Find your family's town
Know your family's town? Type it in the box below. Not sure yet? Scroll down to find it on the map, and to learn the difference between a comune, a province and a region.
Popular towns
Napoli
Napoli · Campania
Castel Baronia
Avellino · Campania
Avellino
Avellino · Campania
Palermo
Palermo · Sicilia
Roma
Roma · Lazio
Salerno
Salerno · Campania
Or browse by region
Explore Italy — free
Find your comune.
Two ways in. Type a town, province or region in the box below — or click any region directly on the map. Whichever you use, a dot marks the place and the panel lists the Castellesi places within it.
Yes, the map itself is clickable. Your journey starts here.
Regional boundaries: ISTAT, Confini delle unità amministrative a fini statistici. Licensed CC BY 4.0.
Browse by region
All twenty regions of Italy. Choose one to see it on the map and list its Castellesi places.
Not sure what region?Ask Orso™
Explore Italy
Click any region on the map, or search for a town above. A dot will mark it and its places will appear here.
Valle d'Aosta
Records in French, and every comune holds its parishes' registers for 1838–1865.
Castellesi Comuni
Explore Valle d'AostaPiemonte
The Kingdom of Sardinia required three copies of every act from 1838 — parish, comune and diocese.
Provinces
Castellesi Comuni
- Alessandria Alessandria
- Asti Asti
- Biella Biella
- Cuneo Cuneo
- Ivrea Torino
- Novara Novara
- Torino Torino
- Verbania Verbano-Cusio-Ossola
- Vercelli Vercelli
Liguria
No Restoration gap — the parishes carried on — and conscription running from class 1792.
Provinces
Castellesi Comuni
Explore LiguriaLombardia
Milan and the Lombard plain, where civil registration begins in 1866.
Provinces
Castellesi Comuni
- Bergamo Bergamo
- Brescia Brescia
- Como Como
- Cremona Cremona
- Lecco Lecco
- Lodi Lodi
- Mantova Mantova
- Milano Milano
- Monza Monza e Brianza
- Pavia Pavia
- Varese Varese
Trentino-Alto Adige
Austrian until 1918: the parish priest was the civil registrar until 1 January 1924.
Provinces
Castellesi Comuni
Explore Trentino-Alto AdigeVeneto
Annexed in 1866, but civil registration began only on 1 September 1871.
Provinces
Castellesi Comuni
- Belluno Belluno
- Padova Padova
- Rovigo Rovigo
- Treviso Treviso
- Venezia Venezia
- Verona Verona
- Vicenza Vicenza
Friuli-Venezia Giulia
Habsburg until 1918, with fourteen comuni whose records to 1920 sit at Gorizia or Klagenfurt.
Castellesi Comuni
Explore Friuli-Venezia GiuliaEmilia-Romagna
Five frameworks in one region: the Duchies of Parma and Modena, and four Papal Legations.
Provinces
Castellesi Comuni
- Bologna Bologna
- Cesena Forlì-Cesena
- Ferrara Ferrara
- Forlì Forlì-Cesena
- Imola Bologna
- Modena Modena
- Parma Parma
- Ravenna Ravenna
- Reggio Emilia Reggio Emilia
- Rimini Rimini
Toscana
The French model applied 1808–1814, then a Tuscan system of its own — with Massa-Carrara following different rules.
Provinces
Castellesi Comuni
- Arezzo Arezzo
- Carrara Massa-Carrara
- Firenze Firenze
- Grosseto Grosseto
- Livorno Livorno
- Lucca Lucca
- Massa Massa-Carrara
- Pisa Pisa
- Pistoia Pistoia
- Prato Prato
- Siena Siena
Umbria
Papal territory throughout, so civil registration arrives late and the parish register is the record.
Provinces
Castellesi Comuni
Explore UmbriaMarche
Papal territory that belonged to the Napoleonic Kingdom of Italy — so a real 1808 series exists.
Provinces
Castellesi Comuni
- Ancona Ancona
- Ascoli Piceno Ascoli Piceno
- Fermo Fermo
- Macerata Macerata
- Pesaro Pesaro e Urbino
- San Benedetto del Tronto Ascoli Piceno
- Urbino Pesaro e Urbino
Lazio
Rome and its province, the Ciociaria, the Pontine plain and the southern coast that was Neapolitan until 1927.
