History UsefulNotes / Patronymic

[[folder:Live Action TV]]

Most alien races have OnlyOneName, and among those who don't, it's usually a patronymic. Especially [[ProudWarriorRaceGuy proud warrior races]]. Less often, but still more common than a proper surname, a character will use a locative name (Such as Xev of [=B3K=] from ''Series/{{Lexx}}''). Various Jaffa in ''Series/StargateSG1'' have used either (and the cultural bias is demonstrated by Master Bra'tac, who always referred to General Hammond as "Hammond of Texas"). The [[ProudWarriorRaceGuy proudest of the warrior races]] have ''both''.

** While patronymics have died out in Georgia, patronymic-derived surnames are the most common in the country. They usually end with "-shvili" (meaning "child of") or "-dze" (meaning "son of"). UsefulNotes/JosefStalin's birth name has both: Ioseb Besarionis dze Jugashvili. In this case, "Jugashvili" is his surname, while "dze" denotes that he was the son of a man named Besarion. As you can see, patronymics existed during his time.

** Those patronymic-style surnames of Germanic origin (English, German, Dutch, Scandinavia) have endings with "-son/-sen/-sohn". Iceland, which also belongs in this language group, still has proper patronymics. In German patronymic-style surnames also include those that begin with a masculine given name and end in an "-s" (originally a genitive), "-i" or "-y" (originally a Latin genitive, from the fashion for Latinized names during the late middle ages and renaissance) or that are identical to a first name. Thus in German you can encounter "Jacobsen", "Jacobsohn", "Jacobs", "Jacobi", "Jacoby" and "Jacob" as surnames.

* Using one of the Chinese characters from father's name in the names of the children is still quite popular in Korea, even in the North, where Hanjja is not used anymore. Koreans living in the other countries (like Koryo-saram in Russia and other ex-Soviet states) often modify this system by giving their children names that start from the same letter.

** This explains why so many Welsh family names begin with "P": when Anglicised, the ''ap'' prefix attached to the rest of the name and lost the initial "a", so that modern surnames are an echo of the original Welsh. Thus ''ap Rhys'' becomes '''Price''' or '''Preece'''; and so on, generating '''Pritchard''' or even '''[[Literature/{{Discworld}} Pratchett]]''', '''Povey, Powell, Prenderghast, Probert''', et c.

** This is utilized for its incredibly complex naming conventions for [[CatFolk Miqo'te]]. A Seeker of the Sun Miqo'te name is made up of three parts; The first letter of the tribe's totem animal separate by an apostrophe, a name given at birth, and the last name for females is the first name of the breeding male that sired her (the males have no last name, instead using Tia or Nuhn to identify as a bachelor or breeding male, respectively). [[note]] To give an example, S'Khriss Duol would roughly mean "Khriss of the Serpent, daughter of S'Duol" [[/note]] Keeper of the Moon Miqo'te invert Seeker conventions exactly by using Matronymics; the females take on entirely new first names, but keep their mother's surname, the males take on their mother's name exactly, but with an added syllable to denote which numbered child they are. [[note]] A male keeper named Eirika'a would mean he's the firstborn son of Eirika, if she were to have another male, that son would be Eirika'li to denote being a second son.[[/note]]

** The ending "-vich" or "-ov" (and varieties thereof), generally speaking, denotes the form of a patronymic in Slavic languages. [[note]]-"-ev" is used when the previous sound is a vowel or a palatalized consonant, it is derived from "-yov" which accounted for the palatalization-[[/note]] Some (e.g. Serbian and Croatian) seem to feature names ending in "-vich" (alternatively spelled "-vic") more commonly, while others (e.g. Russian) seem to feature names ending in "-ov" more commonly.

One of the cultures that used matronymics in the old days without it being an obvious sign of illegitimacy was the English. It was traditional for posthumous children in medieval times to take their mother's name as a surname, and kids faced with a sucky patronym and a cool matronym were free to choose the latter. Custer, Beaton, Izzard, Madison, and Parnell are only a few of the many matronyms used in English as surnames.

However, many cultures use them as part of a broader name. East Slavic names include both a patronymic and a family name, and the formal form of address (analogous to "Mr. Lastname" in English or "Lastname-sama" in Japanese) is the first name and patronymic. For example, a letter to Putin might begin with "Dear Vladimir Vladimirovich!" Formal Spanish names include a given name, the father's first surname, the mother's first surname, and may also include toponyms, married names, and so on ([[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_naming_customs the Other Wiki has some gory details ]]). Arabic frequently uses either patronymics or the opposite ("father-of") in addition to surnames, but these often replace surnames in common speech. So Mahmoud Abbas will be more commonly known as Abu Mazen, "the father of Mazen".

