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History of Names

The thing that makes us all unique is the name we were given at birth. It identifies you from someone with your same characteristics. The world is too populated now to not have adopted using surnames without being chaotic.

Yes, there are common surnames that originated from the same country, but if you trace back the original history of your name, you will find that your name is unique to your family. Just by tracing your back family roots, you can find out if there is any royalty in your family, nobility, warriors, or any other person of clout.

Before the early 1500s European surnames were not even passed down to children. Someone’s name would end with his passing away. The use of surnames also gained popularity to help distinguish one man from another, especially if they had the same first name and some of the same features.

Most surnames came about from a person’s trade, region, or sometimes their characteristics. However, it is said that China was the first to acquire surnames. The story goes, that the Emperor wanted to keep tabs on the number of people in China, so he started using family names to distinguish people around the 8th century.

From the 16th Century on, when a woman got married she would always take her husband’s name. That practice is still the norm, however, nowadays, it is not uncommon for a woman to keep her last name after she gets married.

Parents’ names are essentially a child’s identity in Spanish cultures; it is law for Latinos to hyphenate their father’s name with their mother’s name. If they just use their father’s surname, it’s not considered their family name. This tradition is very common all over South America as well.

Surnames provide a link to the family’s past; indentify families as a whole, and are a source of family pride. Men feel it an honor to pass their family name to their sons so they may carry on the family name indefinitely. Researching a person’s last name is truly the first step to uncovering that family’s history. You are called by your name every day; why not find out where it comes from.