Historical overview of the many FONTANA families of Trentino. By genealogist Lynn Serafinn.

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Linguistic Origins of the Surname Fontana

The word ‘fontana’ means ‘fountain’, but it is much more than that in daily life. Every mountain village of Trentino is built around the ‘sorgente’: the ‘source’ or the mountain spring that supplies water to the community. A fontana is more akin to what we might call a ‘well’ in English, except that it is wide and flat with the water at street level, rather than narrow and deep like a well.

In the past, the local fountain was the focal point of any community. And if you visit rural Trentino today, they often still are. I remember the first time I visited my grandmother’s birth home in tiny frazione of Bono in Bleggio, Val Giudicarie, my cousins told us to meet them at the (somewhat unassuming) village fountain. When I first visited the house in which my father was born in Duvredo in the same parish, our host took us to the back of the house to show us the Duvredo ‘fountain’, which was little more than a small water trough (and the water was no longer drinkable). When I first visited my cousins in Fiavé, we were told the house was ‘just past the fountain’.

When I first visited the town of Ragoli (which was the ancestral home of my Serafini family, before they moved to Bleggio in the 1600s), the local woman who was guiding us proudly took us to see the sorgente – a formidable, gushing glacial spring which supplied pure, icy cold water to several fountains in the town square (and, these days, probably to the homes as well). I had a drink from the Ragoli fountain that day, and the water tasted amazing.

SEE VIDEO OF FOUNTAIN IN RAGOLI:

I remember seeing several watermelons that had been deposited in the Ragoli fountains on that blisteringly hot summer afternoon. I mean, why try to fit those massive watermelons in your kitchen fridge when the fountain was such an effective natural refrigerator? Just come get them when you need them. Nobody is going to steal your watermelons. Everyone knows everyone else.

Seen as crucial communal resources, fountains were arguably the most essential component in rural community life. They provided residents with water for drinking, cooking, laundering, bathing, and housecleaning. As everyone in the community used the local fountain, they were often natural meeting points and places of informal socialising.

Because every community has a fontana, and the fountain was so crucial to communal life, the surname ‘Fontana’ is immensely common throughout the Italian peninsula, with over 18,000 Fontana families estimated to be living in Italy today, all the way from the province of Bolzano in the north to Sicily in the south.[1] Of these, there are an estimated 388 Fontana families living in the province of Trento alone.[2] Moreover, there are numerous variants of the word ‘fontana’ that became other surnames, such as ‘Fontanari’ found in Valsugana. It is important to remember that not all of these Fontana families are ancestrally connected.

In addition to the high number of people with this surname, there are also numerous PLACE names in Trentino with the word ‘Fontana’ or ‘Fontani’ in them.[3] This can also make searching online databases for this surname particularly time-consuming.

Because there are so many different Fontana families in Trentino, I cannot possibly discuss them all in this brief overview. Below are profiles of several distinct Fontana lines I have encountered in my own genealogical research. There are also numerous linguistic variants, such as Dalla Fontan, Dallafontana, de Fontana, a Fonte, and Fontanari, but as these are not necessarily ancestrally connected to the various Fontana lines, I will not be discussing them in this article.

Fontana in Val Rendena

The highest numbers of Fontana in Trentino today can be found in Val Rendena, which is sometimes considered a sub-valley of Giudicarie Interiore.

Here, the surname can be traced as far back as the mid-1400s. We find, for example, a ‘Giovanni, son of Giacomo called “in Fontana” of Vigo Rendena’ cites as the sindaco (mayor) of that community in a legal document drafted in Verona on 14 November 1469.[4]

Today, Val Rendena has the largest number of Fontana in Trentino today, with about 120 individuals estimated to be currently living in and around Pinzolo and Carisolo.[5] I’ve marked their approximate location with a red X in the map below.[6]

NOTE: On the right, you will see a numbered legend of the various Trentino valleys as they appear on the map, which is taken from Giulia Mastrelli Anzilotti’s Toponomastic Trentina. These numbers do not correspond to the order in which I speak about the Fontana in this article. All colour highlighting and markings are my own.

Fontana in the Northeast (Fassa, Fiemme, and Primiero)

The second largest ‘cluster’ of Fontana currently living in Trentino are found spread across three northeastern valleys, namely Val di Fassa (marked in yellow), Val di Fiemme (marked in turquoise), and Primiero (marked in pink). Between them, there are reportedly about 120 Fontana living in these three valleys, with the highest numbers in Campitello di Fassa in Val di Fassa, and Cavalese in Val di Fiemme.[7] About 16 Fontana individuals are believed to be currently living in Primiero, specifically in Canal di Bovo and Siror. I have marked the approximate locations of each of these places with a red X below:

I have not personally researched these lines, but we can see they go back at least many centuries. P. Remo Stenico has listed eight Fontana priests who came from these areas (five of whom came from Siror in Primiero alone), the earliest of which was a Domenico Fontana of Siror, who was born 11 June 1634, and died 2 February 1680.

