Great-grandfather
Nicholas Sotoris Macaronis
The Name
Research in progress
"Macaronis" is a Greek family name, likely anglicized through time and migration. Without a confirmed Greek spelling, the precise origin remains open. When we identify the original Greek form, we can trace its regional roots, meaning, and historical records with much greater accuracy.
Next clue to hunt: the original Greek spelling
from a marriage record, passport, or church document.
How Greek surnames are formed
- Most Greek surnames are patronymic, derived from a father's given name.
- Suffixes like -adis and -idis often mean "son of."
- Diminutives such as -akis, -outsos, and -poulos can signal "little" and have come to mean "son."
- Some surnames come from place names or trades (often ending in -as).
- Regional associations exist: -akis is often linked with Crete; -poulos with the Peloponnese; -oudis with Macedonia.
These are general patterns, not direct evidence for Macaronis.
Transliteration and spelling drift
Greek-to-Latin spelling varies by system. A U.S. intelligence guide lists common variants such as Kappa to K or C, Phi to F or Ph, and Chi to Kh, Ch, or H. The official Greek standard ELOT 743 is identical to ISO 843, so once the Greek spelling is known we can generate the official romanized form.
ELOT 743 / ISO 843 K or C F or Ph Kh / Ch / H
Public-record sightings
The surname appears in public records beyond Chios. A 1997 U.S. Congressional Record statement references a Macaronis family whose grandparents were from the island of Lemnos. This suggests the name exists in the Aegean region, though it does not prove a direct Volissos link.
Roots in Chios
Volissos and the castle on the hill
Volissos is built on the side of a steep hill, with a medieval castle at the summit. The castle was built in the Byzantine period (likely the 11th century) and restored by the Genoese in the mid-15th century - a layered landmark that still anchors the town.
This is the place where Nicholas Sotoris Macaronis married Maria Beligris at age 39, tying the family story to a village shaped by stone, wind, and sea.
Landscape cues
Hilltown silhouette, castle outline, and terraced fields inspire the visual rhythm of this site.
Family anchor
Marriage record in Volissos connects the line to Chios.
Island craft
Chios and the mastic tradition
Chios is world-renowned for mastic, and UNESCO inscribed the know-how of cultivating mastic on the island in 2014. The practice depends on older community members passing techniques to younger generations, and the communal work builds networks of mutual help and collective memory.
The Chios Mastic Museum's permanent exhibition concludes outdoors, where visitors encounter the plant and its natural environment.
Why it matters
Mastic cultivation is a living heritage practice, passed down within families and villages, shaping identity as much as livelihood.
Across seas
From Chios to Australia
Greek immigration to Australia began in the first half of the 19th century, with major waves after the Greco-Turkish War (1919-1922), World War II (1939-1945), and the Greek Civil War (1946-1949). In the 2021 Census, 424,744 Australians self-identified as having Greek ancestry.
The Greek Australian Archive preserves stories of post-war Greek migrants and includes photographs, oral histories, letters, films, and original documents with the State Library of NSW.
For the Macaronis family, the journey ends in Brisbane, where Nicholas Sotoris Macaronis died in 1955. The distance is vast, but the story is still close.
Volissos Chios Brisbane
Oceans crossed, names adapted, stories carried forward.
Family timeline
Known milestones
c. 1884-1885
Estimated birth year
Calculated from age 70 at death in 1955.
c. 1923-1924
Marriage in Volissos
Nicholas Sotoris Macaronis married Maria Beligris at age 39.
1955
Brisbane, Australia
Nicholas Sotoris Macaronis died in Brisbane at age 70.
Family archive
Growing the record
Photos
Portraits, village scenes, wedding photos, and Brisbane life.
Documents
Marriage record, travel papers, letters, and church notes.
Recipes
Family dishes, mastic sweets, and island staples.
Stories
Oral histories, audio notes, and recollections.
Help fill the gaps
If you have the Greek spelling, ship records, or photos from Volissos, this is the perfect place to weave them in.