Do you know the meaning of surname? This article will provide you with all of the information you need on the word surname.
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February 5, 2022
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Common Questions
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If you’ve heard people say surname and don’t know what it means, the Word Counter is here to help! Read on to learn everything you need to know about this common word.
What Does the Word Surname Mean?
According to Forebears and Dictionary, the word surname refers to a person’s last name or family name. The word surname is two syllables (sur-name), and the pronunciation of surname is ˈsɜːˌneɪm.
Often, family members will have the same last name from the father’s side. The father’s name is usually passed down through European surnames, which are called patronymic surnames. If the mother’s last name is passed down, these are called matronymic surnames.
Some of the common surnames in different parts of the world include Johnson, Fitz, Ford, Miller, and Jones. Surnames can be formed in many different ways.
There are occupational names, which come from peoples’ titular occupations, i.e. tailor and Taylor. There are also topographical surnames which come from a place of residence, like a specific city in Scotland. Some surnames also come from physical features, achievements, descriptions based on a personal characteristic.
Some surnames come with religious connotations or from an ancient clan title, a descriptive epithet, or social status like nobility. Other common names include John Smith and Mary Jones.
Traditionally, a person’s surname can change if they get married. A female spouse will often take on a male spouse’s surname, which comes from his father’s name. The children then take their father’s name. However, this has been changing in recent years, and there is less parental control over the last name a child takes.
What Are Translations of Surname?
If you are traveling to a foreign country or communicating with someone who does not speak English, it could be useful to know different translations of surname. This might be a common word to see on forms you have to fill out.
How many of the below translations for surname do you already know?
- Interlingua: supernomine, nomine de familia, ultime nomine
- Welsh: cyfenw (masc.)
- Dutch: achternaam (masc.), familienaam (masc.)
- Persian: نام خانوادگی (nâm-e xânevâdegi), اسم فامیل (esm-e fâmil)
- Hungarian: vezetéknév, családnév
- Lithuanian: pavardė (fem.)
- Georgian: გვარი
- Macedonian: пре́зиме (neut.)
- Latvian: uzvārds (masc.)
- Portuguese: sobrenome (masc.), nome de família (masc.), último nome (masc.) (when appearing last)
- Urdu: خاندانی نام (xāndānī nām)
- Japanese: 姓 (せい, sei), 名字 (みょうじ, myōji), 苗字 (みょうじ, myōji)
- Telugu: ఇంటిపేరు
- Arabic: لَقَب (masc.), كُنْيَة (fem.), اِسْم الْعَائِلَة (masc.)
- Esperanto: familia nomo
- Estonian: perekonnanimi
- Galician: apelido (masc.)
- Swedish: efternamn (neut.), familjenamn (neut.)
- Indonesian: marga, nama keluarga
- Maltese: kunjom (masc.)
- Walloon: no d’ famile (masc.)
- Spanish: apellido (masc.)
- Italian: cognome (masc.)
- Xhosa: ifani
- Breton: anv (masc.), anv-familh (masc.), anv-tiegezh (masc.)
- Javanese: jeneng pancer
- Mongolian: овог нэр
- Hebrew: שֵׁם מֶשׁפָּחָה
- Greek: επώνυμο (neut.)
- Zulu: isibongo
- Maori: ingoa whānau
- Polish: nazwisko (neut.)
- Hindi: कुलनाम (masc.), कुल नाम (masc.)
- Lao: ຊື່ສະກຸນ, ນາມສະກຸນ
- Burmese: ရိုးရာအမည်
- Russian: фами́лия (fem.), про́звище (neut.) (dated, now means “nickname”)
- Occitan: nom d’ostal (masc.), nom de familha (masc.)
What Is the Origin of the Word Surname?
According to Dictionary, the word surname was first used in Middle English in medieval times between 1300 and 1350. This word comes from the Old French surnom.
How Can the Word Surname Be Used in a Sentence?
Below are a couple of examples of the word surname being used in a sentence. If someone uses the word surname, they are referring to a person’s last name. Try using the word surname in a sentence today to practice!
Her surname was common in the 16th centuries, but is uncommon today.
The child was teased for her surname Baldumb because it sounded like a combination of bald and dumb.
The form asked for my current surname and my maiden name. They wanted to pull all of the records for both of my names.
What Are Synonyms of the Word Surname?
If you are looking to use a synonym in place of the word surname, you can reference the below list of synonyms for the word surname by Power Thesaurus. Using synonyms for a given word can spice up your writing and speech patterns by varying your vocabulary.
- agname
- agnomen
- alias
- appellation
- appellative
- autonym
- byname
- call
- Christian name
- clan
- cognomen
- compellation
- denomination
- designation
- dub
- epithet
- eponym
- family
- family name
- first name
- forename
- given name
- handle
- identification
- last name
- maiden name
- matronymic
- middle name
- moniker
- name
- namesake
- nickname
- paternal name
- patronymic
- pet name
- place name
- pseudonym
- second name
- style
- tag
- term
- title
What Are Antonyms of the Word Surname?
This list of antonyms is also provided by Power Thesaurus. Learning antonyms is a fantastic way to expand your vocabulary quickly. How many of these antonyms for the word surname do you know?
- baptismal name
- break
- break up
- disperse
- displace
- first name
- forename
- given name
- ignore
- name
- neglect
- real name
- rights
- scatter
- street name
- substantive
- true name
Conclusion
Overall, a surname is a person’s name that is inherited. These can be occupational surnames, topographic surnames, and more. Is your surname a common last name in the United States?
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