- Pace (surname)
Pace is a
surname in both Italian and English. In addition to being found inItaly andEngland , it is also found in Germany, is very common inMalta , and can be found among Italian and Britishimmigrants in places like theUnited States .The Pace family are prominent in (particularly)Malta and inSicily . They held ancient fiefdoms in both countries.While pronunciation varies according to one's linguistic heritage, the two most common variants are the English "Pace", rhyming with "race", and the Italian "PAH-chay".
Origin
There are at least two independent origins of the
name Pace, one in Italy and the other in England. Maltese Paces can ultimately trace their name back to Italy while German Paces can ultimately trace their name back to England.Italy
Both the Italian and the English surnames share the same
Latin root: the Latin word for peace "pax". Specifically, "pace" is theablative declension of "pax" in Latin, which in Classical Latin would be pronounced "PAH-kah". The word sees popular usage in Ecclesiastical Latin, which today as in the Middle Ages pronounces it in the Italian manner. "Pace" remains the word for "peace" in Modern Italian.The Italian Pace is believed to be
patronymic , meaning that those with the surname Pace are the descendants of a man with afirst name of Pace. Early bearers of this surname would have been bestowed with it because of their calm or reputation aspeacemakers , or to those who spread peace in areligious sense. The first references to the surname Pace occur in the 6th and 7th centuries in the forms of "Pace", "Pacius", "Pacinus", and "Pax".Today the surname Pace [http://www.gens.labo.net/it/cognomi/genera.html?cognome=PACE&t=cognomi is concentrated] in various
regions of Italy and is found all over Italy, especially inRomagna ,Tuscany ,Marche ,Umbria ,Latium and southernSicily . In certain places likePratola Peligna inL'Aquila ,Abruzzo , virtually everyone has arelative with the surname Pace and it can take up pages in thephonebook .The Maltese line of the name comes thanks to the strong Italian influence on that nation. Especially important was the period after
October 5 ,1350 , when Malta was incorporated directly under theKingdom of Sicily , expanding the number of greatly in Malta. In Malta, the surname is sometimes pronounced as in Italian but other times an abridged form, "PAH-ch", is used.England
It is generally accepted that the surname Pace was brought during the
Norman Conquest of the Eleventh Century from a French village called Pacy sur Eure. A Norman knight, presumably William de Pacy (who held a castle in Pacy sur Eure), founded a hamlet in Warwickshire known today as Newbold Pacey. The name evolved greatly in England, as is evidenced by the fact that there are at least ten known variants of howRichard Pace was referenced in the Sixteenth Century.Germany
Pace as a name does not exist in Germany. German Pace lines are the result of changing a somewhat similar name to Pace after emigrating from Germany to English-speaking countries; the German name "paß" is the most likely culprit, although some claim to have found evidence suggesting that it was in fact "Päez". It is interesting to note that the German verb "paßen" means "to pace".
Famous Paces
Italian
*
Giulio Pace in 16th and 17th centuries was aprofessor at theuniversities of Genoa, Heidelberg and Valencia and played an important role in spreading the surname throughout Italy.
* The Pace family ofUdine were ennobled in 1658, receiving thetitle ofcount .
* Michael pace, professional drummer and master of the way of the nunchakuMaltese
*
Claudette Pace , Singer/Song Writer
*Jamie Pace , International footballer
*Laurie Pace , Female Judo Olympian
*Frans Pace , Olympic double trap shooter
*Beppe Pace , Valletta FC Footballer
*Rita Pace , Singer
*Sir. Mgr Sir Pietro Pace , Archbishop of Rhodes, Bishop of Malta, hailing from Gozo, he was responsible for naming the capital of Gozo "Victoria"outh African
*
Carle Pace , World Masters Athletics Record BreakerBrazilian
*
José Carlos Pace , Formula 1 pilotUnited Kingdom
*
Norman Pace , Actor/Comedian
*Richard Pace , Sixteenth-Century Dean of St Paul's Cathedral and Secretary of State under Henry VIIIAmerican
*
Darrell Pace , Double Olympic Archery Gold Medalist
*Lee Pace , Actor
*Orlando Pace , St Louis Rams NFL Star
*Peter Pace , Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, of Italian descent
* Richard Pace, Early settler of Jamestown purported to have saved the village from an Indian massacre after having been warned of it byChanco
*Steve Pace , Aviation history writer, historian.Paces in Fiction
*
Charlie Pace , A primary character in the ABC series "Lost".
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