The term “last name” refers to the name that is written at the end of one’s name. īelow, in bold, are examples of surnames that are not last names: There are also many places in which surnames are not written after the first name. In these cases, surnames are also last names.īelow, in bold, are examples of surnames that are also last names: In many places, including English-speaking cultures, names are written as follows: +. There are even some cultures that do not make use of surnames. Where the surname is located differs from culture to culture. It is usually synonymous with the term “family name”, however, it is possible for the two to be different. The term “surname” refers to the name a person shares with other members of his or her family, tribe, or community.Ī surname is what identifies an individual as a member of a family, tribe, or community. Thus, it is better to avoid it and use either “surname” or “family name” in these situations. In these cases, using the term “last name” could cause confusion. For example, in countries that speak Chinese, the surname or the family name is usually written first. In other parts of the world, however, the last name may be different from the surname and family name. These cases were more common in the past. His surname shows where he’s from, as “da Vinci” means “from Vinci”. Here, “da Vinci” is not Leonardo’s family name, but it is his surname. It is, however, possible for the two to be different in rare cases, such as: In the English-speaking world, the terms “surname”, “last name”, and “family name” are usually interchangeable.īetween “surname” and “family name”, the only difference nowadays seems to be that “surname” is more often used in formal documents, while “family name” is a less formal term. The “last name” is different from “surname” and “family name” in parts of the world where the family name is written first. “Surname” is sometimes considered more formal than “family name”. More often than not, the terms “surname”, “last name”, and “family name” are interchangeable in the English-speaking world. In this article, we will explore whether these terms all mean the same thing, or if there are subtle differences among the three. The terms “surname”, “last name”, and “family name” are often used interchangeably.
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