Despite the low figures for Primiero today, the Nati in Trentino website tells us that 383 Fontana were born in Primiero between the years 1815-1923 (348 in Canal San Bovo; 35 in Siror), as well as in 81 in Val di Fassa, and about 68 in Fiemme.[8]

Fontana in Val di Cembra

The third highest number of Fontana currently living in the province of Trentino can be found in Val di Cembra, which is the adjacent valley just southwest of Val di Fiemme.

In Val di Cembra, there were just over 100 Fontana births recorded in the parish of Lases (comune of Lona-Lases) between the years 1815-1923.[9] Today, there are reportedly about 51 Fontana living in Cembra, nearly all of whom live in the comune of Lona-Lases.[10] The approximate location of Lona-Lases marked with a red X below.

The Ancient Fontana of Saone (Giudicarie Interiore)

A now-extinct line of Fontana lived in Saone in Val Giudicarie Interiore (marked with a red X below) as far back as the mid to late 1300s.

Historian Onorati tells us that the Saone Fontana were a very old noble family, with a lineage of notaries, but their notary deeds no longer exist in the Archivio di Stato in Trento. P. Remo Stenico mentions two early Fontana notaries of Saone. The earliest is Bartolomeo Fontana of Saone, whose name appears in a notary document he drafted in 1413. As he would have been at least 25 years of age (the age of majority) to practice his profession, we know he was born no later than sometime in the 1380s, in the generation born just after the Black Death.

A bit over a century later, in 1525, we find a document drafted by notary Stefano Fontana of Saone, son of another Bartolomeo (deceased).

Given the dates of these two documents, and knowing that the eldest son in a family is frequently named after his paternal grandfather, it is possible that Stefano’s father Bartolomeo was a grandson of the elder Bartolomeo. Also, as notaries tended to be the sons of other notaries, it seems likely that the two Bartolomeos were related.

The Fontana of Saone went extinct in the mid-1600s in a very tragic fashion. Bartolomeo Fontana, who was born 25 August 1608, was apparently murdered in Tenno in 1645. He and his wife Margherita had at least 6 children – three sons and three daughters. One of the sons died (unnamed) at birth. The other two sons (Sebastiano and Matteo) died along with a sister named Elisabetta in the same month of January 1651, when they were all still children.[11] [12] The only surviving siblings were sisters Antonia (the eldest of the siblings) and Margherita, but Margherita died in childbirth at the age of 21.

With Antonia now the only living descendant of the ancient Fontana family, her husband Giovanni Buffi took on ‘Fontana’ (or ‘de Fonte’, ‘a Fonte’ etc.) as the soprannome for his branch of the Buffi family, along with the family property and stemma (noble coat-of-arms).[13] Over time, they often were known as ‘Buffi-Fontana’ or ‘Buffi a Fonte Vivo’. Thus, all the Buffi who have ‘Fonte’ or ‘Fontana’ in their surname or as their soprannome are descended from this Antonia and her long line of illustrious Fontana ancestors.

Tabarelli de Fatis and Borelli clarify this by telling us that the ancient stemma of the Fontana family was in two parts:

• The lower half had a red background, with a golden, hexagonal fountain, gushing with silver (water).
• The upper half had a blue background, and a golden eagle.[14]

The Buffi-Fontana stemma is a composite of pre-existing stemma for the Buffi family and that of the now-extinct Fontana. The digital library of the Rovereto Biblioteca Tartarotti we find some examples of this stemma, such as this very colourful reproduction.[15] Here, We see the original Fontana stemma depicted on the right side, albeit with some changes to the original colours.

Several historians tell us that a branch of the Saone Fontana family left Saone in the early 1400s to settle in Vallagarina.[16] [17] [18]  As we will discover in the following two sections, the stemmi used by the Vallagarina Fontana, as well as some of the Fontana in other parts of the Giudicarie, contain the same core elements of the original stemma from Saone.

Fontana in Giudicarie Esteriore

Saone was not the only place in Val Giudicarie where the surname Fontana has been present for many centuries.

We find the Fontana in Giudicarie Esteriore at least as far back as the mid-1500s in Prato in the comune of San Lorenzo-Dorsino (marked with a red X below), and probably much earlier. We also find them (although I don’t know how far back) in Sclemo,[19] which is only about 3 miles from Prato.

