Fusco
A southern Italian surname from Latin roots meaning “dark” or “dusky.”
The #4,102 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 35,693 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Fusco comes from Latin fuscus, meaning “dark,” “swarthy,” or “dusky.” In Italian, the word survived as fuso/fusco-related forms and became a surname for someone with dark hair, complexion, or perhaps a darkly colored nickname. The name can also be linked to the old Roman family name Fuscus, which carried the same meaning.
History
Fusco is especially common in southern Italy, where many surnames preserved Latin or regional nickname forms. It appears as a long-established Italian surname and also as a historical Roman cognomen. The name spread with Italian migration, which explains its presence in the modern United States.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Fuscus was a well-attested Roman nickname and family name, so Fusco has roots that reach back to classical antiquity.
From the historical record
“simple forms. Old Germ. Fuscias (a Vandal), 6th cent., Fusco, Fusca (Franks), 9th cent. Eng. Fux ? Fox ? Foskey, Fisk, Fish, ^'''''• Fix. Mod. Germ. Fisch, Fix. French Fusch, Fix, Fisq, FlESCHI.”
— The Teutonic Name-System applied to the family names of France, England and Germany