Vacca Surname in Italy

This surname has a nickname origin and comes directly from the word vacca, from Latin vacca, meaning ‘cow’ or, more precisely, the female of the bull. In many cases it identified people connected with cattle breeding and therefore owners of livestock, often regarded as well-off. The form is ancient and well documented in medieval Sardinian records, where several Vacca or Vacha appear among the signatories of the Peace of Eleonora of 1388 and in the Condaghe of San Nicola di Trullas. The surname is found throughout Italy, with a strong presence in Sardinia and in the southern regions. It should be distinguished from Vacchina, which appears to be more typical of Piedmont and may be a diminutive derivative.