The Fontana of Prato appear in the 1593 local statues for the ‘Sette Ville del Banale’ (the seven villages being Dolaso, Senaso, Berghi, Pergnano, Glolo, Prato, and Prusa).[20] Here, we find the names of four Fontana men present at the meeting, among the other representatives of their frazione of Prato: [21]

• Giovanni, son of the late Pietro Fontana
• Two brothers named Giovanni and Bartolomeo Fontana, who were sons of the late Cristoforo
• Antonio, son of the late Giovanni Fontana

Over a century later, in 1718, we find two Fontana men of Prato (Giovanni Gabriele and Giacomo) present at the meeting for amended statues of the seven villages.[22]

At the drafting of the 1751 Carta di Regola (charter of rules) for Sclemo, we find three Fontana men, including one referred to as ‘Il signore Pietro Fontana’, implying nobility.[23] We find this example of the stemma of the Sclemo in the Rovereto Digital Library:[24]

Interestingly, the design and the colour scheme are extremely close to the description of the ancient stemma of the Saone family, except it is lacking the hexagonal shape and golden colour of the fountain. Still, this seems to be fairly compelling evidence that at least the Sclemo Fontana (and quite likely the other Fontana families in this same part of the Giudicarie) had an ancestral link to the extinct Saone family.

Between the years 1815-1923, there were 100 Fontana births in the parishes that comprise this broad area (i.e., San Lorenzo in Banale, Tavodo, Stenico, and Seo),[25] but today – certainly due to migration and urbanisation – there are only about 10 Fontana still living in this area, with another 7 or 8 living in other parts of the valley.[26]

Fontana of Lizzana, Rovereto and Pomarolo (Vallagarina)

Earlier, I mentioned that a branch of the ancient noble Fontana of Saone relocated to Vallagarina in the early 1400s. Now we will look more closely at this line.

The original move from Saone was to the village of Lizzana near Rovereto, reportedly in or around the year 1430.[27] One historian tells us that there were two Fontana brothers (living in Saone), who were born notaries and brothers, one of whom transferred to Lizzana.[28] We have already learned of the notary Bartolomeo Fontana of Saone, whose name appeared in a document from 1413. None of the sources I have consulted have given an exact name of the original Fontana in Lizzana, but perhaps it was a brother of this Bartolomeo (or even Bartolomeo himself) who made this move.

Later (at least some of) the Fontana transferred to Rovereto, where they obtained citizenship in 1593.[29] [30]

On 20 April 1616, Holy Roman Emperor Mattia granted imperial nobility Giovanni Battista Fontana of Rovereto, whose stemma appears in the two images below. Note that this stemma contains all of the elements of the original Saone stemma, namely the golden fountain gushing with silver water, and the golden eagle against a blue shield. [31] [32]

This line was later elevated to the rank of Knight in 1730.
[33]

Around 1630, a branch of the Rovereto line then transferred to Pomarolo (still in Vallagarina).[34] While I don’t know the details, it is possible the decision to move was precipitated by a great plague that devastated many parts of the province in 1630, as numerous Trentino families fled cities during the plague, and also relocated to other villages afterwards, owing to the socio-economic upheaval it caused.

The digital library of Rovereto contains this image as an example of the stemma of the Fontana of Pomarolo.[35] As you can see, while it contains an echo of the fountain of the ancient stemma, but it has now lost the eagle. It also contains new elements that are distinctly different from the stemma of the Rovereto line. Unfortunately, I have no point of reference for this stemma, as the website does not say the year in which it was awarded, nor to whom (although the Innsbruck archives have a similar stemma with a crest, dated 1780).

Curiously, the Tyrolean archives in Innsbruck gives us this stemma for the Fontana of Pomarolo, but again with no year or explanation. Nonetheless, what is immediately striking is that it is virtually identical to the original Saone stemma, with the exception of the colour and shape of the fountain. [36]

In his Guida ai Cognome del Trentino, Aldo Bertoluzza lists numerous Fontana personalities of note – all male, of course – the vast majority of whom were from Vallagarina. Among these, we are told about two brothers from Rovereto in the 1600s named Ambrogio and Francesco Fontana, who were capuchin missionaries in Germany.

He also tells us of two other Fontana brothers, this time from Pomarolo, namely Felice Gaspare Ferdinando Fontana (1729-1805) who was a chemist, physicist, physiologist and wax modeller in the city of Florence, and his younger brother Gregorio (1735-1803), who was a priest, mathematician, writer, philosopher, and university professor.[37] Another source tells us that Felice was the director of the Museum of Natural History of the Grand Duke of Toscana, and obtained imperial nobility and his own stemma from Holy Roman Empress Maria Teresa on 24 June 1788.[38] The Innsbruck archives show us two variants of the Pomarolo stemmi which were issued in 1780 and 1788, which are likely related to Felice:[39]

The professional role as a notary that was associated with the Fontana since the 1300s continued in Vallagarina at least into the 19^th century. P. Remo Stenico lists four Fontana notaries from Vallagarina, although there were surely many others he did not record. The notaries, in chronological order, are:[40]

• Nicolò, son of Antonio Fontana ‘de Gandinis’ of Pomarolo: who was active in his profession at least between 1606-1624. He was also a Chancellor in Primiero and Caldonazzo.
• Francesco Fontana of Lizzanella: Active in his profession at least between 1663-1691.
• Giovanni Battista Fontana of Rovereto: Active in his profession at least between 1723-1741
• Pietro Fontana of Pomarolo: whom Stenico says was active in his profession at least 1730-1807, but I suspect he may have accidently combined data of two different men here.

