from the male name, Victor.  The meaning of the name Vittorio is: “victor”.

Most famously known with the name Vittorio include: Vittoria Gassman (stage actor) and Vittorio De Sica (director).

 

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