Family names among your nation's people.

[Maizan]

Most cultures have adopted by the modern era a custom of giving people an inherited surname or family name in addition to their personal name. Some have done so long ago and naturally, while others only recently and at the insistence of a modernizing bureaucracy. Still some have not adopted surnames at all, or only immediate patronymics. How do family names work among your nation's primary culture?

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[b]Does your nation's primary culture use surnames or family names?[/b]:
[b]From whom do they inherit the surname?[/b]:
[b]How long ago did Surnames develop?[/b]:
[b]What are a few examples of common or notable surnames in your nation. and what do they mean?[/b]:


Does your nation's primary culture use surnames or family names?: Yes
From whom do they inherit the surname?: The Father
How long ago did Surnames develop?: 1500 years before modern times.
What are a few examples of common or notable surnames in your nation. and what do they mean?: Sumāre (meaning red rose) is by far the most common surname in Maizan, held by roughly 1 in 70 Maizanese, in part due to success, and in part due to a multugenesis of the name (red roses were planted in front of a priest's home, and their families got the surname). Other common surnames include Wuku (Horn, with its roots among huntsmen and woodsmen), or Dikaebegisu (Ship-maker). The most common Maizanese surnames originated as something occupational in nature, though a variation of reasons for surnames exist.

[Gleissar]

Does your nation's primary culture use surnames or family names?:It uses both. Surnames are used for history and family names are used for genealogical data. A person may and usually has both.
From whom do they inherit the surname?:Father or family name from most prominent grandparent or great-grandparent
How long ago did Surnames develop?:From olden times. appx 200 - 400 AD onward
What are a few examples of common or notable surnames in your nation. and what do they mean?:

Top 10 Surnames of Gleissar in the early 21st Century (As is Gleissarische custom, variations in spelling are ignored)

Rabenfetter (Bold Raven)
Starkizer, Sterkizzer, Sterkeiser, etc (Strong Iron)
Kormakken (Charioteer)
Befrindenstitscher (Friend Maker, Diplomat)
Skampvarliche, Skemberlok, Shamwerlock, etc (War Camp)
Kofferruyd (Red-Head)
Wiking, Osvikinne, etc (Intrepid)
Geizenstomper (Face-Puncher)
Odonner -- a Hebride Gualische name whose meaning (in Gleissar) is lost to history. but thought to mean Son/Daughter of Thunder. (IRL O'Donnell - World-Mighty)
Gekenbrandt (literally a "fool on fire" taken as a badge of honor by a valorous knight from Stanverk who beat overwhelming odds and saved the country)
Zwoordmacher, (Swordsmilth)

[The New Dog Nation]

Does your nation's primary culture use surnames or family names?: Yes

From whom do they inherit the surname?: Most surnames are patrilineal, a few however use the "breed system" where they adopt a surname based on the breed there parents identified them as, such as our current Acting President Alexander Pomeranian. This processes has largely fallen out of favor however as it is seen as a remnant of the old empire, with cared about those things....

How long ago did Surnames develop?: The process dates back to before we even arrived in this universe. We believe its origins are human in nature.

What are a few examples of common or notable surnames in your nation. and what do they mean?:

X-Son Names (Jackson, Richardson, Ect): Originally used to indicate who the father was, they have since become used as regular surnames, even if nobody is named Jack, Richard, ect
Occupational Surnames (Gardner, Carpenter, Ect): Originally used to indicate profession but are now used as regular surnames.
Dog Themed Names (Dogston, Dogger, Ect): A Practice started after we gained sapience as a means to distance ourselves from humans.
Breed Names (Pomeranian, Lab, Ect): See Above

[TURTLESHROOM II]

Does your nation's primary culture use surnames or family names?:

Yes. Humans used a combination of traditional English naming conventions and Russian naming conventions. A human is given a first and middle name their third name (the Russian one) is generated from their father, and their surname is inherited from the father. Turtles, meanwhile, are matriarchal and thus inherit their Russian patronym from the mother. Their surname is also inherited from the mother and married turtles always make the husband take the wife's name.

For their middle names, humans and turtles used a combination of traditional English naming conventions and Russian naming conventions. The two main forms are either "father's first name--ivich/-ovich" or "assign anything", and they are split about equal among newborns and hatchlings.

