Understanding Spanish Naming Customs

While it is pretty easy to understand how children in America end up with their surnames, understanding how Spanish naming customs work can be a whole different story. It can be, at times, a little confusing for someone else from another country to understand how the surnames are given in the Spanish community. In America, when a child is born, it is usually given the surname of the father. In Spanish communities, the father's surname is considered but so is the surname of the mother for her father's side.

 

For example, if the father's last name was Callas and the mother's last name was Lopez the child would be given the surname of Callas Lopez. There are several variations in which the surname can be picked. In some cases, it would not be unusual to see not only the surname of the father and the mother, but of the grandparents as well if their surnames are different. This could very well make for an incredibly long name. It is however considered tradition and not something that is looked upon as odd in the Spanish-speaking community.

 

Spanish-speaking individuals who find themselves moving to the United States may end up hyphenating their last name in order to fit in better within society. When they have children in the United States, they often times follow the customs of this country and give the child the surname of the father's paternal side. Of course, this is not the rule of thumb all of the time and there are still Spanish-speaking natives that give their United States born children the surnames as they would have back in their old country.

 

Whether the family decides to go with the older and more traditional customs of their home land or the customs of America is a decision made within each family. Everyone makes their own decisions with this, as there are no set rules that have to be followed. No one would be looked down upon if they fell into the American tradition as they are after all living within the United States and their child is now a citizen.

 

The practice of giving two family surnames to a child started in Spain. This was because of the strong Arabic influence in Spain. Throughout the years the custom spread throughout the Americas to be what it is today. Spanish communities take pride in this custom as it is allowing them to represent both sides of the family through the child. With so much pride and love for family, it is hard not to fall in love with the Spanish surname customs.

 

So the next time you run across a native Spanish-speaking individual with a long name, you will know the reason why. The long name is not because the parents could not make up their mind but rather because they wanted to respectfully represent their families. By learning more about each other people will be able to relate easier and see a little bit of themselves in each other.

 

 

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