Provinces
Castellesi Comuni
- Cassino Frosinone
- Civitavecchia Roma
- Formia Latina
- Frosinone Frosinone
- Gaeta Latina
- Latina Latina
- Rieti Rieti
- Roma Roma
- Sora Frosinone
- Terracina Latina
- Tivoli Roma
- Viterbo Viterbo
Abruzzo
Three historic provinces redrawn in 1927, between the Gran Sasso and the Adriatic.
Provinces
Castellesi Comuni
- Atri Teramo
- Avezzano L'Aquila
- Chieti Chieti
- Giulianova Teramo
- L'Aquila L'Aquila
- Lanciano Chieti
- Montesilvano Pescara
- Ortona Chieti
- Pescara Pescara
- Sulmona L'Aquila
- Tagliacozzo L'Aquila
- Teramo Teramo
- Vasto Chieti
Molise
A region since 1963, and a single province until 1970.
Provinces
Castellesi Comuni
- Agnone Isernia
- Bojano Campobasso
- Campobasso Campobasso
- Frosolone Isernia
- Isernia Isernia
- Larino Campobasso
- Termoli Campobasso
- Venafro Isernia
Campania
Naples and its bay, the Agro Nocerino, the Irpinian hills and the Cilento coast.
Provinces
Castellesi Comuni
- Acerra Napoli
- Afragola Napoli
- Agropoli Salerno
- Amalfi Salerno
- Angri Salerno
- Ariano Irpino Avellino
- Avellino Avellino
- Aversa Caserta
- Battipaglia Salerno
- Benevento Benevento
- Capua Caserta
- Caserta Caserta
- Castel Baronia Avellino
- Castellammare di Stabia Napoli
- Cava de' Tirreni Salerno
- Eboli Salerno
- Ercolano Napoli
- Giugliano in Campania Napoli
- Ischia Napoli
- Maddaloni Caserta
- Mercato San Severino Salerno
- Montella Avellino
- Montesarchio Benevento
- Napoli Napoli
- Nocera Inferiore Salerno
- Nola Napoli
- Pagani Salerno
- Pompeii Napoli
- Portici Napoli
- Positano Salerno
- Pozzuoli Napoli
- Salerno Salerno
- Sant'Agata de' Goti Benevento
- Santa Maria Capua Vetere Caserta
- Sarno Salerno
- Scafati Salerno
- Sorrento Napoli
- Torre Annunziata Napoli
- Torre del Greco Napoli
- Vallo della Lucania Salerno
Puglia
Three ancient provinces — Terra di Bari, Terra d'Otranto and Capitanata — whose records rarely sit where you expect.
Provinces
Castellesi Comuni
- Altamura Bari
- Andria Barletta-Andria-Trani
- Bari Bari
- Barletta Barletta-Andria-Trani
- Bitonto Bari
- Brindisi Brindisi
- Cerignola Foggia
- Foggia Foggia
- Francavilla Fontana Brindisi
- Gallipoli Lecce
- Giovinazzo Bari
- Gravina in Puglia Bari
- Lecce Lecce
- Lucera Foggia
- Manfredonia Foggia
- Martina Franca Taranto
- Molfetta Bari
- Monopoli Bari
- Monte Sant'Angelo Foggia
- Nardò Lecce
- Ostuni Brindisi
- Polignano a Mare Bari
- San Severo Foggia
- Taranto Taranto
- Trani Barletta-Andria-Trani
- Vieste Foggia
Basilicata
One province until 1927, with the whole region's records at Potenza until 1955.
Provinces
Castellesi Comuni
- Bernalda Matera
- Lauria Potenza
- Maratea Potenza
- Matera Matera
- Melfi Potenza
- Pisticci Matera
- Policoro Matera
- Potenza Potenza
- Rionero in Vulture Potenza
- Venosa Potenza
Calabria
The Tyrrhenian and Ionian coasts, the Sila and the Pollino — and two provinces created only in 1992.
