Renaissance Boy Names from Florence

Leonardo

Italian and Spanish variation of Leonard, German

"brave lion"

For centuries this name was associated primarily with the towering figure of Italian Renaissance painter-scientist-inventor Leonardo da Vinci, and was scarcely used outside the Latin culture. But…

Giovanni

Italian variation of John

"God is gracious"

Giovanni is a venerable Italian classic that suddenly sounds fresh and cool. Ubiquitous in Italy, it has countless notable namesakes, from writer Boccaccio to designer Versace (nn Gianni).

Matteo

Italian

"gift of God"

This attractively energetic Italian version of the classic Matthew is primed to move further and further into mainstream American nomenclature. Mateo is technically the Spanish version, but many…

Antonio

Spanish and Italian variation of Anthony

"from Antium"

Antonio is a Shakespearean favorite -- the Bard used it in no less than five of his plays, and has long been a ubiquitous classic in Spanish-speaking countries, where the nickname Tonio is also…

Otto

German

"wealthy"

Otto is cool again. Long a quintessential Old Man Name, Otto has been promoted to trending darling of adventurous baby namers. Like most German names , Otto fell out of favor during and after the two…

Luciano

Italian, Spanish, and Portuguese variation of Lucian

"light"

A vibrant, operatic choice with plenty of flair and plenty of familiarity too. Popular in Italy, Chile, Uruguay, and Brazil, it also ranks in the Top 500 in France and the US. Operatic tenor Luciano…

Dante

Latin diminutive of Durant

"enduring"

Though closely associated with the great medieval Florentine poet Dante Alighieri -- who's so famous most people skip the last name -- it's not as much of a one-man name as you might think. Heck,…

Alessandro

Italian variation of Alexander

"defending men"

For anyone seeking a more unusual version of Alexander, this is a real winner. Notable namesakes include the great Italian opera composer Scarlatti and the influential physicist Alessandro Volta,…

Bruno

Germanic

"brown"

Tough-yet-cuddly Bruno is an international name even in its origins: it derives from the Germanic word for "brown" plus a Latin ending, and was borrowed as a color word in many European languages.…

Orlando

Italian variation of Roland

"famous throughout the land"

Orlando, the ornate Italianate twist on the dated Roland, with a literary heritage stretching back to Shakespeare and before, has appealing book-ended o's, and is open to combination with almost any…

Marcello

Italian and Spanish

"young warrior"

Based on the ancient name Marcellus, drawn from Mars the god of war, Marcello -- it's pronounced mar-chell-o -- is one of the most lush and attractive Latin names.

Bartolomeo

Bartolomeo is a masculine Italian form of Bartholomew, derived from the Aramaic name Bar-Talmay, meaning 'son of Talmai' or 'son of the furrows.' The name gained prominence through Saint Bartholomew,…

Bianco

Italian

"white"

Although the female version Bianca has long been accepted as a name outside Italy, maybe it's time to consider this boy color name.

Camillo

Italian from Latin cognomen "camillus"

"camillus"

Now that Camilla is super popular, why not consider the male version? It's been the name of dozens of prominent Italians -- including a 16th century pope -- throughout history, and Shakespeare used…

Donato

Latin

"given by God"

Widely used in Italy, Spain, and Portugal, has an air of generosity and could easily be adopted here.