Surname distributions and linguistic-cultural identities in the Alto Adige-Südtirol Area

In this survey we have carried out a comparison of the surname structures of the municipal populations living in the Alto Adige-Sudtirol area, an Italian Alpine sub-region with a high number of German-speaking inhabitants. These analyses have been conducted by means of indeces of similarity among populations and the topological representations deriving from these; in addition, the concept of spatial autocorrelation has been applied to a certain number of centres distributed throughout the province. On the whole, it is possible to observe certain distinctions based on the geographical features of the territory, with particular reference to the larger valleys; however, within the context of the latter, certain migrations that could have brought about changes in some of the autochthonous surname structures are likely to have occured.