FAMILY HISTORY RESOURCES
Aeolian Islands Birth, Death and Marriage Records
1746-1767 & 1776-1799 Church Baptism Records
1820-1860 Civil Records
1866-1910 Civil Records
Other useful links
Missed the 10th Aeolian Genealogy Seminar?
All good! Provide payment of $45 below via Paypal/credit card and we will send you a link and password to view the 6 recorded topics from this year’s Aeolian Genealogy Seminar/Webinar.
Cost $45 (AUD) for 3-month access to the recordings.
Welcome to the 10th edition of the Aeolian Genealogy Seminar/ Webinar.
Starting in 2014, over the past 9 years we have had over 50 topics we have shared with you to help you with your Italian family history.
In our 10th year, we are very excited to present to you another session of topics to help you continue your research.
Organiser: Michael Angelini
Learn more about Michael
Michael Angelini is the grandson of Aeolian born grandparents on his mother’s side, who came from Lipari and Salina. Since 2005 at the age of 15 he has been researching his ancestry and since 2007 has been helping others find their own ancestors.
Michael has created many online indexes from the birth, marriage and death records on the islands relating to the years 1820-1910. He is an active committee member and Assistant Director of Events at the SIE. He aims that his research and data collection will help other descendants from the Aeolian Islands go back further in their ancestry.
Michael Angelini
TOPICS
Key Note Address: Speaking in mother tongues: How language shapes our sociolinguistic identity
Presenter: Janetta Ziino (Keynote Address)
Learn more about Janetta
After many years of teaching – originally as a Primary School Teacher, then an Italian Language Teacher, Janetta returned to university as a mature student upon receiving a scholarship to study an Advanced Diploma in Interpreting at RMIT in 2015.
Janetta is now a practising Certified Interpreter for the Italian community as well as working for the
National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters (NAATI).
A member of the Regional Advisory Council for the Victorian Multicultural Commission,
Janetta is immersed in the Italian community of Melbourne and is the Director of Events for the Società Isole Eolie of Melbourne.
Janetta Ziino
KEYNOTE ADDRESS
Topic: The origin of Italian surnames and what they can tell us about our ancestors
An examination of the origin and development of Italian surnames: in particular those from the Aeolian Islands.
Presenter: Joe Russo (Keynote Panellist)
Learn more about Joe
Joe Russo was born in Geelong to parents of Aeolian ancestry from Lipari and Salina. Joe has been researching his own ancestry and the genealogy of the Aeolian Islands, in particular, for over three decades. What started as a hobby grew into a greater appreciation of the islands’ history, culture and especially its rich and often complex genealogical past.
After having created his first website on the subject back in the 1990s when the internet was still relatively unknown, now includes social media and an evolving new website and blog. Joe travels to the Aeolian Islands frequently.
Joe Russo
KEYNOTE PANELLIST
Topic: Aeolian Migration to America
Discover the establishment of Mutual Aid Societies in American cities.
Presenter: Robert Mandile
Learn more about Robert
Robert Mandile was born in Melbourne. He has completed a Teaching Diploma, and an Arts Degree at LaTrobe University, ‘majoring in History, a Theology Degree and a Graduate Diploma in Religious Education.
Robert has taught at eight schools, teaching Years 6 to Year 12, also holding various positions of responsibility spanning 43 years, plus a further 8 years as an emergency teacher. He is now retired from teaching.
Growing up in the 1950s and 1960s, he spent much time with his family, meeting with relatives and attending various Aeolian events organised by the SIE.
He has always had a love of history and after eight years of research published a book in 2010 of family trees and personal stories entitled ‘From the Aeolian Islands to Melbourne and Sydney’.
A total of 205 copies were first published, and 40 copies of a second edition were printed several years later. A further 30 updated copies have been printed in the last couple of years.
Earlier this year he travelled to Europe and North America for 10 weeks adding to his family tree history. He has now identified 2300 blood relatives.
Robert Mandile
Topic: The Filicudi Revolt: No more prisons in our backyard…the tourists are coming!
The Aeolian Islands have since Roman times been regarded as an ideal place to exile prisoners.
Treated by authorities as barren and out-of-sight, mindsets changed in the early 70s when a plan to convert Filicudi into an open-air gaol was put into action.
The resulting ‘ first ever’ rebellion by resident Eoliani was to herald a bold new enterprise- promoting the Islands as an attractive tourist destination.
