The noble families of Split (Spalato) until the end of the 15th century

Key events in the history of late medieval Split relevant to the problems of genealogical research:

- The 'closing' of the city's Great Council that reserved the office of the council-ship for those individuals whose grandfathers or fathers had previously been councilmen. This act brought forth a greater detail of ancestry in the local documents that now meticulously began noting the names of one's father and, occasionally, one's grandfather, unlike the sources from the earlier period when individuals were often recorded with only their first name and, often, with a nickname that could, sometimes, be hereditary.

- The outbreak of the Black Death in 1348 that had decimated the population, killing, most notably, the archbishop Dominicus Lucari (Dominik Lukari) and which eventually brought forth the reduction in the minimum age requirements for various municipal duties, most notably the age requirement for council men.

- The rebellion of 1398 during which the rich merchants, foreigners (particularly Italian merchants) and a part of the nobility barred from the duty of the municipal judges which was reserved only for those individuals whose grandfathers of fathers had previously been judges.

- The war between Sigismund of Hungary and Ladislaus of Naples over the latter's claim over the crown of Hungary which in the context of Split, was connected to the rebellion of 1398 that divided the local elites into two camps and brought forth much civil strife over the early years of the fifteenth century.

- The takeover of Split and much of Dalmatia by the Venetian Republic in 1420.

- The Ottoman conquest of the Kingdom of Bosnia in 1463 that was the prelude to the so-called Hundred Years' Croatian–Ottoman War that brought the first great depopulation of the Dalmatian hinterland and greatly diminished the local economy.

The list of noble families from Split in the medieval period (bef. c. 1500):

The great houses of Split which kept the right to judge duty before the uprising of 1398

Alberti (de Albertis, degli Alberti)

The first member of the Alberti family that can be traced in the sources is a certain Theodosius (CD 3, 265-7) who is probably the same person to have been killed in the conflict between the citizens of Split and the Hungarian forces in 1243 (Thomas the Archdeacon, 314-5). The family is well documented in the notarial records from the times of Theodosius' grandson Albertus Janci Theodosi (Albert Jankov Teodozijev) who had probably inspired the family's later surname that first appears in 1383 when it was taken up by Duimus Teodosi Alberti (Dujam Teodozijev Alberti) (BD 11 ,125). The family's most notable member was Jancius Nichole Alberti (Janko Nikolin Alberti) who was the uncle of Marcus Maruli (Marko Marulić), but whose military career in the Venetian wars with the Ottomans brought him the title of the knight (spectabilis eques) and significant wealth. It is now thought that Jancius Alberti was the original owner of the Great Papalić Palace that he, dying without heirs, in his final will and testament bestowed to the son of his brother-in-law Petrus Dominici Papali (Petar Dmine Papalić). In the fourteenth century the members of the Alberti family were recorded as living in the quarter of St Martin/Peter (in the northern half of Diocletian's palace). The family was one of the few families whose members were originally eligible to serve as municipal judges before the uprising of 1398.

Caripeo (Carepich)

The first member of the Caripeo (Karepić) family was Doimus Bertani who had been elected judge at least 13 times -- certainly in the upper echelon of the documented list of Split judges. Since no trace of his presumed father Bertanus has been found in Split notarial records, it has been sugested that the family of Doimus Bertani originated from nearby Trogir where an individual by the name Bertanus Marini Ruse has been documented on several occasions from 12467 to 1271 together with a single reference to his father Marinus Ruse in 1245. Since the first reference of Duimus Bertani in Split dates to 1323, it is clear that he or his family had moved to Split somewhere in the period between 1271 and 1323, perhaps as late as c. 1322 when an uprising in Trogir led to the change of local government. The legal branch of the Caripeo family died out with the death of Nicholas Iohannis Duimi (Nikola Ivana Dujma), but was continued through his illegal offspring Michael Carepich (Mihovil Karepić). In the fourteenth century, Doimus Bertani resided in the quarter of St Domnius (the southern half of the Diocletian's palace). The family was eligible for judge duty before 1398, although its member Nicholas Iohannis Duimi (Nikola Ivana Dujma) joined the rebels.

