A family name, or surname or last name, is the part of a person's name that indicates to what family he or she belongs. The use of family names is not universal throughout history. In parts of the world, they did not appear in common use until the 17th to 19th centuries, and in some cultures they are not used today. In many cultures of Asia, as well as in Hungary, the family name is typically spoken or written first when referring to an individual (see eastern order), while in most Western cultures, the family name is last, giving rise to the term last name for family name. A name is a verbal label for a thing, person, place, product (as in a brand name) and even an idea or concept, normally used to distinguish one from another. ... A family of Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso in 1997 A family consists of a domestic group of people (or a number of domestic groups), typically affiliated by birth or marriage, or by comparable legal relationships — including domestic partnership, adoption, surname and (in some cases) ownership (as occurred in the Roman Empire). ... (16th century - 17th century - 18th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 17th century was that century which lasted from 1601-1700. ... Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... It is nearly universal for a person to have a name; the rare exceptions occur in the cases of mentally disturbed parents, or feral children growing up in isolation. ...

The word surname is name prefixed by the French word sur (meaning "on"), which derives from Latin super ("over" or "above"), meaning "additional name." As early as the 14th century it was also found spelled as sirname or sirename (suggesting that it meant "man's name" or "father's name") due to folk etymology. A name is a verbal label for a thing, person, place, product (as in a brand name) and even an idea or concept, normally used to distinguish one from another. ... In linguistics, a prefix is a type of affix that precedes the morphemes to which it can attach. ... Latin is an ancient Indo-European language. ... Folk etymology or popular etymology is a linguistic term for a category of false etymology which has grown up in popular lore, as opposed to one which arose in scholarly usage. ...

The use of family names varies among cultures. In particular, Icelanders, Tibetans, Burmese, and Javanese often do not use a family name — well-known people lacking a family name include U Thant (Burmese), Suharto and Sukarno (see Indonesian names). Also, many royal families do not use family names. Ethnolinguistic Groups of Tibet, 1967 ( See entire map, which includes a key) Ethnic Tibetan autonomous entities set up by the Peoples Republic of China. ... Javanese is a term used to describe a native of the Indonesian island of Java. ... Maha Thray Sithu U Thant (January 22, 1909 – November 25, 1974) was a Burmese diplomat and the third Secretary-General of the United Nations, from 1961 to 1971. ... Haji Mohammad Soeharto (born June 8, 1921), more commonly referred to as simply Soeharto (Suharto in the English-speaking world), is a former Indonesian military and political leader. ... Sukarno (June 6, 1901 – June 21, 1970) was the first President of Indonesia. ... Indonesia is an archipelago of 17,000 islands, only 6,000 of which are inhabited, that extends in an arc along the equator. ... Members of the British royal family A royal family is the extended family of a monarch. ...

In some cultures, a woman's family name traditionally changes upon marriage, although few countries mandate such a change. Other modern options include combining both family names, changing neither name, or creating a new name, e.g. combining letters of previous surnames or creating a pseudonym unrelated to the previous surnames. A pseudonym (Greek: false name) is a fictitious name used by an individual as an alternative to his or her legal name. ...

In the 19th century, Francis Galton published a statistical study of the extinction of family names. (See Galton-Watson process for an account of some of the mathematics.) Francis Galton Sir Francis Galton F.R.S. (February 16, 1822 – January 17, 1911), half-cousin of Charles Darwin, was an English Victorian polymath, anthropologist, eugenicist, tropical explorer, geographer, inventor, meteorologist, proto-geneticist, psychometrician, and statistician. ... The Galton-Watson process is a stochastic process arising from Francis Galtons statistical investigation of the extinction of surnames. ...

In English-, Dutch-, German-, French- and Scandinavian-speaking countries, people often have two or more given names, and the family name goes at the end. (Occasionally a surname is called the "second name", which can be confused with a middle name.) In Spain, people have one or more given names and two family names, one from the father and one from the mother. In Italy, people may have one or more given names, no middle name, and a family name. The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... The North Germanic languages (also Scandinavian languages or Nordic languages) is a branch of the Germanic languages spoken in Scandinavia, parts of Finland and on the Faroe Islands and Iceland. ... A given name is a word which specifies and differentiates between members of a group of individuals, especially a family, all of whose members usually share the same family name. ... Many peoples names include one or more middle names, placed between the first given name and the surname. ...

English-speaking countries

In England, hereditary surnames were adopted in the 13th and 14th centuries, initially by the aristocracy but, eventually, by everyone. By 1400, most English people and lowland Scots had acquired surnames, but many Irish, highland Scots and Welsh people did not adopt English-style surnames until the 17th century, or later.

Most surnames of British origin fall into six types:

• Occupations (e.g., Smith, Archer, Baker, Fisher, Miller, Tanner, Thatcher)
• Personal characteristics (e.g., Short, Brown, Whitehead)
• Geographical features (e.g. Sands, Hill, Rivers, Wood, Field)
• Place names (e.g., Jack from London might be called Jack London)
• For those descended from land-owners, the name of their holdings, manor or estate
• Patronymics and Ancestry, often from a male's given name (e.g., Richardson, James) or from a clan name (for those of Scottish origin, e.g., MacDonald, Forbes)

The original meaning of the name may no longer be obvious in modern English (e.g., the surname Cooper meant barrel maker and the name Tillotson is a matronymic from a diminutive for Matilda). A much smaller category of names relates to religion, though some of this category are also occupations. The names Bishop, Priest, or Abbot, for example, usually indicate that an ancestor worked for a bishop, a priest, or an abbot, respectively. Smith is the most common family name in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, representing more than 1 out of every 100 persons in each of these countries. ... A patronymic is a personal name based on the name of ones father. ... A matronymic is a personal name based on the name of ones mother. ...

In the Americas, the family names of many African-Americans have their origins in slavery. Many of them came to bear the surnames of their former owners. Many freed slaves either created family names themselves or else adopted the name of their former master. Others, such as Muhammad Ali and Malcolm X, changed their name rather than live with one they believed had been given to their ancestors by a slave owner. For other uses, see Slavery (disambiguation). ... Muhammad Ali (b. ... Malcolm X, born Malcolm Little, also known as Detroit Red and El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz (Omaha, Nebraska, May 19, 1925 – February 21, 1965 in New York City) was a Muslim Minister and National Spokesman for the Nation of Islam. ...

It has long been the custom for women to change their surname upon marriage from their birth name (or maiden name) to their husband's last name. From the late 1960s through the early 1990s, a small but increasing percentage of women chose to keep their birth name, or a hyphenated form of it, when they married. Going into the 2000s, however, the trend has been the other way, especially in the United States, where fewer women have been keeping their maiden name. As of 2004, roughly 90% of American women automatically assumed their husband's surname upon getting married.^{[citation needed]} Even in families where the wife has kept her birth name, parents often choose to give their children their father's family name. In English-speaking countries, married women traditionally have been called Mrs. [Husband's full name], although in recent times they are often called Mrs. [Wife's first name] [Husband's surname]. To meet Wikipedias quality standards and appeal to a wider international audience, this article may require cleanup. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

In the Middle Ages, when a man from a lower status family married an only daughter from a higher status family, he would take the wife's family name. In the 18th and 19th centuries in Britain, bequests were sometimes made contingent upon a man changing (or hyphenating) his name, so that the name of the legator continued. Although it is rare for English-speaking men to take the name of their wives, some men still choose to do so (such as among Canadian aboriginal groups) or, very rarely, a married couple may choose a new last name entirely. The Middle Ages formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history into three ages: the classical civilization of Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and modern times, beginning with the Renaissance. ...

As an alternative, both the husband and wife may adopt a double-barrelled name. For instance, when John Smith and Mary Jones marry each other, they may become known as John Smith-Jones and Mary Smith-Jones. However, some consider the extra length of the hyphenated names undesirable. A wife may also opt to use her maiden name for her middle name, giving her the option of referring to herself as either Mrs. Smith or Mary Jones Smith. However, as the Wall Street Journal reported in 2003, from a purely logistical standpoint, the bureaucratic process for a woman to change her name to anything but her husband’s has become considerably more difficult in the U.S. in the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks. In English-speaking and some other western countries, a double-barrelled name is a family name with two parts, which may or may not be joined with a hyphen, for example Bowes-Lyon or Fraser Darling. ... The explosion resulting from the crashing of United Airlines Flight 175 into the South Tower. ...

In some jurisdictions, a woman's legal name used to change automatically upon marriage. Although women may now easily choose to change to their married name, that change is no longer the default. In some places, civil rights lawsuits or constitutional amendments changed the law so that men could also easily change their married names (e.g., in British Columbia).^{[citation needed]} This redirect page is being considered for deletion in accordance with Wikipedias deletion policy. ... Motto: Splendor Sine Occasu (Latin: Splendour without diminishment) Official languages none stated in law; English is de facto Flower Pacific dogwood Capital Victoria Largest city Vancouver Lieutenant-Governor Iona Campagnolo Premier Gordon Campbell (BC Liberal) Parliamentary representation  - House seat  - Senate seats 36 6 Area Total  - Land  - Water    (% of total)  Ranked...

Women in academia who have previously published articles in academic journals under their maiden name often do not change their surname after marriage, in order to ensure that they continue to receive credit for their past and future work. This practice is also common among female physicians, attorneys, and other professionals, as well as celebrities for whom continuity is important. Plato is credited with the inception of academia: the body of knowledge, its development and transmission across generations. ...

Spelling of names in past centuries is often assumed to be a deliberate choice by a family, but due to very low literacy rates the reality is that many families could not provide the spelling of their surname, and so the scribe, clerk, minister, or official would write down the name on the basis of how it was spoken. This results in many variations, some of which occurred when families moved to another country. The officially-recorded spellings tended to become the standard for that family.

French-speaking countries

French-speaking countries have many similarities to English-speaking ones in the way family names are used. In France and the Canadian province of Quebec, name change upon marriage is no longer automatic. Those who wish to change their name upon marriage must follow the same legal procedure as would be used under any other circumstance. Motto: Je me souviens (French: I remember) Official languages French Flower White garden lily Capital Quebec City Largest city Montreal Lieutenant-Governor Lise Thibault Premier Jean Charest (PLQ) Parliamentary representation  - House seat  - Senate seats 75 24 Area Total  - Land  - Water    (% of total)  Ranked 2nd 1,542,056 km² 1,183...

In France, until January 1, 2005, children were required by law to take the surname of their father. From this date, article 311-21 of the French Civil code permits parents to give their children either the name of their father, mother, or a hyphenation of both - although no more than two names can be hyphenated. In cases of disagreement the father's name applies [1]. This brought France into line with a 1978 declaration by the Council of Europe requiring member governments to take measures to adopt equality of rights in the transmission of family names, a measure that was echoed by the United Nations in 1979. Similar measures were adopted by Germany (1976), Sweden (1982), Denmark (1983) and Spain (1999). A civil code is a systematic compilation of laws designed to comprehensively deal with the core areas of private law. ... The Palace of Europe in Strasbourg European Flag: used by the Council of Europe and by the European Union The Council of Europe (French: Conseil de lEurope , German: Europarat /ˌɔɪ.ˈro. ...

