What do you call a person with two names?

polyonymous • \pah-lee-AH-nuh-mus\ • adjective. : having or known by various names.

What is it called when a person has two names?

In the Western tradition of surnames, there are several types of double surname (or double-barrelled surname). If the two names are joined with a hyphen, it may also be called a hyphenated surname.

How do you address someone with two names?

If she's Geneva Besmer-Silverstone, you should use the last two names at all times. If she has a career, and Besmer is her family (maiden) name and Silverstone her surname, at social events she might go by "Geneva Silverstone," dropping her maiden name.

Can a person have two given names?

In many Western cultures, people often have multiple given names. Most often the first one in sequence is the one that a person goes by, although exceptions are not uncommon, such as in the cases of John Edgar Hoover (J. Edgar) and Dame Mary Barbara Hamilton Cartland (Barbara).

Why would a person have two names?

But the way we use middle names today originated in the Middle Ages when Europeans couldn't decide between giving their child a family name or the name of a saint. They eventually settled on naming their children with the given name first, baptismal name second, and surname third.

Call people by name | Kate Forrest | TEDxBozeman

Why do Southerners have double names?

It seems likely that the South's double-naming tradition started thanks to a European influence, with Scottish, Irish, and French families making their way to the South in the 19th century and bringing the double-naming tradition with them.

Is it a Southern thing to call someone by their middle name?

The best explanation seems to stem from Southerners' penchant for keeping a name going down the line, especially for males. You end up with John Smith Jr., III, and IV in one family, and calling a child by his middle name is an easy way to distinguish between him and his father.

Why do people get names mixed up?

Most everyone sometimes mixes up the names of family and friends. Their findings were published in the journal Memory & Cognition. "It's a normal cognitive glitch," Deffler says. It's not related to a bad memory or to aging, but rather to how the brain categorizes names.

Where are double names common?

Double names remain popular in the South and thank goodness for that because they sure do sound better with our accents. The trend became popular at the end of the 18th century around the world, and we're not ashamed to carry on the tradition in the South.

What is a Southern double name?

The most common way to make a double name in the South is to use Mary, Anna or Jane preceding a family name. At Vanderbilt, I was in school with a Mary Brown, Mary Michael, Mary Beth, Jane Allison, Mary Margaret, Anna Kate and Anne Marie, to name a few.

What culture has two first names?

Having multiple parts to your name is common practice in places including Portugal and Spain, where most people have two first names and two surnames (their mother's and father's family names).

When did people start using two names?

She found middle names rare until about 1780 when their popularity began to rise dramatically—almost 99% of children in her sample who had middle names were born after 1780. In general, then, in Europe, middle names became increasingly popular in the 19th century among all classes.

What does it mean when someone keeps calling you the wrong name?

Psychology suggests that when someone calls you the wrong name, it's because they love you. Calling someone you know by the wrong name is a phenomenon known as “misnaming.”

What happens in your brain when someone says your name?

Hearing your own name causes your brain to react as if you're engaging in the behaviors and thought patterns that serve as some of your core identity and personality markers. In fact, this reaction is so powerful that similar patterns were observed in patients in a persistent vegetative state (PVS).

Why does my mom keep mixing up names?

"It's a normal cognitive glitch," researcher Samantha Deffler assured NPR during a January interview about the study. Deffler, too, reported that her own mother used to mess up her siblings' names – with even the family dog's name thrown in.

Does a woman lose her middle name after marriage?

It's long been tradition for the bride to take her husband's last name, and traditionally, she drops her middle name and keeps her last (her "maiden" name) as her middle name. Her husband's last name then becomes her new last name.

What is a double barreled name?

What is a double-barrelled surname? A double-barrelled name comes about when two different family names are joined together, usually after a marriage.

Can you legally have two last names without a hyphen?

Can you legally have two last names without a hyphen? Pretty self-explanatory as it's similar to hyphenating but without the hyphen. This method will allow you to go by either last name interchangeably. You'll still need to sign all paperwork with both last names since it's considered your legal last name.

Can you have 2 last names in the US?

If your two last names do not have a hyphen between them, people may think it is one of your middle names. It is legal to have as many names as you want, as long as the name is registered as your legal name.

Why do people hyphenate last names?

Professional identity: Hyphenation would be a practical way to keep your name recognition. Easier ancestry: Genealogists will appreciate that your lineage is still traceable. Preventing the extinction of a name: If you have children together, your surname will carry on for at least another generation.

Can a child have 2 last names?

If you don't like hyphens but still want to use both names, your child can simply have two last names. This is the norm in many Spanish-speaking countries, where kids get one last name from each parent.

Do you legally have to have a second name?

The law presumes that you do have a name (see: Wakefield v Mackay, falsely calling herself Wakefield (1807)) — and in practice everybody does have a name — but the law doesn't make it a requirement. Nevertheless — as a person is normally called and known by something — a person will always have a name of some kind.

Which last name goes first?

You can go the "traditional" route and list your "maiden" name first, or you could choose to list your new last name first, followed by your original last name. Some couples decide to have both partners change to the hyphenated last name, as a show of unity and equality.

Can you hyphenate your last name on Social Security card?

Your legal name is your first and last name only.

Your name may only contain letters, spaces, hyphens, and apostrophes. Suffixes are okay. Omit your personal title, such as Mr., Ms., Mrs., Dr., Esq., Sister, or Father.