Cindro (Cindre, Cindri, de Cindris, Cindrich)

The first member of the Cindro family was a certain Iohannes Cindri (Ivan Cindro) that appears in the notarial records as early as 1240. It is assumed that the appellative Cindro first appeared as his personal nickname. Though uncertain, Nepo Kuzmanić has attempted to draw the lineage of Iohannes Cindri to Doimus Formini and Forminus Contantini (*), but such an identification should be treated carefully. The descandants of the family participated in the political life of Split's commune, particularly Laurentius Nichole who appears to be one of town's most prominent men in the period after the Black Plague of 1348. The appellative De Cindris first appeared in 1385 with Nicola Marini Laurentii de Cindris (CD 16, 530). The family would sometimes use the surname Maricich, either on its own or together with Cindro, as an obvious reference to the above mentioned Laurentius' son Marinus Laurentii. Since the members of the Cindro family occupied important political positions in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, but had a surprisingly small number of members in the early period, it is possible that they have been somehow related to one of the other families of medieval Split. The exact etymology of the family name has not been sufficiently explained and the fact that the CIndro coat of arms bears an image of the fox might suggest that it originally referenced the now-obscured connection to the Bulpicella (=Vulpicella from lat. Vulpeculla - (a small) Fox; Lisica) family. The family was recorded to be living in the quarter of St Martin (the northern half of Diocletian's palace) in the fourteenth century and has had the eligibility to serve as municipal judges before the uprising of 1398.

De Ciprianis (Cipriani)-> cadet branch: De Bilsa

De Ciprianis family were one of the leading local families in the medieval period who have continusly produced civic leaders for over two centuries (from c. 1200-1400). The genealogy of the family was first reconstructed by Mladen Ančić (see Ančić, Ser Ciprijan Zaninov). The lineage of the family goes back to a certain Leonardus Micheli that first appears in 1227 and which could be synonymous with Leonardus Caval mentioned by Thomas the Archedeacon as one of the civic leaders captured in the conflict with count Domaldus in 1225. Though the family has produced a number of important political figures, the attention that Ciprianus Zanini de Ciprianis has received makes him the most well known member of the family. Known to have visited the royal court of King Tvrtko of Bosnia and later on taking the role of the podesta of Korčula, Ciprianus de Ciprianis is best known for the refurbishment of his family home: the Cipriani palace in the southeastern corner of the Pjaca Square. The main branch of the family would die with Ciprianus' son Antonius, but the family would continue with the cadet branch of Bilsa Cipriani whose heirs would sometimes take up the surname De Bilsa (Bilišić). The Bilsa branch also died out in 1523. The surname De Ciprianis first appeared in 1385 (Cipriano Zanini de Ciprianis), while De Bilsa was first recorded in 1446 (Marinus Micheli de Bilsa). As the family's last name developed from a personal name of their prominent ancestor Ciprianus Petri Leonardi, it is highly unlikely that the family shares common ancestry with the Zadar and Trogir families of the same name. The family was one of the few families eligible for judge duty before the uprising of 1398.

Geremia (Hieremia, Jeremija)

Geremia family of Split is one of the few families whose lineage is traceable as far as the early twelfth cenutry when a certain Vulcina Pilosus (Vučina Dlakavi) is noted as a tribune in c. 1150. Another notable member of the family was Vulcina's grandson Stephanus Cacetta (with Cacetta being a nickname, i.e. cazzetta - small house), who was earned a mention on a couple of occasions in the famous chronicle of Thomas the Archdeacon as one of the civic leaders. Another [Vulcina Srechia Geremia , the grandson of Stephanus Cacetta, was the ancestor of the branch of the family that would continue to thrive for another half a millenium, only dying out in 1888. In the thirteenth century, the descendants of Vulcina (the younger) would begin using the surname Chuculi/de Chiuchiulis (dalm. kučak - ital. cuciolo = a dog, cf. hrv. vuk, vučina, kurjak = wolf). Despite the surname Chiuchiulis later being displaced by Geremia, the family coat of arms with the depiction of a wolf is in line with this older tradition.