Presenter: John Barnao
Learn more about John
John Barnao was born in Carlton to parents who migrated from Stromboli. As a first child, he learned the Aeolian dialect. His father Vincenzo first came to Australia in 1927 as a 13-year-old and worked as a typical fruiterer all his life. John studied Economics and Commerce at the University of Melbourne and Arts at Monash.
He then went on to pursue a career in Banking, Accountancy, and Tax. He is a member of various local historical societies and in recent years has been collecting photos and stories of Melbourne’s Aeolian fruit shops.
A few years ago, he wrote a paper for the Italian Historical Society detailing the root causes of Aeolian migration and the significance of the Società’ Isole Eolie in directing the decision of many to come to Australia. He is presently our SIE Treasurer.
John Barnao
Topic: Oral History: A guide to interviewing family members and utilizing them
Gain valuable insight into interview-based story-making where we will look into some creative ways you can bring those interviews to life! You will learn; how to capture identity, culture and experiences of the individual, how to craft good questions, how to consider your (future) audiences, the ethics involved in using interviews and home archives, equipment recommendations, interviewing techniques and some tips for home-archiving.
Presenters: Katrina & Gracie Lolicato
Learn more about Katrina & Gracie Lolicato
Sisters Katrina and Gracie Lolicato are oral historians, social documenters, classroom facilitators, and visual sociologists. Working under the banner of ‘Arc Up Australia’, the sisters blend research knowledge, creative interests and concern for social justice to co-produce exhibitions, publications, projections, podcasts, experimental short films and events with individuals and communities across Victoria. Arc Up projects have been featured, in libraries and on laneway walls, at Federation Square, at White Night, Melbourne; Midsumma, and emerging writers.
Katrina & Gracie Lolicato
Topic: Recollections: A story of three women of Eolian descent
Eolian women are often overlooked, yet a closer examination reveals their profound impact on their families and communities. Discover the remarkable stories of three Eolian women whose resilience and contributions were pivotal to their families’ success and their flourishing during Melbourne’s early days.
Presenter: Vince Lazzaro
Learn more about Vince
Vince Lazzaro is a descendant of Eolian grandparents on both sides of his family. The second eldest of 9 children, Vince is married with two children and 4 grandchildren.
His working career was at the Australian Bureau of Statistics, where he specialised in demographic and employment statistics as well as corporate strategies.
His role included being the media spokesperson.
In 2009, he received an Australia Day Citation “for extending and significantly improving the statistical information available for decision-making in Australia”.
Following retirement in 2011, he joined Hawthorn University of the Third Age where he is an active participant and session leader.
Vince has been learning Italian, travelling, and actively researching his Eolian history over recent years. He has been to Salina on 3 occasions and has compiled the book “Recollections – Le memorie di tre Donne Eoliane” so that his family, especially the younger members, would have an understanding of the special role women played in the family’s immigration experience, and their Eolian heritage.
Vince Lazzaro
A SAMPLE OF PREVIOUS TALKS AT OUR GENEALOGY SEMINARS
OUR PREVIOUS TOPICS
What does it mean to be an Aeolian-Australian?
Key Note Address by Janetta Ziino
Lipari 1610
What the 1610 census tells us about the Aeolian Islands.
Presented by Joe Russo
Using Official Records and Newspaper Fragments to Enhance Your Family Story
How to add to and enhance your family stories by searching through digitised records and newspaper archives.
Presented by Letizia Mondello
Introduction to Italian Military Records
Discover what Italian military records are available and the information you can find in them to help you learn more about your ancestors.
Presented by Michael Angelini
Writing a Life Story Book
Learn how to use simple methods and programs to compile your very own Life Storey Book with all the research you have collated about your ancestors or family.
Presented by Paulina Bird (Iacono)
The Influence of Sicilian Proverbs on Everyday Aeolian Speech
Sayings are repeated down through the generations because they apply to every age- people find resonance in the meanings they portray. Using the Aeolian dialect, look at how traditional Sicilian wisdom was received into Island life.
Presented by John Barnao
A Glimpse into the Museo Eoliano dell’Emigrazione
Tour through the museum collection of the Museo Eoliano dell’Emigrazione in Malfa, Salina.
Presented by Cristina Neri
Preserving the Past for the Future
Oral history: Recording your family memories for future generations.
Presenter: Janetta Ziino (Keynote Address)
Aeolian Surnames: A Linguistic and Historical Perspective
A closer look at the surnames of the Aeolian Islands as to their origin and how they might have changed over time.
Presenter: Joe Russo
The First Early Aeolian Migrants to America and Australia
What motivated them and what factors differentiated them from their Sicilian cousins? Discover the historical circumstances that forged the identities of the first Aeolian migrants that went on to establish flourishing communities in America and Australia.
