What´s
behind your name and surname?
Decades
ago there were hardly any foreign students in our schools. Nowadays
about a quarter of the school population was born in a foreign
country. We´ve witnessed some crucial demographic changes and have
welcomed many students from nearly all countries. This unit is a
tribute to those children and teenagers who had to leave their home
countries and found something a bit better under the andalusian sun.
You
probably know that the most common Spanish surnames are:
GARCÍA
GONZÁLEZ
RODRÍGUEZ
FERNÁNDEZ
LÓPEZ
MARTÍNEZ
SANCHEZ
PÉREZ
GÓMEZ
MARTIN.
The
most common Christian names for men are:
ANTONIO
JOSÉ
MANUEL
FRANCISCO
JUAN
DAVID
And
for Spanish women:
María
Carmen
Josefa
Isabel
Ana María
Mª Pilar
Mª Teresa
Ana
Mª Dolores/ Loli
In
both English and Spanish there are names
which can be used either for a boy or a girl:
BORJA
REYES
FRAN
CHRIS
PAU
SAM
JORDAN
ALEX
DANNI
LES
PAT
BOBBY
MADISON
MORGAN
JAMIE
-
FIND
OUT THE COUNTRY THESE SURNAMES ORIGINATED FROM:
ARIDI
DADDUK
KHAMAL
BATTIKI
PFLIPSEN
MOZZI
TANAKA
O´HANLON
MAC LAREN
DUVIGNAC
IQBAL
VAN DER HEIDE.
-
Christian
names which ARE also SURNAMES:
PALOMA
ESTEBAN
MARCELO
MODESTO
OLIVA
LORENZO
JAIME
FELIX
BAUTISTA
BENITO
AMADOR
DOMINGO
PAZ
VENTURA
LEÓN
ORIOL
Etc…Find two more.
-
Some
English surnames have A DIRECT EQUIVALENT IN SPANISH.
ABBOT……….
BARBER……….
CURTIS……….
WOLF………..
HILL……………
JEROME……..
KING……….
QUEEN……….
PAGE………..
PORTER………
COOK.............(We´ll miss you John)
-
Upper-class
families have long used English double-barreled or even triple
barreled surnames. Try to find some Spanish ones:
VANE-TEMPEST-STEWART
LANE-FOX-PITT-RIVERS
ELLIOT-MURRAY-KYNYNMUND
ANDERSON-CARTER-JAMES
EX: ALVAREZ DE CIENFUEGOS……
-
There
are seven types of surnames:
OCCUPATIONAL: Smith, Carpenter, Silversmith,
Porter,..
DESCRIBING A PERSONAL CHARACTERISTIC: FAIR, BROWN,
SHORT,..
FROM AN ENGLISH or SPANISH PLACE NAME
:KIPLING,MASLOW
FROM THE NAME OF AN ESTATE:NORTON, MURCIA,..
FROM A GEOGRAPHICAL FEATURE: BRIDGE, LAKE,forest;
HILL…
PATRONYMIC or ANCESTRAL:JOHNSON,HOWELLS,ANDERSEN,..
SIGNIFYING PATRONAGE: HICKMAN, KILPATRICK,..
-
Find
five English or American surnames which are in common everyday use
in Spanish.
Ex: Osborne,…….
