ORIGIN OF THE QUAGLIATA NAME
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With a few exceptions, hereditary surnames, the last names passed down through the males of a family, didn't exist until about 1000 years ago.  In a world where most folks never ventured more than a few miles from their place of birth and every man knew his neighbors, first, or given names, were the only designations necessary.  During the middle ages, as families got bigger and villages got a bit more crowded, individual names became inadequate to distinguish friends and neighbors from one another.  One John might be called "John son of William" to distinguish him from his neighbor "John the smith" and his friend "John of the dale."  These secondary names, weren't quite yet the surnames as we know them today as they weren't passed down from father to son.  True surnames, hereditary names used to distinguish one person from another, first came into use in Europe about 1000 A.D. However, it was not until about 1500 A.D. that most surnames became inherited and no longer transformed with a change in a person's appearance, job, or place of residence.

Surnames, for the most part, drew their meanings from the lives of men in the Middle Ages, and their origins can be divided into four main categories: 1) Patronymic names: last names derived from a father's name.  For example: son of John became Johnson, or the Gaelic prefix 'Mac' (MacDonald - son of Donald) and the Norman 'Fitz' (Fitzpatrick - son of Patrick).  2) Place names or local names: names derived from geographical or botanical features, or compass points.  For example: Brooks (lived by a brook), Atwood (lived by a woods) or Eastman (lived east of town).  3) Descriptive names (nicknames): names derived from a physical or other characteristic of the first bearer, make up an estimated 10% of all surnames. For example: Broadhead, Armstrong, or Goodman.  4) Occupational names: names derived from the occupation or status of the first bearer. For example: Miller, Smith, Cook, Baker, Taylor and Cheeseman.  (The source of the preceding information was the essay 'Last Name Meanings and Origins' found at Genealogy.About.com)

Our research seems to show that the name Quagliata falls into the category of occupational names.  In Italy, there is a type cheese and/or cheese dessert known as 'Quagliata' that is made from freshly coagulated milk.  The practice of making 'Quagliata' goes back for centuries.   The following description is taken from The Four Seasons of the House of Cerruti, which is a translation of a 14th century Latin manuscript known as Tacuinim Sanitatis in Medicina (Tables of Health in Accordance with Medical Science): "Junket is coagulated milk which got its name from the reed baskets in which it was put to drain.  The best junket is made from the milk of young animals and makes the blood phlegmatic.  It is useful in treating swelling of the stomach, but it lies heavily on the stomach and is therefore more suitable for robust, young people with hot temperaments.  In any case eat it infrequently, at breakfast, sprinkled with sugar or a pinch of salt to prevent somewhat its heaviness in digestion."  The passage is suggesting the use of milk curd for treating stomach swelling and pain.  The curious word in the translation is 'junket'.  'Junket' comes from the word 'juncus', the Latin word for a rush - a marsh plant whose stems and leaves are useful for making mats and baskets.  Long ago, a type of cream cheese was prepared in baskets made of rushes or reeds, and the cheese took its name from its container.  In Italy, in the Middle Ages, this cream cheese was called 'guincata', a derivative of the Latin 'juncus'.



Checking the translation of 'quagliata' on the website Babelfish leads us down a somewhat twisted path.  It turns out that translating 'quagliata' from Italian to English returns the word 'junket', the English word 'junket' translates to Italian as 'giuncata', and the Italian word 'giuncata' translates to English as curd or cream cheese.  Additionally, in Italian, the word 'cagliata' means curd - note the similar spelling of 'Quagliata'. A search of Italian websites shows there are still Italian curd recipes circulating that use the Italian word 'Quagliata' as the name of the milk curd or soft cheese.  Coupling this information with the above passage, it is evident that the process of making 'Quagliata' goes back to at least to the 1300s.



I asked our cousin, Vittorio Quagliata of Milan, Italy for his thoughts on this information.  Vittorio's response: "I think your essay is quite correct and accurate.  I'm quite certain that the name comes from the "Quagliata cheese" even if I like the "Arabian" sound of the word in Italian (remember that Sicily was an Arab emirate for almost two centuries, between 800 and 1000 A.D.).  The 'Quagliata cheese' is also used in northern Italy, especially near Genoa.  The recipes listed in the forum linked to our page (Italian curd recipes) are, mostly, from the Genoa area.  Actually 'Quagliata' is the Italian version of the Sicilian word 'quagghiata' that literally means 'cagliata' - e.g. Sicilian: 'u’ latti quagghiau'; Italian: 'il latte è cagliato'; English: 'the milk curdled'."