Presenter: Cristina Neri
Hostility Against Italians During WW2 & the Service of Aeolian-Italians in the Australian Defence Force
The ‘alien’ Italian community in Australia had to endure a rocky road during WW2. While many Aeolians were in detention camps and their fruit shops forced to close, a number had family members serving in the Australian Army. This talk discusses these confronting times, including the local hostility against Italians that had already built up before the War began. As the only regional-Italian club in Melbourne at the time, how did the SIE survive and regroup at the end of hostilities?
Presenter: John Barnao
Using Online Sites to do Your Family Tree Research
Discover how Ancestry.com, Family Search.org, Genealogy Bank, USA Census Records, Ellis Island and Find a Grave can all complement your Family Tree research.
Presenter: Robert Mandile
Reading the 1960s Stati D’Anime (Status of Souls) Family Cards
Learn how to read the Stato D’Anime (Status of Souls) Family Cards created by the church and how they can help you with vital facts that you may be missing for those alive during the 1960s.
Presenter: Michael Angelini
Preserving the Past for the Future
Oral history: Recording your family memories for future generations.
Presenter: Janetta Ziino (Keynote Address)
Aeolian Surnames: A Linguistic and Historical Perspective
A closer look at the surnames of the Aeolian Islands as to their origin and how they might have changed over time.
Presenter: Joe Russo
The First Early Aeolian Migrants to America and Australia
What motivated them and what factors differentiated them from their Sicilian cousins? Discover the historical circumstances that forged the identities of the first Aeolian migrants that went on to establish flourishing communities in America and Australia.
Presenter: Cristina Neri
Hostility Against Italians During WW2 & the Service of Aeolian-Italians in the Australian Defence Force
The ‘alien’ Italian community in Australia had to endure a rocky road during WW2. While many Aeolians were in detention camps and their fruit shops forced to close, a number had family members serving in the Australian Army. This talk discusses these confronting times, including the local hostility against Italians that had already built up before the War began. As the only regional-Italian club in Melbourne at the time, how did the SIE survive and regroup at the end of hostilities?
Presenter: John Barnao
Using Online Sites to do Your Family Tree Research
Discover how Ancestry.com, Family Search.org, Genealogy Bank, USA Census Records, Ellis Island and Find a Grave can all complement your Family Tree research.
Presenter: Robert Mandile
Reading the 1960s Stati D’Anime (Status of Souls) Family Cards
Learn how to read the Stato D’Anime (Status of Souls) Family Cards created by the church and how they can help you with vital facts that you may be missing for those alive during the 1960s.
Presenter: Michael Angelini
Which Aeolian Islands Do You Think You Come From?
Researching the family of the Hon. James Merlino, MP, Deputy Premier of Victoria and Minister of Education and Patron to the Società Isole Eolie.
Presenter: Janetta Ziino
Research Strategies for Italian Family History
Several strategies to use to advance your Italian genealogical research.
Presenter Joe Russo
The History of the First Aeolian Migrations to Sydney and the Circolo Isole Eolie
Presenter: Cristina Neri
How to Access and Read Italian Records
Learn how to access online sources and read Italian Birth, Death and Marriage records to help you build your family tree.
Presenter: Michael Angelini
Speaking Aeolian in the Broader Italian Context
Presenting examples of the speech of traditional Aeolian migrants, John will discuss similarities to the Sicilian it closely resembles. Comparing differences with standard Italian, we can consider whether ‘Eoliano’ is separate enough to be almost a language in itself.
Presenter: John Barnao
The following are available to subscribe and watch for 90 days at Discovering My Aeolian Heritage
Nicknames “Soprannomi”
How our relative’s nicknames can assist in your family history research.
Presenter: Janetta Ziino
Aeolian Surnames
Examining the origin, meaning and evolution of Aeolian surnames and how this can help with your family research.
Presenter: Joe Russo
Finding distant cousins through DNA
Learn how taking an Ancestry DNA test can help you find long-lost cousins and break down those brick walls in your family tree.
Presenter: Michael Angelini
Five Centuries of Notable Travellers and Adventurers to the Aeolian Islands.
A discussion about bygone visitors and explorers, featuring an introduction to emerging research on 16th & 17th Century settlements by Jewish refugees after their departure from Spain & Portugal.