A variation on the patronymic in some male dominated societies is for women to be identified either as the daughter of (father's name) prior to marriage, and the wife of (husband's name) after marriage.

%% Note that in a culture where patronymics are commonly used--like Russia or Iceland--this is Administrivia/PeopleSitOnChairs. You don't need to list a Russian novel set in Russia where the Russians use patronymics, unless it actually figures in the plot. Instead, list the culture in "Real Life".

* In ''Manga/MermaidMelodyPichiPichiPitch'', Sara's daughter Seira takes kanji from her mother's name. The reason is unknown (if there is one or if it was just Sara's personal decision), but {{fanon}} has established it as one of [[OurMermaidsAreDifferent the mermaids' many customs]].
* Uryuu Ishida's family in ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'' have names with one kanji from their fathers' names. (Soken->Ryuuken->Uryuu) Taking a kanji from your father's name was very common in Japan until recently.
* [[{{Tsundere}} Anna]] [[PlayingWithFire Yurievna Cocolova]] from ''Manga/NegimaMagisterNegiMagi'' (She's usually called by her diminutive: Anya)

* Chihaya Ayase from ''Manga/{{Chihayafuru}}'' and her sister Chitose take a kanji from her mother's name, Chieko.
* Balalaika from ''Manga/BlackLagoon'' is a weird example, as she has a surname (Irininskaya) as her patronymic and a patronymic (Pavelovena) as her surname.

* In Creator/DCComics, Thanagarians have males take their first name from their father's second name (Katar Hol's father was Paran Katar), while females take their second name from their father's first name (Shayera Thal's father was Thal Porvis). There have been variations, usually by writers who don't know the rules.
* Likewise, Kryptonian males are given a name which is attached to their surname, as in Kal-El (Kal of the House of El). Kryptonian females have a given name attached to a patronymic in the form of their father's name, as in Kara Zor-El (Kara, daughter of Zor, of the House of El). There are variants, as with Cir-El (who was not technically Kryptonian anyway) but those can generally be ascribed to Clark valuing human norms over Kryptonian ones.
* ComicBook/{{Thorgal}}: justified by the viking background. Thorgal Aegirsson (Messenger of Thor, son of Aegir), Aaricia Gandalfdottir, Jolan Thorgalson, Louve Thorgaldottir, Aniel Thorgalson...
* Some Gauls in ''ComicBook/{{Asterix}}'', although mostly for humour value. Semiautomatix -> Fulliautomatix, Astronomix -> Asterix, Obeliscoidix -> Obelix. There's also the historical example of Caesar -> Caesarion.

* The Drac in the movie ''Film/EnemyMine'' are parthenogenetic (meaning each child only has one parent.) Each Drac has a first and last name, plus a long list of ancestors names which they must remember and recite at a coming of age ceremony. (Davidge, a human character who adopted a Drac as his son, gets his own name added to the boy's lineage.)
* In ''Film/IronMan2'', the real name of the Whiplash/Crimson Dynamo CompositeCharacter is Ivan ''Antonovich'' Vanko (his father's name was Anton Vanko).
* Weird subversion: Thanks to a miscommunication, the Arab protagonist of ''Film/TheThirteenthWarrior'' became known as "Eben" -- a mispronunciation of the Arabic word "ibn", which means "son of".
-->'''Herger the Joyous:''' (to Ahmed) "Quis est vestri nomen?"
-->'''Melchisidek:''' (translating) "He wants to know your name."
-->'''Ahmed ibn Fahdlan:''' "My name is Ahmed ibn Fahdlan ibn al-Abbas ibn Rashid ibn Hamad."
-->'''Herger the Joyous:''' "Eben?"
-->'''Ahmed ibn Fahdlan:''' "No, listen, My name is Ahmed Ibn Fahdlan. "Ibn" means "son of"."
-->'''Herger the Joyous:''' (to the other Vikings) "Eben."
* In ''{{Film/Thor}}'' and ''Film/TheAvengers2012'', Thor addresses Agent Coulson as "Son of Coul" assuming that his surname is used the same in his culture. Thor calls himself either Odinson or Son of Odin.