Furthermore, in French Canada, up until the late 1960s, children of Catholic origin were given three names at birth (usually not hyphenated): the first, Marie or Joseph, usually indicated the gender of the child. The second was usually the name of the godfather or godmother, while the third and last given name was the name used in everyday situations. Thus, a child prenamed Joseph Bruno Jean on his birth or baptismal certificate would indicate the baby to be a boy, the godfather's first name to be Bruno and that the child would be called Jean (and not Joseph) for all intents and purposes of everyday life. This naming convention was in the most part dropped following the Quiet Revolution (late 1960s), and is now seen much more rarely. Motto: Latin: A Mari Usque Ad Mare (English: From Sea to Sea) Anthem: O Canada Royal anthem: God Save the Queen Capital Ottawa Largest city Toronto Official language(s) English, French Government Federal constitutional monarchy  - Monarch Queen Elizabeth II  - Governor General Michaëlle Jean  - Prime Minister Stephen Harper Independence From... A godparent, in Christianity, is someone who sponsors a childs baptism. ... A godparent, in Christianity, is someone who sponsors a childs baptism. ... Jean Lesage, Daniel Johnson Sr. ...

German-speaking countries

German family names most often derive from given names, occupational designations, bodily attributes or geographical names. Hyphenations notwithstanding, they mostly consist of a single word; in those rare cases that the family name is linked to the given names by particles such as von or zu, they usually indicate noble ancestry. b0wn3d! by the frying dutchman In etymology, German family names were introduced during the late Penis Ages in the Boner language area. ... The Lords and Barons prove their Nobility by hanging their Banners and exposing their Coats-of-arms at the door of the Lodge of the Heralds. ... Kinship and descent is one of the major concepts of cultural anthropology. ...

Family names in German-speaking countries are usually positioned last, after all given names. There are exceptions, however: In parts of Austria, the family name is regularly put in front of the first given name. Also in many - especially rural - parts of Germany, to emphasize family affiliation there is often an inversion in colloquial use, in which the family name becomes a possessive: Rüters Erich, for example, would be Erich of the Rüter family. Rural area in Dalarna, Sweden Qichun, a rural town in Hubei province, China Rural areas are sparsely settled places away from the influence of large cities and towns. ... Possessive can refer to: Possessive case Possessive pronoun This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...

In Germany today, upon marriage both partners can choose to keep their birth name or adport a hyphenated name of their birth names, or one of them can switch to their partner's name (if the partner keeps it). After that, they must decide on one family name for all their future children, by pretty much the same rules. Changing one's family name for reasons other than marriage, divorce or adoption is only possible in Germany if the applicant can prove that they suffer extraordinarily due to their name.

Dutch-speaking countries

Main article: Dutch name

Many Dutch last names start with an independent prefix ("tussenvoegsel") like van ("of"), de or het ("the"), der ("of the"), van de ("of the"), and in het ("in the"). Examples are De Groot ("the great"), Van Weert ("of the city Weert"). Many such Dutch surnames originated from referrals to cities and other geographical locations. Surname registration started with the French occupation by Napoleon (1811). Some Dutch people, convinced that this convention would only be temporary, deliberately chose comical or confusing surnames, such as Rotmensen (meaning "rotten people"), Poepjes ("poops" or "farts"), Naaktgeboren ("born naked"), or Zeldenthuis ("rarely at home"). Dutch names consist of one or several given name(s) and a surname. ... A tussenvoegsel, in Dutch linguistics, is a word that is positioned between someones first name and last name, but is still a part of someones full surname. ...

Since Belgium has three official languages — Dutch, French and German — Belgian names are similar to those in the neighbouring countries: the Netherlands, France and Germany. Some differences exist: for example, Dutch names commonly have prefixes as mentioned above, except that these usually start with a capital letter, and are often written connected to the main word. Thus, de Bakker and van der Steen are probably Dutch while De Bakker and Vandersteen are Belgian. (Note: This distinction may have faded in surnames of Americans of Dutch or Belgian heritage.) The most common Dutch surnames in Belgium are Peeters, Janssens, Maes, Jacobs, Willems, Mertens, Claes, Wouters, Goossens, and De Smet. Flemish surnames often resemble first names, e.g. the following first names relate to above surnames: e.g. Peter, Jan, Jacob, Willem, Maarten, Klaas, and Wouter. The trailing s reportedly once meant "son of", so Willems would be "Willem's son". Furthermore older or historically different regional spelling remains visible in many names, e.g. usage of c instead of k and ae instead of aa (compare Claes with Klaas). The notion Flemish has a double meaning : a linguistic one (the language of the Flemings), and a social/political one (everything that refers to Flanders or to one or more individual Flemish people or organisations). ...

Ireland

Many surnames in Ireland of Gaelic origin derive from ancestor's names; nicknames; or descriptive names. In the first group can be placed surnames such as McMurrough and McCarthy, derived from father's names, or O'Brien and O'Toole, derived from ancestral names. A formal Irish Gaelic name consists of a given name and a surname, as in English. ... Irish (Gaeilge), a Goidelic language spoken in the Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland, Canada, and the United States, is constitutionally recognised as the first official language of the Republic of Ireland. ... A nickname is a short, clever, cute, derogatory, or otherwise substitute name for a person or things real name (for example, Nick is short for Nicholas). ...

Gaelic surnames derived from nicknames include O'Dubhda (from Aedh ua Dubhda - Aedh (pronounced Hugh), the dark one), O'Doherty (from dochartaigh, "destroyer" or "obtrusive"), Garvery (garbh, "rough" or "nasty"), Manton (mantach, "toothless"), Bane (bán, "white", as in "white hair"), Finn (fionn, "fair", as in "fair hair"), and Kennedy (cinnéide, "ugly head"). Dowd Arms. ... The Doherty Clan (Irish: Ó Dochartaigh) is an Irish clan (Irish: Clann) based in County Donegal in the north of island of Ireland. ...

In contrast to England, very few Gaelic surnames are derived from place names. Among those that are included in this small group, several can be shown to be bastardizations of Gaelic personal names or surnames. Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: Multiple unofficial anthems Capital London Largest city London Official language(s) English Government Constitutional monarchy  - Queen Queen Elizabeth II  - Prime Minister Tony Blair MP Unification    - by Athelstan 927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq mi   - Water (%) Population... A bastardization is a blundered word. ...

In areas where certain family names are extremely common, extra names are added that sometimes follow this archaic pattern. In Ireland, for example, where Murphy is an exceedingly common name, particular Murphy families or extended families are nicknamed, so that Denis Murphy's family were called The Weavers and Denis himself was called Denis "The Weaver" Murphy. (See also O'Hay.) Denis Murphy (born 2 November 1948) is a politician in the United Kingdom. ... OHay is an Irish family-name that covers a number of separate family trees, as the anglicization of Irish names introduced many errors and faulty phoenetic spellings. ...

For much the same reason, nicknames (e.g. the Fada Burkes, "the long/tall Burkes"), father's names (e.g. John Morrissey Ned) or mother's maiden name (Kennedy becoming Kennedy-Lydon) can become colloquial or legal surnames. The Irish family of de Courcy Ireland became so-named to distinguish them from their cousins who moved to France in the 17th and 18th centuries.

In addition to all this, Irish speaking areas still follow the old tradition of naming themselves after their father, grandfather, great-grandfather and so on. Examples include Mike Bartly Pat Reilly ("Mike, son of Bartholomew, son of Pat Reilly"), John Michel John Oge Pat Breanach ("John, son of Michael, son of young John, son of Pat Breanach"), Tom Paddy-Joe Seoige ("Tom, son of Paddy-Joe Seoige"), and Mary Bartly Mike Walsh ("Mary, daughter of Bartly, son of Mike Walsh"). Sometimes, the female line of the family is used, depending on how well the parent is known in the area the person resides, e.g. Paddy Mary John ("Paddy, son of Mary, daughter of John"). A similar tradition continues even in English-speaking areas, especially in rural districts.

Some Irish surnames can be mistaken for non-Irish. Anglicization of many surnames has been so thorough that bona-fide Irish names such as Crockwell and Harrington appear 100% English. Other Irish names can appear to be German (Bruder), Italian (Costello), or even Polish (Comiskey).

Irish surname prefixes

• Bean: "Wife", pronounced as ban.
• De: "of the": a Norman-French habitational prefix used by some of the most common Irish surnames among which are De Búrca, De Brún, De Barra, De Cíosóg and de Faoite. 'De' historically has signalled ownership of lands and was traditionally therefore a mark of prestige.
• Mac: Irish for "son", often shortened to Mc in Anglicised versions of Irish names, but also frequently left as Mac: A grammatical variant is Mag (pronounced Mac), which is dependent on the first letter or letters of the second part of the surname (eg Mag Shamhráin).
• Mhic: Pronounced as vick. Compressed form of bean mhic ("wife of the son of") eg Máire Mhic Néill (Máire, the wife of Mac Néill). This is the grammatically correct form of the prefix Mac always taken by a woman after marriage (i.e. a woman marrying someone of the surname Mac Néill would become Mhic Néill). Mhig (also pronounced vick) is used similarly to Mag in some cases (e.g. Mag Shamhráin/Mhig Shamhráin).
• Mac Giolla: Irish for "son of the devotee of a saint", or "son of a man whose name was perhaps Giolla Pádraig or (Mac) Giolla Bhrighde". Similar is the use of St. George and St. John as forenames in England in the 18th and 19th century.
• Maol: In Pagan times this was expressed as Mug, as in the case of Mug Nuada. The literal expression of this is "slave of Nuada", i.e. "devotee of Nuada". In the Christian era the word Mael was used in its place for given names such as Mael Bridget, Mael Padraig, Mael Lagan, Mael Sechlainn, and Mael Martain. In later times, some of these given names evolved into surnames, e.g. Ó Máel Sechlainn and Mac Mael Martain or Mael Lagan, which became after the 15th Century the name Milligan.
• Fitz: a Norman-French word derived from the Latin word filius ("son"). It was used in patronymics by thousands of men in the early Norman period in Ireland (e.g. fitz Stephen, fitz Richard, fitz Robert, fitz William) and only on some occasions did it become used as an actual surname, the most famous example being the FitzGerald Earls of Kildare. Yet well into the 17th and 18th century it was used in certain areas dominated by the Old English of Ireland in its original form, as a patronymic. The Tribes of Galway were especially good at conserving this form, with examples such as John fitz John Bodkin and Michael Lynch fitz Arthur, used even as late as the early 1800's. Despite claims to the contrary, the use of Fitz in a surname never denoted illegitimacy. This misunderstanding may have originated because a number of illegitimate members of the British royal family were given such surnames: some of the illegitimate children of King Charles II were named FitzCharles or FitzRoy ("son of the King"); those of King James II were named FitzJames; those of Prince William, Duke of Clarence and St Andrews (later King William IV) were named FitzClarence.
• Ó: In Old Irish as ua ("grandson", "descendant"). E.g., the ancestor of the O'Brien clan, Brian Boru (937-1014) was known in his lifetime as Brian mac Cennéide mac Lorcán ("Brian, the son of Cennéide, the son of Lorcán "). Not until the time of his grandsons and great-grandsons was the name O'Brien used as a surname, used to denote descent from an illustrious ancestor. It has for some three hundred years been written as O', but in recent years the apostrophe is often dropped, bringing it into line with early medieval forms.
• Uí: This is the plural of Ó and is used in reference to a kin-group or clan, e.g. Uí Néill, in reference to the O'Neill clan. Pronounced "ee".
• Ní: This is used for women instead of O before a surname and comes a shortened form of the Irish word for a daughter, e.g. Máire Ní Bhriain ("Mary O'Brien").
• Nic: This is used for women instead of Mac, but only if this is their maiden name, never their married name. Compressed form of iníon mhic ("daughter of the son of/Mac..."), e.g. Máire Nic Charthaigh ("Mary, daughter of McCarthy"). Nig (pronounced nick) is used in cases where the surname uses Mag e.g. Nig Shamhráin.

