American surnames and given names

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:45

American culture entered our lives through movies and music. The majority of young people today are on fire with the "American dream", which also testifies to the considerable influence of the West on the formation of the personality of a domestic person. For people who are more deeply interested in this culture, information about popular American surnames and names will be very entertaining.

A bit of history

Probably everyone knows that the American nation is a mix of various nationalities who at one time or another came to live in America. The American nation began to take shape in the 18th century, most of its founders were the British, Swedes, Germans, and Dutch. Native Americans and Africans also had a great influence. From the foregoing, we can conclude that the American nation is very heterogeneous, which is why American surnames are so diverse.

Formation of family name

The basic rules for the formation of the names of American residents will seem interesting to many. So, everyone knows that surnames withadding suffixes - for example, Erikson, which means "son of Eric", etc. Also, often American surnames indicate the place of residence (Brook, Hill) or the profession of a given person (Potter, Mason, Fisher), can come from the names of flowers, animals, or abstract names of plants. Calculation of the surnames of migrants from their native language into English (German Konig - American King) is also widely used. And, of course, in America, as in any other country, there are dynasties with old surnames. You can also find options when the name of the father of the family is simply used as a surname - Arnold, Henry, Thomas or a personal nickname - Abbott, Bishop, Small. You can see that American surnames are so diverse and simple that it will not be difficult even for an ordinary person to understand them.

Names

After looking at how surnames are formed, beautiful American names are also worth looking into. It is worth noting that there are no native American names, they all originate in European or Eastern cultures. So, in strictly Catholic families, children are mostly given the names of saints. Often the criterion for choosing a name is its pronunciation, consonance with the surname. Americans also like to simplify or change their names. Surprisingly, only one name Elizabeth has about 30 different transformations, Robert - about ten derivative forms. Just like American surnames, the names of Americans can come from the names of plants, residence - Jasmine,Rose, Georgia. As for men, they can be named after their father or grandfather - this is considered a very honorable sign among Americans. And, of course, directly borrowed names from different cultures - Dolores, Antonio, Martha, Alexander.

Summing up, it is worth noting: how different the American nation is in its ethnic composition, so diverse and interesting are American surnames and names. Therefore, it is America that is considered a country convenient for everyone, because all visitors can hear native hearing names and surnames there.