Madii (De Madiis) -> cadet branches: 'Drago', Cipci

De Madiis family are the main branch of one of the most powerful local families whose secondary branches developed into Cipci (not to be confused with the Cippico family of Trogir who might have served as an inspiration for the family name) and the hypothetical 'Drago' families. The family's origins might possibly lead all the way up to 1080 when a certain Madius Barbazani was mentioned (CD 1, 174), which has certainly inspired the chronicler Michoy Madii Miche (Miha Madijev Mihin) to take up the name De Barbazanis, which had not find use with the other members of his family. The first member of the Madii family that whose lineage we can trace in the sources is a certain nobleman of Split by the name of Madius and his brother Michoi and son Stephen (CD 3, 265-7). The main branch of the family had a peculiar tradition to alternate between the names of Madius and Michoi between the first born sons that had generated several generations of persons with the same name combinations. The family's most prominent member, apart from the above mentioned chronicler Michoy Madii, was a certain Michoy Madii Jorre (Miha Madijev Jorin), active between c. 1239-70, which held the position of a judge a very high eleven times and was also the man who had accompanied the famous Thomas the Archdeacon on a journey to Ancona to bring to Split Garganus de Arscindis (Gargan de Arscindis), the first podestà of the reformed commune. The surname De Madiis first appears in the sources only in 1435, when a certain Marinus Andree de Madiis (Marin Andrije De Madiis) is recorded. In the fourteenth century the members of the De Madiis family were recorded as living in the quarter of St Domnius (the southern half of the Diocletian's palace). The family was one of the few families whose members were originally eligible to serve as municipal judges before the uprising of 1398. The family's main branch is thought to have been extinct in 1554.

• Drago (hypothetical cadet branch of De Madiis)
• Drago is a hypothetical cadet branch of De Madiis family which did not reproduce a surname, but whose members played important roles in the Split politics of the thirteenth and fourteenth century. Kuzmanić had named them after a certain Dragus Stephani Madii who was recorded in the notarial records with the appellative Magnus. The family's most prominent member Thomas Dobruli Junii, who had been identified by the rebels of 1398 as the main representative of the 'old' nobility and was subsequently murdered. As Thomas Dobruli did not have male heirs, the male branch died out with him. The family should not be confused with the Dragišić (De Caris) family. Like De Madiis and Cipci families, the members of 'Drago' branch are recorded to be residing in the quarter of St Domnius (the southern half of the Diocletian's palace). The family belonged to the group of families whose members were eligible for judge duty before the uprising of 1398.

Cipci (De Cipcis)

Though sometimes incorrectly confused with the Trogir Cippico family, the Cipci family of Split is now thought to be descended from Albertus Madii Miche (Albert Madija Mihina), first mentioned in 1300 (CD 7, 374) and, as such, to be directly descended from De Madiis family. The surname of Cipci was first recorded in 1487 when a certain ser Nicola de Alberto De Cipcis de Spaleto (ser Nikola Albertov Cipci) is recorded. The etymology of the surname is currently unknown, though Nepo Kuzmanić has speculated that it might have been created after the name of Trogir's Cippico family following the events of the rebellion of 1398-1402 when most of Split's most prominent noble families found themselves exiled in Trogir. In the fourteenth century, the members of the Cipci family are recorded in the quarter of St Domnius (the southern part of Diocletian's palace), where the great palace of the family stands to this day. The family was one of the few families whose members were originally eligible to serve as municipal judges before the uprising of 1398, though it seems that the main branch of De Madiis family remained consistently more influential in the late medieval period than their cadet branch that would form the Cipci family.

Grecini/Macolich (Macolić)

The Grecini/Macolich family were an old Spalatin noble family that has received little attention in scholarship. The family's first recognisable member was a certain Madius who had he nickname Grecine that would be picked up by his son Dobre as well. The family apparently had the right to be elected as judges and have done so throughout the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. Peculiarly, the family had the same name combination scheme like De Madiis family which included alternating the names Michoy and Madius for first born sons between generations. Since the family was known to be based in the quarter of the Holy Spirit (the northern part of the 'New Town'), which is usually associated with artisans and cadet branches of the old aristocratic families, it remains a mystery whether the family descended from a currently unknown cadet branch of De Madiis family. The Grecini had a cadet branch of their own, via Madius Dobre Madii whose descendants took up a patronymic Macolich (Maco, Mazo=Madius). The cadet branch would continue living in the same quarter (sometimes noted as St Mary de Taurello). This branch too kept the right to act as judges and the family's member Michael Nicole Mazzalich was one of the nobles forced to take refuge in Trogir following the rebellion of 1398. The family apparently disappears from the sources after 1449 and remains probably the most cryptic of the families belonging to the upper echelon of Spalatin nobility.