The Norman language is a Romance language, one of the Oïl languages. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Christianity. ... Milligan is a village located in Fillmore County, Nebraska. ... The Norman language is a Romance language, one of the Oïl languages. ... Latin is an ancient Indo-European language. ... A patronymic, or patronym, is a component of a personal name based on the name of ones father. ... The Normans (adapted from the name Northmen or Norsemen) were a mixture of the indigenous population of Neustria and Danish or Norwegian Vikings who began to occupy the northern area of France now known as Normandy in the latter half of the 9th century. ... Fitzgerald or FitzGerald is a Hiberno-Norman surname, meaning son of Gerald. It may refer to: People Barry Fitzgerald (1888–1961), Irish actor. ... Earl of Kildare is an Irish peerage title. ... The Old English were a wave of early medieval Norman, French, Welsh, English, Breton and Flemish settlers who went to Ireland to claim territory and lands in the wake of the Norman invasion. ... A patronymic, or patronym, is a component of a personal name based on the name of ones father. ... The Tribes of Galway were fourteen merchant families who dominated the political commercial and social life in the town of Galway between the 13th and 16th centuries. ... Charles II (29 May 1630 – 6 February 1685) was the King of England, King of Scots, and King of Ireland from 30 January 1649 (de jure) or 29 May 1660 (de facto) until his death. ... James II of England and VII of Scotland (14 October 1633–16 September 1701) became King of England, King of Scots, and King of Ireland on 6 February 1685. ... William IV (William Henry) (21 August 1765 – 20 June 1837) was King of the United Kingdom and of Hanover from 26 June 1830 until his death. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... OBrien is a common surname of Irish origin. ... An ancestor is a parent or (recursively) the parent of an ancestor (i. ...

Italy

See also: :Category:Italian surnames

Italian names are mostly derived from Latin, but since the Italian city-states and modern Italy have always experienced extensive contacts with foreign powers and travellers, many surnames are of Spanish, French, German, Norman or Swiss origin. Beginning in the 14th century, it became necessary to add a second name to distinguish between individuals with the same surname.

Italian surnames are generally easy to recognize because most end in a vowel, like nearly all words in standard Italian, and many of them have been derived from descriptive nicknames. Italian ( , or lingua italiana) is a Romance language spoken by about 70 million people, primarily in Italy. ...

Italian surnames developed in the most part from four sources: patronym (e.g. Francesco di Marco, "Francis, son of Mark"), occupation (e.g. Giovanni Fabbri, "John the Smith"), personal characteristic (e.g. nicknames or pet names like Dario Forte, "Darius the Strong"), and geographic origin (e.g. Elisabetta Romano, "Elisabeth from Rome").

Few family names are still in the original Latin, and usually they indicate from or with pretensions to antiquity, e.g. Santorum or de Laurentiis. Despite notions of this indicating nobility, it actually reflects that the family name has been preserved from Medieval Latin sources as a part of their business or household documentation or church records. Medieval Latin refers to the Latin used in the Middle Ages, primarily as a medium of scholarly exchange and as the liturgical language of the medieval Roman Catholic Church. ...

Usually, family names are written after any given name in most uses. However, the surname is written before given names when used in many official documents (for example, Giovanni Fabbri may be referred to Fabbri Giovanni in official documents). In speech, the use of given name first, family name last is standard.

Greece

Greek surnames usually describe occupation or characteristics.

Some are prefixed with papa-, indicating ancestry from a priest. Other prefixes include hadji- and kara- of Turkish origin which derive from occupations during the Ottoman Empire era. Hajji (Arabic: ‎ , pilgrim) is an honorific title given to a Muslim person who has successfully completed the Hajj to Mecca, and is often used to refer to an elder, since it takes time to accumulate the wealth to fund the travel. ... Imperial motto (Ottoman Turkish) دولت ابد مدت Devlet-i Ebed-müddet (The Eternal State) The Ottoman Empire at the height of its power (1683) Official language Ottoman Turkish Capital Söğüt (1299-1326), Bursa (1326-1365), Edirne (1365-1453), Constantinople (1453-1922) Imperial anthem Ottoman imperial anthem Sovereigns Padishah of the Osmanl...

Common patronymic suffixes are -poulos (Peloponessus), -idis, -iadis (Pontus), -akis (Crete), -atos (Ionian sea), -ellis (Lesvos Island). The suffix -idis survives from the ancient times (-ides) for patronymic epithets. Zeus, for example was also referred to as Cronides ("son of Cronus"). Peloponnesos (Greek: Πελοπόννησος, sometime Latinized as Peloponnesus or Anglicized as The Peloponnese) is a large peninsula in Greece, forming the part of the country south of the Isthmus of Corinth. ... Traditional rural Pontic house A man in traditional clothes from Trabzon, illustration Pontus is the name which was applied, in ancient times, to extensive tracts of country in the northeast of Asia Minor (modern Turkey) bordering on the Euxine (Black Sea), which was often called simply Pontos (the main), by... Crete (Greek: Κρήτη Kríti; Turkish: Girit) is the largest of the Greek islands and the fifth largest in the Mediterranean Sea. ... The Ionian Sea. ... The Isle of Lesbos shown just off the coast of Turkey, northwest of Izmir Lesbos (Greek – Λέσβος - Lésvos see also List of traditional Greek place names; Turkish: Midilli Adası) is a Greek island located in the northeastern Aegean Sea; its inhabitants are called Lesvioi. ... Statue of Zeus Phidias created the 12-m (40-ft) tall statue of Zeus at Olympia about 435 BCE. The statue was perhaps the most famous sculpture in ancient Greece, imagined here in a 16th-century engraving. ... Statue of Zeus Phidias created the 12-m (40-ft) tall statue of Zeus at Olympia about 435 BC. The statue was perhaps the most famous sculpture in ancient Greece, imagined here in a 16th-century engraving. ... In Greek mythology, Cronus (Ancient Greek Κρόνος—of obscure etymology, perhaps related to horned as seen in the word unicorn, which is indicitive of its connection to the levant deity El), also called Cronos or Kronos, was the leader and the youngest of the first generation of Titans, divine descendants of...

Pakistan

Main articles: Pakistani name and List of Pakistani family names

Pakistani surnames are basically divided in three categories: Arab naming convention, tribal names and ancestral names. Pakistani personal names take on a number of conventions that differ in form from person to person. ... Pakistani surnames are basically divided in three categories: Arab naming convention, tribal names and ancestral names. ... Pakistani personal names take on a number of conventions that differ in form from person to person. ...

Muslim surnames include those of Arab heritage, e.g. Shaikh, Siddiqui, Abbasi, Syed, Farooqi, Osmani, Alavi, Hassani, Hussaini, and Suhrawardi. Khan is the most common surname in Pakistan, India and Afghanistan indicating Turkish, Mongol and Central Asian ancestry. Other family names indicating Turkish heritage include Mughal, Mirza, Baig or Beg, Pasha, and Barlas. People claiming Iranian ancestry include those with family names Agha, Firdausi, Ghazali, Hamadani, Isfahani, Kashani, Kermani, Khorasani, Mir, Montazeri, Nishapuri, Noorani, Qizilbash, Saadi, Sabzvari, Shirazi, Sistani, Yazdani, Zahedi, and Zand. The Arabs (Arabic: عرب ) are an ethnic group found throughout the Middle East and North Africa. ... Shaikh (Arabic: شيخ ),(also rendered as Sheik, Shaykh or Sheikh) is a word in the Arabic language meaning elder of tribe, lord or a revered old man. ... Siddiqui (Arabic: شيخ ),(also rendered as Siddiqi, Siddighi or Seddighi) is a word in the Arabic language meaning truthful. ... Abbasi, formely Kalhora, the Caste Abbasi goes back to the Uncle of Muhammad, Abbasi. The Abbasi dynasties can be found mostly in, Iran, Turkey, Iraq, India and Pakistan. ... Sayyid (Arabic: سيد ) Sayyid is an honorific title often given to claimed descendants of the Prophet Muhammad through his grandsons, Husayn and Hasan, the sons of his daughter Fatima Zahra and his son-in-law Ali ibn Abi Talib (who was Muhammads younger cousin and had been raised in his... Farooqi (also rendered as Farooqui, Faruki or Faruqi), is common family name signifying ancestory from Hadrat Umar ibn al-Khattāb (in Arabic, عمر ابن الخطاب), second Khalifa (Caliph) of Islam. ... Osmani or Usmani or Othmani or Uthmani (Arabic: عثمانی) it is a common family name signifying ancestory from Hazrat Uthman (Arabic: عثمان بن عفان), third Khalifa of Islam. ... Alavi (Arabic: علوي) is a Muslim family name denoting descent from Hadrat Ali cousin of Prophet Muhammad. ... Hussaini or Sisoni is rockey valley in Gojal upper Hunza of the Northern Areas of Pakistan. ... Persian philosopher شهاب الدين يحيى سهروردى or Shihabuddin Yahya as-Suhrawardi (born 1153 in North-West-Iran; died 1191 in Aleppo) was the founder of School of Illumination, one of the most important islamic doctrine in Philosophy. ... Khan (sometimes spelled as Xan, Han) is a title with many meanings, originally commander, leader or ruler, in Mongolian and Turkish. ... Honorary guard of Mongolia. ... Map of Central Asia showing three sets of possible boundaries for the region Central Asia located as a region of the world Central Asia (Russian: Средняя Азия/Srednyaya Azia for Middle Asia or Центральная Азия/Tsentralnaya Azia for Central Asia; in Turkic languages Orta Asya; in Persian آسياى مرکزی; (Urdu: وسطى ايشيا)Wasti Asia; Standard Mandarin Chinese... The Mughal Empire (alternative spelling Mogul, which is the origin of the word Mogul) of India was founded by Babur in 1526, when he defeated Ibrahim Lodi, the last of the Delhi Sultans at the First Battle of Panipat. ... Mirza may refer to: a genus of giant mouse lemur species a title used by Mongols a title (last name) used by people of India a popular male name used widely in Bosnia & Herzegovina an Arabic name which means prince in Persian an Islamic family name. ... The Baigs are a proud clan of peoples descending from the India. ... BEG is 1) a verb, meaning to mendicate 2) an alternative form of the Turkic title bey (chieftain, governor etc) ... Pasha (or pascha, bashaw; Turkish: paÅŸa; originally from Persian padshah or padeshah meaning king) was a high rank in the Ottoman Empire political system, typically granted to governors and generals. ... Barlas or Birlas was the chief tribe of Timurid emperors, who lived in Central Asia, Pakistan, Afghanistan and in Hindustan. ... Agha (or Aga) from Turkish Agha ‘leader’, ‘ruler’. Title for a civil or military leader. ... فردوسی Ferdowsi Ferdowsi Ferdowsi Tousi (فردوسی طوسی in Persian) (more commonly transliterated Firdausi) (935–1020) is considered to be one of the greatest Persian poets to have ever lived. ... Abu Hamid Muhammad ibn Muhammad al-Ghazali (born 1058 in Tus, Khorasan province of Persia, modern day Iran, died 1111, Tus) was a Persian Muslim theologian and philosopher, known as Algazel to the western medieval world. ... Kashani, dubbed, the Second Ptolemy, was an outstanding Persian mathematician of the middle ages. ... Kermani or Kirmani (Persian: کرمانی ) is family name indicating ancestory from the city of Kerman, Iran. ... Meanings of MIR: Mail-in rebate Medical Inspection Room - the place for sick parade in most British and Commonwealth militaries and many NGOs. ... Montazeri is an Iranian surname. ... Categories: Possible copyright violations ... Tomb of Sadi, Shiraz, Iran. ... Sabzvari or Sabzwari is a family name that denotes people from Sabzwar, Herat province in Afghanistan. ... The Shirazi are Persians from Iran. ... His Hounarable Eminence Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Ali Husaini Sistani (Arabic: السيد علي الحسيني السيستاني Persian: سید علی حسینی سیستانی), born approximately August 4, 1930, is a Grand Ayatollah, a Shia marja and currently an important person in relation to the occupation of Iraq. ... Yazdani is a family name that denotes people from city of Yazdan in Iran. ... Zahedi (other transliteration: Zahidi) is a name attributed to descendants of Sheikh Zahed Gilani. ... The Zand dynasty ruled southern and central Iran in the eighteenth century. ...

