Venturelli Surname in Italy

The surname Venturelli is especially characteristic of Lombardy, the Veronese area, and the Emilian provinces of Modena and Bologna. It belongs to the wider family of surnames built on Venture-, Ventura-, Venturi- and Venturini-, which are generally explained as deriving, directly or through hypocoristic forms, from the medieval personal name Bonaventura; a link with the rare medieval name Ventura is also possible, since that name was used as an auspicious wish for good fortune. Early records of Ventura and related forms show that the name was already in use in the Middle Ages across Lombardy, Liguria and Tuscany. Venturelli is therefore distinct from the related surnames: Venturella is mainly Sicilian, Venturello is Piedmontese, Venturino has branches in Liguria, Rome, Campania and southern Sicily/Calabria, Venturoli is typical of Bologna, while Venturini is also strongly present in Friuli and across central-northern Italy.