Naming Structure

given name(s) — personal name(s) intended to distinguish individual from others within own family; in Finland and other Nordic nations, individual may have 1, 2, or even 3 given names; new proposal would allow up to 4 given names.

first name — common American designation for given name; positional description.

Christian name — older American designation for given name; used when most everyone was assumed to be at least nominally Christian; used also when naming occurred at baptism and not at birth; in a sense, when baptism was the most important event of origination.

middle name — commonly understood in America as a secondary name following the first name; positional description.

surname — commonly understood in America as a family name which all nuclear family members (usually) share in common.

last name — commonly understood in America as a surname, a family name; positional description.

patronym — designation of the father's name, many of which became 'fossilized' in America as a true surname.

matronym — designation of the mother's name, nearly all of which disappeared in America; in records, usually indicates the absence of a known or stated father, that is, illegitimate birth.

"patronymic surname" ‐ description of a patronymic name in the Nordic countries which functions as a last name; the use of the patronymic name in the absence of a true surname; this idea violates the American understanding of a last name/surname as being commonly held by all nuclear family members.

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