* In Creator/JRRTolkien's Legendarium/Middle-earth world (''Literature/TheLordOfTheRings'', etc) most peoples make use of patronymics. The only ones to use modern-style family names are the Shire-Hobbits, and the Men and Hobbits of Bree-land (both lands which are culturally closest to modern day). Thus, for example, the dwarf Thorin Oakenshield (the latter name is an epithet, an earned one) is Thorin, son of Thráin, son of Thrór, while hobbit Frodo Baggins introduced himself as "Frodo, son of Drogo" when abroad.
** Parodied in ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'', where Dwarves often get uncreative. An example can be Snorriscousin or Glodsnephew. Also their patronymic surnames can stack, leading to Glodsonsonsonsonsonsonsons...
* Literature/TheCulture in [[Creator/IainBanks Iain M. Banks]]'s sci-fi novels have a complicated naming system, which is more a potted biography - it includes at least one name given by the parents, one family name, one name based on the place they were born, one name based on their place of residence, and one name chosen by the people themselves when they reach maturity. As an example, the Author would be [="Sol-Terrasa Iain El-Bonko Banks da'NorthQueensferry"=]. He's [[http://nuwen.net/culture.html occasionally actually used the Anglicised version.]]
* In Tamora Pierce's ''Literature/TheImmortals'', the people of the country of Galla use patronymics, a fact that is important in the history of Veralidaine Sarrasri (aka Daine) because, as a HeroicBastard, she must use her ''mother's'' name as a matronymic, which draws scrutiny to her and her status as a bastard.
* In ''Literature/TheSeventhTower''), the Chosen hyphenate their parents' names; e.g. Tal Graile-Rerem indicates Tal, son of Graile (mother) and Rerem (father), while the Icecarls have been known to introduce themselves with several generations of their ancestry (e.g., "I am Milla, daughter of Ylse, daughter of Emor, daughter of Rohen, daughter of Cylo, in the line of Danir since the Ruin of the Ship"). Not only that, Icecarls also can earn Oakenshield-style epithets.
* Members of the House of the Dragon in the ''Literature/{{Dragaera}}'' series use a patronymic of an extremely illustrious ancestor, which is unique to that House; members of other houses just use their given name and title.
* In Creator/LloydAlexander's ''Literature/ChroniclesOfPrydain'', the pattern is slightly different. Male characters go by the patronymic, but females use a matronymic. Thus, the Prince of Mona was Rhun son of Rhuddlum, but his mother was Teleria daughter of Tannwen. Eilonwy tended to be referenced by the very lengthy name ''The Princess Eilonwy daughter of Angharad daughter of Regat of the House of Llyr.''
** And that would have gone even longer had Eilonwy been able to remember the names of any of Regat's female ancestors.
* The protagonist of Creator/RobinHobb's ''[[Literature/RealmOfTheElderlings The Farseer Trilogy]]'' is named [=FitzChivalry=] Farseer, and thus his ''given'' name is actually a patronymic.
* The science fiction novel ''[[Literature/WarchildSeries Cagebird]]'' has a protagonist from an apparently rather traditional Russian family. He uses a patronymic as his middle name until he's recruited by SpacePirates, although it's only mentioned once or twice.
* ''Literature/WildCards''' Dr. Tachyon has a Takisian name that lists his ''entire geneology for a thousand generations''.
* Robert Jordan's ''Literature/TheWheelOfTime'' series has the Ogier, whose males introduce themselves with a double patronymic (Loial son of Arent son of Halan), and whose females introduce themselves with a double matronymic (Erith daughter of Ila daughter of Alar).
* Modified in Creator/DavidBrin's ''Literature/{{Uplift}}'' series. Each sentient species is "uplifted" from pre-sentience by a patron species. When a person is formally introduced, he identifies his ''species'' with all its patronymics--the names of all the patron species that are not yet extinct. (As in, "Bubbacub, a-Pil, ab-Kisa-ab-Soro-ab-Hul-ab-Puber-ul-Gello-ul-Pring".[[note]] "Bubbacub, of the species Pil, who were uplifted by the Kisa, who were uplifted by the Soro, who were uplifted by the Hul, who were uplifted by the Puber (the Puber's patrons now being extinct); the Pila having themselves uplifted the Gello and the Pring"[[/note]] Even with the abbreviated prefixes, [[OverlyLongName introductions can take a while]].)
** Humans have no known patron race so human characters are introduced as "a-Human, ul-Dolphin-ul-Chimp" and a neo-dolphin or chimpanzee would be "ab-Human". Because of that most of Galactic society treats us as orphan bastards.
* The Shin culture in ''Literature/TheStormlightArchive'' use patronymics so you get names like Shauka-daughter-Haswerth and Thresh-son-Esan, Szeth-son-son-Vallano is an exile and outcast and uses his grandfather's name because he doesn't want to dishonour his father.
* In Literature/TheGospels, Jesus's enemies are shown referring to him as "Mary's son", thus calling attention to the uncertainty on his father's identity.
** Many Biblical figures have patronymic names. One that has HilariousInHindsight connotations today is "Joshua, Son of Nun".
** Bartholomew is an apostle of Jesus mentioned in three of the four Gospels. His name is an Anglicized form of Greek Bartholomaios, which would be Bar Tolmai, "son of Tolmai", in Aramaic. It's usually accepted that Bartholomew is the same as "Nathanael" from the Gospel of John, which doesn't mention the name "Bartholomew".
** The apostle Simon Peter is called "Simon son of Jonah" in the Gospel of Matthew and "Simon son of John" in the Gospel of John.
** A blind man Jesus heals is called Bartimaeus in Latin or Bartimaios in Greek, meaning "son of Timai" in Aramaic.
** Barabbas, the man spared from death instead of Jesus, has a name meaning "son of the father". Some manuscripts even give Barabbas's full name as "Jesus Barabbas" - not unlikely, as Jesus (or rather the name later rendered as Jesus, ''Yeshua'') was a common Jewish name.
* A popular naming convention in Creator/SMStirling's Literature/{{Emberverse}}, with characters known as "Jake sunna Jake" (say it aloud and it makes perfect sense), Dik Tomskid, Bjarni Erickson, and Asgerd Karlsdottir.
* On Creator/MarionZimmerBradley's Literature/{{Darkover}}, a woman who joins the Renunciates (aka the "Free Amazons") takes an oath in which, among other things, she agrees ''not'' to use the name of her father or her husband. She is thereafter known by her matronymic, e.g., "Margali ''n'ha'' [daughter of] Ysabet."

