Palermo History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Italy

Etymology of Palermo

What does the name Palermo mean?

From the ancient and beautiful Italian island of Sicily emerged a variety of distinguished names, including the notable surname Palermo. 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 Palermo family lived in the city of Palermo, in northwest Sicily.

Early Origins of the Palermo family

The surname Palermo was first found in Palermo (Sicilian: Palermu, Latin: Panormus), a city in Insular Italy, the capital of both the region of Sicily and the Province of Palermo. In those ancient times only persons of rank, the podesta, clergy, city officials, army officers, artists, landowners were entered into the records. To be recorded at this time, at the beginning of recorded history, was of itself a great distinction and indicative of noble ancestry. The name first appeared in Sicily about the 12th century.

Early History of the Palermo family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Palermo research. Another 171 words (12 lines of text) covering the years 1609 and 1806 are included under the topic Early Palermo History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Palermo Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Palermo, Palarmo, Palermoe, Palermow, Palerma and many more.

Early Notables of the Palermo family

Prominent among bearers of this surname in early times was

Palermo of Sicily

Palermo Ranking

In the United States, the name Palermo is the 5,772^nd most popular surname with an estimated 4,974 people with that name. 1

Palermo migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Palermo Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Salvatori Palermo, who sailed aboard the SS Letimbro from Palermo to New York, arriving December 3, 1888
Antonino and Giovanni Palermo, who both arrived in New York in 1891 aboard the SS Anglia
A. Palermo, aged 40, who landed in America, in 1892
Domenica Palermo, who settled in New York in 1896 aboard the SS Olympia from Naples
Vincent Palermo, who arrived in Mississippi in 1899 2

Palermo Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Agrippino Palermo, aged 34, who settled in America from Catania, Mineo, in 1907
Agnese Palermo, aged 17, who landed in America from Moliterno, Potenza, in 1920
Adamo Palermo, aged 22, who immigrated to the United States from Lago, Italy, in 1922

Contemporary Notables of the name Palermo (post 1700) +

Stephen Michael Palermo (1949-2017), American baseball umpire and supervisor; he worked in the American League from 1977 to 1991
John Palermo (b. 1978), American producer, known for his work on the X-Men movies
Chris Palermo, American Screen Actors Guild Award winning stuntman and actor, known for his work on Serenity (2005), The Dark Knight Rises (2012) and Mission: Impossible III (2006)
Brian Palermo, American character actor and comedian, known for his roles in The Social Network (2010) and Thank You for Smoking (2005)
Anthony "Tony" Joseph Palermo, American drummer
Olivia Toledo Palermo (b. 1986), American socialite, reality television star
Johnny Palermo (1982-2009), American television actor
Simone Palermo (b. 1988), Italian footballer
Lucia Palermo (b. 1985), Argentine rower at the 2012 Summer Olympics
Blinky Palermo (1943-1977), born Peter Schwarze, a German abstract painter
... (Another 3 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Citations +

"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)