All TurtleShroomers officially have four names on their birth certificate and in legal documentation, but when speaking or writing outside of the utmost formal circumstances, only three are used. On birth certificates, the creature's four names is listed as FIRST NAME/MIDDLE NAME/RUSSIAN SUFFIX/SURNAME. If the middle name is the same as the Russian patronym convention, three names are listed.

From whom do they inherit the surname?:

Turtles inherit their surname and Russian patronym from their mother. Their first name is given. A turtle's middle name (if they give one instead of just using the patronym) is also given.

Humans inherit their surname and Russian patronym from their father. Their first name is given. A turtle's middle name, if they choose one instead of just using the patronym, is also given.

Sapient mushrooms are more complex. They mature to adult-level cognizance and maturity in five years or much less, though they have to learn at the same rate as all the other creatures. After a certain number of years, mushrooms are given the opportunity to either choose their own first and last name or have one generated for them. (Most mushrooms choose generation, which leads to names like "Jesse Rod".)

How long ago did Surnames develop?:

The original founders of the Missionary colony that would go on to convert and unite TurtleShroom were a mix of English and Russian settlers. Both brought their naming conventions, which were finalized in 1800 AD when TurtleShroom officially switched from Russian to English as her national language.

This was sourced, in part, from previous posts.

[Victorious Decepticons]

Does your nation's primary culture use surnames or family names?: No. Each Decepticon is his own person, and not property of his Coder or any other ancestors.
From whom do they inherit the surname?: There aren't any. In fact, at maturity, we will choose our own first names and jettison the ones our Coders gave us. This is a strong, though unofficial, rite of adulthood.
How long ago did Surnames develop?: They never did.
What are a few examples of common or notable surnames in your nation. and what do they mean?: N/A

Foreigners that use non-sapient computers that are unable to deal with single names typically break our first names into "two names." This is because many of us use compound words as our names, like Soundwave, Thundercracker, etc. However, not all of our names can be broken down this way. Megatron is probably the most notable of these. In his case, foreign systems often use "Leader" as his first name.

Some other individuals do not get so lucky when it comes the respectability of a name made up just to fill the blank name fields, not that they would necessarily recognize being called things like "Thief" and "Fraudster" as the insults and warnings such sobriquets are generally intended to be when used by outsiders.

[Xanthal]

Xanthal is a federation of equals, it has no "primary culture." Naming conventions vary. Some examples follow.

In Trasnia, you can name your child anything you want; most commonly this includes one or two surnames. The surname(s) are often inherited from one or both parents or derived from a cultural touchstone, but can be entirely original. They can also be legally changed at any time, which is not rare. Married couples may or may not adopt a shared last name.

Mirfakan surnames are traditionally matrilineal and generally kept for life.

Than are born in communal egg clutches thousands at a time; only after metamorphosis are they identified individually, first by pheromones and later choosing their own given names, which may include a name by which they can be called among humanoids. Everyone who participated in the spawn is family- there are no surnames.

Talmaraani surnames are derived from the names of former lords. Nuclear families will commonly adopt a common family name on the basis of status.

In Aellis the convention is for each individual to have three names: an original given name, and two additional names which are usually those of the parents or caregivers.

Many people in Shinra use a chain naming system.

By tradition, Xanthalian Abh assign the mother's or father's family name to a child on the basis of its sex.

Nekolan most often use matrilineal or aspirational surnames.

[Brellach]

Does your nation's primary culture use surnames or family names?

Brellachi born of families with a long history of city-dwelling status tend to have Western-style familial surnames. Brellachi born of tribes (either directly, or somewhat recently in their familial history) use customary tribal appellations.

For example, the incumbent Most Devout Advisor of Her Court, Fellis Jessina, has a more modern, more familiar to Westerners family surname. The Jessina family, known for being prominent barley traders, has lived within the capital city of Sheoth since at least the 19th century and likely earlier, and their urbanised surname no longer has any relation to any known extant tribe. The exact origins of the word 'Jessina', which has no direct parallel in the Brellachi language, are unclear.

