La Historia del Apellido Croci
The Italian surname Croci is of patronimic origin and follows the most basic type of surnames which derive from the personal name of the father of the original bearer. In this case the original name would be Croce and the meaning of the surname would be "son of Croce". The personal name Croce derives from the Latin term "crux", which means "cross". It originated in Sicily, because of Christian devotion to the cross upon which Jesus Christ was crucified. The Roman Catholic Church recognized two days devoted to the Cross; one is May 3er., which commemorates the discovery of the cross by Sain Elena, the mother of the Emperor Constantine; and the other is September 14th., which celebrates the exaltation of the Cross. The final "I" of the surname denotes the plural form, illustrating the process of the surname having been passed on from one generation to the next. The surname Croci and its variants are found throghout Italy, but the original form Croce is more common in the area of Genoa, while Croci in found mainly in Tuscany and Emilia-Romagna. We cannot exclude also a local origin for the surname Croci; in fact it is possible for the original bearer to have been named Croce, because he lived close to a cross, one of the many which we find in the Italian countryside. In the Middle Ages the pattern serving as a basis for fixed Italian surnamens was based on paternity, the name of the father being the reference for idenfication, but before the advent of a structured system of surnames, a man was most conveniently identified by his place of abode or his occupation or trade.
We have records of a family by the name of Croci from Milano, very ancient and very powerful. It was called Croci because its members were the first to plant the flag of the Crusades on the walls of Jerusalem
BLAZON OF ARMS: Azure, a tree arrache vert, whose branches extend to the dexter and sinister chief canton
CREST: Three ostrich plumes proper.
ORIGIN: Italy.
