1483: The Notary Antonello Jacobi de Accettella
On 20 June 1483, Antonello Jacobi de Accettella served as notary public in Gessopalena. This is the earliest known reference to the family. Although their name does not appear in the 1447 fuochi census, their civic presence is firmly documented only a few decades later.
Key Excerpt (English Translation)
“On the 20th of June 1483, at the castle of Gessopalena, I, Antonello Jacobi de Accettella of Gessopalena, notary public, recorded this act…”
Source
doc. 5/a, da Archivia Coelstinorum, II, 206, Archivio di Stato di Roma.
Photographed/cited by Matthew de Larcinese, Roma, 2017.
1584: Alliance with the Caporno Family of Altino
In March 1584, in the Borgo Vecchio of Lanciano, Magister Fernando Caporno of Altino and Magister Animo (Arimio) Accettella of Gessopalena entered into a contract concerning lands in Altino, bounded by the Rivers Sangro and Aventino. The act also involved Magdalena and Dionisio de Marino of Altino, and describes vineyards, trees, and cultivated land with obligations in ducats.
Key Excerpt (English Translation)
“…in the territory of Altino, near the River Sangro and the River Aventino, with trees, vines, lands, and all their appurtenances, the parties promise and agree to uphold and perpetually maintain this contract for themselves and their heirs.”
Source
Claudio Paglione, Protocolli Notarili dal Notaio Claudio Paglione, dall’anno 1580 al 1592, Volume I.
Collection A-101, Archivio di Stato di Lanciano (Viale Cappuccini). Photo by Matthew de Larcinese
1602: A Baptism with Orsini Nobility
On 8 March 1602, Giovanni Tommaso, son of Giovanni Nicola Accettella and Vittoria Pellicciotta, was baptized in San Valentino. The rite was performed by Don Leonardo Garafana, Archpriest of Roccascalegna, rather than the local clergy. The godmothers were Lionara Papa Orsini and the wife of Signor Claudio Orsini, members of one of the most powerful aristocratic families of Rome and Abruzzo.
Key Excerpt (English Translation)
“On the 8th of March 1602, Giovanni Tommaso, son of Giovanni Nicola Accettella and Madonna Vittoria Pellicciotta, was baptized. The baptism was celebrated by Don Leonardo Garafana, Archpriest of Roccascalegna. The godmothers were Lady Lionara Papa Orsini and the wife of Signor Claudio Orsini.”
Source
Parrocchio di San Valentino Martire, Battezzati dall’anno 1598 all’anno 1652, Chiesa Santa Maria Raccomandati, Gessopalena (Abruzzo).
Entry p. 28. Photograph by Matthew de Larcinese.
On the Origins of the Accettella Surname
The origins of the surname Accettella remain open to interpretation. Linguistically, the name could derive from the Italian accetta (“hatchet, axe”), making it a classic occupational surname associated with woodcutters, carpenters, or those who worked in forestry. In Abruzzo, such names often reflect both trade and the natural environment, and their persistence across centuries suggests an enduring family identity tied to craft or land use.
A working hypothesis places the surname within the monastic economy of medieval Gessopalena and the surrounding valleys. The Benedictine and later Celestine monasteries managed large tracts of woodland, farmland, and mills. Families connected to these institutions often acquired surnames based on their occupational role in maintaining the lands, cutting timber, or supplying the monasteries. The presence of early Accettella notaries and their integration into civic structures may represent a “leftover” occupational identity — one that outlived its original function but remained attached to the family name.
The most straightforward interpretation of the surname Accettella is linked to the accetta (hatchet/axe), an essential tool for both woodcutting and daily agrarian life. While the name could simply indicate those who felled timber, another compelling hypothesis is that the family were originally smiths who forged hatchets and other iron tools.
This interpretation is supported by parallels with the Langone family of Sasso di Castalda, Basilicata (southern Italy), historically documented as accettare — axe-makers and blacksmiths. In medieval and early modern Italy, such occupational surnames often reflected a family’s specialized craft, whether in forging agricultural blades, carpentry tools, or weapons.
If this hypothesis is correct, the Accettella name reflects not only an association with the monastic woodland economy of Abruzzo as woodcutters, but also a role as craftsmen producing the very tools essential for agrarian and ecclesiastical life.
Document IV — 1579: A Vineyard Sale in Lanciano
On 23 June 1579, in Lanciano, an important notarial act was recorded by Primiano Cesare. In this contract, Bernus (Bernardus) Prosperii de Giuliano sold a vineyard to Magister Arimo de Acceptella of Gessopalena. The vineyard was located in a district called Capus Millianii and was carefully defined by its neighboring boundaries: lands of Giulioni on one side and of Mattucio on another. The explicit mention of the vineyard (vineum) and its boundaries shows the Accettella family’s role as landowners and investors, extending their presence beyond Gessopalena into Lanciano’s economic orbit.
Key Excerpt (English Translation)
“On the 23rd of June 1579, in the city of Lanciano, before me, Primiano Cesare, notary, appeared Bernus, son of Prospero de Giuliano, acting of his own will, and Magister Arimo de Acceptella of Gesso. The said Bernus freely and willingly sold to Arimo a certain vineyard belonging to him, situated in the place called Capus Millianii, bounded on one side by the lands of Giulioni, and on the other side by the land of Mattucio, together with all rights and appurtenances.”
Key Figures Named
Bernus Prosperii de Giuliano (seller)
Mag. Arimo de Acceptella de Gesso (buyer)
Capus Millianii (location of the vineyard)
Giulioni (boundary neighbor)
Mattucio (boundary neighbor)
Source
Notarial act of Primiano Cesare, 1579. Archivio di Stato di Lanciano.
Photograph by Matthew de Larcinese, 2012.
Further Records and Benedictine Connections
Beyond the three foundational documents presented here, the Accettella appear in over a dozen acts recorded in the notarial books of Claudio Paglione (1580–1608). These references include multiple family members — Anchise, Arimio, Giacomo, Giovanni Antonio, Cornelia, Berardina, Olimpia, and Vittoria Accettella — showing a wide and multi-generational presence across Gessopalena and its neighboring territories.
The frequency of their appearance in legal contracts and land transactions suggests that the family’s landholdings were significant. Given Gessopalena’s history as Benedictine terrain, it is possible that these holdings represent an early tie to monastic property or administration, inherited or managed through ecclesiastical networks. This would further explain the family’s rapid ascent from civic notaries to noble and aristocratic circles by the early 17th century.
