titolari

Titolari is the plural form of titolare, a noun used in Italian to designate the person or entity that holds a title, ownership, or rights over something. The term is widely applied in legal, business, administrative, and everyday contexts to indicate who possesses or is legally entitled to a certain asset, responsibility, or set of rights. Examples include the titolare di un’azienda (owner of a company), il titolare di un conto (account holder), or i titolari di diritti (rights holders) such as copyright, patents, or licenses. In contractual or regulatory settings, the titolare is the party responsible for the compliance and for exercising the rights associated with the asset or right.

In data protection, the expression is used in a specialized sense: titolare del trattamento refers to the data controller, the entity that determines the purposes and means of processing personal data. When several entities share these responsibilities, they are described as titolari del trattamento, reflecting joint control.

Etymology and nuance: titolare derives from Latin titulus, meaning title or designation, and the term emphasizes legal entitlement rather than mere physical possession. It is distinct from proprietario (owner in the sense of ownership) and detentore (possessor or holder without owner‑ship implications). The word thus frames who has formal rights, obligations, and authority over a given asset, right, or process.