-
What´s
behind these names, which became nouns or adjectives?:
WEAPONS:
MAUSER
COLT
KALASHNIKOV
GATLING
DERRINGER
LUGER
REMINGTON
WINCHESTER
SHRAPNEL
STEN GUN
TOMMY GUN
UZI GUN
OBJECTS:
BIRO
BLOOMERS
CONDOM
GUILLOTINE
LEOTARD
TARMAC
PRALINE
TEDDY BEAR
WELLIES
TUPPERWARE
WRITERS &
FICTIONAL CHARACTERS:
ORWELLIAN
KAFKAESQUE
CLERIHEW
QUIXOTIC
ROMEO
SPOONERISM
FAGIN
MICAWBER
ROBINSON CRUSOE
ROBIN HOOD
SCIENCE EPONYMS:
AMPERE
CURIE
DIESEL
FAHRENHEIT
FERMIUM
GALVANISE
GAUSS
GEIGER
JOULE
NEWTON
BECQUEREL
OHM
CELSIUS
COULOMB
ANGSTROM
AVOGADRO
WATT
VOLT
MAXWELL
CHEMICAL ELEMENTS NAMED AFTER SCIENTISTS; (See if you can guess who they are after):
CURIUM
EINSTENIUM
FERMIUM
GADOLINIUM
HAHNIUM
LAWRENCIUM
MENDELEVIUM
RUTHERFORDIUM
PLANTS:
BEGONIA
BOUGANVILLEA
CAMELIA
FREESIA
FRANGIPANI
FUCHSIA
GARDENIA
LOBELIA
MACADAMIA
MAGNOLIA
MARIGOLD
SEQUOIA
WISTERIA
DISEASES &
SYNDROMES:
DOWN´S
ALZHEIMER
PAGET´S
CREUTZFELD-JAKOB
PRADER-WILLI
KAPOSI´S SARCOMA
PARKINSON
HODGKIN
ASPERGER
TURNER
-
Find
out ABOUT the original people who gave their names to the
following:
BOYCOTT
BRAILLE
CYRILLIC
DERRICK
GUY
HOOVER
JACUZZI
LYNCH
MACKINTOSH
SADISM
MASOCHISM
RAMBO
MATA HARI
GUINNESS
i)What follows is just a list of some of our
students´ surnames. Try to classify them according to their original
countries (This task is more difficult as in the USA Spanish surnames
such as Rodríguez or Lopez are becoming part of American culture):
OSLIKOVA
HEIMER
BAUER
KENIRY
SIEGEL
PEARSON
BOUAZZOUNI
CHAKOUBI
MGUAMGUAM
CHEN
LIN
QIANG
NIELSEN
PORTO
JANEIRO
MIZOUARI
COLLICK
YEO
LOCK
BECKER
KRAMPITZ
ROBICHAUD
BADMAEVA
LANGE
ECKERSLEY
WARREN
ALBRECHT
SCHULTE
BAMOHAMED
FUILLERAT
ABONNEAU
BARNWELL
j) Fashions in naming boys and girls have changed.People tend to give their children unisex names,or after famous actors and actresses: Ex: Quincy, Remi,Winter, Ellis, Briar, Indigo,Sage, Sasha, Ray
Find the etymological origin of the following:
AINARA
ADONAIS/ADONIS
GASTÓN
ARIEL
DENNIS
ABRAHAM
TAMARA
GAEL
AYMEN
ZOUHEIR
JADE
ABRIL/AVRIL
YERAY
SARAY
CIRO
THALIA
MELISSA
ABIGAIL
YAIZA
MIRELLA
JAIRO
GIOVANNI
SHANIA
MARVIN
SABINE
DAWN
VIOLANTE/YOLANDA
YVON
HECTOR
CÉSAR
SABRINA
YASMINA
ARACELI
SHEILA
SHELLEY
k) Find the Spanish equivalent of the following expressions:
ACHILLES´ HEEL
ADAM´S APPLE
CAESAR SALAD
CASSANDRA
SWORD of DAMOCLES
DOW-JONES INDEX
GORDIAN KNOT
LOGANBERRY
LORELEI
MESMERIZE
OCKAM´S RAZOR
PANDORA´S BOX
PAVLOVA
SANDWICH
VENN DIAGRAM
l) See which products are advertised behind these trade marks:
ROBERTSON´S
AVON
BOVRIL
HEINZ
HORLICKS
HP
LEA&PERRINS
WORCESTER
SCHOLL
VICKS
WALLS
WRIGLEY´S
YALE
m) Some Christian names characterize the person or even mark their characters deeply NOMEN OMEN as the Romans used to say:
PRUDENCE
LIBERTY
PEACE/ PAZ
DOLORES
ANGUSTIAS
MODEST
HORACE
VICTORIA
MAXIMILIAN
HOPE/ ESPERANZA
CARIDAD
FE/ FAITH
JULIO CÉSAR.
