Taking wedding pictures at the Ruinas Monestario San Francisco

Two Last Names or Apellios

Two Last Names / Apellidos.

The Hispanic culture uses two last names or apellidos. I was not very sure about how it worked or the order of last names. I decided to write it out for myself and others that are confused with this matter. So lets see if we can get this straight.

Lets use the name Felix Billini Duarte (I just made that up).

Felix is the first name and sometimes there is a middle name also but this made up person does not have one.

Billini would be the first last name of the father (apellido paterno) and Duarte would be the first last name of the mother (apellido materno).

The fathers names: the first last name would be the fathers name and the second last name would be the mothers first last name which would also be called the mothers maiden name.

Thus Felix mother was Anna Duarte Sanchez and the father was Antony Billini Cabral.

Now Anna gets married..

Anna Duarte Sanchez married Antony Billini Cabral.

In the old days if Anna wanted to she could add her husbands last name to hers using “de” thus her married name would be Anna Duarte de Billini. But this is not tradition in modern times. Some also put a little hyphen between their last names as Felix Billini-Duarte if they so desire. 

So this is why Felix has the name Billini Duarte. Dads first last name/ apellido paterno first. Moms first last name/ apellido materno last.

Children watching from the stoop of their house
Children watching from the stoop of their house

One more time and faster. Here goes…

Antony Billini Cabral and Anna Duarte Sanchez get married. Now their names are…

Antony Billini Cabral and Anna Duarte de Billini (or she just keeps her own name). They have a bouncing baby boy..

Felix is born…his name is now Felix Billini Duarte.

And the line continues. Do you understand now? Use the 2 first last names for the child. The kid drops the 2 last last names.

Married. The women doesn’t change the last name.

Looking up a name in the phone book

In the white pages a persons Father’s last name is listed first and the Mother’s surname is listed next. As usual, the persons first name is listed last.

ABC order? The same as looking up a name in the phone book. The first last name first, second last name second and their given name is last.Billini Duarte, Felix.

There. Easy is it not?

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