Gentili Last Name: Meaning and Heraldic Roots

Many Gentili families will find their roots under Gentile, the form most records use. Surname dictionaries give the meaning as “Noble, courteous”.

• You may also find the name written Gentilini and Gentiluomo.
• Census takers and immigration officers often wrote what they heard.
• The change of ending between Gentile and Gentili reflects the Italian habit of naming a family in the plural or the singular.

Family crest and blazon

Arms linked to Gentile and its spellings were granted to individual families; our heraldry team traces which line they belonged to. For the full story, order the Gentili surname pack.