Tribal names include Afaqi, Afridi, Amini, Ashrafkhel, Awan, Bajwa, Baloch, Barakzai, Baranzai, Bhatti, Bhutto, Bijarani, Bizenjo, Brohi, Bugti, Butt, Ghaznavi, Ghilzai, Gichki, Jakhrani, Jamali, Jamote, Janjua, Jatoi, Joyo, Junejo, Karmazkhel, Kayani, Khar, Khuhro, Lakhani, Leghari, Lodhi, Magsi, Malik, Mandokhel, Marwat, Mengal, Palijo, Panhwar, Popalzai, Rabbani, Raisani, Rakhshani, Rathore, Soomro, Sulaimankhel, Talpur, Thebo, and Zamani. The Afridi are a Pashtun tribe. ... An Island atoll in the Union Territory of Lakshadweep in India. ... There are several references to Awan: Awan was an Elamite dynasty of Iran. ... Bajwa is a word derived from arabic words and means clan of the hawk, and is a common last name amongst both Sikhs and Muslims, especially in the Punjab province of Pakistan. ... The Baloch (Persian: بلوچ alternative transliterations Baluch, Balouch, Balooch, Balush, Balosh, Baloosh, Baloush et al. ... The Barakzai Dynasty was the line of rulers in Afghanistan in the 19th and 20th centuries. ... Baranzai (Urdu: بارانزی )is a Pashtun tribe in NWFP ans Balochistan provinces of Pakistan. ... Bhatti is a chandravanshi rajput clan and is one of the largest tribes of Rajputs, and also is a tribe of Jats. ... Bhutto may refer to: Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto (Also spelled Bhuto) was former Pakistani Prime Minister, deposed by General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq in 1970s. ... Bijarani (Urdu: بجارانی ) is a Sindhi tribe in Sindh, Pakistan. ... Bizenjo (Urdu: بزنجو ) is a Baloch tribe in Balochistan, Pakistan. ... Brahui(brohi), An ancient language mostly spoken in Balochistan,Pakistan. ... Bugti (Urdu: بگٹی), is a Baloch tribe located in Balochistan, Pakistan. ... Look up butt in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Ghaznavi is the name given to a North Korean missile acquired by Pakistan. ... The Ghilzais (also known as Khiljis or Ghaljis) are one of two largest groups of Pashtuns, along with the Durrani tribe, found in Afghanistan with a large group also found in neighboring Pakistan. ... Gichki (Urdu: گچکی ) is a Baloch tribe in Balochistan, Pakistan. ... Jakhrani (Urdu: جکھرانی) is a Sindhi tribe in Sindh, Pakistan. ... Jamali (Urdu: جمالی ) is the name of a Baloch tribe in Balochistan and Sindh provinces of Pakistan. ... Jamote or Jamoot (Urdu: جاموٹ ) is a Baloch tribe in Sindh and Balochistan provinces of Pakistan. ... The Janjua Rajput (Urdu: جنجوعہ ) are one of the most dominant warrior clans of Punjab. ... Jatoi (Urdu: جتوئی ) is the name of a Baloch tribe in Sindh, Pakistan. ... Joyo can be the name of several towns in Japan: Joyo, Kyoto Joyo, Fukuoka Joyo also can be a Chinese website Joyo. ... Junejo (Urdu: جونیجو) is the name of a Sindhi tribe in Sindh, Pakistan. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Khar is a word used in Ancient Egyptian documents to refer to the southern part of Canaan. ... Leghari (Urdu: لغاری ) is Baloch tribe living in Balochistan, Sindh and Punjab provinces of Pakistan. ... Lodhi (also sometimes Lodi) is a Pashtun tribe, most likely a sub-group of the larger Ghilzai of Afghanistan and Pakistan who were part of a wave of Pashtuns who pushed east into what is today Pakistan and India. ... Magsi (Urdu: مگسی ) is a Baloch tribe in Balochistan and Sindh in Pakistan. ... Malik (ملك) is a word that means king in Arabic, also adopted in various other oriental languages, also in derived meanings. ... Mandokhel (Urdu: مندو خیل ) is a Pashtun tribe settled in Pakistan. ... Marwat مروت, a well known branch of Pashtun tribe, are the direct descendents of a Persian Prince Shah Hussain of the house of Ghor (Afghanistan) and Bibi Mato (Daughter of Sheikh Baittan). ... Mengal (Urdu: مینگل ) is a Baloch tribe in Balochistan, Pakistan. ... Palijo (Urdu: پلیجو ) is the name of a Sindhi tribe in Sindh, Pakistan. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Popalzai or Popalzay is the name of the Pashtun clan that is part of the larger Durrani tribe from which the first king of Afghanistan Ahmad Shah Durrani originated. ... Rabbani is a Malaysian nasyid group that consists of 7 members and they are Mohamad Asri Ibrahim as the lead vocal, together with Mohd Asri Ubaidullah, Ahmad Shafie, Zulkiflee Azman, Mohd Loqman Abd. ... Raisani is a Brahui tribe in Balochistan, Pakistan. ... This Article is about Hindu Rajput Rathores, thier religion, culture and hisory. ... Soomro or Soomra dynasty ruled Sindh, Pakistan, from 1026-1350 AD a period of nearly 300 years. ... Talpur is a Baloch tribe that conquered and ruled Sindh, and other parts of Pakistan, from 1783 to 1843 AD. Talpur army defeated Kalhora dynasty in the battle of Halani in 1783 to became rulers of Sindh. ...

Portugal and Brazil

In the Portuguese naming customs, the main surname (the one used in alphasorting, indexing, abbreviations, and greetings), appears last (reverse the order of Spanish surnames). In most Spanish, and Portuguese speaking regions of the world, people have at least two surnames. ...

Each person has usually two family names: the first is the maternal family name; the last is the paternal family name. A person can have up to six names (two first names and four surnames — he or she may have two names from the mother and two from the father).

In the ancient ages the patronymicum was commonly used — surnames like Gonçalves ("son of Gonçalo"), Fernandes ("son of Fernando"), Nunes ("son of Nuno") and many more are used today as usual family names.

Brazilians usually call people only by their given names, omitting family names, even in many formal situations (as in the press referring to authorities, i.e. "President Fernando Henrique", never President Cardoso). When formality or a prefix requires a family name, the given name usually precedes the surname, e.g. João Santos ("John Saints"), or Sr. João Santos ("Mr. John Saints").

Spain and Hispanic areas

In medieval times, a patronymic system similar to the one still used in Iceland emerged. For example, Álvaro, the son of Rodrigo would be named Álvaro Rodríguez. His son, Juan, would not be named Juan Rodríguez, but Juan Álvarez. Over time, many of these patronymics became family names and are some of the most common names in the Spanish-speaking world. Other sources of surnames are personal appearance or habit, e.g. Delgado ("thin") and Moreno ("tan"); occupations, e.g. Molinero ("miller") and Guerrero ("warrior"); and geographic location or ethnicity, e.g. Alemán ("German"). In most Spanish, and Portuguese speaking regions of the world, people have at least two surnames. ...

However, nowadays in Spain and in many countries of Hispanic culture (former Spanish colonies, e.g. México, Honduras, Colombia, Peru, Chile, Venezuela), most people have two surnames, although in some situations only the first is used. The first surname is the paternal one, inherited from the father's paternal surname. The second surname is the maternal one, inherited from the mother's paternal surname. Since both surnames come from the paternal surnames of the previous generation, their transmission can be seen as a patriarchal feature of the Hispanic society. In Spain, after a new law approved on 1999, an adult can change the order of his/her surnames and the parents can also change the order of their children's surnames if they agree (if one of their children is at least 12 years old they need his/her agreement too). [2] (Link in spanish) A patriarch (from Greek: patria means father; arché means rule, beginning, origin) is a male head of an extended family exercising autocratic authority, or, by extension, a member of the ruling class or government of a society controlled by senior men. ...

Depending on the country, the surnames may or may not be linked by the conjunction y ("and"), i ("and", in Catalonia), de ("of") and de la ("of the", when the following word is feminine). However, in many South American countries people have now adopted the English-speaking custom, thus having a single surname (e.g. in Argentina). Sometimes a new father transmits his complete surname by creating a new one, combining his two surnames, e.g. the paternal surname of the son of Javier (given name) Reyes (paternal surname) de la Barrera (maternal surname) may become the new paternal surname Reyes de la Barrera. Capital Barcelona Official languages Catalan, Spanish, Aranese Area  â€“ Total  â€“ % of Spain Ranked 6th in Spain  32 114 km²  6,3% Population  â€“ Total (2005)  â€“ % of Spain  â€“ Density Ranked 2nd in Spain  6 995 206  15,9%  217,82/km² GDP Total (2004) GDP: €157,124 billion GDP per /capita: $26,550...

At present day in Spain, women upon marrying keep their two family names intact. In certain situations she may be addressed as if her maternal surname were substituted with her husbands paternal surname often linked with de. For example, a woman named Ana García Díaz, upon marrying Juan Guerrero Macías, could be called Ana García de Guerrero. This custom, begun in medieval times, is decaying and only has legal validity in Ecuador, Peru, Mexico, and Panama. In Ecuador, a couple can choose the order of their children's surnames. Most choose the traditional order (e.g. Guerrero García in the example above), but some invert the order, putting the mother's paternal surname first and the father's paternal surname last (e.g. García Guerrero from the example above). Such inversion, if chosen, must be maintained for all the children.

The Philippines

Until the middle of the 19th century, there was no standardization of surnames in the Philippines. There were native Filipinos without surnames, others whose surnames deliberately did not match that of their families, as well as those who took certain surnames simply because they had a certain prestige, usually ones dealing with the Roman Catholic religion, such as de los Santos and de la Cruz.

In 1849, the Spanish governor Narciso Clavería y Zaldúa decreed an end to these arbitrary practices, the result of which was the Catálogo Alfabético de Apellidos ("Alphabetic Catalog of Surnames"). The book contained many words coming from Spanish and the Philippine languages such as Tagalog. Spanish Governor - Captain General of the Philippines was a military rank - office governor appointed by the Spanish Cortes, in a form of a Captaincy General and viceroy. ... The Catálogo Alfabético de Apellidos (English: Alphabetical Catalogue of Surnames) is a book of surnames that was published in the colonial era Philippines after a decree for the systematic distribution of family names and the implementation of the Spanish naming system on the inhabitants of the Philippines. ... Tagalog (pronunciation: ) is one of the major languages of the Republic of the Philippines. ...

The actual application of this decree varied from municipality to municipality. Some municipalities received only surnames starting with a particular letter. For example, the majority of residents of the island of Banton in Romblon province have surnames starting with F such as Fabicon, Fallarme, Fadrilan, and Ferran. Thus, although there perhaps a majority of Filipinos have Spanish surnames, such a surname does not imply Spanish ancestry. Banton is a 5th class municipality in the province of Romblon, Philippines. ... Romblon is an island province of the Philippines located in the MIMAROPA region in Luzon. ...

