What is the difference between surname and nickname

The above naming method is quite common all over the world, especially among English speaking countries. Some other tribes or cultures do not stick to this naming method. Many cultures have different naming methods. For example some cultures and tribes do not use family names. In a place like Greece for instance the family names given to children differ depending on the gender of the child because in their tradition, there are different forms of family names for male and female children.

In another article, we will take a look at the different naming methods among the different cultures that we have in this world.

I sincerely hope that this brief article on surnames, family names, and last names will help to avoid any confusion or misunderstanding that you might have had relating to this issue. Traditionally, a woman was required to take the surname of her husband upon marriage. The children of the married couple were also automatically given the surname of their father. In fact, last names can be derived from several sources: country, city, village, town, estate — and even from features of the area and of the landscape hill, river, wood, etc.

Surnames derived from country names are:. Furthermore, we can also identify surnames typical of specific regions. For instance, in Italy, last names ending in —in are typical of the Northeastern part of the country whereas surnames ending in —u are very common in Sardinia. Finally, surnames can also be derived from baptismal names.

For instance, the son of Rob acquired the surname Robson while the son of William acquired the surname Williamson or Williams, Williamsor, etc. In Nordic countries Iceland, Norway, Sweden etc. In fact, one of the main sources for first names is the Bible, and names such as David, John, Joseph, Eve, Rebecca, Sarah or Ruth have religious meanings.

Given names and surnames help us identify a person. In the past, people only used first names; however, as society and communities grew larger, the need for a clearer system of identification became stronger. Since early Middle Age — and even earlier in some parts of the world — surnames came into existence.

The sources for last names are many and the most common are:. Surnames inevitably link the child to the family and are the core of the identity of the family. In fact, today, many decide to dig into the origins of their last names to discover information on their ancestors and on their past. Moreover, surnames are often used in official titles — Mr. What is Given Name? What is Surname? Main Differences Between Given Name and Surname Given Name is a name that is chosen by parents for their child at birth while surname is inherited by a child from his father in most countries and is shared by the entire group, family, and clan.

Given Names are used in informal settings to refer to friends and familiar people while Surnames are usually used to refer to people in informal settings like colleagues, associates, collaborators, and managers. On a side note, given names can also be used in formal events when people with the same surnames have to be distinguished. A given name is any name that is associated with a child at birth by parents. It can also include a middle name. However, it can be changed later. Surname is always inherited.

The relation between the surname and the reason behind naming them can be easily seen in these few examples The surname or last name can be either patronymic or metronymic. Patronymic means that the last name of a person would be same as the last name of father or we can also say that a son and father will share the same surname.

However, in metronymic the child is given the same surname as the mother of the child is having. Most of the societies believe and work on patronymic systems. In many countries like India, a woman after getting married acquires the surname of her husband.

Today, scenarios are changing and many women are also opting to keep the same surname as they had earlier, prior to their marriage. Various surnames are used throughout the world, and thus surnames may have different interpretation from one another. After reading this article, you must now be thinking about origin of your surname.

Go ahead! And decode this interesting genealogy term. I absolutely love your blog and find almost all of your post's to be exactly what I'm looking for.