Hungary Naming Customs

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Naming Customs

Surname (or a family name) is used first, followed by the given name:

NAGY János	John Nagy
KOVÁCS Mária	Mary Smith

• there is usually just one given name
• surnames are generally a single names
• patronymics were usually not used
• his rule is also followed in Hungarian parish registers

Surnames were usually derived from common sources such as trades, qualities, ethnic origins, place names etc.:

SZABÓ Ferenc	Frank Taylor
MOLNÁR Lajos	Louis Miller
KIS Mihály	Michael Little
FEHÉR Erzsébet	Elizabeth White
TÖRÖK Katalin	Catherine Turk

Titles of nobility are put before the surnames:

gróf NAGY János

Count John Nagy

Names of Hungarian married women take on special forms:

NAGY Jánosné

Mrs. John Nagy

• the equivalent of Mrs. is the particle né (wife) which is added to a husband's name
• the -né means wife of
• Klausenberger Ignáczné Bival Rosália means that Rosália Bival married a man named Ignácz Klausenberger

Excellent articles regarding Hungarian personal names can be found at:

• Hungarian Names 101
• Hungarian Personal Names of the 16th Century
• Hungarian Feminine Names