Grisogono (Chrysogonos)

The first member of Grisogono family identified in the sources is a certain Pervosclaus Franscisci (Prvoslav Franjin) that appears to be active in the second quarter of the thirteenth century. On the basis of his geneological research, Nepo Kuzmanić has proposed an extension of the lineage of the Grisogono family through Pervoslavus back to his great grandfather Grisogonus who must have been known to the family as early as 1402 when the surname Grisogono was first used. Apart from Pervoslavus Francesci, the most prominent family member of the medieval period was Laurentius Iohannis who served as the rector of Split from 1416-20, and who secured the continuation of the works on the bell tower of St Domnius. In the fourteenth century the family was recorded in the quarter of St Martin (i.e. St Peter) (in the northern half of Diocletian's palace. The family was one of the selected few that reserved the right to act as judges before the rebellion of 1398.

Petrarche (Petrarchis)-> cadet branch: Comuli

Petrarche family were one of the most prominent families of medieval Split, but a great deal of confusion had been created in older Croatian historiography relating to the family history and subsequent development which had led to great deal of confusion. The family's most well-known member was Petrus Petrarchis (Petar Petrarkin) who is present in the sources around the year c. 1300 and who's house-tower is mentioned in the Statute of Split in 1312. The description in the Statute makes it clear that the house-tower was, in fact, the southeastern tower of Diocletian's palace that was destroyed in c. 1424 together with other buildings on today's Voćni Trg (including the first nunnery of St Claire) in order to make way for the construction of the Venetian castle that was to house the Venetian troops following the conquest of Dalmatia in 1420. The same tower of Petrus Petrarchis is the tower depicted in the coat of arms of the family Petrarche as well as their cadet branch Comuli. The surname Comuli, that came to be used by a cadet branch of the family, was exclusively associated only with the descendants of Comulus Vitacii Petrarche who lived in the fifteenth century and whose descandants Ivan, Alexandar and Komul, sons of Andrija, moved to Trogir where they were accepted to the ranks of Trogir nobility in 1658. In the fourteenth century we find the family in the quarter of St Claire and they held the right to act as judges before the rebellion of 1398.

The lesser houses that had the right to participate in the Great Council, but were barred from judge duty

Berini / De Judicibus (Berini, De Judicibus, Giudici, Sucich)

Berini family was thought to have originated from Paul Berini (Pavao Berinov/Paulus Berini), who appears quite often in the sources from the second half of the fourteenth century. But the publication of the notarial records of John son of Cove covering the years 1341-44 revealed a potential origin of the family. There a pair of brothers by the name of Berinus and Bogodanus are often recorded as actors of land purchases, witnesses or businessmen. They are consistently marked as descendants of a Peter of Omiš (Petrus Bogodani olim de Almisio) and as such would suggest that the family first moved to Split sometimes in the second quarter of the fourteenth century. A hundred years later, in the second half of the fifteenth century, the descandants of Paulus Berini would begin using the surname De Judicibus, though historiography strongly holds that they were not related to the enigmatic bishop Duimus de Judicibus.

Bonazunta/Gaudii

The Bonazunta/Gaudi family were a noble Spalatin family whose lineage goes quite back in time, perhaps as early as the twelfth century. The family appears to first have been associated with the Bonazunte nickname that was ascribed to a certain Gaudius who was, in all likelihood, Gaudius Iohannis. Later generations would often keep the patronymic Gaudii as a reference to their (great)grandfather, though the usage can not be described as a surname in the full sense of the word. Though it is known that a certain Marinus Gaudii held the judge duty in 1277, since the family members of the fourteenth century where not his descandants, it seems that they have not possessed the right to act as judges, which has caused them to join the side of the rebels in the 1398 uprising. In fact, the family's last known secular member, Franciscus Silvestri, was highlighted by Jadertine historian Paulus de Paulo as one of the ringleaders of the uprising, who had also singled him out as one of the two "real" nobles (the other being Dessa Jacobi of De Cutheis family) involved in the plot. The family appears to have disappeared from local sources after 1406. Its position within the Spalatin noble society and its possible familial connections to other known aristocratic families are still largely unknown and poorly understood.

