Re: OT: Anthroponymics

Carsten Becker skrev:

> Since nobody has mentioned that yet: I've read that in
> Iceland, it's still habit that children have a first name
> and have as a second name their father's or mother's name
> plus -son/-dóttir. People do not have an actual family name
> thus. The members of my family would be called
>
>  Ingolf Friedrichsson [Ilsesson]
>  Brita Johannsdóttir [Gertrudsdóttir]
>  Carsten Ingolfsson [Britasson]
>  Philipp Christoph Ingolfsson [Britasson]
>  Simone Ingolfsdóttir [Britasdóttir]
>
Actually patronymics are the rule and metronymics
a very rare exception.  They only occur with people
who want to make a point, such as feminists.

One interesting detail is that the few people who
do have a surname (mostly immigrants) are listed
in the phonebook under their surname, while most
people are listed under their first name.

--

/BP 8^)>
--
Benct Philip Jonsson -- melroch at melroch dot se

         Solitudinem faciunt pacem appellant!
                                             (Tacitus)

Reply