EVARISTO
INOCENCIO
n) Traditionally feminine Christian names end in -a and masculines in -o. However, this is not always the case as we have some feminine names ending in -o:
ROCÍO
AMPARO
MARTIRIO
SOCORRO
SAGRARIO
PRADOS
LORETO
Add two more
Masculine names ending in -a(s)
WAMBA
DIMAS
WALIA
ELIA
EGICA
LUCA(S)
GORKA
IRA
MATÍAS
Add two more
Ñ) Christian names have featured geographical marks or shrines.See where in Spain you can find the following;
GÁDOR
VALVANERA
CABEZA
FUENSANTA
COVADONGA
ALMUDENA
IRATI
VALLE
GUADALUPE
CASTELLAR
AITANA
o) Name your pet in an original way:
p)ROUND THE WORLD NAMES: Which culture or countries would you associate with the names below?;
ABRAHAM VLADIMIR ENZO RAJIV KEIKO
ISAAC IVAN MARCO RABINDRANATH ATSUKO
MOSES FJODOR STEFANO PRAKASH MASANORI
COLIN ABDELMAJIK TERJE HELMUT MONTSERRAT
GEORGE DRISS INA DIETER OLIVER
JOHN SALIH BIRGIT HANS JORDI
DILMA GORKA SOFÍA COLETTE SEAMUS
DEVANIZIO ARÁNZAZU ARISTOTELES FRANCOISE KEENAN
EDSON UNAI APOSTOLOS PIERRE KELLY
ZSA ZSA ISWEL LAM
LADISLAV(laszlo) EVAN CHUN
JANOS LLOYD QUONG
q) Create an anagram from your name and surnames. For instance: GEORGE BEST becomes GO GET BEERS
r) A fashionable name in 2016 can quickly become outdated tomorrow.
Reflect on the recent changes in naming boys and girls: From Kevin, Oscar,
Ezekiel,...to Joaquina, Ofelia,Gwendoline, Jennifer, etc..
The most popular and strangest baby names in 2016 are:
SANSA, AUDI, TOKYO, BROOKLYN; APPLE, XZAYVIAN, AITANA;etc..
s) Make up your funny combinations of christian names and surnames.Exs:
Luz Cuesta Mogollón
Dolores Fuertes Barriga
Crystal Ball
April Weeks
Anita Job
Barb Dwyer
Gladys Friday
t) A bit of geography related to Christian saints´ names: Where in the world would you find...:?
SANTIAGO (Chile, Cuba,Spain,..)
SAN FRANCISCO
SANTO DOMINGO
SAN JUAN
SAN JOSE
SAN FERNANDO
SAN QUENTIN
SAN JOAQUÍN
SANTAFE
SAN JUAN DE CAPISTRANO
SAN JACINTO
SAN ANTONIO
SAN DIEGO
u) Find the etymology and original meaning of your own name and surnames: Exs:
VIVIAN: Full of life
VALERIE:Strong
SAMANTHA:She who listens
NATALIA:Born at Christmas
CAITLIN:Pure
ALISON:Light of the sun
ABIGAIL:Father´s joy
EILEEN:Light of the sun
NICHOLAS: Victory of the people
EDWARD:Happy guardian
v)Write an acrostic of your name or surnames.Ex: Eve
Every
Vital
Experience
A boat, beneath a sunny sky
Lingering onward dreamily
In an evening of July -
Children three that nestle near,
Eager eye and willing ear,...(Lewis Carroll Alice´s Adventures in Wonderland)
Regions of Nothingness turn fast with hope,
Ascend to the being as he touches them
Freely and happily like a rock
Asteroid zooming down a slope
Ever the slow avalanche, axis of his orb,
Love´s thief of dusks chocolate and strawberry.....
