|
|
This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page.
|
A typical Portuguese name is composed of one or two given names, and two family names. The first surname is usually the mother's family surname and the second surname is the father's family surname; however, the order of the surnames can be reversed and it is common to find people with three or four surnames.
For practicality, usually only the last surname is used in formal greetings or in scientific papers indexing, but in a list of persons, the first given name, not the surname, is used for alphasorting. A married woman may add her husband's last surname(s) to the end of her own name, but this is not mandatory. The same may happen with men, though this is extremely rare.
The Portuguese naming system is quite flexible. The law establishes the need for a child to have at least one given name and one last name (surname) from one of the parents, although having only one last name is now very rare. The law also establishes the maximum number of names allowed: up to two given names and four surnames (just in Portugal).[1]
In ancient times it was common practice for daughters to receive the mother's family name and sons to take their father's. For example, from Vasco da Gama's marriage with Catarina de Ataíde, there were six sons who bore the surname da Gama and one daughter who took the surname de Ataíde. Even these days, among the older population, it is still not unusual to find siblings with completely different combinations of surnames.
To add to this basic pattern, a second given name, or other paternal or maternal surnames are optional, up to the aforementioned limit of two given names and four surnames. Both limits are sometimes not respected, especially among the former aristocracy. Usually, the maternal surnames precede the paternal ones, but the opposite is also possible;[2] naturally, if the father is unknown, or has not acknowledged the child, only the mother's family name(s) is/are used. A child can also receive surnames from his/her parents' ancestors, even if those surnames are not part of the parents' names, under the condition that the parents prove those names were used by their ancestors.[3]
Most Portuguese-speaking people use only their last surname (usually the paternal one) in their daily and professional life, but the regular usage of a middle surname or of a combination of two surnames is also widespread.
Complete names are formed generally as in Western Europe, i.e., by first names, followed optionally by one or more middle names, followed by the mother's family surname, followed by the father's family surname. Examples:
- José Silva: The simplest configuration, with a given name and one family surname, either from the father or the mother. This simple configuration is rather rare, nowadays.
- José Eduardo Silva: José Eduardo are the given names and Silva the one family name. (However, note that Eduardo may be a valid family name: there is no way of knowing just by looking at the name.) Again, this is not common today, but this could happen in the case that both the child's parents have the same (final) family name (although not necessarily, since the same final family name can be repeated, as in José Eduardo Silva e Silva).
- José Eduardo Tavares Silva: In this case a second family name has been added. In theory the first surname (Tavares) would come from the mother and the second one (Silva) from the father, but it could be reversed. Another possibility would be that "Tavares Silva" is a composite family name, because this is relatively common in Portuguese surnames, i.e., both names are carried down to all descendants. Hyphenated names are rare in Portuguese, i.e., "Tavares-Silva," a convention which would dispel the confusion. Sometimes this convention is artificially forced by authors, politicians, etc., who want to be correctly cited in other countries.
- José Eduardo Santos Tavares Melo Silva: The most complete combination of names possible. In this case, the person could have two surnames coming from each parent or one coming from one parent and three from the other. The latter case is not so common, but it is impossible to tell for sure just by looking at the name.
- If the complete name repeats the name of a relative, e.g., father, grandfather or uncle, it may be suffixed by: Júnior (abbreviated Jr.), Filho (meaning son), Neto (grandson) or Sobrinho (nephew). This is always written with initial upper case and without a separating comma. This practice is rare in Portugal but common in Brazil. Although rare, one can even find people with the suffixes Sobrinho Neto (great-nephew) and Bisneto (great-grandson). This convention is much less common for female names, but in Brazil the suffixes Filha (daughter) and Neta (granddaughter) are used. Roman numerals, such as II, III, etc. for son, grandson, and great-grandson are not used since the practice is not allowed by the law in Brazil and Portugal.[4]
- Prepositions that can be used in Portuguese surnames are da, das, do, dos and de, such as in Luís de Sousa, Maria da Conceição, Osvaldo dos Santos, Luísa das Neves, etc. and mean "from" or "of". Da, dos, etc. are contractions of the preposition de and a definite article (o, as, etc.), meaning "from the" or "of the". The current convention in Portuguese is that they be written in lower case. Different from in Italian surnames, these conjunctives are usually not part of a composite name, i.e., "Sousa" is not different from "de Sousa", and both are ordered under 'S' in an alphabetical list. Therefore, one should not refer to Luís Inácio Lula da Silva as Mr. Da Silva but rather Mr. Silva. The conjunction "e" (and) is also common, e.g. "Maria Costa e Silva". Most commonly this would be a composite surname; in this case the person should be addressed as "Ms Costa e Silva", and not as Ms. Silva.
For example, if José Santos Almeida and Maria Abreu Melo had a daughter, her name could simply be Joana Melo Almeida (given name + mother's last name + father's last name). However, they could give her two given names, for example Joana Madalena, and combine their surnames in various ways, such has Joana Madalena Melo Almeida, Joana Madalena Abreu Melo Almeida (two surnames from the mother, one from the father), Joana Madalena Abreu Santos Almeida (one name from the mother, two from the father), or even Joana Madalena Abreu Melo Santos Almeida (two names from each parent). It would also be possible to use surnames that are not part of either parent's legal name, but which the parents would be entitled to use, i.e., a surname from a grandparent or a great-grandparent that was not transmitted to the father or the mother. This child would probably become known by her final surname, Joana Almeida. However, her parents could decide to change the order of surnames and name her Joana Almeida Melo, etc. In this case she would probably be known as Joana Melo.
It is quite common for a person to go by one of their surnames which is not the last one in order, especially if it very common. For example, Aníbal Cavaco Silva is commonly called "Cavaco" and Ayrton Senna da Silva chose to be known just as Ayrton Senna because Silva is a very common surname.
Some Portuguese family names are made of two words, most often not hyphenated, but are not composite names, as they were not the result of combining two family names in past generations and constitute a single logical unit. These include toponyms (e.g. Castelo Branco), religious references (e.g. Espírito Santo, Santa Rita), or other expressions (e.g. Corte Real, Mil-Homens). In this case both words must be cited (e.g. writer Camilo Castelo Branco is never referred to as Camilo Branco, and in alphabetical order goes under 'C') and they count as just one vocable in what relates to the legal limit of four surnames.[5]
Middle names (second given names and surnames that are not the final name) and suffixes can be abbreviated, but usually the first name and the surname are not abbreviated. A notable exception was writer Ruben A., whose complete name was Ruben Andresen Leitão. Example: José E. C. Lima (Jr.). This differs from rules in Spanish names, which use the mother's family name at the end. Example: Norberto García C.
In Brazil, recent immigrants - especially Italians, Germans, Jews and Japanese - usually name their sons with only the father family surname. Although there is no legal restriction on this practice, the pattern in succeeding generations changes to the traditional Portuguese pattern, usually because of assimilation.
Today one can find people who use two Italian surnames (like "Guglielmo Bianchini") or two Japanese surnames (like "Sugahara Uemura"), a practice that is unusual in Italy and nonexistent in Japan. Having two surnames from non-European immigrants is also common, like "Sato Rahal", a Japanese and an Arab surname, respectively.
The Spanish pattern is to use both the father's and mother's family surnames, but in reverse order compared to Portuguese pattern. Almost all of the first Spanish-Brazilian born generation were named in order of the family surnames of the Portuguese pattern.
A specific pattern developed among the descendants of 20th-century immigrants: they use only their father's surname and two given names, the first is a Portuguese given name and the second one is a given name from their father's original country.
This pattern is most used among Japanese and Syrian-Lebanese immigrants sons and grandsons. So one can find names like "Paulo Salim Maluf" where Paulo is a Portuguese given name, Salim is an Arabian given name, and Maluf is his father's surname; or "Maria Heiko Sugahara" where Maria is a Portuguese given name, Heiko a Japanese given name and Sugahara is her father's surname. This practice allows the person to be recognized as "Paulo Maluf" or "Maria Sugahara" (in the large Brazilian society) or as "Salim Maluf" or "Heiko Sugahara" (in the immigrants' social community).
This pattern became almost a general rule in São Paulo and other southern states. Miscegenation slowed down this use; but it is commonly used when both father and mother belong to the same ethnicity. Younger generations tend to use both the father and the mother family name, thus giving four names to their sons (like "Paulo Salim Lutfalla Maluf" or "Maria Heiko Sugahara Uemura").
The custom of adopting a surname through marriage is not a Portuguese-Brazilian tradition. It spread in the late 19th century in the upper classes, under French influence, and after the 1940s, it became socially almost obligatory. Not doing so was seen as evidence of concubinage, particularly until the 1970s. Nowadays, it has all but disappeared.
In Portugal, a person may adopt his or her spouse's surname(s), but nevertheless the original birth surnames are always kept. For example, if Maria Abreu Melo marries José Santos Almeida, she could choose to become Maria Abreu Melo Almeida or Maria Abreu Melo Santos Almeida.
In Brazil, a woman may adopt her husband's surname(s) and choose to keep or exclude her birth names. For example, when Maria Abreu Melo marries José Santos Almeida, she could choose to become Maria Abreu Melo Almeida, Maria Abreu Melo Santos Almeida, Maria Santos Almeida, Maria Almeida, etc. Usually, in these cases, a woman kept part of her birth name and use part of her husband's surname, in order to avoid having long names. So, the most used combination from the above example should be Maria Melo Almeida.
The mandatory adoption of the new name led to unusual combinations, like in the (not uncommon) case of both spouses having the same surname, when the woman surname was kept. Another confusing situation was, for example when a woman named Ana Lima Silva married a man named João Lima, her name could legally become Ana Lima Silva Lima.
Nowadays, fewer women adopt, even officially, their husbands' names, and among those who do so officially, it is quite common not to use it either in their professional or informal life.
In Portugal, since 1977, and in Brazil, since the 1970s, a woman has the option of whether or not to change her name after marriage. In Portugal, since 1977, and in Brazil, since 2002, a husband can also adopt his wife's surname. In Portugal, when this happens, usually both spouses change their name after marriage (for example, José Santos Almeida and Maria Abreu Melo could become José Santos Melo Almeida and Maria Abreu Melo Almeida or even "José Santos Almeida Melo" and "Maria Abreu Melo Almeida"). In Brazil, there is not yet a perceived pattern.
This custom has been fading since the 1970s and nowadays it is rarely found[citation needed], due to the cumbersome need to update registries, documents, etc., after the name change and back again in the event of divorce.
It is not uncommon, in Portugal, that a married woman has two given names and six surnames, two from her mother's family, two from her father's family and the last two coming from her husband. In addition, some of these names may be made of more than one word, so that a full feminine name can have more than 12 words. For instance, the name "Maria do Carmo Mão de Ferro e Cunha de Almeida Santa Rita Santos Abreu" would not be surprising in a married woman. Mão de Ferro (iron hand) and Santa Rita (after Saint Rita of Cascia) count only as one surname each. In this case, Santos Abreu would probably have come from this woman's husband.
In Portugal, the custom of giving a child four last names is getting popular, since this way a child can have each of their grandparents' last name. In Portugal and Brazil some people view this as a sign of snobbery, since it used to be the noble families who had a large number of surnames (for instance, the 4th Duke of Lafões (1797–1851), whose full name was Caetano Segismundo de Bragança e Ligne de Sousa Tavares Mascarenhas da Silva). For the sake of simplicity, most Portuguese people have two surnames.
In Portugal, having only one surname is rare, and it usually happens when both the parents have the same last name, to avoid repetitive combinations such as António Santos Santos (which would, however, be a perfectly legal name[6]). In Brazil, having only one surname is common in areas with large communities of non-Portuguese immigrants.
Traditionally, most Portuguese names have one standard spelling that is used in an almost universal fashion. Names are perceived as words, and are thus subject the customary grammar and orthographical rules of the Portuguese language. The spelling of many names has evolved through times and with orthography reforms, and archaic forms of names are considered misspellings and have little use in Portugal.
In Portugal – Given names have a standard spelling[7] that is considered the norm (even for non-contemporary figures). Misspelt and archaic forms are considered incorrect (e.g., Isabel and not Izabel; Luís and not Luiz). Names containing foreign letters - k, y, w - are usually not allowed, but this is slowly changing (e.g., Katia, rejected by the Civil Registration Office in 1969, is nowadays acceptable as a variant of the more standard spelling Cátia[8]). However, older people who were registered with archaic forms have continued to use them (examples include Manoel de Oliveira – the modern spelling would be Manuel). Regarding surnames, there is no legal restrictions, and as such many people continue to use archaic spellings of family names, as in Athayde (modern form Ataíde), Telles (modern form Teles). This is usually done in the upper classes, with the purpose of making the surname look more unusual or dignified.
In Brazil – There are no laws concerning names, and as such many archaic spellings and cognat forms of the same names coexist (Teresa [the only right form by the current orthography], Thereza, Tereza). Names of international inspiration are common and diacritics are also omitted at times. The parents can make up any type of name, and the economic lower classes usually use suffixes to give foreign allure to their offspring names, such as "-son" for boys and "-elly" for girls (Deividson, Joeldson, Maiksson, Nadrielly, Andrielly, Marcelly, Nathyelly etc.). This phenomenon can be easily seen on Brazilian soccer players' names.[9]
The given name Maria (like English Mary, from Hebrew Miryam, via Latin Maria) is extremely common as a feminine given name and even combined with masculine names. It was so widely used that nowadays it is considered tacky in Brazil, and it is rare to find women and men under forty years of age using it combined or alone. In Portugal it has always been common and in recent years, with a new wave of traditional given names, it has had an increase in popularity.
Traditionally Maria is more common as the first part of a double first name combination; these may be formed by several different elements.
Religious predicates (often honouring one of the Virgin Mary's denominations):
- Catholic devotion festivities: Maria da Conceição (referring to Our Lady of Conception), Maria das Dores (Our Lady of Sorrows), Maria da Assunção (Assumption), Maria da Natividade (Nativity of Mary).
- A Place of a Marian apparition: Maria de Fátima (Fátima), Maria de Lurdes (Lurdes / Lourdes), Maria de la Salete (Salete / Salette), Maria Aparecida (common in Brazil, after Our Lady Aparecida).
- A virtue or a nature element (many of which have lost religious associations nowadays): Maria do Céu (Heaven or Sky), Maria da Luz (Light), Maria do Mar (Sea), Maria da Graça (Grace).
- The name of a Saint: Maria de São José (after Saint Joseph).
Other types of combinations:
- Maria paired with a different feminine given name: Maria Madalena, Maria Teresa, Maria Antónia, Maria Carolina.
- Maria paired masculine given name: Maria João, Maria José, Maria Manuel, Maria Luís.
Many names that are etymologically related to Maria are also used. The most common one is name Mariana, a contraction of Maria and Ana[citation needed] (introduced in Portugal by Spanish-born Queen Mariana Vitória de Bourbon and often used in the Portuguese Royal Family). Other international aglutinations of Maria combinations have been introduced in more recent times. These include Marisa (from Spanish María Isabel)[citation needed], Marlene (from German Maria Magdalene)[citation needed], and Marília[citation needed].
As Maria is so widely used, women are most likely to be addressed by just the second element of their name: Conceição (Conception), Dores (Sorrows), Céu (sky/heaven), Luz (light), Lurdes (Lourdes), Fátima, Salete, Aparecida (appeared one), Madalena, Antónia, Teresa, etc. A woman named Maria de Jesus would be called "Jesus", even though the second name is masculine.
A similar thing happens with the name Ana (English Anne or Hannah), also very common in double-name combinations especially in the younger generations. A woman called Ana Paula would be usually called 'Paula', Ana Carolina would be 'Carolina' and so on.
A similar procedure occurs with masculine names, but using a reverse order. It is not unusual to find masculine names like João Maria, José Maria, Manuel Maria, etc. In this case, Maria would always be the second given name, in honour of Virgin Mary, and the first name would be a masculine name. This custom is fashionable among the Portuguese nobility and the upper classes, but is considered tacky in Brazil.
The particles "de" "d'" or "da", "do", "dos", "das" (= de + article a, o, os, as) are not considered part of the surname, and - as a rule - should not be alphabetized in name lists. João da Silva is Mr Silva, not Mr da Silva. António de Castro is alphabetized as Castro, António de. The most well-known exception to this norm is Angolan president José Eduardo dos Santos[citation needed], who is referred to as President Dos Santos, even among Portuguese-speaking people and in Portuguese-language media.
When producing alphabetized lists of Portuguese names, generally the full name is used. This occurs mainly in schools or official documents, and it is usually done because many people prefer to use multiple surname combinations in their daily life, or do not use last surname at all. It is therefore difficult to order people by the surnames they use. A typical alphabetized list:
- António Borges Santos
- António Silva Abreu Melo
- Leonor Soares Henriques Pais
- Sofia Matilde Almeida Pais
However, in areas such as a telephone directory or bibliography, the practice of using the (last) surname is preferred. The conjunctives and affixes preceding or following it, such as "da" and "Filho", are not used. When a full composite surname is known, it is alphabetized according to the first name even if not separated by a hyphen. When it is not known, the last name should be used. Because of this, many errors are committed in the alphabetization of Portuguese surnames, such as in a telephone directory. For example:
- Chagas Filho, Carlos
- Siqueira Campos, Luis Pereira
- Sousa, Luís de
These rules may change if the Portuguese name has been absorbed into a different culture, as in Anglo-Saxon countries. In the United States, for example, where many Portuguese have emigrated since the 18th century to New Jersey and New Hampshire, alphabetising rules use "da" and "de" as part of the surname. The Portuguese-American author John Dos Passos, who is referred to as having the surname Dos Passos, is a good example.
Portuguese nicknames are usually formed by inserting the diminutive infix -inh or -it before the final vowel in the name. For example, Teresa becomes Teresinha (meaning "little Teresa"), and Carlos becomes Carlinhos ("little Carlos"). In some cases, a nickname is formed by adding zinho(a) or -zito(a) - to the actual name. For example, João becomes Joãozinho ("little João") or Sofia becomes Sofiazinha ("little Sofia").
Augmentative suffixes may be used as well, with "Marcos" becoming "Marcão", for example.
Other practices include the repetition of a syllable (Nonô from Leonor, Zezé from José), a simple shortening of the name (Fred from Frederico, Bea or Bia from Beatriz), the contraction of the name (Manel from Manuel), or of a fraction of it (Beto from Alberto or Roberto, Mila from Emília or Camila). A mix of shortening and adding a suffix may also occur (Leco from Leonardo). Sometimes, a foreign-language nickname is used for the corresponding Portuguese name ("Rick" for Ricardo, "Maggie" from Margarida). Most given names have one or more standard diminutives.
Some typical Portuguese hypocoristics (the ones marked with * are almost exclusively Brazilian):
- Afonso = Afonsinho, Fofo* (lit. "cute", commonly not used between adult men)
- Alexandra = Alê*, Xana (not in Brazil, where the word is a slang term for vulva), Alex, Xanda
- Alexandre = Alex, Xande, Xando, Xandinho
- Alice = Alicinha, Licinha, Cinha, Lice, Lili
- Amélia = Amelinha, Melita, Mel
- Ana = Aninha, Anita, Anoca(s), Nita, Ninha, Nana, Hannah/Rana*
- Antônio/António = Tó, Tonho*, Tonhão*, Tom*, Toni/Tonnie, Tóne, Toninho, Tonico
- Augusto/Augusta = Guga, Guto/Guta, Tuto*, Gus* (for males)
- Bárbara = Bá, Babá, Babi, Barbie, Binha*
- Bruna/Bruno = Bru, Nuno/Nuna*
- Camila = Camilinha, Mila, Miloca, Mi, Mia
- Carlos = Carlinhos, Carlitos, Cacá, Calu, Litos
- Carlota = Lota, Cota*, Cotinha*, Coca*
- Carolina = Lininha, Lina, Carol, Cacá, Carô*
- Cecília = Cilinha, Cila, Cissa, Ceci
- Cláudia/Cláudio = Cau, Cacau (generally used to refer to female children)
- Cristina = Cris, Cristininha, Tina, Tininha
- Daiana = Dada, Dandan*, Dandinha, Dai*, Nana*
- Daniel = Dani, Dan*, Dando*, Dandinho*, Dandan*
- Daniela = Dani, Dandan*, Danizinha, Dandinha
- Diogo = Dioguinho, Dioguito, Di, Didi, Diguinho, Digo
- Eduardo/Eduarda = Edu, Dudu, Duda, Dado/Dada, Du
- Elisabete = Bete, Lisa, Bé, Beti, Betinha
- Emília/Emílio = Emilinha/Emilinho, Mila/Milinha, Milho* (lit. "maize"), Miloca*, Mia*
- Eugénia/Eugénio = Geninha/Geninho
- Eugênia/Eugênio = Geninha/Geninho, Gê*, Nina/Nino*
- Eurico = Dico, Lico*
- Fábio/Fabiano = Fabico, Fafá*, Biano*, Bibi*, Fabi, Bi*, Fá*
- Fernando = Fefa, Fernandinho, Nando, Nano*, Fê*
|
- Fernanda = Fefa, Nanda, Nandinha, Fê*
- Filipa/Felipa = Filipinha, Lipa, Pipa, Fifi, Fê*
- Filipe/Felipe = Felipinho, Lipe, Pipo, Fili, Phillie*, Fê*
- Filomena = Mena, Lumena, Filó, Fi*
- Francisca = Francisquinha, Chica, Chiquinha, Quica/Kika
- Francisco = Francisquinho, Chico, Chiquinho, Chiquito, Quico/Kiko, Cisco
- Frederico = Fred, Fredy/Freddie, Dico, Drico, Fré
- Gabriel = Gabi (commonly not used between men in Brazil), Gago*, Bill*, Bibo, Biel
- Gabriela = Gabi, Bia*, Biela*, Bibi*
- Gonçalo (a name contemporarily not common to Brazilians) = Gonçalinho, Gonça, Gonças, Gongas, Gonzo (from English influence), Gugu, Guga, Gu
- Guilherme = Gui, Guigui, Guilhie*, Will*, Willy/Willie*, Elmo*, Guiga, Guigué*, Guilu*, Guibinha
- Gustavo = Guto, Guga, Gugu, "Gus"
- Helena/Heleno (also Elena/Eleno) = Lena/Leno, Leninha/Leninho, Leni/Lennie, Lelê (for females), Leno
- Henrique = Rique/Rick*, Riquinho*, Ique, Quique, Quico
- Inês = Inesinha, Nê, Nenê, Nês, Nenoca, Inuecas, Nessa
- Isabel, Isabela = Bela, Isabelinha, Belinha, Isa, Béia, Bebel*, Bebela, Beca, Bel
- Jaime = Jaiminho, Jaimito, Minho, Jay/Djêi*
- Joana = Joaninha, Ju, Juju, Jana, Janocas, Jô*, Juca
- João = Djone, Joãozinho, Janjão, Jão, Juca, Joca, Janocas, Ju* (commonly not used between men)
- Joaquim = Quim, Joca, Jaquim, Quinzinho, Quincas
- Jorge = Jorginho, Jó, Joca, Djódi*
- José = Zé, Zezé, Zeca, Zezinho, Jô, Ju* (commonly not used between men)
- Júlia = Ju, Julinha, Juju, Jujuba*
- Juliana = Jú, Juju, Juli
- Laura/Lauro = Laurinha/Laurinho, Lala (for females), Lalá, Lalau (most commonly for males)
|
- Leonardo = Léo, Leozinho, Leco*
- Leonor = Nonô, Léo, Lolô*
- Lídia = Lídi, Li, Dida
- Lígia = Lili, Lica, Gija*
- Liliana = Lili, Lilas, Liana*, Lana*
- Lorena = Lora, Ló, Loló, Lolô*
- Luís = Lu, Lui*, Luisinho, Lula*, Lulu; many combinations with Lu and hypocoristics of other names are possibly because Luís is a common first name in Lusophone countries
- Lúcia = Lucinha, Luci, Lu, Suça*, Zuza*
- Lurdes/Lourdes = Lu, Lou, Ludi/Ludie*
- Madalena = Lena, Madá, Mady/Madie
- Manuel = Manelinho, Manelocas, Manel, Mané, Maneco, Neco*, Leco*, Manu (commonly not used between men in Brazil), Nelo, Nelito, Nelinho, Nelto*
- Manuela = Manela, Manu, Nela, Manocas, Lela*, Mel*
- Marcelo = Celo, Shelo/Chelo, Tchelo, Celim
- Marcos/Marco = Marcão, Marquinhos, Marquito, Caco*
- Margarida = Margaridinha, Guida, Guidinha, Maggie
- Maria = Bia, Mariazinha, Maricota, Cota, Cotinha, Micas, Mia, Mimi, Mary
- Mariana = Marianinha, Marianita, Nita, Mari, Má*, Nana*, Mana* (lit. "sista")
- Mária/Mário = Marinho/Marinha, Maruca, Má*
- Marta = Martinha, Tata*, Má*
- Miguel = Miguelinho, Miguelito, Micas, Mike, Mígui
- Nelson = Nelo, Nelinho, Nelito, Nelto*
- Nicola/Nicolau/Nicholas = Nico/Nica, Niquito/Niquita, Coca*, Lalá (for both genders), Lalau (for males)
- Octávio/Otávio = Távio, Vavo*
- Osvaldo = Vado, Vavo*, Vadinho, Valdinho, Vavá, Ósvi, Valdo
- Patrícia = Pati/Paty/Páti/Patie, Pátri, Pat, Ticha/Tixa, Tiça, Pata*
- Paula/Paulo = Paulie*, Paca/Paco*, Papau* (most commonly for females and male children), Paulinho/Paulinha
|
- Pedro = Pedrinho, Pedrito, Peu*, Pepê
- Rafael = Rafa, Rafinha, Fael, Fefo*
- Renata/Renato = Rê*, Renatinha/Renatinho, Nata/Nato*, Dado*, Náno*
- Ricardo = Cado, Cadinho, Ricardinho, Rico, Rick
- Rita = Ritinha, Ri, Tá*
- Roberto = Betinho, Berto, Beto, Tinho*
- Rodrigo = Digo, Diguinho, Rúdri, Rody, Rud/Rudy
- Rodolfo = Rô*, Rodas, Rud/Râdy*, Fofo* (lit. "cute", commonly not used between men)
- Rosa = Ró, Rosinha, Zoza*, Rosie*
- Rui = Ruca, Ruizinho
- Sebastião = Sebastiãozinho, Bastião, Tião, Tão, Babá*, Sebas*, Seto*
- Sofia = Pipia, Sofi, Fi*, Sô*
- Susana = Susaninha, Su, Suse, Susy
- Teresa = Teresinha, Té, Teté/Tetê
- Tiago = Tiaguinho, Ti, Gago*, Taco*, Taquito*, Guinho*
- Tomé = Tomezinho, Tommie*
- Vera = Verinha, Veroca, Verusca
- Victor/Vítor = Tó, Vitinho, Vic
- Victória/Vitória = Vivi, Vicky
Other hypocoristics are associated with common two name combinations:
- Cajó (Carlos Jorge)
- Joca/Juca (João Carlos)
- Malu/Milú (Maria Luísa, Maria de Lurdes, Maria Lúcia)
- Maricota (Maria da Conceição)
- Mazé, Mizé (Maria José)
- Zeca (José Carlos)
- Mitó (Maria Antónia)
- Tó-jó (António Jorge)
- Tozé (António José)
- Zezé (Maria José)
- Jomi (João Miguel)
- Cadu (Carlos Eduardo)
- Caíque (Carlos Henrique)
- Gal (Maria da Graça)
- Zeza (Maria José)
- Miju (Maria de Jesus)
|
A hypocoristics can receive the suffix -inho/-inha (meaning "little") giving a more intense feeling of protection or intimacy, such as Chiquinho (from Chico, the hypocoristics for Francisco), Xandinho (from Xando, for Alexandre), Zequinha (form Zeca, for José). Typically, common nicknames for Brazilian otakus (i.e. japanophiles) specially inside their subculture and some Japanese Brazilians, more commonly inside their community, will be a common hypocoristic for his or her Portuguese (or even Japanese, e.g. Mayumi = Mayu, Mayuyu) names followed by relatively intimate Japanese honorifics such as -kun, -chan, -san, -niichan, etc. which give the same value as the native -inho or -inha.
One single name or a name followed by a patronym was the most common way that the native pre-Roman people named themselves. The names could be Celtic (Mantaus), Lusitanian (Casae), Iberian (Sunua) or Conii (Alainus). The names were clearly ethnic and some typical of a tribe or region. A slow adoption of the Roman onomastic occurred after the end of the first century a.c. with the adoption of a Roman name or of the tria nomina:praenomen (given name), nomen (gentile) and cognomen.[10][11]
Most of Portuguese surnames have a patronymical, locative or religious origin.
Patronymics are names derived from the father's given name that, many centuries ago, began to be used as surnames. They are the most common surnames in the lands where Portuguese is spoken and also in many other languages.
In Portuguese, patronymics are surnames like Henriques, Rodrigues, Lopes, Nunes, Mendes, Fernandes, Gonçalves, Esteves and Álvares, where the ending -es- means (son of). The meaning is the same of the -ez suffix used in Spanish patronymics.
Some surnames originated in this way do not end in es; instead they end in iz, like Muniz (son of Monio) and Ruiz, (son of Ruy), or ins, like Martins (son of Martim).
Although most Portuguese surnames ending in -es are former patronymics, some family names with -es- endings are not patronymics, but toponymics, such as Tavares, Pires, Cortês and Chaves.
In the beginning of the surname formation, the ending -es- was not used. So, Joana daughter of Fernando could be called Joana Fernando, as like as André João meant André son of João[citation needed]. One can find today in Portugal and Brazil people who still use surnames that for other people are just given names, although were passed from parents to sons for generations and do not have the ending -es-, such like Valentim, Alexandre, Fernando, Afonso (note the family name de Melo Afonso) and Antonio (note de Melo Antonio). Names like Dinis, Duarte, Garcia and Godinho were originally given names, but today they are used in Brazil almost exclusively as surnames, although Duarte and Dinis are still common given names in Portugal.
Matronymics (surnames derived from female given names) are almost never used in Portuguese, but surnames such as "Catarino" (from Catarina) and "Mariano" (meaning related to Maria) could originate from the name of a real mother or from a spiritual mother, the Virgin Mary[citation needed].
Some former patronymics are not easily recognized, for two main reasons. Sometimes the given name that originated the patronymic became archaic, such as Lopo (that originated Lopes), Mendo or Mem (Mendes), Vasco (Vasques), Soeiro (Soares), Munio (Muniz), Sancho (Sanches). Also, often the given names or the related patronymic changed through centuries, although always some resemblance can still be noted - such as Antunes (son of Antão or Antonio), Peres (son of Pero, archaic form of Pedro), Alves (from Alvares, son of Álvaro), and Eanes (from mediaeval Iohannes, son of João).
A large number of surnames are locative, supposed to describe the geographical origin of a person, like the name of a village, town, city, land, river. Such surnames like Almeida, Andrada or Andrade, Barcelos, Barros, Bastos, Castelo Branco, Cintra (from Sintra), Coimbra, Faria, Gouveia, Guimarães, Lima (the name of a river, not meaning lime), Lisboa (Lisbon), Pacheco (from village of Pacheca), Porto (Oporto), Portugal, Serpa, etc., fit this rule. A surname like Leão (lion) may mean that an ancestor came from the old Iberian kingdom of León (Northwestern Spain) or the French city of Lyon[citation needed].
Not all villages and towns that originated surnames exist, kept the same name, or are inhabited today.
Some names specify an ancestral location of the family's house within the village: Fonte (by the fountain), Azenha (by the water-mill), Eira (by the threshing-floor), Tanque (by the community cistern), Fundo (on the lower part of the village), Cimo/Cima (on the upper part of the village), Cabo (on the far end of the village)[citation needed], Cabral (near the field where the goats graze). In some cases, the family name may not be a locative, but an indication of ownership.
Some geological or geographical words were also used to name people like Pedroso (stony or full of pebbles land), Rocha (rock), Souza/Sousa (from Latin saxa, a place with seixos, i.e. pebbles, or the name of a Portuguese river), Vale (valley, dale), Ribeiro (little river, creek, brook), Siqueira or Sequeira (a non-irrigated land), Castro (castle or ruins of ancient buildings), Dantas (from d'Antas, a place with antas, i.e. prehistoric stone monuments or dolmens), Costa (coast of the sea), Pedreira (quarry), Barreira (clay quarry). The name Ferreira is a locative surname first used by people who lived in the many towns and villages named Ferreira, i.e. a place where one can find iron (ferro) ore.
Names of trees or plantations are also locative surnames, supposed originally to identify an ancestor who lived near or inside a plantation, an orchard or a place with a characteristic kind of vegetation. Names like Matos (woods, forest), Campos (grass fields, prairie), Teixeira (a place covered with yew trees), Queirós (a kind of grass), Cardoso (a place covered with cardos, i.e. with cardoons or thistles), Correia (a place covered with corriolas or correas, a kind of plant), Macedo (an apple tree garden), and Azevedo (a forest of azevinho, i.e. a holly wood) fit this pattern.
Tree names are very common locative surnames - Oliveira (olive tree), Carvalho (oak tree), Salgueiro (willow), Pinheiro (pine tree), Pereira (pear tree), Moreira (from amoreira, i.e. mullberry tree), Macieira (apple tree), Figueira (fig tree). These are not old Jewish-Portuguese surnames, as explained below, although this myth is often repeated.
Surnames with religious meanings are common. It is possible that some of these originated from an ancestor who converted to Catholicism and intended or needed to demonstrate his new faith. Another possible source of religious names were orphans who were abandoned in the churches and raised in Catholic orphanages by priests and nuns, usually baptized with a name related to the date near when they were found or baptized. Even another possible source is when previous religious given names (expressing a special devotion by the parents or the god-parents, or the child's birth date) were adopted as family names.
Religious names includes de Jesus (of Jesus), dos Reis (of the kings, from the day of the Epiphany of the Lord, the Day of the Wise Kings), Ramos (branches, from Palm Sunday, the Sunday before Easter), Pascoal (of Easter), da Assunção (of the Assumption of the Virgin Maryn), do Nascimento (of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary or the Nativity of Jesus - Christmas), da Visitação (of the Visitation of the Virgin Mary), da Anunciação (of the Annunciation of the Virgin Mary), da Conceição (of the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary), Trindade (from Trinity Sunday), do Espírito Santo (of the Holy Ghost, from the Feast of the Holy Ghost), das Chagas (of wounds, from the Feast of the Five Wounds of Christ), Graça (grace, from Our Lady of Grace), Patrocínio (patronage, from Our Lady of Patronage), Paz (peace, from Our Lady Mediatrix of Peace), Luz (light, from Our Lady of the Divine Light), Neves (snows, from Our Lady of the Snows), Penha (cliff, bluff, from Our Lady of the Bluff of France, that in Spanish is called Nuestra Señora de Peñafrancia), das Dores (of sorrows, from Our Lady of Sorrows), Bonfim (good end, from Our Lord of Good Death), das Virgens (of the virgins martyrs), dos Anjos (of angels, from the Archangels Michael, Raphael, and Gabriel day), São João (Saint John), Santana (Saint Ann), Santos (from 'Todos os Santos', i.e. from All Hallows or All Saints day) and Cruz (Cross, the most common surname among the Belmonte Jews).
An orphan with unknown parents or a converted (Jew, African slave or Native Brazilian) could be baptized with the name of a saint, like João Baptista (from Saint John Baptist), João Evangelista (from Saint John the Evangelist), João de Deus (from Saint John of God), Antônio de Pádua (from Saint Anthony of Padova), João Nepomuceno (from Saint John of Nepomuk), Francisco de Assis (from Saint Francis of Assisi), Francisco de Paula (from Saint Francis of Paola), Francisco de Salles (from Saint Francis de Salles), Inácio de Loiola (from Saint Ignatius of Loyola), Tomás Aquino (from Saint Thomas Aquinas), José de Calanzans (from Saint Joseph of Calasanz), or José de Cupertino (from Saint Joseph of Cupertino). After that, they usually passed only the second given name (Batista, Evangelista, de Deus, Pádua, Nepomuceno, Assis, de Paula, Sales, Loiola, Aquino, Calanzans or Cupertino) to their sons as a surname.
A surname like Xavier could have originated from someone baptized after Saint Francis Xavier or from the old Portuguese family Xavier.
Some surnames are possible descriptions of a peculiar characteristic of an ancestor, originating from nicknames.
These include names like Peixoto ("little fish", applied to a nobleman who used a fish to trick his enemies during a siege[citation needed]), Peixe (fish, i.e. swimmer, or also fisherman or fishmonger[citation needed]), Veloso (wooly, i.e. hairy), Ramalho (full of tree branches, bushy, i.e. with a thick beard[citation needed]), Barroso (clay covered, i.e. with pimples[citation needed]), Lobo (wolf, i.e. fierce, savage[citation needed]), Lobato (little wolf, wolf cub), Raposo (fox, i.e. smart[citation needed]), Pinto (chick, i.e. gentle and kind[citation needed]), Tourinho (little bull, i.e. stout, strong[citation needed]), Vergueiro (that bends, i.e., weak), Medrado (grown-up, i.e. tall), Tinoco (short, small[citation needed]), Porciúncula (small part, small piece), Magro (thin), Magriço (skinny), Gago (stutterer, stammerer), Galhardo (gallant, chivalrous), Terrível (terrible), Penteado (hairdressing, the nickname of a branch of the German Werneck family whose members used to wear wigs), Romero (from romeiro, pilgrim, i.e. someone who had made a religious voyage to Rome, Santiago de Compostela or Jerusalem). Verdugo/Berdugo ("Branch of a Tree" or 'Executioner")
Portuguese surnames that originated from professions or occupations are few, such as Serrador (sawman), Pastorinho (little shepherd), Monteiro (hunter of the hills or woods guard), Caldeira (cauldron, i.e. cauldron maker), Cubas (wooden barrels, i.e., barrel maker or cooper), Peixe (fish, for a fisherman or a fishmonger).
A common mistake is to suppose that the Portuguese surname Ferreira means blacksmith (ferreiro in Portuguese) since there is a similar surname in many languages (English Smith, German Schmidt, Arab Bittar, etc.). But Ferreira is the name of a river and of many villages and towns in Portugal. Verdugo/Berdugo (Executioner)
Some Portuguese names originated from foreigners who came to live in Portugal or Brazil many centuries ago. They are so ancient that, despite their known foreign origin, they are an integrated part of Portuguese and Brazilian cultures.
Most of these names are Spanish, such as Toledo (a city in Spain), Ávila or Dávila (a city in Spain) and Padilha. Other common "foreign" surnames are Bettencourt or Bittencourt (from Béthencourt, French), Goulart, Goulard or Gullar (French, original meaning is glutton), Fontenele or Fontenelle (French, from fountain), Rubim (from Robin, French), Alencastro, Lencastre (from Lancaster, English), Drummond (Scottish), Werneck, Vernek or Berneque (southern German, the name of the Bavarian city Werneck), Wanderley (from van der Ley, Flemish), Dutra (from De Ultra, a Latin name meaning "from beyond" assumed by the Flemish family Van Hurtere), Brum (from Bruyn, Flemish), Bulcão (from Bulcamp, Flemish), Dulmo (from van Olm, Flemish),[12] Acioli (Italian), Doria (Italian), Cavalcanti (Italian), Mota or Motta (Italian), Netto or Neto (Italian, not to be confused with the name suffix "Neto" ("grandson") that is used in Portuguese to distinguish a grandson and grandfather who bear the same names).
It is a popular belief that the Jews living in Portugal up to 1497, when they were forced to choose between conversion or expulsion, substituted their surnames with the names of trees that do not bear edible fruits, such as Carvalho (oak tree) and Junqueira (reed, bulrush, junk). Others say that they usually chose tree names such as Pereira (pear tree), Valeira (of the valley), or Oliveira (olive tree), in this case trees that bear edible fruits. However, these names were already used by Christians during the Middle Ages.
Another family name usually pointed out as denoting Jewish ancestry is Espírito Santo (Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost)and Verdugo/Berdugo (Branch of a Tree). The rationale is that Jews would adopt as a family name an (apparently) Christian concept as a deception. In fact, they were choosing the most incorporeal Trinity person, that is, the one that offended least their (secret) Jewish faith. This theory is not totally unfounded, as there are proofs that the cult around the Holy Spirit flourished after 1496, especially among New Christians. This does not rule out that "Espírito Santo" was also adopted by faithful Christians, following the rationale of other religious surnames.
The Portuguese Jews living in Portugal up to 1497 bore given names that could distinguish them from the Christian population. Most of these names are Portuguese versions of older semitic (Arabian, Hebrew, Aramaic) names like Abenazo, Aboab, Abravanel, Albarrux, Azenha, Benafull, Benafaçom, Benazo, Caçez, Cachado, Çaçom/Saçom, Carraf, Carilho, Cide/Cid, Çoleima, Faquim, Faracho, Faravom, Fayham/Fayam, Focem, Çacam/Sacam, Famiz, Gadim, Gedelha, Labymda, Latam/Latão, Loquem, Lozora, Maalom, Maçon, Maconde, Mocatel, Mollaão, Montam, Motaal, Rondim, Rosall, Samaia/Çamaya, Sanamel, Saraya, Tarraz, Tavy/Tovy, Toby, Varmar, Verdugo/Berdugo, Zaaboca, Zabocas, Zaquim, Zaquem. Some were locative names, not necessarily specific to Jewish populations, like Catelaão/Catalão (Catalan), Castelão/Castelhão (Castilian), Crescente (crescent, from Turkey), Medina (Medinah), Romano (Roman), Romão, Romeiro, Tolledam/Toledano (from Toledo), Vallency (Valencia) and Vascos (Basque); some were patronymics from Biblical names like Abraão (Abraham), Lázaro (Lazar), Barnabé, Benjamim, Gabril (Gabriel), Muça (Moses) and Natam (Nathan); some are profession names such as Caldeirão (cauldron), Martelo (hammer), Pexeiro (fishmonger), Chaveirol (locksmith) and Prateiro (silversmith); some are nicknames such as Calvo (bald), Dourado (golden, like the German Goldfarb), Ruivo (red-headed), Crespo (curly), Querido (beloved) and Parente (family relative). A few names are not distinct from old Portuguese surnames like Camarinha, Castro, Crespim.[13]
Some scholars proved that the converted Portuguese Jews usually chose a patronymic as their new surname and, when the conversion was not forced, they would choose to bear the surname of their godfather.[13]
The Jewish-Portuguese community that flourished in the Netherlands and Hamburg, Germany, after their expulsion from Portugal used surnames such as Camargo, Costa, Fonseca, Dias, Pinto, and Silveira.
Some of the most famous descendants of Portuguese Jews who lived outside Portugal are the philosopher Baruch Spinoza (in Portuguese Bento de Espinosa), the British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli[14] and the classical economist David Ricardo. Other famous members of the Portuguese Synagogue of Amsterdam bore names such as Uriel da Costa (or Uriel Acosta', Isaac Aboab da Fonseca, Isaac de Pinto and Menasseh ben Israel (whose original surname was Soeiro).
The Belmonte Jews (crypto-Jews from the Belmonte region in Portugal) also bear surnames that cannot be used to distinguish them from the older Catholic Portuguese families. Using tree names as surnames was not a common practice among converted or non-converted Portuguese Jews, before or after their expulsion in 1497.
According to newspaper Público,[15] the most common given names in Portugal, for 105,000 children born in 2008, were:
| Males |
Females |
| João (3189) |
Maria (4497) |
| Rodrigo (3074) |
Beatriz (2897) |
| Martim (2443) |
Ana (2897) |
| Diogo (2128) |
Leonor (2374) |
| Tiago (2088) |
Mariana (2374) |
| Tomás (2043) |
Matilde (2131) |
According to the Cartórios Associados Website the most common given names in Brazil during the last 2 years (Jan/2008 - Nov/2009), were:
| Name |
Incidents |
| 1. Maria |
1621 |
| 2. Ana |
1274 |
| 3. João |
1057 |
| 4. Gabriel |
590 |
| 5. Pedro |
548 |
| 6. Lucas |
506 |
| 7. Mateus |
427 |
| 8. Guilherme |
344 |
| 9. Júlia |
337 |
| 10. Luís |
333 |
| 11. Vítor |
266 |
| 12. Gustavo |
262 |
| 13. Yasmin |
262 |
| 14. Kauã |
249 |
| 15. Víctor |
243 |
| 16. Rafael |
230 |
| 17. Vinícius |
230 |
| 18. Artur |
228 |
| 19. Miguel |
226 |
| 20. David |
221 |
| 21. Vitória |
218 |
| 22. Filipe/Felipe |
215 |
| 23. Carlos |
209 |
| 24. Samuel |
202 |
| 25. Letícia |
198 |
| 26. Beatriz |
192 |
| 27. Mariana |
189 |
| 28. Daniel |
183 |
| 29. Nicolas |
183 |
| 30. José |
181 |
Until abolition of slavery, slaves did not have surnames, only given names[citation needed]. They were even forbidden to use their distinct African or Native Brazilian names and were christened with a Portuguese given name. While slavery persisted, slaves needed to have distinct names only within the plantation (fazenda or engenho) to which they belonged.
It was a common practice to name free slaves after their former owners, so all their descendants have the Portuguese surnames of their former owner[citation needed].
Indigenous people who were not slaves also chose to use their godparents' surnames as their own[citation needed].
Religious names are also more common among people with African or native Brazilian ancestors than among people with only European ancestors. A slave who had just a given name like Francisco de Assis (from Saint Francis of Assisi) could use the partial name de Assis as a surname, since the connective - de - gives the appearance of surname.
The practice of naming Afro-Brazilians with religious surnames was proved even by some indirect approaches. Medical researchers demonstrated that there is a statistical correlation between a religious name and genetic diseases related to African ancestry such as the sickle-cell disease. Due to miscegenation, the correlation exists even among white people that have religious surnames[citation needed].
It was also common to name indigenous people and freed slaves with surnames which were already very common such as Silva or Costa. That is why[citation needed] Silva is the most common surname in Brazil.
In the years following Brazil's independence, some old Brazilians families changed their surnames to surnames derived from Tupian languages as a patriotic way to emphasize the new Fatherland. Some of these names are still spelled with Portuguese old orthography, but some are spelled according the new rules. These names, following the old orthography, include:
- Native Brazilian nations or tribes: Tupinambá, Tabajara, Carijó, Goytacaz, Guarany, Tamoyo (the name of a confederation of many tribes that fought the first Portuguese settlers);
- Brazilian trees: Jatobá, Mangabeira (mangaba tree), Pitangui (pitanga tree)[citation needed], Sarahyba, Palmeira (palm tree)[citation needed], Goiabeira (guava tree);
- Typical Brazilian fruits: Pitanga, Muricy, Guaraná (a Brazilian family with Dutch ancestors changed their surname from Van Ness to Guaraná)[citation needed];
- Famous Native Brazilian chiefs: Cayubi, Tibiriçá, Paraguaçu (big river, sea, in Tupian language), Piragibe (fish's arm, in Tupian language).
Due to emigration, nowadays one can find these surnames even in Portugal.
Some Brazilian surnames, like some old Portuguese surnames, are locative surnames that denote the original place where the ancestor who first used it was born or lived. Like surnames that originated from words, this practice started during the patriotic years that followed Brazil's Independence.
These are surnames like Brasil, (Brazil), Brasiliense (Brazilian), Brasileiro (also Brazilian), América, Americano (American), Bahiense (from Bahia city, today called Salvador), Cearense (from Ceará State) and ' Maranhão (from Maranhão State)
Some of these are toponyms derived from Tupian languages such as:
- Brazilian rivers: Capibaribe (Capibaras' river in Tupian language), 'Parahyba (from Paraíba do Sul river, not related to the northern Paraíba river, Paraíba State, or Paraíba city, today called João Pessoa);
- Brazilian places: Pirassununga (snoring fish, in Tupian language), Piratininga (dried fish, in Tupian language), Carioca (from Rio de Janeiro city, originally meant white man house in Tupian language).
Due to immigration, nowadays one can find these surnames even in Portugal.
Some locative surnames derived indirectly as the result of its incorporation by the family after the Imperial nobility title of an ancestor. During the times of Emperor Pedro II, non-hereditary nobilities titles would be granted to notable persons, generally statesmen. The title (but no lordship) would be granted and named after a location, as in Europe, generally owned by the notable. At their death, the family in order to maintain the reference to the title would adopt them, to the point that many Brazilians still believe these are hereditary.
Thus surnames like: Rio Branco (from Barão de Rio Branco, i.e., José Maria da Silva Paranhos), Jaguaribe (from Barão de Jaguaribe), Ouro Preto (from Visconde de Ouro Preto), Paranaguá (from the various Marqueses de Paranaguá as the title would be granted to more than one notable), Araripe (Barão de Araripe), Suassuna (Barão de Suassuna), etc...
Despite the lesser variation in Portuguese surnames, immigration from other countries (Italy, Spain, Germany, Austria, France, Switzerland, Belgium, Netherlands, Poland, Ukraine, Russia, Bohemia, Lithuania, Finland, Sweden, Hungary, UK, Ireland, Syria, Lebanon, Japan, China, Korea, United States etc.) increased the diversity of surnames in Brazil.
Some foreign surnames were misspelled after many generations and today cannot be recognized in their original country (the French-Swiss family name Magnan changed to Manhães after some decades). Some misspelled foreign surnames are hardly recognized by speakers of the original language such as Collor (from German Koeller), Chamareli (from Italian Sciammarelli) and Branquini (from Italian Bianchini). Sometimes, different rules of romanization were applied to Japanese and Arabic names (like Nacamura and Nakamura, Yamaguchi and Iamaguti, Sabag and Sappak, Bukhalil and Bucalil).
Thus there are extensively adapted or misspelled foreign surnames used by Brazilian descendants of non-Portuguese immigrants. Due to emigration, nowadays one can find these misspelled surnames even in their original country.
Although not so widely used as in the United States, immigrants used to change their surname to show assimilation or to avoid social discrimination in Brazil.
This practice was most used during World War II by Italian immigrants because Italy was an enemy country for a few years[citation needed]. As Italians are Catholics and were easily assimilated in the larger Brazilian society, the practice is not perceived and almost forgot after a single generation.
The new Portuguese surname was generally chosen based on the original meaning of the foreign surname (Olivetto, Olivetti or Oliva sometimes changed to Oliveira). Sometimes the new surname had only a phonetical resemblance with the foreign one (the Italian surmanes Livieiro and Salviani sometimes were changed to Oliveira and Silva[citation needed].
In Brazil, until the first-half of the 20th century, very important people could be called in a very respectful - but not formal - way using a social or military title and a childish hypocoristics of their given name, such as "Coronel Tonico" (something like Colonel Tony), "Comendador Paulinho" (Commender Lil' Paul), "Dona Chica" (Lady Lil' Frances"), Sinhá Mariquinha (Mrs. Lil' Mary, sinhá is a popular pronunciation of senhora, i.e. Mrs.). Although an American president could be called Bill (Clinton) or Jimmy (Carter) by the press, this practice was used in Brazil as a much more respectful treatment and never in a formal way.
Some sociologists[who?] have suggested that members of the Brazilian upper classes were often raised by slave women who called them using a hypocoristics, and that childish name continued to be used, but in a respectful way, when they grew up.
Today, this practice is not so widespread, but one can find people informally, but respectfully, called "Seu Zé" (Mr Joe, Seu is a short Mister) or "Dona Ritinha" (Lady Lil' Rita).
In Brazil, descendants of famous people sometimes use a surname composed of both the given name and the surname of their ancestor, like Ruy Barbosa, Vital Brasil, Miguel Pereira and Lafayette Rodrigues families[citation needed]. Such practice allows them to be easily recognized by other people as descendants of their famous ancestor. Such a pattern is rare.
In Portugal, newborn children can only be named from a list of given names permitted by Civil Law.[16][not in citation given] Names are required to be spelt according to the rules of Portuguese orthography and to be a part of Portuguese-language onomastic (traditionally names in Portugal were based on the calendar of saints). Thus in Portugal the given names show little variation, as traditional names are favoured over "modern" ones. Examples of popular Portuguese names are António, João, José, Francisco, Pedro or Manuel (for men) and Maria, Ana, Isabel, Teresa or Joana (for women). In recent decades there has been a popularity rise for ancient historical names such as Gonçalo, Bernardo, Vasco, Afonso, Leonor, Catarina or Beatriz. If one of the Parents is not Portuguese or has double citizenship, foreign names are allowed, as long as the parents present a document proving the requested name is allowed in their country of origin. In the past, immigrant children who were born abroad were required to adopt a Portuguese name in order to become Portuguese citizens - an example is tennis player Michelle de Brito, whose legal name is Micaela. This practise no longer applies.
In Brazil, there is no legal restriction on naming a newborn child, unless the given name has a meaning that can humiliate or embarrass those who bear it.
Brazilians living far from the big cities or lower-class people are prone to create new given names, joining together the given names of the parents or classical given names, changing the spelling of foreign names or even using foreign suffixes that - they may believe - give a sophisticated or modern sound to the new name (see Mauren - from Maureen -, Deivid - from David, Robison).
Foreign surnames are also widely used as given names such as Wagner, Mozart, Donizetti, Lamartine, Danton, Anderson, Emerson, Edison, Franklin, Nelson, Wilson, Washington, Jefferson, Jensen, Kennedy, Lenin, Newton, Nobel, and Rosenberg. Originally these names showed the political, artistic or scientific admiration of the parents who first used them to name their sons.
During the realm of the second Emperor, Dom Pedro II, the Native Brazilian was used as the symbol of the Empire[citation needed]. At this time, Brazilian people started to use Native Brazilian names as given names. Some are among the most popular until nowadays.
These are names like Araci, Caubi, Guaraci, Iara, Iberê, Ioná, Jaci, Janaína, Jandira, Juçara, Juraci, Jurema, Maiara, Moacir, Moema, Ubiratã, Ceci, Iracema, Peri and Ubirajara (the last four taken from José de Alencar's works).
Recently, Brazilians have started to use other given names of Native Brazilian origin like Rudá (love), Cauã and Cauê (sun), although these are now very rare and their use connotes the hippie culture.
- ^ «O nome completo deve compor-se, no máximo, de seis vocábulos gramaticais, simples ou compostos, dos quais só dois podem corresponder ao nome próprio e quatro a apelidos.» "Composição do nome", Registo Civil, Instituto dos Registos e Notariado, Ministério da Justiça. Retrieved on 29 June 2010 (in Portuguese)
- ^ Composição do nome", section "Apelidos" b). Registo Civil, Instituto dos Registos e Notariado, Ministério da Justiça. Retrieved on 29 June 2010 (in Portuguese)
- ^ "Composição do nome", section "Apelidos" a). Registo Civil, Instituto dos Registos e Notariado, Ministério da Justiça. Retrieved on 29 June 2010 (in Portuguese)
- ^ On the other side, the Sobrinho (nephew) can also be an actual and very old surname that is transmitted through generations. The Netto surname should not be confused with the Neto (grandson) suffix. The first (Netto) is an old surname of Italian origin very common in Brazil that is sometimes spelled with just one "t".
- ^ «Por "vocábulo gramatical composto" entende-se um vocábulo constituído por dois ou mais vocábulos simples que possui um significado autónomo, muitas vezes dissociado dos significados dos seus componentes.» "Composição do nome", Registo Civil, Instituto dos Registos e Notariado, Ministério da Justiça. Retrieved on 29 June 2010 (in Portuguese)
- ^ "Composição do nome", section "Apelidos" d). Registo Civil, Instituto dos Registos e Notariado, Ministério da Justiça. Retrieved on 29 June 2010 (in Portuguese)"
- ^ "Composição do nome", section "Nome Próprio" a). Registo Civil, Instituto dos Registos e Notariado, Ministério da Justiça. Retrieved on 29 June 2010 (in Portuguese)"
- ^ "Vocábulos admitidos ou não admitidos como nomes próprios", List accepted or rejected names, as of 31 March 2010. Registo Civil, Instituto dos Registos e Notariado, Ministério da Justiça. Retrieved on 29 June 2010 (in Portuguese); it doesn't list all names (e.g., it doesn't list "unequivocally acceptable" names).
- ^ A vingança de José sobre Taílson
- ^ Ferreira, Ana Paula Ramos ; Epigrafia funerária romana da Beira Interior: inovação ou continuidade?;II Parte - Catalogo epigráfico [1]
- ^ Principais nomes, patronímicos, derivados e apelidos usados pelos povos da Lusitânia e nações aliadas
- ^ CLAEYS, André. "Vlamingen op de Azoren in de 15de eeuw"; pp. 2. Brugge 2007.
- ^ a b Manuel Abranches de Soveral, in «Subsídios para o estudo genealógico dos judeus e cristãos-novos e a sua relação com as famílias portuguesas»
- ^ Wolf, Lucien (1902-1905). "The Disraeli Family". Transactions of the Jewish Historical Society of England 5: 202–218.
- ^ Público of July 5, 2009, p. 6
- ^ See a List of Portuguese Given Names in the Portuguese language Wikipedia
,_Lionel_Messi_(R)_%E2%80%93_Portugal_vs._Argentina,_9th_February_2011_(1).jpg)
