Pete Buttigieg

Buttigieg in 2019, photo by Sheila_F/Bigstock.com

Birth Name: Peter Paul Montgomery Buttigieg

Place of Birth: South Bend, Indiana, U.S.

Date of Birth: January 19, 1982

Ethnicity:
*father – Maltese
*mother – English, Scottish, German, distant Swiss-German, Welsh, and Cornish

Pete Buttigieg is an American politician. A member of the Democratic Party, he has served as U.S. Secretary of Transportation, since February 3, 2021, and, previously, as Mayor of South Bend, Indiana, from January 1, 2012 to January 1, 2020. He is a military combat veteran and Naval Intelligence Officer, having deployed to Afghanistan during his time as Mayor.

He was a candidate for the Democratic Party’s nomination for President of the United States in 2020.

Pete is the son of Jennifer Anne (Montgomery) and Joseph Anthony Buttigieg II. His parents are/were professors, at The University of Notre Dame in South Bend. His father, who was born in Ħamrun, Malta, was a literary scholar and translator, who initially studied to be a Jesuit priest. Pete’s surname, Buttigieg, is a Maltese name of Semitic origin, with “tigieg” being a Semitic designation for “poultry.”

Pete’s mother, who was born in Stanislaus, California, is from a family from Indiana and Oklahoma, and has English, Scottish, German, and more distant Swiss-German, Welsh, and Cornish, ancestry. She is a Mayflower descendant.

Pete is married to educator Chasten Glezman. Chasten’s surname comes from Polish (Catholic) ancestry. The couple has two children, who are adopted.

Pete is the first and (thus far) only openly gay person, and the first and (thus far) only millennial, to have won a caucus and/or primary for a major American political party’s Presidential nomination. He won the Democratic Party’s Iowa Caucus in 2020. Pete is also the first openly gay U.S. cabinet member.

Of his own background, Pete has stated:

Most people have trouble pronouncing my name, so they just call me “Mayor Pete.” My surname, Buttigieg (Boot-edge-edge), is very common in my father’s country of origin, the tiny island of Malta, and nowhere else. Dad came to America in the 1970s and became a citizen; he married my mother, an Army brat and umpteenth-generation Hoosier, and the two of them settled in South Bend, Indiana, shortly before I was born…

His father was Catholic and his mother is of Methodist background. Pete was baptized Catholic. He is a practicing Christian, in the Episcopalian denomination.

Pete is the first person of Maltese heritage to have mounted a notable campaign for a major party’s nomination for President of the United States.

He is also one of the first three people born in the 1980s to have run a prominent campaign for a major party’s nomination for President of the United States, along with Tulsi Gabbard and Eric Swalwell, all of whom sought the 2020 Democratic nomination.

Pete’s paternal grandfather was named Joseph Anthony Buttigieg (the son of Curcifisio/Crocifisso Buttigieg and Stella). Pete’s grandfather Joseph was born on Malta.

Pete’s paternal grandmother was Maria Concetta “Cettina” Portelli (the daughter of Francesco Portelli and Cetta Saliba). Maria was born on Malta. Cetta was the daughter of Joseph/Giuseppe Saliba and Paola/Paolina Mintoff.

Pete’s maternal grandfather was John Willard Montgomery (the son of John M./W. Montgomery and Carrie Edith Yount). Pete’s grandfather John was born in Scottsburg, Scott, Indiana. Pete’s great-grandfather John was the son of William Gabriel Montgomery and Hannah Catherine Wardell. Carrie was a commercial hotel owner and manager, and was the daughter of James Madison Yount and Indiana Brooks.

Pete’s maternal grandmother was Zoe Anne Neal (the daughter of William Caswell “Will” Neal and Maye Louise Rasar). Zoe was born in McAlester, Pittsburg, Oklahoma. William was the son of William Henry Neal and Lena Chase. Maye was the daughter of George William Rasar and Annie Wooly.

Sources: Information about Pete’s reception in and connection to Malta – https://www.thedailybeast.com
https://www.washingtonpost.com

Family history of Pete Buttigieg – https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org

Interview about Pete’s religious background – https://www.patheos.com

Genealogies of Pete Buttigieg – https://www.geni.com
https://famouskin.com

Obituary of Pete’s maternal grandmother, Zoe Anne (Neal) Montgomery – http://files.usgwarchives.nettxt