The incumbent Devout Advisor With Responsibility for Defending Her Favoured Lands, Urla of Nakre, however, was originally born as part of the Nakre Tribe, one of the nomadic tribes still known to roam in the region around the southern coastal forests near Trenia, before leaving her tribe and moving to a city. Tribal appellations can encompass multiple lineages within the same tribe; one's allegiance is always to one's tribe first, and one's family second. Were Urla to have children, they would likely continue to use the Nakre tribe's appellation, and it would take several generations for it to develop into a familial name, if ever, and assuming they continued to live as city-dwellers rather than return to their old tribe.

From whom do they inherit the surname?

Family surnames are inherited matrilineally.

If one is born into a tribe, one simply inherits the name of that tribe regardless of one's parentage. If one joins a different tribe (or leaves a city-dwelling lifestyle to join one for the first time), one adopts that tribe's name instead, ritualistically shedding their old appellation/surname in the process.

How long ago did Surnames develop?

Family surnames began to form soon after the foundation of the city of Sheoth, the first permanent settlement in Brellach, after around the first century. Sheoth was originally a tribe itself, but as the settlement grew and people from other tribes moved into the city in droves they brought their own tribal appellations with them, which eventually became simple surnames - many of which outlasted the tribes from which they originated. Other surnames, as in some other cultures, were invented to reflect the vocations of the family in question, and others still were drawn from more esoteric sources such as religious, naturalistic, or ideological concepts. Few people have the ancient surname 'Sheoth' today; as the population of the city (and its additional, newer settlements elsewhere) grew, fewer people chose to identify with Sheoth Tribe and sought to identify more with their own families instead.

Tribal appellations have been used since time immemorial. It is unknown when the first tribe began using this means of identifying themselves, but it likely began with the first tribe to actually conjure up a name for itself.

[Lillorainen]

Does your nation's primary culture use surnames or family names?:
Yes.

From whom do they inherit the surname?:
Nowadays, surnames are heriditary and can be inherited from either father or mother (thus, there is no general gender preference). It is also possible to use both.

How long ago did Surnames develop?:
Most common surnames are either patronymic, or derive from place names. Both developed in the Early Middle Ages. The patronymic names were 'true' patronyms in the beginning, but became heriditary throughout the 10th and 11th century.

What are a few examples of common or notable surnames in your nation. and what do they mean?:

Lindholm (= lime tree island, a place name; Nordic origin).
Frings (= Friedrich's son/daughter; Rhenish origin).
Breitscheid (= wide, open fields, a place name; Rhenish origin).
Petersen (= Peter's son; Nordic/Danish origin).
Pütz (= fountain, a place name; Rhenish origin).
Ahrens (= Arnold's son/daughter; Low German origin).
Svensson (= Sven's son; Nordic/Swedish origin).
Kostić (=Kosta's son, but can also mean 'little bone'; Serbian origin).

[Frisia Magna]

Does your nation's primary culture use surnames or family names?: Not commonly. Surnames as part of a person's legal name are not common outside of the nobility. Within the Nobility, "surnames" are generally presumed to be the house or dynasty an individual is part of. Within the commoners, profession, place of birth, place of residence, or a known character trait can be the origin of a surname.
From whom do they inherit the surname?: Patrilineal. If the mother is noble and the father not, the child inherits the mother's surname
How long ago did Surnames develop?: N/A
What are a few examples of common or notable surnames in your nation. and what do they mean?: Smid, Bakker, Fisker, Kok, etc.

[Blodrike]

Family names and surnames are not frequently used in Blodrike—most people have just a single name. We're mainly a hunter-gatherer society so there's not much a need for legal names. In fact, we're one of few nations that do not keep official records of citizens at all.

[North Wald Luxion]

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[Ko-oren]

Does your nation's primary culture use surnames or family names?: Surnames
From whom do they inherit the surname?: Father's side
How long ago did Surnames develop?: 300-2000 years ago, depending on the context.
What are a few examples of common or notable surnames in your nation. and what do they mean?: Oreninthen is usually used as the Doe in John Doe, and means "of the land" or something to that effect. Oren means land, and surnames tend to end with suffixes like -inthen, -inden, and everything in between.