an Italian family that originated in the Romagna in the 10th century and came to dominate by the mid-12th century the Florentine contado (district), with possessions in its eastern region and in Tuscan Romagna, the contadi of Bologna, Faenza, Forlì, and Ravenna, and in the hilly Casentino country of the Upper Arno. In the 13th century they lost ground to the expanding communes and were involved in conflicts between cities and between Guelfs and Ghibellines. They were further weakened by being divided into several, sometimes opposing branches. The Casentino branch of the counts of Poppi preserved their independence until 1440.