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Understanding patterns in surnames and given names can help you find and identify your ancestors in the records.  
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== Surnames  ==
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'''Understanding customs used in surnames and given names can help you identify your ancestors in records. Learn to recognize name variations and see clues in names.'''
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==Online Tools==
Sometimes, deciphering a given name in an old handwritten document is not as easy as one might suppose. This could be due to the widespread use of abbreviations or to the difficulty in reading the handwriting. Use this lists of names to assist you in interpreting the names mentioned in the documents.<ref>'''Portuguese Documents''', BYU Script Tutorial, https://script.byu.edu/Pages/the-portuguese-documents-pages/portuguese-overview, accessed 22 February 2021. </ref>
*[https://script.byu.edu/Pages/the-portuguese-documents-pages/portuguese-list-of-surnames '''List of Surnames''']
*[https://script.byu.edu/Pages/the-portuguese-documents-pages/portuguese-list-of-given-names '''List of Given Names''']
*[https://script.byu.edu/Plugins/FileManager/Files/Portuguese/here.pdf '''Abbreviations''']
<br>
For the origin and meaning of names:<br>
*[https://surnames.behindthename.com/names/usage/portuguese '''Behind the Name: Portuguese Surnames''']
<br>


Before record keeping began, most people had only one name, such as João (John). As the population increased it became necessary to distinguish between individuals with the same name. The problem was usually solved by adding descriptive information.  
==Surnames ==
A Portuguese name is typically composed of '''one or two given names, and a number of family names (rarely one, but often two or three, sometimes more)'''. The first additional names are usually the mother's family surname(s) and the father's family surname(s). 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. For practicality, usually only the last surname (excluding prepositions) is used in formal greetings. <ref name=Port>"Portuguese names', in Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portuguese_name, accessed 21 February 2021.</ref>


Until the 10th century, common people did not use a surname. The Councils of Trent (1545–1563) made it mandatory to keep parish records that listed names of the child, parents, and godparents.  
There has never been a standardized method of establishing surnames. However, there are several prevalent patterns.
*Historically, '''daughters were commonly given their mother's surname, and sons were given their father's surname.'''
*It was also common for children to receive '''both of their parents' surnames'''. When this combination occurred, the mother's surname would typically precede the father's surname.
*Women tended to '''retain their maiden surname''' throughout their life.
**In the late 19th century, the it became common for women to adopt adopting their husband's surname, but this practice faded by the end of the century.
*From the mid 20th century onward, individuals tended to include their last (father's) surname in formal settings.<ref>Collaborators of Wikipedia, "Portuguese name," in ''Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia'', https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portuguese_name. Visited 23 June 2017.</ref>
*Prepositions that can be used in Portuguese surnames are '''da, das, do, dos and de''', such as in Maria da Cunha, José das Neves, Joana do Rosário, Luís dos Santos, Gabriela de Sousa, 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.<ref name=Port/>
===Surname "Changes" of Immigrants in the United States===
'''As Immigrants moved into English-speaking countries, their surnames were impacted in a variety of ways.'''
<br>


The four influences that played a part in the development of Portuguese surnames were patronymical terms, occupational terms, descriptive or nickname terms, and geographical terms (estates, manors, dominions). Examples of these influences are:


'''Patronymic''', based on a parent’s name, such as João o filho de Mateus (John son of Mateus) and João Domingues (John son of Domingos).  
*Most of the time the surname spelling changed to accomodate the '''different phonetic spelling in the English language'''. In other words, the recorder tried to write the name the way he heard it.
*Surnames may also have been translated outright into English, sometimes with a slight twist.
*Within the community, such as the local parish, immigrants may continue to use the original name, while at the same time '''using English-language equivalents when dealing with local government, census takers, and other English speakers.'''
*Different branches of the same family may adopt various surname spellings.
*Prior to 1900, formal surname changes documented in local court records are relatively rare.
*During the early 20th Century, especially the World War I era, surname changes are recorded more frequently, as immigrants or, more often, their children, tried to adopt more neutral surnames.


'''Occupational''', based on the person’s trade, such as João o Ferreiro (John the blacksmith)
==Given Names ==


'''Descriptive or nickname''', based on a unique quality of the person, such as João o Baixo (John the short).  
===The name 'Maria'===
The given name Maria is extremely common as a feminine given name and '''even combined with masculine names'''. In Portugal, it has always been common. 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 of Mary), Maria da Natividade (Nativity of Mary).
*A place of a Marian apparition: Maria de Fátima (Fátima), Maria de Lurdes (Lourdes), Maria de la Salete (La Salette), Maria Aparecida (common in Brazil, after Aparecida), Maria Nazaré (Nazareth).
*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).
<br>


'''Geographical''', based on a person’s residence, such as João de Aveiro (John of Aveiro).  
Other types of combinations:
*Maria '''paired with a different feminine given name''': Maria Madalena, Maria Teresa, Maria Antónia (or Antônia, in Brazil), Maria Gabriela, Maria Beatriz, Maria Eduarda, Maria Luíza, Maria Fernanda, Maria Alice, Maria Carolina, Maria Dulce
*Maria '''paired with a masculine given name''': Maria João, Maria José, Maria Manuel, Maria Luís, José Maria (which is often abbreviated as JM). It is not unusual to find masculine names such as João Maria, José Maria, Manuel Maria, Luís Maria etc. In this case, Maria would always be the second given name, in honour of the Virgin Mary, and '''the first name would be a masculine name'''. This custom was fashionable among the Portuguese nobility and the upper classes.
*Many names that are etymologically related to Maria are also used. The most common is the name Mariana, a contraction of Maria and Ana.<ref name=Port/>


At first, surnames applied only to one person and not to the whole family. After a few generations, these names became hereditary and were used from father to son.
==For Further Reading==
**{{FHL|349002|subject_id|disp= Portugal - Names, Personal}}
**{{FHL|1334117|subject_id|disp= Portugal - Names, Personal - Dictionaries}}
== References ==
{{reflist}}


Surnames were first used by the nobility and wealthy land owners. Later the custom was followed by merchants and townspeople and eventually by the rural population. This process took two or three centuries. In Portugal the name system was well established by the 1100s. The naming customs of Brazil were the same as those in Portugal.
It is not possible to determine the exact year or even the century when a particular family name was taken. By the end of the 13th century many families determined to retain the patronymic without continuing to change the name from generation to generation. Thus, the hereditary sobrenomes (surnames) were in use by the time of the discovery of the New World.


In Brazil many surnames of Portuguese origin were given to the native Indians and Negro children when the priests baptized them. Others were simply baptized João, José, Maria, and so forth, and later descendants obtained a surname.  
In Brazil many surnames of Portuguese origin were given to the native Indians and Negro children when the priests baptized them. Others were simply baptized João, José, Maria, and so forth, and later descendants obtained a surname.  
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