Tony Danza was brought to tears while learning about the struggles his maternal grandfather endured on his journey to become a U.S. citizen during an appearance on Season Eight of the PBS show “Finding Your Roots.” While chatting with the show’s host, Henry Louis Gates Jr., Danza explained how he always thought his grandfather, Antonino Camisa, cam...

This week’s guest stumbled upon a “who’s who” of Italian nobility when he began researching his family history nearly 20 years ago, and now he’s dedicated his life to helping his fellow Italian Americans in their quest to discover their ancestors… from the famed to the famous! Bob Sorrentino is the founder of the Italian Genealogy Blog and Podcast,...

Three years ago we released the 200 most common Italian last names in America, Today we've expanded the list from 200 to 300. The ranking includes a diverse collection of names from Amato to Volpe. Coming out tops were 48,126 people registered as Russo. Arthur Himler, managind editor of the US World Herald admits "We're the only website able to pro...

There are more than 17 million Americans of significant Italian descent, not to mention millions more who are proudly Italian in some way. America Domani analyzed celebrities with connections to Italy in each of the 50 States. Note that, for the analysis, they had to have a clear connection to the State, but not necessarily be born or raised in tha...

People who don’t fit the dominant demographic of where they live can often be asked, “Where are you really from?” In 2017, CNN surveyed about 2,000 people who shared their stories on social media with the hashtag #whereiamreallyfrom. The participants included first- and second-generation immigrants, naturalized individuals and others who were nativ...

An Italian resident has reached out to Plumas News to help him find information about his relatives — former Sierra Valley residents. Francesco Mainetti is researching information about his grandfather, Cirillo Aili, (which could also be written as Arillo or Arello), and his grandfather’s brother, Joseph Aili. The men immigrated to Plumas County in...

After spending some time with his friends recounting old stories about what it was like to grow up in the '60s and witness all of the great historic events of the time, it inspired Mario Russo to release "Baby Boomer Rewind: Growing Up in the 60's" (published by Archway Publishing). Told through a series of amusing and entertaining stories, Russo,...

When Lisa DeNatale set out to obtain Italian citizenship based on her Sicilian lineage, things got complicated fast. Non-Italians can obtain citizenship if an ancestor was born in Italy, even one as far back as great-great-grandparents. DeNatale's paternal grandparents, for instance, were born in Sicily and came over to the U.S. in the early 1900s....

Piero (Peter) Riva of Glen Cove, New York, now in his 70’s, recently reconnected with some 40 cousins in his hometown of Imperia, on Italy’s Ligurian coast. Independent family reunions and guided heritage trips are a growing sector of the travel industry, says Rachel Cooke of Kensington Tours, a bespoke travel company. “Home never leaves you; your...

Many of us who have researched our Italian immigrant family history find it to be a very rewarding experience. We develop our family tree and may even find relatives we never knew existed. The research provides a sense of closure in knowing our roots, who we are and where we come from.  Just as in any aspect of life today statistics and its data/nu...