* Ubiquitous in the Literature/IcelandicSagas, representing the era's naming customs.
* [[Literature/TheDeedOfPaksenarrion Paksenarrion Dorthansdotter]], daughter of Dorthan Kanasson.
* The world of Creator/DianeDuane's ''Literature/TheTaleOfTheFive'' uses patronymics and matronymics depending on the gender of the child; a son is s'[Father's name], and a daughter is d'[Mother's name].
* Characters in ''[[Literature/TalesOfTheBranionRealm The Granite Shield]]'' use Welsh patronymics and matronymics, depending on gender but subverted on occasion due to GenderIsNoObject. The protagonists' mother is Llewellynne ap Rowena; one of her sons is named Llewen ap Tuedwur after his legitimate father but the other is a royal bastard named Rhys ap Llewellynne ap Owain after his mother and maternal grandfather.
* ''Literature/VorkosiganSaga'': Barrayar has this for the Vor lords. First sons of Counts are given their paternal grandfather's first name as their first name, while their maternal grandfather's first name becomes their second name (For example: Count Piotr Pierre Vorkosigan). [[TheHero Miles]] would have originally been Piotr Miles Vorkosigan, but after he was born deformed and his paternal grandfather disowned him, his mother gave him her father's full name: Miles Naismith Vorkosigan. Second sons are given the second names of their grandfather (like Mark Pierre Vorkosigan).
* In ''Literature/HisDarkMaterials'' Will encounters a Priest from Siberia in Lyra's world. He calls Will, Will Ivanovich to mean Will, son of John. Will doesn't keep the name, though.
* Seems to be the case in Creator/EdmondHamilton's ''Literature/TheStarKings'', where the Emperor is named Arn Abbas, while his sons are Jhal Arn and Zarth Arn.
* Used by a smattering of characters in ''Literature/DragonsWinter'', including Azil Aumson who uses the matronymic derived from the name of his mother, Aum Niallsdatter (presumably a patronymic, although we never meet Niall).

