How do I find information on Italian nobility between 1500-1750 AD please?

Question

We are trying to determine who are the descendants of the founders of Alia, Siclia, and also, who are the ancestors of the families  who settled there in the 1600s and 1700s.  We are particularly interested in the ancestors of the Guccione and Centanni families of Alia. The Centanni family is said to have originated in Northern Italy, where they lived in large palazzos or castles. It is said one of the Guccione's was a knight. It would be nice to have some sources to back up or refute these family legends. Thanks!

Sharon  Troy Centanne.

Answer 1

This isn't the most reliable of sources, but it points to a more trustworthy one:

Heraldrys of family: Centanni

Antica e nobile famiglia di Venezia. Il commendator G.B. di Crollalanza riporta la blasonatura di questa famiglia nei volumi del suo Dizionario storico blasonico delle famiglie nobili e notabili italiane. Varie famiglie omonime si propagarono in diverse regioni d'Italia. Le notizie bibliografiche che ci vengono tramandate sono riconducibili a questa casata di cui ne abbiamo tratto nota. Antica famiglia originaria delle Calabrie e trapiantata in Trau (Dalmazia).

So, the family seems to have originated in Trau (Dalmatia), near to Venice. G.B. di Crollalanza  has written about it in his Dizionario storico blasonico delle famiglie nobili e notabili italiane (Dictionary of the history and blazons of the noble and notable families of Italy)

http://www.heraldrysinstitute.com/cognomi/Centanni/Italia/idc/814436