Stenico also mentions 14 Fontana priests from Vallagarina, mostly from Pomarolo, but some also from Noriglio and Lizzanella. [41]

Between the years 1815-1923, 123 Fontana births were recorded in the various parishes within the comune of Rovereto, i.e., Rovereto San Marco, Noriglio, and Lizzana, with one birth recorded in Sacco. There were an additional 51 births recorded in Pomarolo.[42]

While once one of the most prominent Fontana lineages in the province, there are only a handful of Fontana (about 15 individuals) are reported to be living in Vallagarina.[43]

Fontana in Alto Garda and Valle di Ledro

Stretching further south from the Giudicarie into Alto Garda in the southernmost part of the province, there are reportedly about 30 Fontana currently living in the comune of Tenno[44] (marked with a red X), which some people actually consider to be part of Giudicarie Interiore. There are also smaller numbers in Riva del Garda, Arco and the comune of Ledro, which all surround Tenno to the east and south.

I have not researched these families, but as there are no Fontana births in these places listed during the 19^th century, I would presume these are recent migrations, possibly from other parts of the province.

Fontana in Valsugana and Tesino

We also know there were Fontana living in Valsugana as far back as the late 1300s.

In a document dated 9 October 1443, we find two brothers named Trentino and Matteo Fontana, sons of the late Giovanni Fontana of Telve Valsugana, selling some private land.[45] As we assume they were legal adults (over the age of 25), and their father was already deceased, we can safely estimate their father’s birth as sometime in the late 1300s.

There were no fewer than 435 Fontana births registered in the many parishes of Valsugana between the years 1815-1923.[46] Today the surname continues to be found in at least 9 different comuni in Valsugana, with about 46 Fontana still residing in the valley, with the highest concentration in Castello Tesino,[47] which actually covers a much wider area than I was able to indicate with my red X below.

Fontana of Revò and Romallo (Val di Non)

In the early 1600s, another Fontana family established itself in Val di Non when a Valentino Fontana from Ulten in South Tyrol (province of Bolzano) moved to Revò in Val di Non (marked with a red X). Thus, the Revò Fontana were not native to the province of Trentino. However, Revò is quite close to the provincial border, and Ulten is only about 18 kilometres (30 miles) due north of it.

In 1637, Valentino married Domenica Salvaterra in Revò.[48] The couple had at least two children – a son named Giacomo (born 3 July 1638)[49] and a daughter named Cattarina, who died in infancy.[50] After Domenica’s death in 1658,[51] Valentino remarried a woman named Anna (I have not been able to find this marriage record), and had at least three more children, including a son named Francesco (born 17 April 1659).[52] Both Giacomo (from Valentino’s first marriage) and Francesco (from Valentino’s second marriage) grew up, married and had families of their own.

The Fontana continued to thrive in Revò through the early 20^th century, with the name Valentino frequently appearing among Valentino’s male descendants throughout the generations. One of these Valentinos (a grandson of the elder Valentino via his son Francesco) became the patriarch of a new Fontana line in the adjacent village of Romallo (a curate of the parish of Revò).

Born 16 July 1700, this Valentino moved to Romallo sometime after marrying Angela Camilla Pancheri of Romallo in 1725.[53] The couple had at seven children, including five sons, but at least two of these sons died in infancy. Angela Camilla died a few days after the birth of their last child (who also died a few weeks later), surely due to complications in childbirth.[54] After her death, Valentino remarried Cattarina Tevin of Marcena di Rumo, who also gave birth to seven children between the years 1749-1759. Valentino died on 29 Jan 1759, a few weeks before the birth of his last child.[55]

The baptismal records of Valentino’s children are inconsistent in specifying where the family lived. The first references to them living in Romallo are in 1734 and 1736, but then we don’t see Romallo specified again until 1754. From that point forward, however, they are always referred to as living in Romallo.

I am told by a friend who used to live in Romallo that there still stands a Casa Fontana in the village, surely the home of Valentino’s descendants. My friend describes that house as ‘bella, una casa diversa e nobiliare’ (beautiful, a different/distinctive and noble house).

While the actual parish records for Revò and Romallo have not been digitised past the year 1923, the INDEXES of these registers actually extend to 1959 in Revò and to 1972 in Romallo. An examination of these indexes reveals that there were no Fontana births in Revò after 1915, with a mere three Fontana births in Romallo in 1933, 1956 and 1960, only one of whom was male. Of these, the youngest two are brother and sister; as they are both still alive, I won’t mention their personal names.

