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Everyone has a nickname, and it isn't short
Italian family names carry more history than most. Surnames often say where an ancestor came from (Romano, Lombardi, Siciliano), what they did (Ferrari the smith, Contadino the farmer), or what they looked like (Rossi, from red hair — the commonest surname in Italy). A surprising number began as names given to foundlings: Esposito, still one of the most common names in Naples, literally means exposed, from the practice of leaving infants at a church. First names run in families rather than in fashions. The traditional pattern names the first son after the paternal grandfather, the first daughter after the paternal grandmother, and so on, which is why a single extended family can contain four Giuseppes distinguished entirely by nickname. Those nicknames are affectionate and usually longer than the name: Giuseppe becomes Peppe, Beppe or Peppino; Francesco becomes Checco or Ciccio. And the diminutive is applied to people as readily as to objects — Giulia becomes Giulietta, and nonna becomes nonnina without anyone thinking it childish.