Family name facts for kids

A family name is a special name that people in the same family share. It's like a team name for your family! In many places, like English-speaking countries, your family name is usually the last name you use. It's also called a surname.

This picture shows how names are often put together in English. J. S. Bach shared his first name with many family members, but his family name was shared by almost everyone in his family.

What is a Family Name?

A family name helps show that you belong to a certain family group. It's a way to connect you to your parents, grandparents, and even older relatives. Think of it as a shared identity that passes down through generations.

How Names Change

In many cultures, children usually get the same family name as their father. When a woman gets married, she often chooses to change her family name to match her husband's.

For example, imagine Mary Brown marries John Smith. Mary might change her name to Mary Smith. Then, if they have children, like David and Kate, their names would be David Smith and Kate Smith. So, Smith becomes the family name shared by everyone in their new family.

Names Around the World

Not all cultures use family names in the same way. In some places, the family name comes first, before the given name. For example, in many East Asian countries, you might hear the family name first.

Some cultures might give a child the mother's family name instead of the father's. Others use more complex names that include family names from both parents. There are even some cultures, like the Javanese people, where many individuals don't use a family name at all!

Related pages

• Personal name
• Posthumous name
• Regnal name

Images for kids

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  This picture shows how names are put together in English, using John F. Kennedy as an example.

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  This chart shows how common some family names are in the United States.

See also

In Spanish: Apellido para niños