Now in his late 60s, that one Fontana male married and had two sons, who now have children of their own. I am told they are a family of reserved, hard-working farmers. I am also told, however, that only the father of the two grown sons actually still lives in Romallo.[56]

This contradicts the (obviously incorrect) data on the population statistics website, which indicates there are no Fontana at all currently living in the present-day comune of Novella, in which Revò and Romallo are located.[57]

Thus, although there is now only ONE Fontana man from the Romallo line living in their ancestral village, their Fontana DNA is still very much alive and well, and their descendants continue to flourish.

Moreover, while not bearers of the surname, I know the DNA of the original Valentino Fontana of Ulten also continues via his female descendants, as some of my clients are descended from these Fontana women.

Fontana in Other Parts of Val di Non

Present-day statistics estimate there are about 44 Fontana living in other parts of Val di Non, with the greatest numbers in Sfruz and Campodenno. A few others currently live in Cavareno and Sanzeno.[58]

Fontana in Val d’Adige

Val d’Adige, which is the area just north of the city of Trento, is also home to a significant number of Fontana families. At least 229 Fontana births were recorded in the parishes of Faedo, Lavis and Grumo between the years 1815-1923, with Faedo (roughly marked with a red X below) having the largest number by far (158 births).[59] Although I have not personally researched these lines, a colleague of mine has traced the Faedo Fontana back to the early 1700s. Today, despite the numbers having declined significantly, there are still about 30 Fontana estimated to be living in this area.[60] 

Fontana, Fontana, Everywhere!

About 516 of the estimated 547 Fontana living in the province of Trentino today come from the villages or valleys discussed in this article. The remaining 31 are scattered somewhat randomly in nearly every valley of the province. As most of these random locations show no Fontana births in the 19^th century, we can presume that these are recent migrations.

Thus, these broad areas need to be our focus if we are to understand the history of the Fontana families in Trentino. The map below gives you a broad overview of all the Fontana lines I’ve discussed in this article. In the case where the surname appears in many parts of a particular valley, I’ve marked the village with the highest present-day population. I have also marked the location of Saone, where the surname is now extinct.

Remember that, in some of these valleys, the surname is widely dispersed, while in others it seems to be more limited to a particular parish and its neighbouring communities. Bearing that in mind, this map creates interesting food for thought, especially when we consider the geography of the province.

While it is certainly possible that none of these Fontana lines are ancestrally connected, I cannot help but feel that at least some of them will be. My gut feeling is that we might be looking at three (or possibly four) large, distinct Fontana ‘mega’ groups.

GROUP 1: The first of these is the now-extinct line in Saone, and along with the families of Vallagarina, whom we know are a branch of the ancient Saone line. Based on the similarity of the stemma we find in Sclemo in Giudicarie Esteriore, I would presume that the Fontana of Sclemo and Prato also share that ancestral connection. My instincts tell me that the Fontana of Rendena and Alto Garda are also likely to be ancestrally related to the Saone line, as I know from both personal experience and from genealogy research that there was a lot of mobility and intermarriages among these places throughout the centuries, owing to some very convenient mountain passes. However, I should stress that this is just my personal theory.

GROUP 2: Revò and Romallo comprise their own group, as we know they are all descended from the same ancestor (Valentino Fontana) who came there from Ulten in South Tyrol in the early 1600s. Some of the other Fontana in neighbouring villages in Val di Non may be branches of this group, but I have not yet researched this.

GROUP 3: Another ‘mega’ group would span across the most northeastern valleys where the surname appears, i.e., Val di Fassa, Val di Fiemme, and Primiero, then down into Val di Cembra, and possibly into Val D’Adige. Bearing in mind that Campitello di Fassa in Val di Fassa really lies on the doorstep of South Tyrol, and it may be that the surname originally entered the northeastern part of the province from Trentino’s northern neighbour, as it did in Revò.

GROUP 3 (maybe): While the Valsugana and Tesino cohort might be an extension of these northeastern Fontana, I feel it is more likely that it is a ‘mega group’ of its own, and possibly not of Trentino origin. Castello Tesino is less than 20 miles from the border of the province of Verona, and we know the surname Fontana has been present in that province for many centuries. For example, art historian and priest Simone Weber tells us of two brothers from Verona named Giovanni Battista and Giulio Fontana, who were painters and engravers working in the province of Trentino (specifically in Fassa, Grigno, Primiero, Pergine Valsugana and Sacco) from the mid to late 1500s.[61] While I am not suggesting that these artists had Fontana descendants in the province of Trentino, it does beg the question as to whether the surname might have originally come into Valsugana by way of the province of Verona.

It would be interesting to take this research further – either through documentation or through Y-DNA testing where possible – to see what ancestral connections can be made.

