The story of the Italian surname of James Talarico, the Democrat who won the election for the U.S. Senate seat from Texas on November 3, begins in Carpanzano, a small town in the province of Cosenza, Calabria.
It was from there that Bruno Talarico left for the United States in 1893, beginning a family journey that would span generations before reaching the American politician’s adoptive father.
The connection was reconstructed by the Italian website LameziaTerme.it, which consulted birth and marriage records preserved in the Calabrian municipality, as well as U.S. immigration documents.
The research identified names, dates and even the ship that carried part of the family to the United States in 1911.
More than 130 years after Bruno’s departure, 37-year-old James Talarico defeated Republican Ken Paxton and became the first Democrat elected senator from Texas since 1988.
Talarico é um sobrenome italiano tradicional da Calábria, no sul da Itália. Sua origem é provavelmente patronímica, derivada do antigo nome germânico Athalaric, associado aos termos “nobre” e “poder”. Há registros históricos do sobrenome na região de Cosenza desde o século XIX.
No Brasil, há famílias descendentes de italianos com esse sobrenome, incluindo registros em São Paulo. Uma pesquisa genealógica italiana documenta descendentes da família Talarico em Suzano (SP). A plataforma FamilySearch também reúne registros de pessoas com esse sobrenome no país.
The story begins in Carpanzano, Calabria
The genealogical investigation found in Carpanzano’s civil registry the birth certificate of Giuseppe Talarico, born in 1887, son of Bruno Talarico and Rosa Manfredi.
Another document records the birth of Maria Carmela Cristiano in 1893, also in the municipality.
In 1911, Giuseppe and Maria Carmela married in Carpanzano. He was 24 and she was 18.
The documents were consulted directly by the Italian website’s staff on September 22, 2026, during a visit to the municipality, with the support of Mayor Valerio Vigliaturo and Chiara Manfredi, president of the local Pro Loco association.
But the family’s emigration story had begun nearly two decades earlier.
In 1893, Bruno Talarico, Giuseppe’s father, left Carpanzano for the United States, joining the migration movement that took thousands of Calabrians to America at the end of the 19th century.
The 1911 journey: from Naples to New York
On August 29, 1911, the ship San Giorgio left the port of Naples bound for the United States.
Among the passengers were Giuseppe Talarico, then 24, his mother, Rosa Manfredi, and his wife, Maria Carmela Cristiano.
In the passenger manifest, Maria Carmela also appears under the name Marietta Cristiano and is identified as Giuseppe’s wife.
The ship arrived in New York on September 12, 1911, after a two-week Atlantic crossing.
The documents indicate that the immigrants’ destination was Chicago, Illinois.
As Bruno had emigrated in 1893, the hypothesis put forward by the Italian investigation is that Rosa, Giuseppe and Maria Carmela were traveling to reunite with him.
From Chicago to Texas: four generations of a family
The Talarico family settled in Chicago, where Arthur George Talarico was born in 1927, the son of Giuseppe and Maria Carmela.
Arthur was the father of Mark Talarico, who decades later would marry Tamara, James’ mother.
Mark adopted James while he was still a child, raised the boy and passed on his Italian surname.
This is an important distinction in the family history: James Talarico is not a biological descendant of the immigrants from Carpanzano. His connection to the Calabrian family is through adoption.
The politician himself has publicly highlighted Mark’s importance in his upbringing and his contact with Italian traditions passed down by his adoptive father.
In an interview with the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera in 2026, Talarico spoke about this family relationship and his Italian origins.
Thus, the surname that left tiny Carpanzano in the 19th century reached American politics through a story of immigration, marriage and adoption.
Relative in Calabria celebrates victory
James Talarico’s election also sparked interest among his relatives in Italy.
Calabrian businessman Maurizio Talarico, founder of a luxury tie brand, told the Adnkronos news agency on November 5 that he is distantly related to the senator-elect’s family.
According to Maurizio, James’ great-grandfather, who belonged to his adoptive father’s lineage, was his grandfather’s cousin.
The businessman said he discovered the connection about two or three years ago but has not yet had personal contact with the politician.
After the election victory, he said he had sent several ties from his brand to his American relative and expressed interest in meeting him.
The statement underscored the election’s impact in Calabria, where the Talarico family’s journey represents one of many stories of families that emigrated to the United States.
No Brasil, “talarico” é uma gíria popular para quem se envolve amorosamente com a pessoa comprometida de outra pessoa, especialmente de um amigo. O termo ganhou popularidade com um samba de Zeca Pagodinho, lançado em 1992. Já o sobrenome de James Talarico tem origem italiana, com raízes na Calábria, e não possui relação conhecida com a expressão brasileira.
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