De Risio

A brief history and chart from the 11th century to the 20th century

The earliest recorded precursor of the surname De Risio can be found in medieval Italy, in the fortress town of Monteodorisio. The foundation of the name can be attributed to Odorisio, Count of Marsi, who is credited with having built the fortress in the 11th century, A number of extant documents and inscriptions refer to the Counts and Barons De Risio of southern Abruzzo between the 11th and 15th centuries.

In the 11th century, history records two great abbots of the Church, Oderisio I and Oderisio II, in the area of Fossacesia. Abbot Oderisio I built the Abbey of San Giovanni in Venere in 1051 and the fortress of Rocca San Giovanni in 1066.

Little is known or much remains undiscovered about the name until the 16th century when Camillo De Risio (b. 1575 in Casalbordino) moved to Scerni (Province of Chieti) in 1601. Camillo may have descended from Giovanni Antonio Riso, a Neapolitan nobleman who was appointed "Giustiziere d'Abruzzi" (Executioner of Abruzzi) by the king of Naples. The Riso family produced many well-documented warriors between the 12th and 15th centuries. Historians attribute the Riso line to Odorisius who originated in either England or Germany.

The kingdoms of Italy and Naples were possessions of the Habsburg and Bourbon dynasties from the end of the 15th century until the Risorgimento in 1861. Sometime during the 16th century reign of Charles I of Spain (later Holy Roman Emperor Charles V), Italian nobles, following the Spanish fashion, began to attach the particle <de> to names as an indicator of nobility. It was probably during this time that the letter "O" was dropped from Oderisio and the "de" was separated to form the name de Risio or De Risio. Although speculative, it is not unreasonable to reconstruct the evolution of the name as follows:

Beginning in the 17th century, there is plentiful documentary evidence of the De Risio line contained in church, municipal and provincial records. Although there are many branches, the companion chart to this synopsis will list only the primary line emanating from an unknown progenitor to Camillo through the 16th generation of De Risio males. The secondary or "Evangelista" line is included only as a reference and is not complete.

Research and/or information provided by the late Emilio De Risio, Piera Badia and Gary De Risio. 

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