A matronymic is a personal name based on the name of one's mother. It is the female counterpart to patronymic. In patriarchal societies matronymic surnames are far less common than patronyms. In the past matronymic last names were often given to children of un-wed mothers. Other times when a woman was especially well known or powerful her descendants would adopt a matronym based on her name. Today some have chosen to adopt matronymic last names, such as the poet Yocheved Bat-Miriam. It is nearly universal for a person to have a name; the rare exceptions occur in the cases of mentally disturbed parents, or wild children growing up in isolation. ... It has been suggested that Icelandic name#Patronymics in other cultures be merged into this article or section. ... Patriarchy (from Greek: patria meaning father and arché meaning rule) is the anthropological term used to define the sociological condition where male members of a society tend to predominate in positions of power; with the more powerful the position, the more likely it is that a male will hold that... Yocheved Bat-Miriam, Israeli poet, was born in Russia in 1901. ...

Some English matronyms are Beaton, Hilliard, and Megson.

Some Icelandic people, like Heiðar Helguson, have matronyms. See Icelandic name. Heiðar Helguson (born 22 August 1977 in Akureyri; first name commonly anglicized to Heidar) is an Icelandic footballer currently playing for English Premiership team Fulham. ... Iceland shares a common cultural heritage with the Scandinavian states of Norway, Sweden, and Denmark. ...