Manzo Surname in Italy

The surname Manzo is characteristic of southern Italy and is concentrated above all in Campania, with notable presence also in Lazio and Sicily. Its origin is not unique and several explanations are possible. It may derive from a nickname connected with manzi, the cattle or bullocks, and therefore with livestock breeding, care or herding; it may also go back to the medieval personal name Manso, a form of Mansueto, or to the Provençal forms Mans and Manz. Another hypothesis links it to the medieval Latin mansum, referring to the status of a farm worker bound to the land. The surname should be distinguished from related forms such as Manzi, Manzini and Manzoni, which have different geographic backgrounds and patterns of diffusion.