Franco

Where Franco comes from

The dictionaries list Franco as a given name — a male given name from Italian or Spanish, equivalent to English Frank or Francis — but don't trace where it came from. The record below is what the SSA data shows.

  • Italian
  • Spanish
  • Vowel-ended
Along the way
  1. 1918
    Franco Modigliani born
    Italian-American economist
  2. 1923
    First appearance
    #3,175 among boys, 8 babies — the first year at least five got the name.
  3. 1960
    Franco Baresi born
    Italian association football player
  4. 2016
    Peak, #702
    353 babies named Franco — more than any year before or since.
In the dictionary
  • A male given name from Italian or Spanish, equivalent to English Frank or Francis.
Namesakes
  • Franco Baresi · Italian association football player, 1960–2026
  • Franco Modigliani · Italian-American economist, 1918–2003
  • Franco Armani · Argentine soccer player, born 1986
  • Franco Frattini · Italian politician, 1957–2022
  • Franco Causio · Italian footballer, born 1949

Sources: the origin note and dictionary entry are quoted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0); the namesakes come from Wikidata (CC0); the milestones are worked out from the SSA record.