I have a question about the surname "Viol."

Question

It's not very common, as far as I can tell. I've been told it is mainly in Europe in Italy, France, Germany, Spain.

Any help on this surname would be greatly appreciated. Anything you know, or if you know anyone whose last name is "Viol."

Answer 1

Do you mean Viol plus a suffix like Viola, Viole, Violi, Violet, and so on? or Viol as it is?

In Italy is very common as Viola (one of the , less common as Violi and quite rare as Violo and  Viol . Viola is diffused allover Italy with prevalence in Milan area and in the North east (Pordenone area) Meanwhile it is also the 33rd family name in Messina (Sicily) Violi and Violo are diffused in the north (respectively Lombardy and Piedmont). Viol is very rare and is a name of "ladin" minorities on the Alps .

The ancient origins, considered the diffusion pattern are probably Longobard/ Lombard an ethnic group originated in Norway, later migrated in South Germany and finally stabilized in Northern Italy from the 6th or 7th century. Later they expanded to south up to Sicily. Lombardy, the region of Milan takes its name from them).

More recent history gaves an idea of the diffusion in Southern Italy and Spain. An Apulian  feudal noble of Terranova participated in 1535 to the Spanish siege of Tunis that defeated the local Sultan and pirate Khair ad Din (a.k.a. red beard). For this reason he was knighted by the Bourbon of Spain in 1537. From his sons and daughter, Valentina (1529 – 1556), Francesco (1536 – 1592) e Carlo (1538 – 1600), starts the diffusion of this family to Rome ( a Viola become Earl of Castelforte, appointed by the pope) , Sicily (Barons of Fontana Rossa) and Neaples (Special secretaries of Ferdinand the II of Bourbon and Barons) . With the Italian Kingdom the Viola's were recognized with the very long title of arone di Terranova, Signore di San Simone, Signore di Masseria Donna Laura, Nobile, Nobile Cittadino di Galatina, Nobile Cittadino di Nardò, Nobile Cittadino di Collepasso.

Here in Italian, but you may translate with an online translator http://www.cognomiitaliani.org/cognomi/c...

A branch of the Roman Viola started an Hungarian  Viola Branch in Budapest around 1495 (multilingual, here http://pagesperso-orange.fr/coloman.viol...

From the Northern Italian Viola or the Ladin  Viol (alpine ethnic minority), both sharing the Lombard origin , comes the French branches , mainly in the Savoy area.

The migrations continue from there after the 1384 plague when the families Viole and Viollant from Scionzier, near Cluses will emigrate to Wintzenheim in northern Alsatia (bordering Germany)

About meaning: it can be a patronimic (taken by the son of a Viola, name corresponding to the flower called  viola, violets, or the corresponding colour. Viole, violette in French , Viola , violeta in Spanish) or , for (at least for some minor middle age branches) linked to a job of musician playing a kindo of violin or an instrument of the viol family (or wiol in celtic and other ancient germanic languages)