Family name origins & meanings
- Southern Italian : habitational name from any of various places named with this word (from franc ‘free (of taxes)’ + villa ‘place’, ‘settlement’), for example Francavilla Marittima (Cosenza), Francavilla Angitola (Vibo Valentia), Francavilla al Mare (Chieti), Francavilla d’Ete (Ascoli), Francavilla in Sinni (Potenza), Francavilla di Sicilia (Messina, Sicily). Cognates of the place name occur widely across Europe, for example Villefranche, Vilafranca.