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Italian families are renowned the world over for their strong family ties, religious piety and adherence to tradition and, when it comes to naming their bambini, family, religion and tradition all play their part. Conventionally, new babies are named after their grandparents, first the father's parents and then the mother's, while subsequent names may be chosen from other family members or popular saints.

Statistics bear out the Italian love of tradition, church and family. In 2004 the Italian national statistical institute ISTAT (Istituto Nazionale di Statistica) published a list of the most popular baby names and found that, although there were an estimated 30,000 different names in use for boys and girls, fifty percent of the children born in that year shared the same thirty names, many of them with religious associations.

The top five for boys:

1. Francesco: The Italian form of "Francis" from the Latin "Franciscus" meaning Frenchman. It was made popular by Saint Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals.

2. Alessandro: The Italian form of "Alexander" from the Greek "Alexandros" meaning defender of men. The name was spread through the Greek world by the conquering Macedonian king, Alexander the Great.

3. Andrea: The Italian form of "Andrew" from the Greek name "Andreas" meaning strong and manly. In the Christian Bible, Saint Andrew was one of the earliest Disciples of Christ who, legend has it, was crucified on an X-shaped cross. He is the patron saint of Scotland, Russia, Greece and Romania.

4. Matteo: The Italian form of "Matthew" from the Hebrew "Mattityah" meaning gift of the Lord. In the New Testament, Saint Matthew was one of the twelve apostles and the author of the first Gospel.

5. Lorenzo: The Italian form of "Laurence" from the Roman surname "Laurentius", an inhabitant of the ancient city of Laurentum. Saint Laurence was a third century Italian martyr who was roasted alive after presenting the poor and the crippled when ordered to hand over the treasures of his church to the Roman army.

The top five for girls:

1. Giulia: The feminine form of "Giulio" and the Italian form of "Julia" from the Roman surname "Julius", meaning youthful. In Ancient Rome, all women born to the noble Julius family took the name Julia.

2. Martina: The feminine form of "Martino" from the Roman surname "Martinus", derived from the Roman God Mars.

3. Chiara: The Italian form of "Clara" or "Claire" derived from the Latin word "clarus" meaning clear and bright. Saint Chiara was a follower of Saint Francis of Assissi.

4. Sara: The Italian form of "Sarah" from the Hebrew meaning "princess". In the Old Testament, Sarah was married to Abraham and gave birth to their son Isaac at the age of ninety.

5. Alessia: a shortened form of "Alessandra" derived from the Greek "Alexandros" meaning defender of men.

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