Penna is a surname originating in Italy, in an area known as the Papal States.
Since Papal names often denoted place of origin, the Penna family lived in one of several places in Italy named Penna.
At the time of the British Census of 1881,[1] its frequency was highest in Cornwall (over 72 times the national average) followed by Cumberland, Caernarfonshire and County Durham.
To quote a Cornish saying "By the Tre, Pol and Pen, you can tell the Cornishmen".
As a result of this, the name Penna can be found in many mining centers around the world, notably the Australia, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, New Zealand, South Africa and the United States.