A record of documented arms, meaning and origin, researched for the Cortina family of Italy.
Reg. 2144 · Italian, A–C
Coat of Arms & Family Crest Details
Symbols on this shield
lionCourage, strength and royalty
Colours
Gold (Or)Means: Generosity
Red (Gules)Means: Military strength
Historical info
Source
J. B. Rietstap, Armorial Général, Gouda: G. B. van Goor Zonen, 1884–87
Blazon (the actual original written record)
“D'or au lion de gu. T.: deux sauvages de carn., revêtus de peaux de lion, armés de massues.”
LombardyLombardy, c. 1775
Where the Cortina Arms Were Recorded
Lombardy
Map of Italy showing where the Cortina arms are recorded
The Cortina arms were recorded in Lombardy, c. 1775.
Lombardy was the richest farming country in Italy with Milan at its centre. Its leading families held both city offices and country estates, and both kinds of standing were marked with arms.
This is where the arms were entered in the register. Families often moved to other parts of the country, so the same name can turn up in more than one region.
The body that granted and recorded arms in Italy in this period.
Alvise Giovanni Mocenigo
Sovereign of the period
Alvise Giovanni Mocenigo
1763–1778
Reigning in Italy when the Cortina arms are first recorded.
How Arms Worked in Italy
In the Italian states, coats of arms were often used by noble families to show their status and history. These symbols were passed down through the generations to all legitimate male descendants. Younger branches of a family usually kept the original design but sometimes added small changes to distinguish their specific line from the main branch.
Granting authority
Various local rulers and city governments controlled the use of coats of arms across the different Italian states.
How they got arms
Families often assumed their own arms or received them as official grants from local lords, popes, or city councils.
Where arms were recorded
Arms were recorded in local city archives or private family books rather than in one single national register.
The family's standing
Recorded among the armigerous families of Lombardy.
Origin & History of the Cortina Family in Italy
The surname Cortina finds its historical roots in the rugged, mountainous landscape of Northern Italy. The name is derived from the Latin word *cortis*, which refers to an enclosed courtyard or a small rural settlement. In the region of Lombardy, where the family was well-established by 1775, the name likely identified people who lived in or managed these specific agricultural enclosures. As families in this area moved from small farming communities into larger towns, the name became a way to track their origins back to their ancestral land. By the late 18th century, the Cortina family was deeply integrated into the local social fabric of Lombardy, reflecting a long history of agrarian life and community development in the Italian Alps.
Related Branches & Arms
Root word
Cohors
A Latin term referring to an enclosure, yard, or military cohort.
This name
CortinaRefers to someone living near a small enclosure, courtyard, or fenced area.
also spelled
Cortyna
Kortina
Cortinae
Documented Sources
J. B. Rietstap, Armorial Général, Gouda: G. B. van Goor Zonen, 1884–87
Dante Olivieri, Dizionario di toponomastica lombarda, 1961
Emidio De Felice, Dizionario dei cognomi italiani, 1978
Archivio di Stato di Milano, Stato civile della restaurazione, 1815-1865
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lionCourage, strength and royalty
lionCourage, strength and royalty
