Whether you have Italian roots or you simply love the way Italian names roll off the tongue, there are many Italian name options for your baby boy or girl. Much like the other Romance languages, Italian baby names may have originated in Latin, or they may be Latinized versions of names from other languages.
Traditionally, Italian parents choose their children's names based on the name of a grandparent, choosing names from the father's side of the family first and then from the mother's side. Some Italians have also followed the tradition of naming their child after a patron saint. By knowing the Italian equivalent of a name, you can keep this tradition alive, even if one side of your family isn't Italian.
Editor's Note
Although this article separates names by gender, your baby’s assigned sex at birth does not need to dictate the name you choose for them. Names are not inherently gendered or associated with a specific sex, and it's important to select a name that feels right for your little one and your family.
Popular Italian Baby Names for Girls
These Italian girl names names and meanings include names that are popular in Italy, as well as those with Ancient Roman or Latin roots.
Alessandra
- Origin: Italian form of Greek Alexandra
- Meaning: Defender of mankind
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Alessa, Sandra, Alexandra
Alice
- Origin: Old French, which was derived from German
- Meaning: Noble type (German Adalheidis)
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Alicia, Alecia, Alisha, Alyce, Alys, Alise
Angelica
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: Angelic
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Anjelica, Angelique, Angela, Angelina
- Famous Namesakes: Actress Anjelica Huston, singer Angelica Hale
Arianna
- Origin: Italian
- Meaning: Most holy
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Ariana, Ariadna, Ariadne
Aurora
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: Dawn, luminous, dazzling
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Aurore
Beatrice
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: She who makes happy
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Beatrix, Beatriz, Bea, Trixie
Benedetta
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: Blessed
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Bettina
Bianca
- Origin: Italian
- Meaning: White, pure
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Blanca, Blanche
Camilla
- Origin: Latin and possibly Etruscan
- Meaning: Servant for the temple, free-born, noble
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Camille, Camila, Millie, Milly
Carlotta
- Origin: Italian
- Meaning: Free man (from Charles)
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Carla, Carlota
Carmen
- Origin: Latin, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese
- Meaning: Ode, poem, or charm
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Carmel, Carmenta
Caterina
- Origin: Greek, Italian, Portuguese
- Meaning: Pure
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Catherine, Katrina, Katarina, Tina
Chiara
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: Bright, luminous, clear
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Clair, Claire, Clara, Clare, Kiara
Claudia
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: Derived from Latin claudus, meaning "lame" or "crippled," but also an ancient Roman name for women in the patrician family
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Gladys, Claude
Drusilla
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: Fruitful or dewy-eyed
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Dru, Druscilla, Cilla, Drusa
Elena
- Origin: Greek, Italian, Spanish
- Meaning: Torch or light
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Ellen, Lena, Helen
Eleonora
- Origin: Greek, Italian
- Meaning: Shining light
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Elinor, Eleanor, Eleanora, Ella, Nell, Lenora, Nora
Elisa
- Origin: Greek
- Meaning: My God is a vow
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Eliza, Elsa, Lisa
Emilia
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: Rival or excel
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Emily
Emma
- Origin: German
- Meaning: Whole or universal
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Ema, Irma, Emily
Flavia
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: Blonde, golden, yellow-haired
Francesca
- Origin: Latin, Italian
- Meaning: Frenchman
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Frances, Franca, Francine, Fran, Franny
Gabriella
- Origin: Hebrew (from Gabriel)
- Meaning: Strength of God
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Gabriela, Gabrielle, Gabriele, Gabriel, Gabi, Gabby
Gaia
- Origin: Greek
- Meaning: Earth
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Gaea
Giada
- Origin: Italian
- Meaning: Jade or precious stone
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Jade, Jada, Jayda, Jayde
Ginevra
- Origin: Welsh
- Meaning: Fair one, white wave, blessed
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Guinevere, Ginny, Jennifer, Jenny
Gioia
- Origin: Italian
- Meaning: Joy
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Joy
Giorgia
- Origin: Latin, from Greek
- Meaning: Farmer, agriculturist
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Georgiana, Giorgina, Gina, Georgia
Giovanna
- Origin: Italian
- Meaning: God is gracious
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Gia, Gianna, Giannina, Giovannetta, Nina, Vanna
Giulia
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: The gens Julia (Julius) was an ancient Roman patrician name, also means youthful
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Julia, Julie, Guiliana
Ilaria
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: Cheerful, merry
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Hilaria, Hilary, Hillary
Isabella
- Origin: Hebrew, Spanish, Italian; Latin form of Isabel
- Meaning: Pledged or devoted to God; derived from Hebrew "God is my oath"
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Isabel, Isabela, Isabelle, Izabella, Bella
Lara
- Origin: Latin, Greek, Russian
- Meaning: Bright, talkative, citadel
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Larunda
Laura
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: Laurel
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Lora, Lauretta, Loretta, Lorita
Lelia
- Origin: Latin, Greek, Italian
- Meaning: Well-spoken
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Laelia
Livia
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: Envious, blue
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Liv
Luciana
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: Light
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Lucinda, Lucy, Lucia, Luce
Ludovica
- Origin: German
- Meaning: Derived from Ludwig, which means famous warrior
Luisa
- Origin: Italian
- Meaning: Derived from Ludwig, which means famous battle
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Luisella, Louisa
Margherita
- Origin: Italian
- Meaning: Daisy
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Margarita, Margaret, Greta, Rita
Martina
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: Dedicated to the Roman god Mars
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Martine, Marta, Tina
Mia
- Origin: Latin, Hebrew, Scandinavian, Italian
- Meaning: My, mine, dear, darling, loved one
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Amalia, Amelia, or Maya. (Mia is also from the same root as Mary, Marie, and Maria.)
