633 VOLANTE members around the world

VOLANTE Family History

Recorded in England in the spelling of Volante, Volonte, and Volant, this very interesting surname is of ancient French, and Italian origins. It would seem to have been first recorded in England in the 18th century after the 1685 repeal of the 'Edict of Nantes' and probably has some Huguenot ancestry. The surname derives from the Latin word 'volare' and in this context translates literally as 'to fly'. Some researchers believe that it is a nickname for a fickle or flighty person, but the explanation is almost certainly job descriptive, and describes a rider or driver of a vehicle, one who made it fly! Early continental recordings are erratic, many registers were destroyed in the 1792 - 1815 Napoleonic Wars, when the churches were often forcibly closed down.