Durante
An Italian surname and given name from a Latin word meaning “lasting” or “enduring.”
The #9,633 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 91,643 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The name comes from Italian durante, ultimately from Latin durare, “to endure” or “to last.” In this surname tradition, it functioned first as a personal name or byname with the sense “enduring” or “steadfast,” rather than as a place-name or occupation. It is closely related to the Italian given name Dante, which older sources note as a shortened form of Durante.
History
Historical sources from the 19th century consistently connect Durante with the Italian given name and with Dante as a shortened form. The surname is found especially in Italy and in Italian diaspora communities, and it survives both as a family name and, less commonly, as a given name. Because surnames often grew from personal names, the apparoach here is best understood as a surname derived from a baptismal or inherited forename.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Older onomastic writers repeatedly pointed out that Dante Alighieri’s first name was originally Durante.
From the historical record
“Larchey, p. 146. DURANTE (Ital.) Enduring [Ital. durante; f. durare, Lat. durare, to endure, last] DUVAL \ (Fr.) Of THE Valley [Lat. vall-is, DU VALJ a vale] EBERHARD(T (Ger.) Boar-Brave [see under Everapd in Diet.] EBERT (Ger.) a dim. of Eberhapd(t, q.v.”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)