Persivale name and history
My mother's side of the family was a Persivale/Percivale from the Genova area. The name was spelled both ways historically, and my relatives there now spell it either way. I spent 5 days in the summer of 2003 staying at a Persivale home in a small town called Rigoroso, about 25 miles north of Genova in the Scrivia River valley. We were the guests of Carlo and Mario Persivale. Carlo is my mother's 2nd cousin, though they are double cousins through the Cassano family tree. I have a webste that covers both families at www.cassano.homestead.com
Many of the Percivale/Persivale family emigrated to South America, most typically Argentina, but other countries as well.
I also visited a winery named "Percivalle" about 40 miles north of Rigoroso in the Pavia area in 2003. This is another variation of the spelling and there is a small town there called "Ca di Percivalle". They share the same family legend on the origin of the name.
The Persivale/Percivale/Percivalle name can be traced back several hundred years in the Scrivia Valley. My research shows that the name is typically found from Genova north up the Scrivia River valley, and then somewhat in northern Piemonte and the Milan area.Based on family legend, a Percivale/Persivale came from England 100's of years ago and settled in the Genova area. It should be noted that there may be a connection to the King Arthur legend and Sir Percivale, one of the knights of the round table who traveled afar. This tale was well known in Italy 500 years ago, so any traveling Englishmen may have been known as a "Percivale".