Presenter: John Barnao
Infant abandonment and the foundling wheel “La ruota” in Sicily
Analysing the rescue system and name-assignment practices of abandoned infants
Presenter: Dr. Lucia Barbera
Tips on how cemeteries can help us with our family tree
Exploring how gravestones can give clues to further help us in our family history research & understanding Italian cemeteries.
Presenter: Michael Angelini
Topic: How to get started on Aeolian Genealogy
From interviews with elderly relatives to sources like the Victorian Public Records Office, Australian National Archives, Sands and McDougall Directories, Cemeteries, Presbyteries, Ancestry.com and Ellis Island websites to kick start your family tree.
Presenter: Robert Mandile
A Tour of the Museum of Aeolian Emigration in Malfa, Salina
Join a virtual tour through the museum collection and discover the factors and events that shaped the Aeolian diaspora in the New World.
Presenter: Cristina Neri
In Search of the Original Aeolians
A genealogical history of the Aeolian Islands for the period after 1544.
Presenter: Joe Russo
I Figghi da Rota (The Children of the Wheel)
The history of abandoned children in Sicily.
Presenter: Dr Lucia Barbera
Researching Your Ancestors Online
Tips on how to use Antenati.it and Family Search.org to find Birth, Marriage and Death records.
Presenter: Michael Angelini
Using Sands and McDougall Directories to Find Addresses and Businesses
Presenter: Robert Mandile
Aspects of Aeolian-Run Fruit Businesses
Perspectives of working in the Fruit Shop. (Part 2)
Presenter: John Barnao
Lipari 1610: A Look at the Aeolian Islands from the Perspective of the Riveli Records
Examining those records for their value for us in researching our Aeolian ancestors.
Presented by Joe Russo
Finding Distant Cousins with DNA
Learn how an Ancestry DNA test can help you find long-lost cousins and break down those brick walls in your family tree.
Presented by Michael Angelini
Finding Family through Historic Property Records
An alternative way to trace family history and find missing or unknown members from the family tree via historic family property records.
Presented by: Robert Serra
The Era of Aeolian Fruit Shops in Melbourne
A pictorial history and the factors that influenced their rise and eventual decline when nearly every fruit shop was run by an Eoliano.
Presented by: John Barnao
Using the Sands and McDougall Directories to Find Your Family’s Business Address
Find out techniques for researching your family’s business address.
Presented by Robert Mandile
Family History Research Strategies
Presented by: Joe Russo
The Fruits of their Labours – A History of the Costa Family (Part II)
Presented by Kevin Costa
Researching Your Ancestors From the Isole Eolie
Presented by Michael Angelini
From the Aeolian Islands to Melbourne and Sydney (Part II)
Presented by: Robert Mandile
‘Cu, u e quannu’
Presented by Janetta Ziino
Aeolian: Dialect or Separate Language?
Presented by John Barnao
The Aeolian Dialect – A Brief Look at the Differences and Similarities to Sicilian and Neapolitan Dialects
Presented by: Rosmarie Taranto
Lena Santospirito – ‘La Mamma Degli Italiani Down-Under’
Presented by Cristina Neri
Italian Dialects Down-Under: A Richness to Preserve
Presented by Angela Tarantini
Reflections on Sicilian Dialects
Presented by Massimo Petterlin
Family & Friends, Food & Wine
Presented by: John Portelli (Entoteca Sileno)
When Our Ancestors Came to the Aeolian Islands
Presented by: Joe Russo
Bob Santamaria – A Retrospective
Presented by: Paul Santamaria QC
The Fruits of Their Labours – A History of the Costa Family
Presented by: Kevin Costa
The Aeolian Dialect – A Brief Look at the Differences and Similarities to the Regional Dialect Sicilian, and the Neapolitan Dialect
Presented by: Rosemarie Taranto
The End of the Era of Abundance in the Aeolian Islands and the Role of the Società Isole Eolie in Channelling Migration to Australia
Presented by: John Barnao
A Genealogical History of the Aeolian Islands Post 1544
Which surnames might have been on the islands pre-1544, Where did the inhabitants come from post-1544, Populating the archipelago during the 1600-1800s, Is it possible to trace one’s ancestry back to when they first arrived on Isole Eolie?
Presented by: Joe Russo
Delving into the Records
What to expect, Accuracy, shortcomings, idiosyncrasies and pitfalls, Problem-solving when records don’t match
Presented by Joe Russo
Getting Started with Aeolian Genealogy & Exploring Online Options
Where to start & How to record your family tree, Who, What and Where to search for Documents and certificates.
Presented by: Robert Mandile
Guided Cemetery Walk
Taken By John Barnao