Paola
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: Small, humble
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Paula
Priscilla
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: Ancient, classic, primordial
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Prisca
Sara
- Origin: Hebrew
- Meaning: Lady, princess, noblewoman
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Sarah, Sarai, Sariah
Serena
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: Clear, tranquil, serene
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Sarina, Serina, Sabrina
Sofia
- Origin: Greek
- Meaning: Wisdom, skill
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Sophia, Sophie, Sofiya
Valentina
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: Strong, healthy
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Tina, Val
Veronica
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: She who brings victory; true image
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Veronika, Ronnie, Roni
Viola
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: Purple
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Violetta, Violeta, Violette, Violet
Vittoria
- Origin: Latin, Italian
- Meaning: Victory, triumphant
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Victoria, Tori, Vicki, Vikki, Vicky
Popular Italian Baby Names for Boys
These names for boys are popular in Italy. Many have ancient Roman roots, while others are Italian versions of names from other languages.
Alessandro
- Origin: Italian form of Latin Alexander and Greek Alexandros
- Meaning: Defender of humankind
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Alexander, Alex, Sandro, Alejandro
Alessio
- Origin: Italian form of Latin Alexius and Greek Alexios
- Meaning: Defender
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Alexis, Alexius, Alexei
Andrea
- Origin: Greek
- Meaning: Force, courage, bravery
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Andre, Andreas, Andrew, Andrei
Angelo
- Origin: Latin, from Angelus
- Meaning: Angel or messenger from God
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Angel, Anjel, Angiolo
Antonio
- Origin: Etruscan, derived from Latin Antonius
- Meaning: Ancient Roman family name
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Anthony, Tony, Anton, Antoni
Carlo
- Origin: Italian, Spanish, German
- Meaning: Man or free man (from Karl)
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Carl, Carlos, Charles
Carmine
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: Poem, song, or garden
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Carmelo, Carmen, Carmelino
Christian
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: Follower of Christ
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Cristian, Cristiano
Claudio
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: From the patrician Roman family name "Claudius," meaning lame or crippled
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Claudius, Claude, Claudi
Cosimo
- Origin: Greek
- Meaning: Order, decency
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Cosmo, Cosma, Cosmas, Kosmas
Daniele
- Origin: Hebrew
- Meaning: God is my judge
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Danilo, Daniel, Dan, Dannie, Danny
Davide
- Origin: Hebrew
- Meaning: Beloved
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: David, Dave, Davey, Davie, Davy
Diego
- Origin: Spanish, Greek, Latin
- Meaning: Doctrine or teaching (Greek/Latin) or a form of Santiago (Spanish)
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Santiago, Sandiego
Domenico
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: Of the Lord
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Dom, Domenic, Domenick, Dominik, Domingo
Edoardo
- Origin: Italian, from Old English Edward
- Meaning: Rich guard
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Edward, Eduardo, Ed
Elia
- Origin: Hebrew, from Eliana and Elijah
- Meaning: God has answered
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Elijah, Eliya, Elias, Ilias, Eli
Emanuele
- Origin: Hebrew, from Emmanuel
- Meaning: God is with us
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Manuel, Manuele, Emmanuel
Emiliano
- Origin: Italian and Spanish, from Latin Aemilianus
- Meaning: Rival
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Emil, Emilio
Federico
- Origin: From German, Friedrich
- Meaning: Peaceful ruler
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Federigo, Fredo, Frederick, Fredric, Fred
Filippo
- Origin: From Greek, Philippos
- Meaning: Friend of horses
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Phil, Philip, Phillip, Felipe, Filip
Francesco
- Origin: From Latin, Francis
- Meaning: Free one
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Franco, Francis, Frans, Frank
Gabriele
- Origin: Hebrew
- Meaning: God is my strength or God's warrior
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Gabriel, Gabe, Gabi, Gavril
Giacomo
- Origin: From Latin, Jacobus
- Meaning: The supplanter (Hebrew)
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: James, Jacob
Gioele
- Origin: Latin, Greek, Hebrew
- Meaning: Jehova is his God
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Joel
Giorgio
- Origin: Italian, from Greek
- Meaning: Earth worker, farmer
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Gino, George, Giorgino
Giovanni
- Origin: Hebrew and Italian
- Meaning: God is gracious
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Gian, Gianni, Giannino, Nino, Vanni, John
Giulio
- Origin: From Latin, Julius
- Meaning: Roman family name meaning youth; origin unknown. It could come from the Roman god Jupiter, or it could be derived from the Greek "Joulus," meaning downy-bearded.