An Interesting Bit of Trivia

To close this article, I’d like to share an interesting bit of linguistic trivia.

There is a linguistic similarity between the (Italianate) surname ‘Fontana’ and the (Germanic) surname ‘Pruner’. Although found in many parts of the province, Pruner/Prunner is an ancient surname in Frassilongo in Valli dei Mocheni. There is also a place in Valli dei Mocheni called ‘Maso Pruneri’ (surely connected with the surname). The local dialect in Mocheni, called ‘Mocheno’, is a variety of Upper German. Anzilotti tells us that the word ‘prun’ (sometimes seen written as ‘brunne’) is a Mocheno word that is equivalent to the word ‘fontana’ in Italian. Thus, the surname Pruner has the same meaning as Fontana, i.e., means ‘someone who lives near a fountain’.[62] And despite the fact that Pruner, being Germanic, is less common in Trentino than the surname Fontana, there are still 185 Pruner/Prunner births recorded in the province between the years 1815-1923.[63]

Of course, despite having the same linguistic meaning, there is no ancestral connection whatsoever between the surnames ‘Pruner’ and ‘Fontana’. This linguistic connection does highlight, however, just how important the communal fountain was to daily life in the rural Dolomites, before the introduction of modern indoor plumbing. It truly was the ‘sorgente’ – the source of life – and the foundation of the community itself.

Indeed, without the fontana, our ancestors would never have lived to become our ancestors.

It is small wonder, then, that this surname is widespread throughout Trentino, and the Italian peninsula in general.

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Until next time!

Lynn Serafinn
11 April 2025
(updated from 9 April 2025)

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NOTES

[1] COGNOMIX. ‘Fontana’. Mappe dei cognomi italiani. https://www.cognomix.it/mappe-dei-cognomi-italiani/FONTANA.

[2] COGNOMIX. ‘Fontana in the province of Trento’. Mappe dei cognomi italiani https://www.cognomix.it/mappe-dei-cognomi-italiani/FONTANA/TRENTINO-ALTO-ADIGE/TRENTO.

[3] Some examples are: Fontana in Brentonico, Bresimo and Vallarsa; Fontana Nuova in Bresimo; Fontana Botte in Pergine Valsugana, and Fontani in Centa San Nicolò, Folgaria and Rovereto. There is also Fontanari in Valsugana, where we also find the surname Fontanari.

[4] PROVINCIA AUTONOMA DI TRENTO. ‘Donazione’. 14 November 1469, Verona. Antonio, son of the late Giovanni (no surname) of Vigo Rendena living in Verona, donates a plot of arable land in Rendena to the community of Vigo Rendena. Representing the comune is ‘Giovanni, son of Giacomo called “in Fontana” of Vigo Rendena, in his capacity of sindaco (mayor).  Archivi Storici del Trentino, https://www.cultura.trentino.it/archivistorici/unita/1701186. Accessed 25 March 2025.

[5] COGNOMI IN TRENTINO-ALTO ADIGE. ‘Fontana’. https://italia.indettaglio.it/ita/cognomi/cognomi_trentinoaltoadige.html

[6] ALL maps in this article are my own Photoshop-edited versions of a black-and-white map taken from ANZILOTTI, Giulia Mastrelli. 2003. Toponomastica Trentina: i nomi delle località abitate. Trento: Provincia autonomia di Trento, Servizio Benni librari e archistici, page 10.

[7] COGNOMI IN TRENTINO-ALTO ADIGE. ‘Fontana’. https://italia.indettaglio.it/ita/cognomi/cognomi_trentinoaltoadige.html

[8] Statistics via the Nati in Trentino website. https://www.natitrentino.mondotrentino.net/.

[9] Statistics via the Nati in Trentino website. https://www.natitrentino.mondotrentino.net/.

[10] COGNOMI IN TRENTINO-ALTO ADIGE. ‘Fontana’. https://italia.indettaglio.it/ita/cognomi/cognomi_trentinoaltoadige.html.

[11] Saone parish records, marriages and deaths (mixed), volume 1 (Trento file 4256254_00244).

[12] SCALFI, Silvia Marchiori. 1973. I Buffi di Saone. Saone (Trentino): SPEC, page 16-17.

[13] ONORATI, Carlo Alberto. 1993. ‘Le famiglie nobili e notabili delle Giudicarie Esteriori’. Judicaria, n. 22 (January-April 1993), page 8-46. Tione: Centro Studi Judicaria. Fontana reference on page 31.

[14] TABARELLI DE FATIS, Gianmaria; BORRELLI, Luciano. 2005. Stemmi e Notizie di Famiglie Trentine. Trento: Società di Studi Trentini di Scienze Storiche, page 127.

