Cognome

Messina

The strongest concentration of Messina in US arrival records points to Sicilia, with 834 of 1,071 arrivals (78 percent) originating there.

1,071

US arrivals
1830 to 1912

216

Comuni of
origin

17

Regioni
represented

65

Notable on
Wikipedia

Arrivals by regioneN = 1,071
Abruzzo: 8 arrivalsPuglia: 15 arrivalsBasilicata: 43 arrivalsCalabria: 62 arrivalsCampania: 61 arrivalsEmilia-Romagna: 6 arrivalsLazio: 7 arrivalsLiguria: 2 arrivalsLombardia: 6 arrivalsMarche: 2 arrivalsMolise: 15 arrivalsPiemonte: 3 arrivalsSardegna: 2 arrivalsSicilia: 834 arrivalsTrentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol: 2 arrivalsToscana: 1 arrivalsVeneto: 2 arrivals

Top regione

Sicilia

834 of 1,071
78 percent of arrivals

Arrivals
0
< 25
25 to 83
83 to 250
250+

Cittadinanza per discendenza

Could your Messina line qualify for Italian citizenship?

The largest share of Messina arrivals came from Sicilia, most often from the provincia of Palermo. If one of them is your ancestor, Italy may recognize you as a citizen under jure sanguinis (citizenship by descent).

The surname alone does not decide it. Each generation between that ancestor and you does: who naturalized, and when. Since the 2025 law, the number of generations matters too.

The checker goes back through your line one generation at a time. It is not legal advice, and it does not search for records.

Check your line
Your lineYou fill this in

Italian-born ancestor

A Messina from Sicilia

Most often from Palermo (PA)

Each generation between

Name and dates

Did this person naturalize before their child was born?

You

A likely outcome

and the documents your line would need

Not ready to start? Get an email when the citizenship rules change.

Distribuzione per regione

Concentration by regione

17 regioni represented

  • Sicilia83478%
  • Calabria626%
  • Campania616%
  • Basilicata434%
  • Molise151%
  • Puglia151%
  • Abruzzo81%
  • Lazio71%
  • Lombardia61%
  • Emilia-Romagna61%
  • Piemonte30%
  • Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol20%
  • Veneto20%
  • Liguria20%
  • Sardegna20%
  • Marche20%
  • Toscana10%

Origini per comune

Arrival records by comune

Each row is a comune (municipality) where at least one passenger named Messina was recorded between 1830 and 1912.

Persone notevoli

Notable Messina on Wikipedia

Varianti grafiche

Spelling variants worth checking

  • The spelling you know may not be the one in the records. For example, a family remembers Mansini, but the records read Mancini.
  • If your spelling does not appear, a close variant in the list below may be the same family.

Related guide

Myths About Name Changes at Ellis Island

Names were never changed at the border. The spelling here is the original Italian: Giovinelli in the records, perhaps Jovanelli in the family today.

Read guide

Mesina

19 US arrivals

Messino

30 US arrivals

Messini

2 US arrivals

Messi

8 US arrivals

Messineo

39 US arrivals

Variants are surfaced from the surname index, not from per-name research. None of these is guaranteed to be the same family as Messina.