* The Nietzscheans of ''Series/{{Andromeda}}'': They had a surname, a clan name and both a patronymic and a matronymic. One character's full name was "Tyr Anasazi of Kodiak Pride out of Victoria by Barbarossa".
** Not so much a patronymic as a short genealogy. Tyr is also at one point asked which Barbarossa was his father. Justified because Nietzscheans breed towards very specific traits, and knowing enough of your ancestry to avoid inbreeding is not a bad thing.
* In ''Franchise/StarTrek'', Klingons, if they're forced to give more than one name, give a patronymic (Worf, son of Mogh). They will also on occasion refer to their [[TheClan House]]. (For complicated political reasons, Worf is affiliated with General Martok's House, due to his own House being disbanded in disgrace for the good of the Empire). Vulcans use these as well in religious ceremonies, and give ''two'' names (the second is presumed to be the name of the paternal grandfather). It's worth noting that Vulcans ''do'' have family names, but they're [[TheUnpronounceable unpronounceable by humans]].
** Interestingly, Worf's son Alexander, when joining the Imperial Defense Force, uses his human name Alexander Rozhenko, with "Rozhenko" being the surname of Worf's foster parents. General Martok notes this is an unusual name and asks him what house he represents, but is satisfied with Alexander's claim he is of no house and is there seeking honor for himself in the war. Nobody else makes an issue of it, except for one immediately antagonistic crew member who initially insists on addressing him as "Son of Worf" ''because'' he sees that it bothers Alexander and wants to provoke him into a fight (the Klingon version of offering to take the new recruit under your wing).
* On the original ''Series/{{Battlestar Galactica|1978}}'', characters would occasionally use these as well.
* On ''Series/TheLastKingdom'', which takes place in 9th century England, Uhtred is known as either Uhtred Uhtredsson (representing his Saxon heritage) or Uhtred Ragnarsson (Ragnar being the Danish warlord who took him in), depending on how Saxon or Danish he's feeling, or who he's talking to.
* Discussed on ''Series/MockTheWeek''; in one episode, Hugh Dennis mentions that in Iceland, people have patronyms instead of surnames, and since his father's name was John, if he was Icelandic, his name would be "Hugh Johnson".

[[folder:Mythology]]
* In Myth/NorseMythology, Thor is sometimes called "Óðinsson", which is just the way the Norse ran things in those days. The famous Viking explorer Leifr Eiríksson was, in fact, the son of Eiríkr the Red.

* According to the 3rd Edition ''TabletopGame/ForgottenRealms Campaign Setting'', humans from Unther tend to use patronymics, whereas most other cultures prefer surnames.

* Everyone in Theatre/NatashaPierreAndTheGreatCometOf1812 has at least one, as fitting for a musical where "everyone's got 9 different names."

* Anyone who addresses Dante of ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry'' as "Son of Sparda" usually has malicious, or at least not-so-nice, intent.
* In ''VideoGame/WarCraft'', Thrall, leader of the Horde as of the third game (and ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft''), is known as the "Son of Durotan", who was known to all as the late chief of the Frostwolf clan.
** Strangely, very few orcs introduce themselves this way. Mostly, they just go with a single name. If they have a nickname (usually passed down from father to son like "Doomhammer", "Hellscream", or "Blackhand"), it will be added.

* The robotic characters in ''VideoGame/Primordia2012'' take on "fabrinymics" in honor of whoever created them. For example, Horatio's friend/helper/sidekick Crispin was built by Horatio, and thus is formally named "Crispin Horatiobuilt". Early robots that were created by humans before the mankind went extinct have the common fabrinymic "Manbuilt". Horatio refers to himself as "Horatio Nullbuilt", because he doesn't remember his origins due to unreadable files in his memory. [[spoiler:He eventually turns out to be a backup of the AI of the ship he and Crispin live in - his real name is "HORUS Manbuilt".]]
** Fabrinymics can also "stack" in a variety of ways, tracing several generations of machines. At one point, Horatio has to resolve a dispute between two brothers, Oswald and Cornelius Factorbuilt, regarding a small robot Rex they created together. The best possible solution [[spoiler:is to notice that none of the brothers could have built that robot alone - but because they share the same fabrinymic, they can call Rex "Factorbuiltbuilt", thus gaining equal "buildership" over him]].
* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'' utilizes this for its incredibly complex naming conventions for [[CatFolk Miqo'te]]. A Seeker of the Sun Miqo'te name is made up of three parts; The first letter of the tribe's totem animal separate by an apostrophe, a name given at birth, and the last name for females is the first name of the breeding male that sired her (the males have no last name, instead using Tia or Nuhn to identify as a bachelor or breeding male, respectively). [[note]] To give an example, S'Khriss Duol would roughly mean "Khriss of the Serpent, daughter of S'Duol" [[/note]] Keeper of the Moon Miqo'te invert Seeker conventions exactly by using Matronymics; the females take on entirely new first names, but keep their mother's surname, the males take on their mother's name exactly, but with an added syllable to denote which numbered child they are. [[note]] A male keeper named Eirika'a would mean he's the firstborn son of Eirika, if she were to have another male, that son would be Eirika'li to denote being a second son.[[/note]]

* In the web original ''My Friend is an Alien'', a series of stories about a group of kids who befriend two aliens, the aliens have a quadruple patronymic (Jahv and Keyro, sons of Amshat, son of Lemoy, son of Dekel, son of Gershon).

