Naming Traditions From Around the World

After making some researches, naming traditions evidently has the important part in this world. this will affect how your customers and colleagues around the world to be addressed. For the example is when former American President Bill Clinton traveled to South Korea, the delegation was embarassed because the President of South Korea was offended, that was because Bill Clinton mentioned the incorrect name of Mrs. Sohn, Korean President's wife. 

In United States, immigrant students have already suffered the trauma of leaving behind their extended family and friends. They enter school in US and can also lose their name because it changed by parents or school staff. The teacher or school staff also may be made their name error by changing the order of the name or its spelling.

Name is part of cultural identity. Depending on certain cultures and customs, naming traditions can and will vary.

How do you give your children's name? Do you pass through your family name or your husband's name? We will dive in about the naming traditions from around the world, keep on reading, good people!

1. Korea

In Korea, we should name our children by family name first, and then followed by given name. For the example Yeon Suk (given name) has family name "Lee", the result is "Lee Yeon Suk". The next rules is we are not allowed shorten their name. Lee Yeon Suk should be called Yeon Suk, not only Yeon. Also, the Korean wives retain or keep their maiden names, for the example is President korea, Kim Young Sam's wife, she was named Sohn Myong Suk, then her correct name was Mrs. Sohn, not Mrs. Kim.

         This traditions also happens to Cambodians, Hmong, Japanese, and Vietnamese.

2. Mexico (Spain)

The pattern of naming traditions in mexican can be quite long. They give the name by given name first, and then followed by father's family names, and last followed by mother's family names.

for the example when the father named Teodro Lopez Carazones, and the mother named Maria Andujo Melandez, they will named their children as Pedro (given name) Lopez (father's name) Andujo (mother's name).

For the wives, they will keep their maiden names while married their husbands, in addition they will add "de" after their maiden names and then followed by husband's name. For the example is Maria Gonzales married Tino Martinez, Maria Gonzales became Maria Gonzalez de Martinez.

3. China

Most Chinese has three parts of their name. Same as Korean and Japanese, family name comes first. and then followed by the given name, the given name is almost always one or two syllables.

In Chinese, the tradition is not giving name for baby 100 days after birth, they believe it will lead to unlucky. So the parents will give 'milk name' before the formal name.

4. Russia

Russian parents give their babies names by three patterns. The first is the given name, the second one is a patronymic (father's name), and the last is father's surname or family name.

For the example, Viktor Aleksandrovich Rakhmaninov has two children. Then he will name his daughter as Svetlana Viktorevna Rakhmaninova, and his son as Mikhail Victorevich Rakhmaninov. The given name is Svetlana and Mikhail.

5. India

In India, the first name or the surname must be something we are born with, they names are based on their child's raashis, determined by the position of the planets at the date and time of birth. This fact is interesting, isn't it? Surnames in india are mostly come from the place they belong to, or the profession of their ancestors.

In addition, the resulting names are often shortened by family and friends. For the example are Aditya and Aarushi. The teacher must call them by their formal names, while their family and friends can call them Adi and Ashi.

6. Brazil

When women in Brazil get married, they have to change their names, the pattern has three part. The first is maiden name, and then father's surname, and the last is husband's last name. For the example is Carla Parente Arena, after marrying, she changed her name become Carla Arena de Aquino. Arena was her father's surname, and Aquino was her husband's last name.

As for their kids' names, there are no rules, some parents use compound name while other might keep it simple.

The thing about naming traditions that we have to keep in mind is remember that every culture or country has their own naming traditions, when we want to have contact with them, we have to know their cultures first, so it will not lead us to mistaken. Hopefully this will help you to more understand about naming traditions, see you, good people! 😊