There are other sources for surnames. Many Filipinos also have Chinese derived surnames, which in some cases could yield clues to Chinese ancestry. Many Hispanicized Chinese numerals and other Hispanicized Chinese words, however, were also among the surnames in the "Catálogo Alfabético de Apellidos". For those whom it may indicate a Chinese ancestry, analysis of the surname may indicate when those ancestors immigrated to the Philippines. A hispanicized Chinese surname like Cojuangco suggests an 18th-century immigration while a Chinese surname like Lim suggests a relatively recent immigration. Some Chinese surnames like Tiu-Laurel are composed of the immigrant Chinese ancestor's surname as well as the name of that ancestor's godparent.

In the Muslim-dominated areas of the southern Philippines, adoption of surnames was influenced by connections to that religion, its holy places, and prophets. As a result, surnames among Filipino Muslims are largely Arabic-sounding, and include such surnames as Hassan and Haradji.

There are also Filipinos who to this day have no surnames at all, particularly if from rural tribes.

The vast majority of Filipinos follow a naming system which is the reverse of the Spanish one. Children take the mother's surname as their middle name, followed by their father's as their surname; for example, a son of Juan de la Cruz and his wife Maria Agbayani may be David Agbayani de la Cruz. Women take the surnames of their husband upon marriage; so upon her marriage to David de la Cruz, the full name of Laura Yuchengco Macaraeg would become Laura Yuchengco Macaraeg de la Cruz. Many peoples names include one or more middle names, placed between the first given name and the surname. ...

The Iberian naming order, almost always coupled with the use of y, however, remains common practice in the Philippines, where it is used, among others, in keeping criminal records. (See Iberian naming customs.) In most Spanish, and Portuguese speaking regions of the world, people have at least two surnames. ...

Iceland

In Iceland, most people have no family name; a person's last name is a patronymic, i.e. a modified form of the father's first name or, sometimes, the mother's. For example, when a man called Karl has a daughter called Anna and a son called Magnús, their names will be Anna Karlsdóttir ("daughter of Karl") and Magnús Karlsson ("son of Karl"). Iceland shares a common cultural heritage with the Scandinavian states of Norway, Sweden, and Denmark. ... A patronymic, or patronym, is a component of a personal name based on the name of ones father. ...

Finland

Until the early 20th Century, Finland was a strong agrarian society and Finns' names were based on their association with a particular area, farm, or homestead, e.g. Jaakko Vilippunen ("Jaakko, Vilippu" with the -nen suffix). People began treating the agrarian names as proper surnames, which practice produced many surnames ending with -nen, e.g. Häkkinen, Halonen, Lipponen, and Räikkönen. Surnames became compulsory for all Finns in 1921. Agrarian has two meanings: It can mean pertaining to Agriculture It can also refer to the ideology of Agrarianism and Agrarian parties. ... Bales of hay on a farm near Ames, Iowa A farm is the basic unit in agriculture. ... A homestead is: A farm with the buildings around it, see homestead (buildings) Ones legal residence, see homestead (law) An area measure of 160 acres (650,000 m²), see homestead (area) and Homestead Act To homestead is to establish ownership of previously unowned property (usually but not exclusively land... 1921 (MCMXXI) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ...

However, a considerable minority of Finnish surnames have suffixes that describe the place where an ancestor lived, like -mäki ("-hill"), -järvi ("-lake"), and -joki ("-river"). Finnish women usually change their surname when they get married. Finn-Swedes tend to keep the format of their surnames of their European ancestors like Karlsson, Andersson, Majander and Stockmann, and subsequently they follow the format of their ancestors. Finland-Swedish is a variety of Swedish. ...

Due to Finland's legal protection of names, many people cannot change their surnames to legally protected ones, e.g. to famous names like Mannerheim or Ståhlberg. Finns also can legally only have a maximum of three given names and two surnames (double barrelled only). Some immigrants have had difficulty naming their children, as they must choose from an approved list based on the family's household language. Mannerheim is a surname of two well-known nobility lineages registered in Finland and Sweden. ... Kaarlo Juho StÃ¥hlberg (January 28, 1865 - September 22, 1952) was the first President of Finland (1919-1925) and a Nationalist Liberal. ... In English-speaking and some other western countries, a double-barrelled name is a family name with two parts, which may or may not be joined with a hyphen, for example Bowes-Lyon or Fraser Darling. ...

Scandinavia

In Scandinavia family names often, but certainly not always, originate from a patronymic. In Sweden, the patronymic ending is -sson, e.g. Karlsson ("Karl's son"). In Denmark and Norway, the corresponding ending is -sen, as in Karlsen. Names ending with dotter/datter (daughter), such as Olofsdotter, are rare but occurring, and only apply to females. Today, the patronymic names are passed on similarly to family names in other Western countries, and a person's father doesn't have to be called Karl if he or she has the surname Karlsson. Scandinavia is a region in Northern Europe named after the Scandinavian Peninsula. ...

Before the 19th century there was the same system in Scandinavia as in Iceland today. Noble families, however, as a rule adopted a family name, which could refer to a presumed or real forefather (e.g. Earl Birger Magnusson Folkunge) or to the family's coat of arms (e.g. King Gustav Eriksson Vasa). In many surviving family noble names, such as Cederqvist ("cedar-twig") or Stiernhielm ("star-helmet"), the spelling is obsolete, but since it applies to a name, remains unchanged. Birger Magnusson (1280 – 1321) was hailed king when he was four years old. ... Coat of arms of Folkung family In modern Swedish, Folkung has two meanings, which appear to be opposites: The noble (royal) clan of some Folkungar, later named Folkungaätten (ätt means clan), who in effect introduced inheritance of the throne during the 12th century. ... A modern coat of arms is derived from the medi val practice of painting designs onto the shield and outer clothing of knights to enable them to be identified in battle, and later in tournaments. ... Gustav Vasa, originally Gustav Eriksson Vasa (May 12, 1496–September 29, 1560) was King of Sweden from 1523 until his death. ... The Vasa Coat of Arms The House of Vasa was the Royal House of Sweden (1523-1654) and of Poland (1587-1668). ...

Later on, people from the Scandinavian middle classes, particularly artisans and town dwellers, adopted names in a similar fashion to that of the nobility. Family names such as the Swedish Bergman, Holmberg, Lindgren, Sandström and Åkerlund were quite frequent and remain common today. The same is true for similar Norwegian and Danish names.

These names often indicated the place of residence of the family. For this reason, Denmark and Norway have a very high incidence of names derived from those of farms, many signified by the suffix -gaard -- the modern spelling is gård in Danish and has changed to gard in Norwegian, but as in Sweden, archaic spelling persists in surnames. The most well-known example of this kind of surname is probably Kierkegaard (original meaning: the farm located by the Church or also churchyard and cemetery [although this is unlikely in the context] which, with kierke, actually includes two archaic spellings), but many others could be cited. It should also be noted that, since the names in question are derived from the original owners' domiciles, the possession of this kind of name is no longer an indicator of affinity with others who bear it. Søren Aabye Kierkegaard (IPA: ) (5 May 1813 – 11 November 1855) was a 19th-century Danish philosopher and theologian, generally recognized as the first existentialist philosopher. ...

In many cases, names were taken from the nature around them. A family name such as "Dahlgren" is dervied from "dahl" meaning valley and "gren" meaning branch.

Russia

A full Russian name consists of personal (given) name, patronymic, and family name (surname).

Most Russian family names originated from patronymics, that is, father's name usually formed by adding the adjective suffix -ov(a) or -ev(a)). Contemporary patronymics, however, have a substantive suffix -ich for masculine and the adjective suffix -na for feminine.

For example, the proverbial triad of most common Russian surnames follows:

• Ivanov (son of Ivan),
• Petrov (son of Petr),
• Sidorov (son of Sidor).

Feminine forms of these surnames have the ending -a:

• Ivanova (daughter of Ivan),
• Petrova (daughter of Petr),
• Sidorova (daughter of Sidor).

Such a pattern of name formation is not unique to Russia or even to the Eastern and Southern Slavs in general; quite common are also names derived from professions, places of origin, and personal characteristics, with various suffixes (e.g. -in(a) and -sky (-skaia)).

Professions:

• kuznets (smith) → Kuznetsov—Kuznetsova
• portnoi (tailor) → Portnov—Portnova
• pastukh (shepherd) → Pastukhov—Pastukhova

Places of origin: A smith or metalsmith is a person involved in the shaping of metal objects. ... A tailor is a person whose occupation is to sew clothes custom-fit to individuals, and to repair clothes. ... In a draw in a mountainous region, a shepherd guides a flock of about 20 sheep amidst scrub and olive trees. ...

• Moskva (Moscow) → Moskvin—Moskvina,
• Smolensk → Smolensky—Smolenskaia,
• Riazan → Riazanov—Riazanova,

Personal characteristics: For other uses, see Moscow (disambiguation). ...

• tolsty (stout, fat) → Tolstov—Tolstova, Tolstoy—Tolstaya,
• nos (nose) → Nosov—Nosova,
• sedoi (grey-haired or -headed) → Sedov—Sedova.

A considerable number of “artificial” names exists, for example, those given to seminary graduates; such names were based on Great Feasts of the Orthodox Church or Christian virtues. The feast of the Resurrection of Jesus, called Easter or Pascha, is the greatest of the feasts of the Eastern Orthodox Church. ...

Great Orthodox Feasts:

• rozhdestvo (Christmas) → Rozhdestvensky—Rozhdestvenskaia,
• voskresenie (Resurrection) → Voskresensky—Voskresenskaia,
• uspenie (Assumption) → Uspensky—Uspenskaia,

Christian virtues:

• philagathos (one who loves goodness) → Dobrolubov—Dobrolubova, Dobrolubsky—Dobrolubskaia,
• philosophos (one who loves wisdom) → Lubomudrov—Lubomudrova,
• theophilos (one who loves God) → Bogolubov—Bogolubova.

Many freed serfs were given surnames after those of their former owners. For example, a serf of the Demidov family might be named Demidovsky, which translates roughly as "belonging to Demidov" or "one of Demidov's bunch". Coat of arms of Prince Anatole Demidoff. ...

Grammatically, Russian family names follow the same rules as other nouns or adjectives (names ending with -oy, -aya are grammatically adjectives), with exceptions: some names do not change in different cases and have the same form in both genders (for example, Sedykh).

Poland

Main articles: Polish surnames and Polish name

In Poland and most of the former Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, surnames first appeared during the late Middle Ages. They initially denoted the differences between various people living in the same town or village and bearing the same name. The conventions were similar to those of English surnames, using occupations, patronymic descent, geographic origins, or personal characteristics. Thus, early surnames indicating occupation include Karczmarz ("innkeeper"), Kowal ("blacksmith"), and Bednarczyk ("young cooper"), while those indicating patronymic descent include Szczepaniak ("Son of Szczepan), Józefski ("Son of Józef), and Kaźmirkiewicz ("Son of Kazimierz"). Similarly, early surnames like Mazur ("the one from Mazury") indicated geographic origin, while ones like Nowak ("the new one"), Biały ("the pale one"), and Wielgus ("the big one") indicated personal characteristics. Polish surnames are known from the Middle Ages, but only 200 years ago did the inherited surnames become compulsory. ... A Polish personal name, like names in most European cultures, consists of two main elements: imiÄ™, or the given name, followed by nazwisko, or the family name. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Sailing on Lake MikoÅ‚ajki. ...