[15] ROVERETO BIBLIOTECA TARTAROTTI. Digital Library. ‘Buffi de Fonte Saone’. Accessed 4 April 2025 from https://digitallibrary.bibliotecacivica.rovereto.tn.it/handle/20.500.14379/21118.

[16] ONORATI, Carlo Alberto. 1993. ‘Le famiglie nobili e notabili delle Giudicarie Esteriori’. Judicaria, n. 22 (January-April 1993), page 8-46. Tione: Centro Studi Judicaria. Fontana reference on page 31.

[17] TABARELLI DE FATIS, Gianmaria; BORRELLI, Luciano. 2005. Stemmi e Notizie di Famiglie Trentine. Trento: Società di Studi Trentini di Scienze Storiche, page 127.

[18] GUELFI, Adriano Camaiani. 1964. Famiglie nobili del Trentino. Genova: Studio Araldico di Genova, page 53.

[19] Today Sclemo is considered to be part of the comune of Stenico, but I have seen it in some historical documents were it is included with Banale.

[20] RICCADONNA, Graziano. 1994. Antiche Statuti delle Sette Ville del Banale. Comune di San Lorenzo in Banale, page 49.

[21] RICCADONNA, Graziano. 1994. Antiche Statuti delle Sette Ville del Banale. Comune di San Lorenzo in Banale, page 50-51.

[22] RICCADONNA, Graziano. 1994. Antiche Statuti delle Sette Ville del Banale. Comune di San Lorenzo in Banale, page 91.

[23] GIACOMONI, Fabio. 1991. Carte di Regola e Statuti delle Comunità Rurali Trentine. 3 volume set. Milano: Edizioni Universitarie Jaca. Volume 3, page 365.

[24] ROVERETO BIBLIOTECA TARTAROTTI. Digital Library. ‘Fontana di Sclemo’. Accessed 4 April 2025 from https://digitallibrary.bibliotecacivica.rovereto.tn.it/handle/20.500.14379/21360 .

[25] Statistics via the Nati in Trentino website. https://www.natitrentino.mondotrentino.net/.

[26] COGNOMI IN TRENTINO-ALTO ADIGE. ‘Fontana’. https://italia.indettaglio.it/ita/cognomi/cognomi_trentinoaltoadige.html

[27] TABARELLI DE FATIS, Gianmaria; BORRELLI, Luciano. 2005. Stemmi e Notizie di Famiglie Trentine. Trento: Società di Studi Trentini di Scienze Storiche, page 127.

[28] GUELFI, Adriano Camaiani. 1964. Famiglie nobili del Trentino. Genova: Studio Araldico di Genova, page 53.

[29] TABARELLI DE FATIS, Gianmaria; BORRELLI, Luciano. 2005. Stemmi e Notizie di Famiglie Trentine. Trento: Società di Studi Trentini di Scienze Storiche, page 127.

[30] GUELFI, Adriano Camaiani. 1964. Famiglie nobili del Trentino. Genova: Studio Araldico di Genova, page 53.

[31] FIRST IMAGE: TIROLER LANDESMUSEEN. Tyrolean Coats of Arms. ‘Fontana’. 1616 stemma of Giovanni Battista Fontana of Rovereto. https://wappen.tiroler-landesmuseen.at/index34a.php?id=&do=&wappen_id=12223&sb=fontana&sw=&st=&so=&str=&tr=99. Accessed 3 April 2025.

[32] SECOND IMAGE: ROVERETO BIBLIOTECA TARTAROTTI. Digital Library. ‘Fontana di Rovereto’. Accessed 4 April 2025 from https://digitallibrary.bibliotecacivica.rovereto.tn.it/handle/20.500.14379/21358.

[33] TABARELLI DE FATIS, Gianmaria; BORRELLI, Luciano. 2005. Stemmi e Notizie di Famiglie Trentine. Trento: Società di Studi Trentini di Scienze Storiche, page 127.

[34] TABARELLI DE FATIS, Gianmaria; BORRELLI, Luciano. 2005. Stemmi e Notizie di Famiglie Trentine. Trento: Società di Studi Trentini di Scienze Storiche, page 127. NOTE that the present-day comune of Pomarolo contains the frazioni of Chiusole and Savignano.

[35] ROVERETO BIBLIOTECA TARTAROTTI. Digital Library. ‘Fontana di Pomarolo’. Accessed 4 April 2025 from https://digitallibrary.bibliotecacivica.rovereto.tn.it/handle/20.500.14379/21356.

[36] TIROLER LANDESMUSEEN. Tyrolean Coats of Arms. ‘Fontana of Pomarolo’. Accessed 3 April 2025 from https://wappen.tiroler-landesmuseen.at/index34a.php?id=&do=&wappen_id=12224&sb=fontana&sw=&st=&so=&str=&tr=99. I have enhanced the colour slightly in Photoshop.

