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Italian children normally receive one or two given names.
Italian babies are frequently named after family members, Roman Catholic saints including local patron saints and other biblical figures. Traditionally, the first born son was named after the father's father, the first daughter after the father's mother, the second son after the mother's father, and the second daughter after the mother's mother. Some Italians still follow this custom today.
Many Italian male given names end in -o or -e while female names often end in -a and -e.
Nicknames may be formed for almost any name by adding a variety of suffexes including -ino/-ina, -etto/-etta, -ello/-ella, -uccio/-uccia, -uzzo/-uzza. These endings can the be used for example to turn Paola to Paoletta and Donato into Donatello.
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