In the early 16th century, ( the Polish Renaissance), geographical names became common, especially among the szlachta. Initially, the surnames were in a form of "[first name] z ("of") [location]", e.g. Jan z Kolna ("John of Kolno"). Later, most surnames were changed to adjective forms, e.g. Jakub Wiślicki ("James of Wisła") and Zbigniew Oleśnicki ("Zbigniew of Oleśnica"), with masculine suffixes -ski, -cki and -dzki or respective feminine suffixes -ska, -cka and -dzka. Names formed this way are adjectives grammatically, and therefore change their form depending on gender; for example, Jan Kowalski and Maria Kowalska collectively use the plural Kowalscy. The Polish Renaissance, whose influence originated in Italy, started spreading in Poland in the 15th and 16th century. ... Polish szlachcic. ... John of Kolno (also known as Jan z Kolna, Johannes Scolnus, Ioannis Scolvenius or Iohannes Scolvus Polonus) (1435–1484)—a semi-legendary Polish sailor and navigator serving for the court of Denmark. ... Kolno is a town in northeastern Poland. ... Wisła is a town in southern Poland, with a population of about 11,100, near the border with Czech Republic and Slovakia. ... Zbigniew Oleśnicki Zbigniew Oleśnicki (1389 - 1455) was a Polish cardinal and statesman. ... Oleśnica (German Oels or Öls. ... A suffix is an affix that follows the morphemes to which it can attach. ...

Names with masculine suffixes -ski, -cki, and -dzki, and corresponding feminine suffixes -ska, -cka, and -dzka became associated with noble origin. Many people from lower classes successively changed their surnames to fit this pattern. This produced many Kowalskis, Bednarskis, Kaczmarskis and so on. Today, although most Polish speakers do not know about noble associations of -ski endings, such names still sound somehow better to them.

A separate class of surnames derive from the names of szlachta coats of arms. These are used either as separate names or the first part of a double-barrelled name. Thus, persons named Jan Nieczuja and Krzysztof Nieczuja-Machocki might be related. Similarly, after World War I and World War II, many members of Polish underground organizations adopted their war-time pseudonyms as the first part of their surnames. Edward Rydz thus became Marshal of Poland Edward Śmigły-Rydz and Jan Nowak became Jan Nowak-Jeziorański. Polish szlachcic. ... A modern coat of arms is derived from the medi val practice of painting designs onto the shield and outer clothing of knights to enable them to be identified in battle, and later in tournaments. ... In English-speaking and some other western countries, a double-barrelled name is a family name with two parts, which may or may not be joined with a hyphen, for example Bowes-Lyon or Fraser Darling. ... Combatants Allied Powers: British Empire French Empire Italy Russian Empire Kingdom of Serbia United States Central Powers: Austria-Hungary Bulgaria German Empire Ottoman Empire Commanders Douglas Haig Sir John Jellicoe Ferdinand Foch Nikolay II Nikolay Yudenich Radomir Putnik Woodrow Wilson John Pershing Wilhelm II Reinhard Scheer Franz Josef I Oskar... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, the use of images on this page may require cleanup, involving adjustment of image placement, formatting, size, or other adjustments. ... Polish Secret State (also known as Polish Underground State; Polish Polskie Państwo Podziemne) is a term coined by Jan Karski in his book Story of a Secret State; it is used to refer to all underground resistance organizations in Poland during World War II, both military and civilian. ... A pseudonym or allonym is a name (sometimes legally adopted, sometimes purely fictitious) used by an individual as an alternative to their birth name. ... Marshal of Poland (Marszałek Polski) is the highest rank in the Polish Army. ... Edward Rydz-Śmigły Edward Rydz-Śmigły (born March 11, 1886 in Łapszyn near Brzeżana, Tarnopol Voivodship - died December 2, 1941 in Warsaw), codenames Śmigły, Tarłowski, Adam Zawisza. ... Jan Nowak-Jeziorański Jan Nowak-Jeziorański (October 3, 1914 – January 20, 2005) was a Polish journalist, writer, politician, social worker and patriot. ...

Ashkenazi Jewish surnames

Until a few hundred years ago, Ashkenazim (Jews from Northern and Eastern Europe) followed no tradition of surnames, but used patronymics within the synagogue, and matronymics in other venues. For example, a boy named Joseph of a father named Isaac would be called to the Torah as Joseph ben Isaac. That same boy of a mother named Rachel would be known in business as Joseph ben Rachel. A male used the Hebrew word ben ("son") and a female used bat ("daughter"). Ashkenazi Jews, also known as Ashkenazic Jews or Ashkenazim (אַשְׁכֲּנָזִי אַשְׁכֲּנָזִים Standard Hebrew, AÅ¡kanazi,AÅ¡kanazim, Tiberian Hebrew, ʾAÅ¡kănāzî, ʾAÅ¡kănāzîm, pronounced sing. ... Lesko synagogue, Poland A synagogue (Hebrew: בית כנסת ; beit knesset, house of assembly; Yiddish: שול, shul) is a Jewish place of religious worship. ... A matronymic is a personal name based on the name of ones mother. ... Torah () is a Hebrew word meaning teaching, instruction, or law. It is the central and most important document of Judaism revered by Jews through the ages. ... Hebrew (עִבְרִית or עברית, ‘Ivrit) is a Semitic language of the Afro-Asiatic language family spoken by more than seven million people in Israel and Jewish communities around the world. ...

When Northern European countries legislated that Jews required "proper" surnames, Jews were left with a number of options. Many Jews (particularly in Austria, Prussia, and Russia) were forced to adopt Germanic names. In 1781, Emperor Joseph II of Austria announced an Edict of Toleration for the Jews, which established the requirement for hereditary family names. The Jews of Galicia did not adopt surnames until 1785. He issued a law in 1787 which assumed that all Jews were to adopt German names. The city mayors were to choose the name for every Jewish family. A fee was charged for names related to precious metals and flowers, while free surnames were usually connected to animals and common metals. Coat of Arms of the Kingdom of Prussia, 1701-1918 Prussia (German: ; Latin: Borussia, Prutenia; Lithuanian: ; Polish: ; Old Prussian: Prūsa) was, most recently, a historic state originating in East Prussia, an area which for centuries had substantial influence on German and European history. ... Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II Joseph II (March 13, 1741 – February 20, 1790) was Holy Roman Emperor from 1765 to 1790. ... An Edict of Toleration is an act of heads of state and government, proclamations and treaties either securing or dismantling the freedom of religion and worship within their respective territories. ... Coat-of-arms of Galicia Galicia is a historical region currently split between Poland and Ukraine. ... A mayor (from the Latin māior, meaning larger,greater) is in modern times the title of the highest ranking municipal officer, who discharges certain judicial and administrative functions, in many systems an elected politician, who serves as chief executive and/or ceremonial official of many types of municipalities. ...

Many took Yiddish names derived from occupation (e.g. Goldschmidt "Gold-smith"), from their father (e.g. Jacobson), or from location (e.g. Berliner, Warszawski or Pinsker). This makes Ashkenazi surnames similar to Scandinavian and especially Swedish ones. Yiddish (ייִדיש, Jiddisch) is a Germanic language spoken by about four million Jews throughout the world. ... This article is about the capital of Germany. ... Warsaw (Polish: , (?), in full The Capital City of Warsaw, Polish: Miasto StoÅ‚eczne Warszawa) is the capital of Poland and its largest city. ... Pinsk (Belarusian: , Russian: ), a town in Belarus, in the Polesia region, travesed by the river Prypiać, at the confluence of the Strumen and Pina rivers. ...

Many Jews also took names of their Jewish lineage. A person of Priestly (Cohanite) descent could take the last name related to his lineage (e.g. Cohen - Hebrew/Yiddish or Colons - Spanish). If a Jew was a descendant of the Levites, then he could take a surname like Levin or Levenson. Even in death, many kohanim choose to have this symbol, the special positioning of their fingers and hands during the Priestly Blessing, placed as a crest or symbol on their gravestones to indicate their status. ... In the Jewish tradition, a Levite (לוי Attached, Standard Hebrew Levi, Tiberian Hebrew Lēwî) is a member of the Hebrew tribe of Levi. ...

In Prussia, special military commissions were created to choose the names. It became common that the poorer Jews were forced to adopt simply bizarre names or even derogatory, offensive ones. Among those created by Ernst Theodor Amadeus Hoffmann were: Coat of Arms of the Kingdom of Prussia, 1701-1918 Prussia (German: ; Latin: Borussia, Prutenia; Lithuanian: ; Polish: ; Old Prussian: Prūsa) was, most recently, a historic state originating in East Prussia, an area which for centuries had substantial influence on German and European history. ... ETA Hoffman Ernst Theodor Amadeus Hoffmann (January 24, 1776 - June 25, 1822), was a German romantic and fantasy author and composer. ...

• Ochsenschwanz ("oxtail")
• Temperaturwechsel ("temperature glitch")
• Kanalgeruch ("sewer stink")
• Singmirwas ("sing me something") ^{[citation needed]}

The Jews of Poland adopted names much earlier. Those who were adopted by a szlachta family usually changed the name to that of the family. Christened Jews usually adopted either a common Polish name or a name created after the month of their baptism. Thus, many Frankists adopted the name Majewski after the month of May in 1759. Oxtail is the culinary name for the tail of a beef animal. ... This page is a list of Jews. ... Polish szlachcic. ... Religious conversion is the adoption of new religious beliefs that differ from the converts previous beliefs; in some cultures (e. ... Baptism in early Christian art. ... Jacob Frank (1726-1791) was a Jewish merchant who claimed to be the messiah. ... 1759 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ...

Both the given names and surnames of Ashkenazim today may be completely European in origin, though many will also possess a traditional Hebrew name for use only in the synagogue. Lesko synagogue, Poland A synagogue (Hebrew: בית כנסת ; beit knesset, house of assembly; Yiddish: שול, shul) is a Jewish place of religious worship. ...

Romania

In Romania family names traditionally have an English-like usage: a child inherits his father's family name, and a wife takes her husband's last name. There are however exceptions and social pressure to follow this tradition is not particularly strong in most families.

Until the 19th century, the names were primarily of the form "[given name] [father's name] [grandfather's name]". The few exceptions are usually famous people or the nobility (boyars). The name reform introduced around 1850, had the names changed to a western style, most likely imported from France, consisting of a given name followed by a family name. Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ...

As such, the name is called prenume (French prénom), while the family name is called nume or, when otherwise ambiguous, nume de familie ("family name"). Although not mandatory, middle names (Romanian numele mic, literally, "small name") are common.

Historically, when the family name reform was introduced in the mid 19th century, the default was to use a patronym, or a matronym when the father was dead or unknown. The typical derivation was to append the suffix -escu to the father's name, e.g. Anghelescu ("Anghel's child") and Petrescu ("Petre's child"). The other common derivation was to append the suffix -eanu to the name of the place of origin, especially when one came from a different region, e.g. Munteanu ("from Munte") and Moldoveanu ("from Moldova"). These uniquely Romanian suffixes strongly identify ancestoral nationality. A patronymic is a personal name based on the name of ones father. ... A patronymic is a personal name based on the name of ones father. ...

There are also descriptive family names derived from occupations, nicknames, and events, e.g. Botezatu ("baptised"), Barbu ("bushy bearded"), Prodan ("foster"), Bălan ("blond"), and Fieraru ("smith").

Romanian family names remain the same regardless of the sex of the person.