[37] BERTOLUZZA, Aldo. 1998. Guida ai Cognomi del Trentino. Trento: Società Iniziative Editoriali (S.R.L.), page 140-141.

[38] TABARELLI DE FATIS, Gianmaria; BORRELLI, Luciano. 2005. Stemmi e Notizie di Famiglie Trentine. Trento: Società di Studi Trentini di Scienze Storiche, page 127.

[39] TIROLER LANDESMUSEEN. Tyrolean Coats of Arms. ‘Fontana, 1780, 1788’. Variant of the Pomarolo stemma. Accessed 4 April 2025 from https://wappen.tiroler-landesmuseen.at/index34a.php?id=&do=&wappen_id=12226&sb=fontana&sw=&st=&so=&str=&tr=99.

[40] STENICO, P. Remo. 1999. Notai Che Operarono Nel Trentino dall’Anno 845. Trento: Biblioteca San Bernardino, page 152.

[41] STENICO, P. Remo. 2000. Sacerdoti della Diocesi di Trento dalla sua Esistenza Fino all’Anno 2000. Indice Onomastico, page 168-169.

[42] Statistics from the Nati in Trentino website. There may have been more Sacco births, but the majority of records for that parish were lost during World War 1.

[43] COGNOMI IN TRENTINO-ALTO ADIGE. ‘Fontana’. The site estimates there is a total of about 15 people with this surname currently living in Mori, Rovereto, Brentonico and Isera. https://italia.indettaglio.it/ita/cognomi/cognomi_trentinoaltoadige.html

[44] COGNOMI IN TRENTINO-ALTO ADIGE. ‘Fontana’. https://italia.indettaglio.it/ita/cognomi/cognomi_trentinoaltoadige.html

[45] PROVINCIA AUTONOMA DI TRENTO. ‘Compravendita’. 9 October 1443, Scurelle. The brothers Trentino and Matteo, sons and heirs of the late Giovanni Fontana of Telve, sell some private land to Antonio, son of Zanetto de Riba of Pieve Tesino. Archivi Storici del Trentino, https://www.cultura.trentino.it/archivistorici/unita/2227115. Accessed 25 March 2025.

[46] Statistics via the Nati in Trentino website. https://www.natitrentino.mondotrentino.net/.

[47] COGNOMI IN TRENTINO-ALTO ADIGE. ‘Fontana’. https://italia.indettaglio.it/ita/cognomi/cognomi_trentinoaltoadige.html.

[48] The couple married in Revò on 23 November 1637. The record actually says ‘Domenica Salazer, born Salvaterra’, which would imply she was a widow, but I have not been able to find a couple fitting that description. Revò parish records, marriages, volume 1, no page number.

[49] Revò parish records, baptisms, volume 1, page 168-169.

[50] Cattarina was born 7 October 1640 [Revò parish records, baptisms, volume 1, page 194-195], and died at the age of nine months on 31 July 1641 [Revò parish records, deaths, volume 1, no page number].

[51] Domenica died 3 March 1658 [Revò parish records, deaths, volume 1, no page number].

[52] Revò parish records, baptisms, volume 1, page 362-363.

[53] Revò parish records, baptisms, volume v8, page 21. The baptismal record also has his date of death in the left margin.

[54] Revò parish records, deaths, volume 5, page 409.

[53] The couple married in Romallo on 26 April 1725 [Revò parish records, marriages, volume 2, page 40].

[54] Angela Camilla died 27 June 1748 [Revò parish records, deaths, volume 3, page 53]. She was 43 years old.

[55] Revò parish records, deaths, volume 3, page 75.

[56] This info is via the same friend mentioned earlier in this section, as well as via a client of mine who visits there regularly.

[57] COGNOMI IN TRENTINO-ALTO ADIGE. ‘Fontana’. https://italia.indettaglio.it/ita/cognomi/cognomi_trentinoaltoadige.html.

[58] COGNOMI IN TRENTINO-ALTO ADIGE. ‘Fontana’. https://italia.indettaglio.it/ita/cognomi/cognomi_trentinoaltoadige.html.

[59] Statistics via the Nati in Trentino website. https://www.natitrentino.mondotrentino.net/

[60] COGNOMI IN TRENTINO-ALTO ADIGE. ‘Fontana’. https://italia.indettaglio.it/ita/cognomi/cognomi_trentinoaltoadige.html.

[61] WEBER, Simone; RASMO, Nicolò. 1977 (reprint). Artisti Trentini e Artisti Che Operarono Nel Trentino. Trento: Monauni.  Originally published in 1933, this is the 2nd edition, page 150-151.

[62] ANZILOTTI, Giulia Mastrelli. 2003. Toponomastica Trentina: i nomi delle località abitate. Trento: Provincia autonomia di Trento, Servizio Benni librari e archistici, page 64.

[63] Statistics via the Nati in Trentino website. https://www.natitrentino.mondotrentino.net/