LYNNFIELD — Local author, Dr. Alma Barozzi, published the second book in her series ‘What kind of name is that?’ this August.
The first book in the series, which came out two years ago in August, was titled ‘European Surnames: Meanings and Traditions’ and her most recent book is titled ‘Naming Traditions of Asia and Beyond.’
Dr. Barozzi said she grew up in Romania, moved to Italy when she was 13 years old, and then moved to the suburbs of New York City a year later.
While living in Italy, she became “aware of other nationalities” and cultures present in her life, she said.
“I love being around people from different cultures and who even had different philosophies than mine,” Dr. Barozzi said. “To this day, I appreciate diversity more than many other things.”
She soon became interested in etymology, the study of the origin and evolution of a word and its meaning. This, plus her interest in geography, she said, is what drove her interest in linguistics and the idea for her book series.
Dr. Barozzi said she had the idea for the series nearly 20 years ago, but started her research during the COVID-19 pandemic.
She estimated that she reviews more than 1,000 texts while researching for her books.
Her book about Europe received attention from her friends of European-descent and people living in Europe.
“I thought, I’m not going to stop here. I’m going to continue,” Dr. Barozzi said. “The second one, I think, is even more thorough and more in depth, and I’m pretty proud of the way it came out.”
Dr. Barozzi has lived across the world, including Romania, Italy, California, New York, and Colombia, has studied approximately 12 languages, and has spoken approximately five fluently, she said.
She received her undergraduate degree from Stony Brook University and began a graduate program at the University of California San Diego before taking a leave of absence and moving to Colombia with her husband.
She went back to school and received her Master’s in Linguistics from the University of the Andes in Bogotá, Colombia and then her Ph.D. in Applied Linguistics from the Universidad Nebrija in Madrid, Spain.
“One of my goals for many years had been to finish my studies and earn my doctorate, but then life happened, and priorities changed,” Dr. Barozzi said. “It took decades for me to find the right time and the right program, and when I did, it took eight years to finish my doctoral studies in applied linguistics at Nebrija University in Madrid, while teaching full time.”
She currently lives in Lynnfield and has been teaching Spanish full time at The Academy at Penguin Hall in Wenham for the past seven years.
Her next book will explore the continent of Africa, and she said she hopes to publish it during August 2026.