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Julius, Julio
Giuseppe
- Origin: Italian from Hebrew, Yosef (Joseph)
- Meaning: God will add
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Joseph, Beppe, Peppe, Jose, Jo, Joe, Joey
Jacopo
- Origin: From Latin, Iacobus
- Meaning: Follower of God; God has protected
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Jacob, Iacopo, Giacobbe, Giacomo, Lapo
Leonardo
- Origin: Italian
- Meaning: Brave lion
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Leonard, Leo
Lorenzo
- Origin: Italian and Spanish from Latin, Laurentius
- Meaning: Ancient Roman surname meaning from the laurel
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Enzo, Renzo, Loris, Laurence, Lawrence
Luca
- Origin: Italian from Greek, Loukas; possibly Latin, Lucus
- Meaning: From Lucania in southern Italy; possibly "sacred wood"
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Lucas, Luc, Luke
Luigi
- Origin: From German, Ludwig, and Latin, Ludovicus
- Meaning: Famous warrior
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Lodovico, Ludovico, Gino, Luigino, Louis, Luis
Marco
- Origin: Latin and Estrucan, from Marcus
- Meaning: To harvest, also associated with Mars, the Roman god of war
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Marcus, Mark, Marko, Markus
Mario
- Origin: Latin, probably of Estrucan origin, from Marius
- Meaning: Mars, the Roman god of war
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Marius
Matteo
- Origin: Hebrew
- Meaning: Gift of God
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Mateo, Matthew, Mathew, Matt
Mattia
- Origin: Hebrew
- Meaning: Gift of God
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Matthew, Mathew, Matt, Matthias, Matias, Mattheaus
Michele
- Origin: Hebrew, Latin
- Meaning: Who is like God
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Michael, Micheal, Mikael, Michal, Mike, Mick, Mickey, Miguel, Mikhail
Nicola/Nicolo
- Origin: Latin, from Greek, Nikolaos
- Meaning: Victory of the people
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Niccolo, Nicolao, Nicolas, Nicholas, Nico, Niko
Paolo
- Origin: From Latin, Paulus
- Meaning: Small or humble
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Paulus, Paul, Pablo
Pasquale
- Origin: From Latin, Paschalis
- Meaning: Relating to Easter
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Pasqual, Pascal, Pasco, Pascale, Pasqualino, Lino
Pietro
- Origin: From Greek, Petros
- Meaning: Stone or rock
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Peter, Piero, Petrus, Pier, Pierre, Piotr
Riccardo
- Origin: Germanic
- Meaning: Brave; powerful or great leader
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Ricardo, Richard, Rich, Rick
Romeo
- Origin: Italian, from Latin, Romaeus
- Meaning: A pilgrim to Rome; from Rome; a Roman
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Roman, Roma, Romano
Salvatore
- Origin: From Latin
- Meaning: Savior
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Sal, Salvador, Salvator, Salvo, Tory
Samuel/Samuele
- Origin: Hebrew
- Meaning: Name of God
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Sam, Sammy, Sami, Ismaiel, Ismael, Ismail, Ishmael
Simone
- Origin: Hebrew; Greek
- Meaning: God has heard or flat-nosed
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Simon, Simeon, Symeon, Shimon
Stefano
- Origin: Greek
- Meaning: Crown or victorious
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Stephano, Stephen, Steven, Stevan, Stefan, Steffan, Esteban, Steve, Stefen, Stefon, Stephon, Stevon
Tommaso
- Origin: From Aramaic, Taóma
- Meaning: Twin; equal to himself
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Tomas, Thomas, Thom, Tommy, Toma, Tom
Valentino
- Origin: From Latin, Valentinus
- Meaning: Strong, healthy
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Tino, Val, Valenti, Valent, Valente, Valentin
Vincenzo
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: To conquer or win
- Alternative Spellings & Variations: Vincente, Enzo, Vincent
More Baby Names
For more baby name inspiration, take a look at the following lists: