What's in a Name?

20 What's in a Name? Have you ever thought about how people get their names? Let's learn a little history about family names in North America. People in North America have two names. Their first name is given to them by their parents. Their last name is the same name that their parents have. It is the family name. Long ago, however, people had only one name. A man could be called simply John or Peter. A woman could be called Mary or Elizabeth. After some time, there were too many people with the same name. Everyone was confused, so second names were needed. Children began taking their father's name as a last name. In this way, children of John were called, for example, Peter and Mary Johnson. Names such as Jackson, Anderson and Davidson came into use. Mac means “ son of" , so the name MacGregor means son of Gregory, and MacDonald means son of Donald. Fitz is another way of saying " son of" . So Fitzpatrick and Fitzgerald mean son or child of Patrick or Gerald.

Some people got their names from the places where they lived. For example, a family living in a village with many green trees and plants might take the name Green. If they lived in a town called Moor, they might be called the Moores. Sometimes, people got their names from the way they looked. A tall person was perhaps called Long. If people in a family had dark hair, the family was sometimes called the Blacks or the Browns. If their hair was light, they may have been called the Whites. People also took their names from the kind of work they did. A person who sewed clothing was named Taylor. A person who baked bread was called Baker. A person who had a very good voice was named Singer. It is interesting to know the history of names. Do you know how you got your family name?