Although given names appear before family names in most Romanian contexts, official documents invert the order, ostensibly for filing purposes. Correspondingly, Romanians often introduce themselves with their family names first, especially in official contexts, e.g. a student signing a test paper in school.

India

For more details on this topic, see Indian family name.

Indian surnames, where formalized, fall into seven general types. And people from Southern states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala do not have any formal surnames. It has been suggested that Indian name be merged into this article or section. ...

• Patronymics and Ancestry, where the father's name or an ancester's given name is used in its original form or in a derived form (e.g. Aggarwal or Agrawal or Agrawala derived from the ancestor Agrasen).
• Occupations ( Chaudhury, Patel or Patil meaning Village Headman, Gandhi, Kulkarni, Kapadia, Nadkarni, Patwardhan, Patwari, Chamar) and priestly distinctions (Trivedi, Chaturvedi, Twivedi, Purohit, Bhattar, Mukhopadhyay.) Businesspeople: Shah. In addition many Parsi, Bohra and Gujarati families have used English trade names as last names since the 18th and 19th centuries (Contractor, Engineer, Builder).
• Caste or clan names (Gaudar, Vaish, Parmar, Kamma, Sindhi).
• Place names or names derived from places of ancestral origin (Marwari, Gawaskar, Mangeshkar, Kapoor, Karnad).
• Muslim surnames, generally following the same rules used in Pakistan. Khan among the most popular, often signifying Afghan/Central Asian descent.
• Bestowed titles or other honorifics (titles bestowed by Kings, Nawabs and other nobles before British Raj (Wali, Rai, Rao) and those bestowed by the British (Rai, Bahadur). In Bengal, it is also common custom to create hybrid surnames based on the previous last names and new titles (Raichoudhury)
• Names indicating nobility or feudal associations or honorifics (Varma, Singh, Burman, Raja, Tagore, Thakur)
• Colonial Surnames forced on natives based on tax or after religious conversion, particularly in Goa which was under Portuguese control (DeCruz, Pinto). Often, surnames of Portugene noble families were used as the surnames of the converted.

The convention is to write the first name followed by middle names and surname. It is common to use the father's first name as the middle name even though it is not universal. In some Indian states like Maharashtra, official documents list the family name first, followed by a comma and the given names. This article does not cite its references or sources. ... Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (October 2, 1869 – January 30, 1948) (Devanagari: मोहनदास करमचन्द गांधी, Gujarati મોહનદાસ કરમચંદ ગાંધી), called Mahatma Gandhi, was the charismatic leader who brought the cause of Indias independence from British colonial rule to world attention. ... Shah is an Iranian & Pakistani/Indian term in Persian language & Urdu (شاه), for a monarch (king or emperor), and has also been adopted in many other languages. ... This article is about (members of) the Parsi Zoroastrian community in and from India. ... Dawoodi Bohras are the main branch of the Bohras (a Mustali subsect of Ismaili Shia Muslims) based primarily in India and Pakistan. ... Gujarati can mean two distinct things: The Gujarati language is a language spoken in India and Pakistan, mostly in and around the Gujarat state. ... Caste systems are traditional, hereditary systems of social stratification, such as clans, gentes, or the Indian caste system. ... A Muslim (Arabic: مسلم, Turkish: Müslüman, Persian and Urdu: مسلمان) is an adherent of Islam. ... Khan (sometimes spelled as Xan, Han) is a title with many meanings, originally commander, leader or ruler, in Mongolian and Turkish. ... Central Asia is a region of Asia. ... Nawab (Urdu: نواب ) was originally the subadar (provincial governor) or viceroy of a subah (province) or region of the Mughal empire, but became a high title for Muslim nobles. ... The British Empire at its zenith in 1919. ... Bengal, known as Bôngo (Bengali: বঙ্গ), Bangla (বাংলা), Bôngodesh (বঙ্গদেশ), or Bangladesh (বাংলাদেশ) in Bangla, is a region in the northeast of South Asia. ... Maharashtra (Devanagari: महाराष्ट्र mahārāṣṭra, literally: Great Nation; IPA: / /)( ) is Indias third largest state in terms of area and second largest in terms of population after Uttar Pradesh. ...

It is customary for wives to take the surname of their husband after marriage. In modern times, in urban areas at least, this practice is not universal. In some rural areas, particularly in North India, wives may also take a new first name after their nupitals. Children inherit their surnames from their father.

In some parts of Southern India, no formal Surname is used, either because none is designated or because the family has decided to forgo its existing clan name. This practice is prevalent in Tamil Nadu and Kerala where someone who belongs to the Nair (a corruption of "Nyakar" pointing to a warrior past) clan for example, could forgo its usage completely in modern times, preferring just to use the initials of the father, ancestral village or "house" instead. An example of this usage is the name of olympian P. T. Usha (Pilavullakandi Thekkeparambil Usha, where the first name indicates the geographical origin and the second is the name of her "house"). Wife or child takes the given name of the husband or father (Usha married Satish, and may therefore be called Usha Satish or simply S. Usha). Tamil Nadu (தமிழ் நாடு, Land of the Tamils) is a state at the southern tip of India. ... Kerala ( (Anglicised) or (native); Malayalam: േകരളം, — ) is a state on the tropical Malabar Coast of southwestern India. ...

Sikhs generally use the words Singh ("lion") and Kaur ("princess") as surnames added to the otherwise unisex first names of men and women, respectively. It is also common to use a different surname after Singh in which case Singh or Kaur are used as middle names (Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Surinder Kaur Badal). In modern times, many Sikh women also use "Singh" as their last name following the western concept of patronymic or marital inheritance (Surinder K. Singh). Other middle names or honorifics that are sometimes used as surnames include Kumar, Dev, Lal, and Chand. Montek Singh Ahluwalia (born November 24, 1943) has been a key figure in Indias economic reforms from the early 1980s onwards. ...

The modern day spellings of names originated when families translated their surnames to English, with no standardization across the country. Variations are regional, based on how the name was translated from the local language to English in the 18th, 19th or 20th centuries during British rule. Therefore, it is understood in the local traditions that Agrawal and Aggarwal represent the same name derived from Uttar Pradesh and Punjab respectively. Similarly, Tagore derives from Bengal while Thakur is from Hindi-speaking areas. The officially-recorded spellings tended to become the standard for that family. In the modern times, some states have attempted at standardization, particularly where the surnames were corrupted because of the early British insistence of shortening them for convinience. Thus Bandopadhyay became Banerji, Mukhopadhay became Mukherji, Chattopadhyay became Chatterji etc. This coupled with various other spelling variations created several surnames based on the original surnames. The West Bengal Government now insists on re-converting all the variations to their original form when the child is enrolled in school. West Bengal (Bengali: পশ্চিম বঙ্গ, Hindi: पश्चिम बंगाल, Poshchim Bôngo) is a state in the eastern region of India. ...

Some parts of Sri Lanka, Thailand, Myanmar, and Indonesia have similar patronymic customs as that of India.

Ethiopia/Eritrea

The patronymic custom in most of Ethiopia and Eritrea gives children the father's exact first name as their surname. The family gives the child its first name. There is no middle name given in this culture. So for example, a person's name might be Demesie Birhanu. In this case, Demesie is the first name and Birhanu is the surname, and also the first name of the father.

The paternal grandfather's name is often used to further identify a person, for example in school registration. Thus, Tesfay Gebreselassie's son may be Bein Tesfay or Bein Tesfay Gebreselassie. Also of note: women retain their father's name after marriage, rather than taking on the husband's name. The household or family are known by the name of the husband/father ('Inda Tesfay--'house/home of Tesfay').

Cultures of China, Hungary, Japan, Korea and Vietnam

Further information: Chinese surname, Korean family name, Japanese name, and Vietnamese name

In Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, and Hungarian cultures, the family name is placed before the given names. So the terms "first name" and "last name" are potentially confusing and should be avoided, as they do not in this case denote the given and family names. A Chinese surname, family name (Chinese: 姓; Hanyu Pinyin: or clan name 氏; shì), is one of the hundreds or thousands of family names that have been historically used by Han Chinese and Sinicized Chinese ethnic groups in mainland China, Taiwan, and among ethnic Chinese in overseas Chinese communities. ... The Korean name Hong Gildong (a common anonymous name, like John Doe in American English). ... Yamada Tarō (山田太郎), a typical Japanese name (male), equivalent to John Smith in English. ... Vietnamese names generally consist of three parts: a family name, a middle name, and a given name, used in that order. ...

Chinese names manytimes originate through royal decree, awarded by the Emperor, such as Kwong or Li. Some Chinese adopt a Western given name in front of their Chinese name, e.g. Martin LEE Chu-ming or even as a nickname. In addition, many people with Chinese names have non-Chinese first names which are commonly used. Sometimes, the Chinese name becomes used as a middle name, e.g. Martin Chu-ming Lee or Royce Pak-Ho Chan. Chinese names used in Western countries may be rearranged when written to avoid misunderstanding, e.g. cellist Yo-Yo Ma. However, some well-known Chinese names remain in the traditional order even in English literature, e.g. Mao Zedong, Yao Ming. Kwong, written in Chinese Kwong 鄺 is a Chinese family name originated in Mainland China, and is the surname of over 5 million individuals dispersed mostly in China and in the ethnic Chinese communities in Hong Kong, Singapore, Philippines, United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Fiji, Thailand, Cuba, and Burma. ... 李 Lǐ Li or Lee is a common transliteration of several Chinese family names. ... Alternative meanings: Martin Lee (singer), Martin Lee (drummer) Martin Lee campaigning during the 2004 Legislative Council elections The Honourable Martin Lee Chu-ming QC SC JP (李柱銘) (born June 8, 1938) is the founding chairman (1994-2002) of the Democratic Party (DP), a pro-democracy political party in Hong Kong. ... Album cover. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ... This is a Chinese name; the family name is Yao. ...

Vietnamese and Korean names are generally stated in East Asian order (family name first) even when writing in English. Names of Hungarian individuals appear in Western order in English writing. Japanese people born on the first year of Meiji or afterwards usually have their names in Western order while Japanese people born before the first year of Meiji are usually referred in Japanese order.

In English writings originating from non-English cultures (e.g. English newspapers in China), the family name is often written with all capital letters to avoid being mistaken as a middle name, e.g. Laurence Yee-ming KWONG or using small capitals, as Laurence KWONG Yee-ming or with a comma, as AKUTAGAWA, Ryunosuke to make clear which name is the family name. Such practice is particularly common in mass-media reporting international events like the Olympic Games. The CIA World Factbook stated that "The Factbook capitalizes the surname or family name of individuals for the convenience of [their] users who are faced with a world of different cultures and naming conventions". For example, Leslie Cheung Kwok Wing might be mistaken as Mr. Wing by readers unaware of Chinese naming conventions. A commemoration of Akutagawa and Rashōmon Akutagawa Ryūnosuke (芥川 龍之介, March 1, 1892 - July 24, 1927) was a Japanese poet and writer. ... For months before the Olympic Games, runners relay the Olympic Flame from Olympia to the opening ceremony. ... Leslie Cheung Kwok-wing (September 12, 1956 – April 1, 2003) (Traditional Chinese: 張國榮; Simplified Chinese: 张国荣; Cantonese IPA: , Jyutping: zoeng1 kwok3 wing4; Mandarin Pinyin: Zhāng Guóróng, Wades-Giles: Chang Kuo-jung; nickname Gor-gor (哥哥, Elder Brother in Cantonese)) was an actor and a musician from Hong Kong. ...

