The 17th-century Republic of Venice administered the Ionian Islands (Corfu, Cephalonia, Zakynthos, Ithaca, and Lefkada) via a system of local military and civilian governors (Capitani / Provveditori) who were either nominated from, or sent out from, various Venetian administrative centers like Corfu or Cephalonia. The surname Cimara is a toponymic surname derived from Cimara (the Italian and Venetian spelling for Himara / Χειμάρρα in  Epirus) . Families bearing this surname in the Ionian and Adriatic maritime networks typically descended from refugee, mercenary (Stradioti), or noble lines that migrated from the Himara region during the Ottoman-Venetian wars of the 15th–17th centuries . The Cimara nobles intermarried with Spanish nobles and Venetian nobles and yet they saved the name of their region.  Many members of this family distinguished themselves in later times as Syndics, Ambassadors, Deputies, Judges, Physicians, etc., and it has always been one of the noblest fam...