* In ''WesternAnimation/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles2003'', the Turtles eventually adopt the surname Splinterson.
* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Ninjago}}'', WordOfGod confirms that Lloyd Garmadon takes on his father's first name as his surname. Garmadon himself, as well as his brother Wu, don't have a surname due to being the sons of the First Spinjitzu Master.

* The robotic characters in ''VideoGame/{{Primordia}}'' take on "fabrinymics" in honor of whoever created them. For example, Horatio's friend/helper/sidekick Crispin was built by Horatio, and thus is formally named "Crispin Horatiobuilt". Early robots that were created by humans before the mankind went extinct have the common fabrinymic "Manbuilt". Horatio refers to himself as "Horatio Nullbuilt", because he doesn't remember his origins due to unreadable files in his memory. [[spoiler:He eventually turns out to be a backup of the AI of the ship he and Crispin live in - his real name is "HORUS Manbuilt".]]

** Sea Wolf Roegadyns, despite their names looking long and complex, use a far more traditional and simple version of patronymics. For example, Admiral Merlwyb Bloefhiswyn is the daughter of Bloefhis. Any brothers Merlwyb would have would use Bloefhissyn.

* ''Literature/{{Animorphs}}'' has two examples. Andalite parents pass down their middle names to their children. Ax's middle name, Esgarrouth, was from his father's middle name, and Elfangor's middle name, Sirinal, was from his mother's middle name. Usually the problem of too many children didn't come into play as they had a one child per family policy until some were allowed a second child. Yeerks, meanwhile, are designated by their parent grub. So, Edriss 562, Visser One, would be the 562nd grub of the Edriss tri-parent.

** "Traditional" Hebrew names are both patronymic and matronymic. They are still used for calling people to read from the Torah. For example, "Reuven ben Yaakov v'Leah" is Reuben, son of Jacob and Leah. And the traditional styling for a convert is usually "<name> ben/bat Avraham Aveinu v'Sarah Imeinu", or <name>, son/daughter of Abraham our father and Sarah our mother. Converts will use "Ben-Avraham", meaning "son of Abraham" (or "Bat-Avraham" meaning "daughter of Abraham), to connect them to their new people.

* In Creator/DCComics, Thanagarians have males take their first name from their father's second name (Katar Hol's father was Paran Katar), while females take their second name from their father's first name (Shayera Thal's father was Thal Porvis). There have been variations, usually by writer's who don't know the rules.

However, many cultures use them as part of a broader name. East Slavic names include both a patronymic and a family name, and the formal form of address (analogous to "Mr. Lastname" in English or "Lastname-sama" in Japanese) is the first name and patronymic. For example, a letter to Putin might begin with "Dear Vladimir Vladimirovich!" Formal Spanish names include a given name, the father's first surname, the mother's first surname, and may also include toponyms, married names, and so on ([[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_naming_customs the Other Wiki has some gory details ]]). Arabic frequently uses either patronymics or the opposite ("father-of") in addition to surnames, but these often replace surnames in common speech. So Mahmoud Abbas will be more commonly known as abu-Mazen, "the father of Mazen".

** There exists an interesting inversion of this trope in Arab culture. A [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kunya_%28arabic%29 Kunya]] is a nickname given to a person referring to their first-born child or son in the form of Abu (=father of) [child's name] for fathers and Umm (=mother of) [child's name] for mothers. The rule is that if the eldest child is a daughter, the Kunya will refer to her until a younger brother is born, at which point the parents customarily adopt a new Kunya from the son's name; thus if a man first had a daughter named Fatima in 1990 a son named Ahmed in 1995, he would be "Abu Fatima" 1990-1995 and then "Abu Ahmed" 1995 onwards. If the child dies, however, the Kunya remains the same; for example, Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas is still known as ''Abu Mazen'' (father of Mazen), even though Mazen died in 2002.

* In Film/IronMan2, the real name of the Whiplash/Crimson Dynamo CompositeCharacter is Ivan ''Antonovich'' Vanko (his father's name was Anton Vanko).