Vietnamese family names present an added complication. Like Chinese family names, they are placed at the beginning of a name, but unlike Chinese names, they are not usually the primary form of address. Rather, people will be referred to by their given name, usually accompanied by an honorific. For example, Phan Van Khai is properly addressed as Mr. Khai, even though Phan is his family name. This pattern contrasts with that of most other East Asian naming conventions. Phan Văn Khải (born December 25, 1933 in suburb of Cu Chi, of the former city of Saigon), now the municipality of Hồ Chí Minh City, is the Prime Minister of Vietnam since September 24, 1997, and was re-elected in August 2002. ...

In Japan, the civil law forces a common surname for every married couple, unless in a case of international marriage. In most cases, women surrender their surnames upon marriage, and use the surnames of their husbands. However, a convention that a man uses his wife's family name if the wife is an only child is sometimes observed. A similar tradition called ru zhui (入贅) is common among Chinese when the bride's family is wealthy and has no son but wants the heir to pass on their assets under the same family name. The Chinese character zhui (贅) carries a money radical (貝), which implies that this tradition was originally based on financial reasons. All their offspring carry the mother's family name. If the groom is the first born with an obligation to carry his own ancestor's name, a compromise may be reached in that the first male child carries the mother's family name while subsequent offspring carry the father's family name. The tradition is still in use in many Chinese communities outside of mainland China, but largely disused in China because of social changes. The left part of mā, a Chinese character meaning mother, is a radical that means woman A radical (from Latin radix, meaning root) is a basic identifiable component of every Chinese character. ... The highlighted area in the map is what is commonly known as mainland China. Mainland China (Simplified Chinese: 中国大陆; Traditional Chinese: 中國大陸; pinyin: Zhōnggúo Dàlù; literally The Chinese Massive Landmass or Continental China) is an informal (disputed — see talk page) geographical term which is usually synonymous with the area...

In Korean and Chinese cultures (including Hong Kong and non-aboriginal Taiwan), women keep their own surnames, while the family as a whole is referred to by the surnames of the husbands.

In Hong Kong, some women would be known to the public with the surnames of their husbands preceding their own surnames, such as Anson Chan Fang On Sang. Anson is an English given name, On Sang is the given name in Chinese, Chan is the surname of Anson's husband, and Fang is her own surname. A name change on legal documents is not necessary. Anson Chan Anson Chan Fang On Sang GBM GCMG CBE JP (陳方安生) (born January 17, 1940) was head of Hong Kongs civil service before and after the territorys handover to the Peoples Republic of China from British colonial rule. ...

In Macau, some people have their names in Portuguese spelt with some Portuguese style, such as Carlos do Rosario Tchiang.

Chinese women in Canada, especially Hongkongers in Toronto, would preserve their maiden names before the surnames of their husbands when written in English, for instance Rosa Chan Leung, where Chan is the maiden name, and Leung is the surname of the husband. Hongkonger or Hong Konger generally refers to residents of Hong Kong, regardless of their ethnicity, citizenship or nationality. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards and appeal to a wider international audience, this article may require cleanup. ...

In Chinese,Korean, and Vietnamese, surnames are predominantly monosyllabic (written with one character), though a small number of common disyllabic (or written with two characters) surnames exists (e.g. the Chinese name Ou Yang, the Korean name Namgung). A Chinese compound surname (Simplified Chinese: 复姓; Traditional Chinese: 複姓; pinyin: fùxìng) is a Chinese surname using more than one character. ...

Many Chinese, Korean and Vietnamese surnames are the same, but simply pronounced different and even transliterated differently overseas in Western nations. For example, the common Chinese surnames Chen, Chan and Cheng are often all the same exact character 陳. The common Korean surname Kim is also the common Chinese surname Jin, and written 金. The common Mandarin surnames Lin or Lim (林) is also one and the same as the common Cantonese or Vietnamese surname Lam.

Mongolia

In Mongolia, it is customary for children to take the first name of their father as their surname (see patronymic). For example the name Yuhjijad Befinsioan indicates that the person's father's first name is Befinsioan. A patronymic, or patronym, is a component of a personal name based on the name of ones father. ...

Armenia

Armenian surnames almost always have an ending transliterated into English as -yan or -ian (meaning "son of"), though names with that ending can also be found among Persians and a few other nationalities. Armenian surnames can derive from a geographic location, profession, noble rank, personal characteristic or personal name of an ancestor. Armenians in the diaspora sometimes adapt their surnames to help assimiliation. In Russia, many have changed -yan to -ov (or -ova for women). In Turkey, many have changed the ending to -oglu (also meaning "son of"). In English-speaking countries, many have shortened their name by removing the ending.

South Slavs

Surnames of South Slavic groups such as Serbs, Croats, Montenegrins, and Bosniaks traditionally end with the suffix "-vić" (often transliterated to English as "vic" or "vich") which also means "young/little of" or "son of." These are commonly derived from either father's name (e.g. "Jovan" → "Jovanović") or profession (e.g. blacksmith - "Kovač" → "Kovačević"). The Slavic peoples are the most numerous ethnic and linguistic body of peoples currently living in Europe. ... Serbs (Serbian: Срби, Srbi) are a south Slavic people who live mainly in Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and, to a lesser extent, in Croatia. ... Croats (Croatian: Hrvati) are a south Slavic people mostly living in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and nearby countries. ... Montenegrins (Serbian and Montenegrin: Црногорци / Crnogorci) are a South Slavic people who are primarily associated with the Republic of Montenegro. ... The Bosniaks (Bosnian: BoÅ¡njaci, IPA: [bɔʃɲaːtÍ¡si]) are a South Slavic people living mainly in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Sandžak region of Serbia and Montenegro, with a smaller autochthonous population also present in Kosovo. ...

Ukraine and Belarus

Ukrainian and Belarusian names evolved from the same Old East Slavic and Ruthenian language (western Rus’) origins. Ukrainian and Belarusian names share many characteristics with family names from other Slavic cultures. Most prominent are the shared root words and suffixes. For example, the root koval (blacksmith) compares to the Polish kowal, and the root bab (woman) is shared with Polish, Slovakian, and Czech. The suffix -vych (son of) corresponds to the South Slavic -vic, the Russian -vich, and the Polish -wicz, while -sky, -ski, and -ska are shared with both Polish and Russian, and -ak with Polish. Note: This page contains phonetic information presented in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) using Unicode. ... Ruthenian was a historic East Slavic language, spoken in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and after 1569 in the East Slavic territories of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. ... Rus (Русь in the Cyrillic Alphabet, transliterated Rus’) may refer to one of the following: Rus (people) - a medieval people of Eastern Europe Etymology of Rus and derivatives - ethnonym Kievan Rus - state Ruthenia - land Rus, brother of Lech and Czech - legendary character Rus (special forces) - a unit of the Russian Interior... Kowalski (feminine: Kowalska, plural Kowalscy) is the second most common surname in Poland (139,719). ...

However some suffixes are more uniquely characteristic to Ukrainian and Belarusian names, especially: -chuk, -enko (son of), -ko (little [masculine]), -ka (little [feminine]), -shyn, and -uk. See, for example, Ukrainian Presidents Leonid Kravchuk, and Viktor Yushchenko, and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko. Leonid Kravchuk in Kiev, August 1992 Leonid Makarovych Kravchuk (Ukrainian: Леонід Макарович Кравчук born 10 January 1934) is a Ukrainian politician. ... Viktor Andriyovych Yushchenko (Ukrainian: Віктор Андрійович Ющенко) (born 23 February 1954) is a Ukrainian politician and statesman. ... Alexander Grigoryevich Lukashenko or Alaksandar Ryhoravich Lukashenka (Belarusian: , Russian: ) (born August 30, 1954 at Kopys, Vitebsk voblast) has been the President of Belarus since 1994. ...

Georgia

Georgian surnames end alternately with the suffixes of "-shvili" or "-nadze."

See also

Look up Appendix:Names in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• List of most common surnames
• Family name etymology, German family name etymology
• Family name affixes
• List of people by name
• List of Hispanic surnames
• List of Italian surnames
• List of common Chinese surnames
• List of Japanese surnames
• List of Jewish surnames
• List of Middle Eastern surnames
• List of Slavic surnames
• List of Central Asian, Iranian, Caucasian and Tatar surnames
• List of South Asian surnames
• List of Southeast Asian surnames
• List of surnames of German-speaking cultures
• List of Swedish surnames
• List of African surnames
• Family history

• Patronymic
• Personal name
• Nickname
• Maiden name
• Legal name

Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Wiktionary is a Wikimedia Foundation project intended to be a free wiki dictionary (hence: Wiktionary) (including thesaurus and lexicon) in every language. ... Family names can be unique or come in large numbers. ... This is a collection of family name etymologies. ... b0wn3d! by the frying dutchman In etymology, German family names were introduced during the late Penis Ages in the Boner language area. ... Family name affixes are a clue for family name etymology and determining ethnic origin of a person. ... This page provides access to a list of people by name, that is, a list of articles (biographies) about real (rather than fictional) people arranged in alphabetical order by name (as discussed below the table). ... // A Alonso Abello Alma Abreu Acero Acta Albelda Acevedo Alcoi Acosta Acuña Agramonte Aguila Aguilar Aguirre Amaro Arconada Álamo Abella Alcalá Alcantara Alcázar Alfonseca Almazán Almonte Alvarez Andere Andrade Andueza Andujar Anaboa Antunez Amador Aponte Aragón Araíza Ariza Arana Aragonés Aranda Arango Arcaráz... The top twenty According to the site Gens [1], the following are the most common surnames in Italy: Rossi Russo Ferrari Esposito Bianchi Romano Colombo Ricci Marino Greco Bruno Gallo Conti De Luca Costa Giordano Mancini Rizzo Lombardi Moretti Geographical origins The following are some surnames which have originated from... This is a list of the top 100 most common Chinese surnames according to a study published in 2006. ... This list of Japanese surnames is meant to complement the contents of Category:Japanese surnames. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Ahmad Ahmed Muhammad Yussuf Kanaan Ali Najem ... Slavonic languages Contents: Top - 0–9 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this list may require cleanup. ... In December 2004, the 100 most common Swedish surnames were: Johansson 279,858 Andersson 276,865 Karlsson 214,378 Nilsson 186,947 Eriksson 148,880 Larsson 134,660 Olsson 119,771 Persson 116,901 Svensson 112,577 Gustafsson 77,559 Pettersson 70,990 Jonsson 61,776 Jansson 53,809 Hansson... Family history is the study of multiple generations of people who appear to be related. ... A patronymic, or patronym, is a component of a personal name based on the name of ones father. ... It is nearly universal for a person to have a name; the rare exceptions occur in the cases of mentally disturbed parents, or feral children growing up in isolation. ... // A nickname is a short, clever, cute, derogatory, or otherwise substitute name for a person or things real name (for example, Bob, Rob, Robby, Robbie, Robi, Bobby, Rab, Bert, Bertie, Butch, Bobbers, Bobert, Beto, Bobadito, and Robban (in Sweden), are all short for Robert). ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards and appeal to a wider international audience, this article may require cleanup. ... Legal name is the name with which an individual is registered at birth or which appears on their birth certificate. ...

External links

• Glossary of Surname Meanings & Origins
• Dictionary of Names
• Inbreeding and genetic distance between hierarchically structured populations measured by surname frequencies
• Short explanation of Polish surname endings and their origin
• Dictionary of Surname Origins and Last Name Meanings
• Surnames in Denmark - Naming Traditions, Meaning, and Origin
• History of Jewish family Names
• Welsh surnames and their meaning
• British Surname Distribution Profiles