Silvestri/Polnosevich (Punošević, Deodati)

Silvestri/Polnosevich family were a noble Spalatin family which initially enjoyed a lesser statues in the commune, as they had no right to act as judges before the rebellion of 1398. Because of their political position, at least some members of the family are known to have participated in the uprising on the side of the rebels. The family is known under two names, which can cause some degree of confusion in the scholarship. The earlier generations of the family in the fourteenth century are often referred to as Silvestri due to a reference to their renowned ancestor who lived in the thirteenth century. The subsequent generations, particulary the one involved in the uprising of 1398, began using the nickname Polnosevich. Finally, the descendants of Deodatus Iohannis in the fifteenth century are often found without any of the older surnames, preferring to use just the patronymic Deodati. It is currently thought that the legal branch of the family had died out with the Xarco Deodati Polnosevich (Žarko Deodatov Polnošević) in the early sixteenth century. The family name would be continued in the illegal branch of the family.

The families that were subsequently accepted into Spalatine nobility before c. 1500

De Chrancho (De Chranchi, De Cranchis, Crancovich, Hranković, Kranković)

De Chrancho (Hranković) were a noble family which originated from the island of Brač, first known to have lived in the now-lost settlement of Gradac. The descendants of a certain Michael de Chrancho were accepted into the ranks of Spalatin nobility in 1444. The first members of the family to be recorded in Split were brothers Thomas and Benedict de Chrancho. The first currently known member of the family to act as a judge in Split was Jacob son of Benedict (Jacobus Benedicti de Chrancho) in 1494, who was apparently married to the daughter of Battista Augubio (Iohannes Baptista de Augubio).

Greco

The so-called 'Greco' family appears in the sources of the mid fifteenth century. Its founding member was a Greek from Thessaloniki by the name of Emmanuel Demetrii who appears in some sources with the appellative Greco, while in others with the appellative de Salonicci (i.e. Thessaloniki) Emmanuel was accepted in the nobility of Split sometimes in the middle of the fifteenth century and he was elected judge already in 1461. His quick rise to the highest statues in the commune was presumably factored by his yet unidentified family in the brief Venetian period of rule in Thessaloniki between 1423 and 1430 after which the the city fell to the Ottoman rule.

The commoner families of medieval Split

The families that were founded by foreigners who settled in Split

Augubio (De Augubio, De Gubbio, Daugubio, Dagubio)

Augubio family in Split had descended from Iohannes Baptista (Ivan Battista, i.e. Ivan Krstitelj) from the town Gubbio in Umbria, who first appears in Split's notarial records in 1435, so it has been concluded that he must have come to the town a few years before, c. 1430. He was married to a woman from the Berini family (later De Judicibus). He was a wealthy trader who owned several properties throughout the town, including the remarkable late gothic palace known today as the Augubio Palace. Battista Augubio received citizenship in 1439, but he and his descandants were never accepted into the ranks of the local nobility and as such were barred from performing most political roles in the town.

Cambi

In 1412, the notarial records show that a certain Franciscus Cambi from Florence was allowed to settle in Split. He would be granted the status of a citizen just a year later. Like most of the foreigners of Italian background who settled in Split, Franciscus was a merchant involved in various trading partnerships. His descendants would be accepted in the Great Council of Split in 1671. The family lives in the city to this day.

Meraviglia

In the years following the conquest of Dalmatia by Venice, a merchant Ventura Meraviglia moved to Split, presumably in the late 1420s. The first written evidence of his presence dates to 1429. He had a long and successful career, trading in goods from Bosnia. Since the coat of arms at the Palace near the Golden Gates (Palača kod Zlatnih vrata) matches the known coat of arms of the Meraviglia branches of Italy, and since notarial records shows that Ventura's home was near the church of St Martin, it is now assumed that the aforementioned palace was in fact owned by Ventura Meraviglia. No known male descendants of Ventura are currently known, while his daughter was married to a member of the Cambi family.

(Famous) individuals that can't be put into families

Thomas the Archdeacon (Toma Arhiđakon), Bishop Duimus de Judicibus, Baldassare de Colombis (Venetian trader).

Cited sources:
CD=Codex Diplomaticus regni Croatiae, Dalmatiae et Slavoniae
BD=Bulletino di archeologia e storia dalmata
TA=Thomas the Archdeacon (Toma Arhiđakon) = History of the Bishops of Salona and Split. (ed. Damir Karbić, Mirjana Matijević-Sokol, and James Ross Sweeney). Budapest: Central European University Press, 2006)