Provinces
Castellesi Comuni
- Acri Cosenza
- Amantea Cosenza
- Castrovillari Cosenza
- Catanzaro Catanzaro
- Corigliano-Rossano Cosenza
- Cosenza Cosenza
- Crotone Crotone
- Gerace Reggio Calabria
- Lamezia Terme Catanzaro
- Locri Reggio Calabria
- Palmi Reggio Calabria
- Paola Cosenza
- Pizzo Vibo Valentia
- Reggio Calabria Reggio Calabria
- Rende Cosenza
- Scalea Cosenza
- Scilla Reggio Calabria
- Siderno Reggio Calabria
- Tropea Vibo Valentia
- Vibo Valentia Vibo Valentia
Sicilia
An island with its own timetable: civil registration begins in 1820, not 1809.
Provinces
Castellesi Comuni
- Acireale Catania
- Agrigento Agrigento
- Alcamo Trapani
- Bagheria Palermo
- Barcellona Pozzo di Gotto Messina
- Caltagirone Catania
- Caltanissetta Caltanissetta
- Canicattì Agrigento
- Castelvetrano Trapani
- Catania Catania
- Cefalù Palermo
- Corleone Palermo
- Enna Enna
- Licata Agrigento
- Marsala Trapani
- Mazara del Vallo Trapani
- Messina Messina
- Milazzo Messina
- Modica Ragusa
- Monreale Palermo
- Noto Siracusa
- Palermo Palermo
- Paternò Catania
- Patti Messina
- Ragusa Ragusa
- Sciacca Agrigento
- Siracusa Siracusa
- Taormina Messina
- Termini Imerese Palermo
- Trapani Trapani
- Vittoria Ragusa
Sardegna
Its own institutions until 1847, Spanish Quinque Libri parish books, and documents in Catalan.
Provinces
Castellesi Comuni
- Alghero Sassari
- Cagliari Cagliari
- Carbonia Sud Sardegna
- Iglesias Sud Sardegna
- Nuoro Nuoro
- Olbia Sassari
- Oristano Oristano
- Sassari Sassari
Start with the basics
Comune, Province, Region — What's the Difference?
01
Region
A region is one of Italy's major administrative areas. Examples include Campania, Calabria, Sicilia, Molise and Lombardia. Think of the region as the largest of these three geographic levels.
02
Province
A province sits within a region and contains multiple comuni. For example, Avellino is a province within Campania. Knowing a family's province can significantly narrow the search for their comune.
03
Comune
A comune is the individual municipality — the city, town or village most closely connected to a family's local identity. For Castellesi, this is often the most important piece of the story. Examples include Napoli, Avellino, Nocera Inferiore, Castel Baronia and hundreds of other Italian communities.
Italy may be the country. But the comune is where the story gets personal.
Start With the Clues Your Family Left Behind.
Before searching records, write down everything you already know. Useful clues may include:
- Full names
- Maiden names
- Approximate birth dates
- Parents' names
- Marriage information
- Immigration dates
- Passenger records
- Naturalization records
- Passports
- Church records
- Old addresses
- Photographs
- Letters
- Italian place names remembered by relatives
- Stories passed down through the family
Even an incomplete place name or a province someone remembers hearing can be enough to point the search in the right direction.
Start searching
Resources for Finding Your Comune
FamilySearch
A large free collection of historical records, family trees and digitized material from the United States, Italy and beyond.
Visit FamilySearch →Antenati — Italian State Archives
Italy's Portale Antenati holds digitized civil records from Italian State Archives, including historical birth, marriage and death records from many comuni.
Visit Antenati →National Archives
Immigration, naturalization, census and military records that often name an ancestor's birthplace or last residence in Italy.
Visit the National Archives →Look for the Place, Not Just the Name.
When reviewing old family records, don't search only for names and dates. Look closely for Italian place names.
Birth records, marriage certificates, passenger manifests, naturalization documents and passports may identify a town, province or other geographic clue.
A single place name can completely change the direction of your search.
Still not sure?
Have Orso Do the Digging.
If you've searched the records and still aren't sure where your family came from, you don't have to figure it out alone.
An Ask Orso Research Search puts a researcher on your family line in the Italian civil records, and returns a written report with every fact cited to the document it came from.
See the research searchFound it?
Now Wear Your Roots.
Once you know your family's comune, see if Castellesi already celebrates it.
Explore our comuni and find the place connected to your family's story.
Can't find your comune in our collection?
Request your comune →
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If you already know the part of Italy your family came from, start here.
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