Last names are inherited, so how far back did last names go? Did people initially choose their last name and then passed it down to children? Why are there so many common last names between people who aren’t related?
The original question was asked by a 6 year old, and it got me thinking about all of these other questions too.
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Depends on the part of the world. In Europe, the earliest last names were professions, colors, locations, and family relationships. What’s amazing is the Spanish last names that end in -ez are actually a holdover from when the Gothic tribes controlled the Iberian peninsula. The -ez suffix in the now extinct Gothic language meant “son of”. So Hernandez means “son of Hernando”, Rodriguez means “son of Rodrigo”.
Last names in Europe came into being when settlements go so large you had to be able to distinguish one Robert from another, so to speak.
Long story short, different cultures have different naming conventions. It’s a fascinating field of study.
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