615+ Italian Names for Girls and Boys

A river (in Italy), a writer (Bronson), a Teletubby: the Bo of the new millennium.

Verona is a scenic place-name with the added attraction of a Shakespearean connection, as in Two Gentlemen of....

A definite improvement over the English Humbert, Umberto has nevertheless been rarely heard outside the Italian community.

This makes Milan sound like less of a place, more of a name.

An appealing Italianate alternative.

Italian classic Luigi, though it lacks the modern style of Nico, Enzo, and Rocco, does have some notable namesakes, such as Nobel Prize winning author Luigi Pirandello and composer Cherubini..

Guido was very popular in Renaissance Italy, with many namesakes including painter Fra Angelico (born Guido di Pietro) and mathematician Guido Fubini. Guy Fawkes, of gunpowder plot fame, sometimes used this version. Nowadays it's unfairly overlooked, but in the current trend for snappy international names ending in -o, this cultured gem deserves more use.

The name of the great Renaissance astronomer and mathematician would make a distinctive hero-middle-name for the son of parents involved in those fields.

Lengthy, romantic Alessandro gives us the friendly and casual nickname Sandro, which works just as well as an independent name. It’s a popular international name, having ranked in Italy, France, Portugal, and Switzerland in recent years.

No-no appelation of a child saint and martyr whose name is a term for the nervous condition known as Saint Vitus' Dance. Its one recommending feature is that it's among the elite group Boy names that mean life.

A Beretta is a gun, so named because of the Italian firearms manufacturer that makes it. And now Beretta is also a badass baby name, used in the middle for daughter Breeze by Bristol Palin baby daddy Levi Johnston. What a Tripp.

Paola is the Latinate version of Paula. Its intriguing sound could make it more appealing than the English standard.

Fiery sound and uplifting meaning, but it's also among the Top 100 dog names. Spelled Fiyero, it's the hero of the book and musical "Wicked."

Has a lot more charm than the ancient Hector.

Armando takes the flat-footed Herman and makes it romantic. This is another of the Latin names we expect to be seeing more of.

Silvanus was the Roman god of the forests and is also an alternate name in the New Testament for Silas. Relatives include Silvio, Silvius, and Sylvia.

Piero is elegant, melodic, appealing. Just picture the muted frescoes of Renaissance artist Piero della Francesca.

Yet another winning international form of Peter.

Primo is number one among the Latin birth-order names--Octavius et al--and the one most likely to be used in these days of smaller families. It has that jaunty 'o' ending and Italian flavor that many modern parents like so much. And what little boy wouldn't appreciate being prime?

Sicily is a lilting Italian place-name that sounds like the elegant British Cicely -- which you might consider a plus or a minus.