Robert De Niro
De Niro in 2015, photo by Prphotos
Place of Birth: Greenwich Village, Manhattan, New York City, New York, U.S.
Date of Birth: August 17, 1943
Ethnicity: Italian (paternal grandfather), Irish, German, Dutch, small amounts of English, French Huguenot, Scottish, and Scots-Irish/Northern Irish
Robert De Niro is an American actor, director, and producer. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for The Godfather Part II (1974), and the Academy Award for Best Actor for Raging Bull (1980). His many other films include Mean Streets, Taxi Driver, 1900, The Deer Hunter, The King of Comedy, Once Upon a Time in America, Brazil, The Mission (1986), Midnight Run, Goodfellas, Awakenings, Cape Fear (1991), Night and the City, Mad Dog and Glory, This Boy’s Life, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Casino, Heat (1995), Wag the Dog, Jackie Brown, Analyze This, and its sequel; Meet the Parents, and its sequels; Godsend (2004), Shark Tale, Silver Linings Playbook, American Hustle, The Intern, Joker, The Irishman, The War with Grandpa, and Killers of the Flower Moon; and television’s The Wizard of Lies and Saturday Night Live. He directed the films A Bronx Tale and The Good Shepherd, both of which he also starred in. He co-founded film and television production company TriBeCa Productions, and later the Tribeca Film Festival in 2002. He is known as one of the greatest actors of all time.
Robert is the son of Virginia (Admiral), a painter and poet, and Robert De Niro, an abstract expressionist painter. His parents met in painting classes in Massachusetts. Robert was raised by his mother in Greenwich Village and Little Italy, Manhattan. Robert was secretly baptized Catholic by his paternal grandparents.
Robert has two children with his former partner, actress and model Toukie Smith; two children, actress Drena De Niro, whom Robert legally adopted, and actor and real estate broker Raphael De Niro, with his former wife, actress Diahnne Abbott; two children with his wife, actress Grace Hightower; and a daughter with his partner Tiffany Chen.
He has played an Italian-American character in several films, and is himself of one quarter Italian ancestry. His father was of half Italian and half Irish descent. His maternal grandfather was of Dutch, as well as English, French Huguenot, Irish, German, Scottish, and Scots-Irish/Northern Irish, ancestry, and his maternal grandmother was of German descent.
Robert has become an honorary Italian citizen. He has stated:
I probably identify more with my Italian side than with my other parts.
Robert’s paternal grandfather was Henry Martin De Niro (the son of Giovanni DiNiro/Di Niro and Angiolina/Angelina Mercurio). Henry was born in Ferrazzano, Province of Campobasso, Molise, Italy. Giovanni was the son of Carmine DiNiro/Di Niro and Francesca Notartomaso. Angiolina was the daughter of Luigi Mercurio and Rosanna/Rose Alaura.
Robert’s paternal grandmother was Helen M. O’Reilly (the daughter of Dennis Edward/Francis O’Reilly and Mary Burns). Helen was born in New York. Dennis and Mary were both born in New York, both of them to Irish immigrant parents. Dennis was the son of Edward O’Reilly and Margaret. Mary was the daughter of John Burns and Mary.
Robert’s maternal grandfather was Donald Admiral/Admiraal (the son of Nicholas Klaas Admiraal/Admiral and Virginia Moseby Holton). Donald was born in Illinois or Indiana. Nicholas was Dutch, born in Schoorl, North Holland, Netherlands, the son of Jacob Admiraal/Admiral and Neeltje/Nellie Bakker/Baker. Robert’s great-grandmother Virginia was born in Kentucky, the daughter of Nicholas Moseby/Mosby Holton and Lucy Ann Dupuy. She was from a family that had lived in the U.S. for many generations, and had English, French Huguenot, Irish, German, Dutch, Scottish, and Scots-Irish/Northern Irish ancestry. Lucy’s sister, Eliza Ann Dupuy (also known as Annie Young), was a littérateur, novelist, and short story writer; she was known as “the first woman of Mississippi to earn her living as a writer.”
Robert’s maternal grandmother was Alice Caroline Groman (the daughter of Gustave “August” Groman and Gesina Marie Beckmann/Beckman). Alice was born in Iowa. Gustave and Gesina were born in Indiana, both of them to German parents. Gesina was the daughter of Harm Christoph Beckmann and Elizabeth Margaretha Fink.
De Niro with wife Grace Hightower, 2010, Vonora/bigstock.com
Sources: Genealogy of Robert De Niro – http://www.geni.com
Pictures of Robert’s parents – http://www.findagrave.com
Genealogy of Robert De Niro (focusing on his father’s side) – http://geneasud.com
Robert’s father on the 1930 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
Video about the family of Robert’s paternal grandfather, Henry Martin De Niro – https://www.youtube.com
Genealogy of Robert’s maternal grandfather, Donald Admiral/Admiraal (focusing on his own mother’s side) – http://gw.geneanet.org
Robert’s maternal grandfather, Donald Admiral/Admiraal, on the 1900 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
Biography of Robert’s maternal great-great-great-aunt, Eliza Ann Dupuy (Annie Young) – http://www.encyclopedia.com
Robert’s maternal grandmother, Alice Caroline Groman, on the 1900 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
another genealogy
http://geneasud.com/Arbres/Arbre%20-%20DE%20NIRO%20Robert.html
He looks very Italian to me.
He was sexy back in the day.
Rober de Niro is Albanian:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ynQtkNU_q9U
it’s not really clear what he meant because of the poor translation by the former Clooney’s gf Elisabetta Canalis. Actually his Italian ancestor, named Di Niro, came from a village called Ferrazzano in Centre-South Italy. There are Albanians communities known as Arberesche in South Italy, formed by emigrants who escaped from Ottomans (Turks) and settled in Italy some centuries ago
If anyone has any suggestions for me on how to locate information on my italian ancestory for myself and my father besides ancestory.com as my father tried this already. I was told by my grandmother and she had a family crest made that hung on her wall in her office/sewing room with the spelling of my Italian last name and her mothers Italian last name. My father stated he is unsure of his grandfathers birthdate that he believes he celebrated on August 15 due to the Feast of the Assumption, and we are unsure of where in NYC he was born. My grandother past away 3 years ago but for the past 2 years of her life her will to live wasn’t there due to my grandfather who didn’t believe in doctors the majority of his life until he was diagnosed with prostate cancer and died at 83. My grandparents were married for over 60 years. I have always wanted to travel to Italy to fufill not only my dream but my grandmothers’. She would have been 90 yesterday on mother’s day. I will take any help anyone can offer to help me locate the info. I am trying to get for my family. Thank you very much
which are the surnames in your tree? I can tell you which region your ancestors come from
Hi jewel, if you are worried about your privacy, maybe it would be better not to post your family name on here. I would suggest using the websites used on this site that are used to find Celeb ancestry. In particular see the posts done by Follers who cleverly uses obituaries, wedding records and various free ancestry sites in combination to clue together Celeb ancestry.
Admin