Nicola Marchiano Birth Record

I have always heard the story that my great-grandfather, Nicola Marchiano, was born in Albania. The story goes that his parents were killed and he, at a young age, maybe around 5, was sent to Italy for his protection. In Italy he was raised by a farming family - he may have lived on the same farm as his future wife. I have always been fascinated  by this tale and longed to confirm this story with some sort of record or document.

Several years ago, I was given a copy of his marriage certificate and on this document was the name of the town San Demetrio Corone, which led me to explore Italian records for that town. Fortunately, many of the birth records for San Demetrio Corone and surrounding franziones, are available to view on the internet for free.  I found the birth records of my great-grandmother Francesca Mangano and her twin sister (See previous post). I decided to keep looking through the records to see if I could find any other family members, and I came across the birth record for Nicola Marchiano. It is the birth record of my great-grandfather. I was surprised to see this because I thought he was born in Albania.

Here is an image of the record.

Nicola Marchiano was born on February 18, 1886 in Macchia Albanese, Cosenza, Italy. He was born at #10 Via Suliotta. (I wonder if th

 I do not speak or read much Italian, however, as time has gone on I have become accustomed to looking at Italian Vital Records and now know about where to look for certain information.  I also joined a local Italian Genealogical Society, which led me to some great online groups whose members assist with some of the translation of records. 

This birth record is from the town of Macchia Albanese, in the commune of San Demetrio Corone in the Cosenza region of Italy. It is a town that has a large population of ethnic Albanians and in fact, many of the residents speak both Italian and Arberesche - a form of Albanian that was widely spoken in the 14th century. Many Albanians fled here to escape the rule of the Ottoman Empire and forced adoption of Islam. 

This record has a note written on the side, which I was hoping could lead to clues about our Albanian heritage.  Here is what I have found. Nicola's father's name is listed as Scanderbek Marchiano. His father was 37 and a farmer. His mother's name was Angela Maria Samarra.  The first thing that struck me was the name Scanderbek. I studied linguistics and this is certainly not an Italian sounding name. I also have read several books on Albanian history and recalled that name.

Skanderbeg is an Albanian National Hero. Skanderbeg is a Albanian form of the title, Alexander the Great, and was given to Gjerj Kastrioti. Skanderbeg was a 15th Century Nobleman and Warrior.

Skanderbeg's military skills presented a major obstacle to Ottoman expansion, and he was considered by many in western Europe to be a model of Christian resistance against the Ottoman Muslims.

This story sounded very familiar. I now wonder, if Albanian national stories were shared down through the generations and somehow we believed it was a personal narrative? My other thought is that perhaps Nicola's father is the one whose parents were killed and who fled to Italy?? My next quest is to try to find records pertaining to Scanderbek Marchiano.

The  note on the side of the birth record is a side note added in 1897. It states that the father's name had been changed from Scanderbek to Carlo Alberto, which matches the name on the Marriage Certificate.  Nothing on this birth record suggests that these names are not his natural parents or that Nicola was born in Albania.  One of the people who helped me with the translations had this to say:

Translation: Following the ruling of that court of 18 October 1897 the undersigned father's name was adjusted so as to read "of Carlo Alberto" instead "of Scandebergh"

P.S .: The family is surely of Albanian origin. The name Scandeberh (or Scandebergh or even Scanneberg) is widely used in Albania because it recalls a famous national hero. All this was part of Albanian emigrants' Italianisation process in Italy.

I have not obtained a word for word translation of the entire document, however, I believe I have the vital information. I did submit a request for a quote from a translator. If she gets back to me, I will let you know how it goes.

I look forward to hearing your thoughts. -Nicole