(Homage to Rafael Pérez Estrada by Jesús Aguado)
w) Historical Dynasties and Dyniceties:
Why are these families famous?
The Medici
The Borgias
The Windsors
The Kennedys
The Caesars
The Bourbons
The Napoleons
The Ming
The Ptolemaic
x) Tell us about your family nickname or your school nickname.
y) Choose an original name for your future baby, for example,
BOYS: Craig, Florian, Ken, Rudolf, Godric, Quentin, Lucifer,Akhenaton, Tutankhamen, etc..
GIRLS: Asia, Mia, Moon, Niamh, Saffron, Saskia,Delilah, Artemis, Dolly, Nefertiti,Hipatia, etc..
z) names often confused: Madonna-Maradona; Schlegel- Scheler_Schiller; etc..
ç) What would you call jokes....
What would you call an irishman hanging from a ceiling?
Sean D´Ólier
What would you call a bullet that came back?
Rick O´Shea
What would you call the children of the corn´s father?
POP corn
What would you call an alligator in a vest?
An investigator
What would you call a group of unorganised cats?
A cat-astrophe.
ç+) Some nouns sound better in one language than in another, for instance
Matthew sounds better than Mateo; Does Aurora sound better than Dawn?
Reflect on this and give us some examples and explain why you think it sounds
better in one language than in another...
* +) Some famous writers changed their names to become more appealing.
Who´s behind these names and surnames?:
Neftalí Ricardo Reyes Basoalto
G.A. Domínguez Bastida
J. Ramón J. Mantecón
Mary Anne Evans
Félix R. García Sarmiento
Give three other examples:
**+ The school with strange staff names:
RECAREDO
RESTITUTO
ERUNDINO
REMIGIO
MACARIO
FULGENCIO
IRENEO
SECUNDINO
BALBINO
TIBURCIO
EUSTAQUIO
EUFRASIO
SATURIO
PETRONILA
HENAR
ERÉNDIRA
LEOVIGILDO
ALMENDRA
Make up your own list of strange(no longer fashionable) names
**++
Untranslatable proper names from oine language to another:
ANGUSTIAS
DOLORES
AMPARO
COLLEEN / COLLIN
BATHSHEBA
Give two more examples
¡+Ç
Short forms of Christian names:
INA-TINA-MARTINA
FINA-ADOLFINA-JOSEFINA-SERAFINA
ISA-LISA-ELISA-FELISA
ANA_ELIANA-MARIANA
ELODY-MELODY
Give three more examples if you can
?¿ *+ Some suffixes indicate origin,son of: sen/son/mc/mac/ EZ in Spanish.
Guess who the following surnames originate from:
FERNÁNDEZ
PÉREZ
RAMÍREZ
NÚÑEZ
JIMÉNEZ
SÁNCHEZ
ÁLVAREZ
DOMÍNGUEZ
MARTÍNEZ
RODRÍGUEZ
The Unnamable : In Germany very few people are named Adolf, after the tragic memory of the Nazi leader. Which names would you never give your child? As a clue, the following were fashionable names a hundred years ago: Gregoria, Ezequiela, Gabriela, Serafina, etc..
Full Stop.Period The controversy over naming your baby LOBO.
In the summer of 2016 the Spanish court finally agreed to let a couple name
their new born baby WOLF. What special name would you choose for your
new born baby? Remember ATAULFO means WOLF.
If you can call your child LEÓN or PALOMA, why not LOBO?
Final After thought project
ALL GREAT NAMES IN HISTORY are CALLED:
JOSEPH,or ROBERTor JOHN or FERDINAND or ELIZABETH or MARY or SOPHIA or JULIA
EXs: Joseph of Nazareth, Joseph Conrad, Joseph Priestley, José Martí, José Saramago, José Rizal,
José Zorrilla, José de San Martín, José R. Copacabana, Josep Carreras, Chief Joseph,
J.Merrick, J.Stalin, J. McCarthy, J. Goebbels, J. Fiennes, J, Brodsky.....
Find out who they were and why they are important in our history.
