DeMato
An Italian surname most often understood as meaning “of Matthew” or “from the place of Mato/Mattia.”
The #5,144 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 45,377 Americans shares it.
Etymology
D'Amato and DeMato are Italian surname forms built with the preposition d' / de, meaning “of” or “from.” In many cases the name is explained as a patronymic from the personal name Matteo, the Italian form of Matthew, ultimately from Latin Matthaeus and Hebrew Mattityahu, “gift of God.” In some families it may also reflect a local place-name or a shortened regional form, so the exact pathway can vary by branch.
History
The surname is Italian in origin and is especially associated with southern Italy, where surname forms using d', de, and di are very common. It was carried to the Americas in large numbers during 19th- and early-20th-century Italian migration, which accounts for its presence in the United States today. Spelling may be fused as D'Amato or normalized as DeMato in English-language records.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Because apostrophes were often dropped in records, the same family line may appear as D'Amato, Damato, or DeMato in different documents.