 

Originally, Quagliata was made from fresh milk, preferably from young animals (traditionally from young sheep).  The milk was sweetened and then curdled with lemon juice or left to sit in the heat to age and curdle for up to three days.  The cagliata was then put in a reed basket or cheesecloth to drain/strain for at least 2 hours.  At this point the process has produced the semi soft Quagliata cheese - looking like ricotta cheese, but with a courser grained curd.  In the photo on the right, women prepare to make cagliata with lemon juice.  You can see the small reed baskets on the stone stand.

Photos from Castelmezzano.Net

In southern Italy, southeast of Portenza, there is a town named Castelmezzano.  There, on the first Sunday of May, the Sagra della Quagliata (the Festival of the Quagliata) is celebrated.  The "Festival of the Quagliata" recalls the peasant shepherds making ‘Quagliata’ cheese from the milk of their sheep, goats or cattle, a traditional handicraft. Festival goers are invited to take part in the production of the cheese. As soon as it is curdled, the fresh cheese offered to all those who participate in the celebration.  In the photo on the left, women from Castelmezzano are packing the cagliata into reed baskets to drain in order to make the Quagliata cheese.

The Sagra della Quagliata is also celebrated in Civitella Alfedena in August and San Marco in Lamis.  The Quagliata cheese is also made and celebrated in Valle Castellana in June and Frosolone in September.

We have also polled a number of family members from around the world to check for alternative derivations.  Thus far, everyone who responded agreed with the 'coagulate/curd/cheese' derivation of the name.  There also were a couple of interesting responses.  Angelo Quagliata, of the Cleveland, Ohio family, agreed with the 'coagulate/curd/cheese' derivation, and also sent us a vernacular meaning - "...in the vernacular, [quagliata] means to gel or solidify opinions around a conversation that started out being 180-degrees apart, and arrived closer to the middle."  Sara Hughes, of the Sydney, Australia family, sent in a message from her sister who agreed with the 'coagulate/cheese' derivation, but also sent a question about quail - "When I was still living in Brisbane, a barrister who had just been to Northern Italy told me that he went to a restaurant and there on the menu was 'quagliata'.  In that case he understood it had meant little quail (ie the bird)."  Actually, the Italian word for 'quail' is 'quaglia' - very similar, but not the same.  Evidently, the barrister was slightly mistaken about the spelling he saw.

In researching this subject, the 'coagulate/curd/cheese' connection to the name is easily the leading candidate for the most likely derivation of the name.  Even more evidence became available when Italian cities began showing up on the web with their event calendars listing 'Sagra della Quagliata'.  The exact spelling and usage of 'quagliata' as it relates to cheese, cheese production or cheese celebrations is convincing evidence for the occupational origin of the name 'Quagliata'.  At this time we conclude that the name 'Quagliata' originated in the 1200s or 1300s as an occupational name.
 

HISTORY OF THE QUAGLIATA SURNAME
The history of any particular surname is a difficult subject to tackle.  Since surnames arose from a father’s name, place names, descriptive names or occupational names, it is inevitable that a particular surname could’ve been used by many unrelated families.  For instance, the occupational name ‘Baker’ could have easily been used by many unrelated bakers across Europe.  Also, surnames often underwent changes over the course of time and different dialects could produce a variety of different spellings and pronunciations.  Additionally, changes in spelling frequently occurred between father and son, adding to the confusion.  The possible variations of the Quagliata surname that we have found include Quagliati, Quagliato, Quaglieta, Quaglietta, Quaglietti, Guagliata, Guagliato, Gugliotta, Gugliotto, Quaglia, Quaglio, Quagli, Guglia, Gaglia, Gagli, Cagliata, Cagliati, Caglia, Caglio, and Cagli.  All of these names produce distribution data on the gens.labo.net website (the data base is from a LABO study done in 2000).  The Quagliata variation is distributed across Italy, but much more concentrated from Rome south to Sicily (maps below).  However, the most similar spelling variations of Quagliati and Quagliato are more concentrated in the north.  The surnames Quaglia, Quaglio, Guagliato, Gugliotto, Guglia, Gaglia, Cagliati and Caglia heavily concentrated in northern Italy, particularly in the Piedmont, Lombardy and Veneto regions, while the rest are spread out over the entire country.


 

In the years after surnames began to develop, 1100-1400, only persons of rank were entered into the public records, which makes it difficult to do genealogy research.  One source we used, Traceit, says our group of surname variations originated in Piedmont.  This region of northwestern Italy, with its port city of Genoa, rivaled Venice in commerce and trade.  For centuries, Piedmont acted as a buffer zone between Italy and France.  It experienced rule under the Franks and the Lombards who invaded most of Italy during the 6^th century.  Under Frankish rule, Piedmont became part of the dynastic House of Savoy.  While under Savoyard rule, this area of Italy incorporated part of what is known today as Savoy, France.


 

We have confirmed that the surname variants, on average, are more concentrated in northern Italy.  However, the ‘Quagliata’ spelling is more concentrated in the south.  Another close variation, ‘Quaglietta’, is also more concentrated in the south.  In addition, there is a town in Campania, east of Naples named Quaglietta.  It’s not too far west of Balvano; a town we know has a number of Quagliata families and is the leading candidate for the home town of the southern Italian Quagliata family.  These pieces of evidence indicate there is a long history of the surname variants in the southern Italy and the ‘Quagliata’

spelling most likely originated there.  Another piece of supporting evidence for this conclusion is the Italian word ‘quagliata’.  Since the Sicilian equivalent is ‘quagghiata’, it’s more likely the surname spelling ‘Quagliata’ originated in southern Italy and then spread into Sicily.

From 1500 BC to 1000 BC the Siculi, Sicani and Elymni arrived in Sicily from the Italian mainland, North Africa and Asia Minor.  Sicily and southern Italy became the crossroads of the Mediterranean as the area came under the influence of many different groups: Phoenician 1000 BC, Greek 700 BC, Carthage 400 BC, Rome 260 BC and Islamic Saracens in 825.  In 1060, the Normans founded the Kingdom of Sicily which included most of southern Italy and Sicily.  In 1195 Germany took over and then France in 1266.  It was during this time that the Quagliata spelling of our surname appeared in southern Italy, probably in the area of Balvano.  In 1282, the War of the Sicilian Verspers against the French king, Charles I, brought independence to Sicily, resulting in two separate Kingdoms of Sicily - one on the island of Sicily, and one on the mainland, also known as the Kingdom of Naples.

 

Finally, in the late 1700s, we find the earliest documented evidence of our Quagliata forefathers.  Giuseppe Quagliata of Forza D’Agro, Sicily was born in 1775 and is the patriarch of the NYC/Connecticut family. Carmelo Quagliata of Sant’Alessio Siculo, Sicily was born in 1780 and is the patriarch of the Cleveland, Ohio family.  Carmelo Quagliata of Forza D’Agro, Sicily, the father of Mario Quagliata (1843-19??), was born about 1781 and is the patriarch of our main tree.

In the 1800s there were a series of conflicts that culminated in 1860 when Giuseppe Garibaldi’s troops brought about the unification of Italy and Sicily.  At least two of our ancestors fought in these wars:  Mario Quagliata (1843-19??) and Giuseppe Quagliata (1840?-1920?) of the Caltanissetta family.  The wars claimed a terrible toll, about one million lives.  The many years of war and military actions wreaked havoc on the Italian economy, as well as the day to day life of Italians and Sicilians.  The conditions lead to the great migration from Italy to the Americas.  In the late 1800s, members of the Quagliata lineage began to arrive in the United States, settling principally in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Ohio.  There were also a number of Quagliata family members that immigrated to South America and Australia.  The migration continued until the middle of the twentieth century.
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The available information indicates that historically, variants of the Quagliata surname were first found in northern Italy in the 1100s.  By the 1300s, the variants spread east across northern Italy and south along the west coast of Italy into the area of Rome.  During this time, the ‘Quagliata’ spelling appeared in southern Italy, probably in the Balvano area, and spread south toward Sicily.  By the 1500s, the surname Quagliata was well established in southern Italy and Sicily.