Spanish names for women. Spanish female and male names

Every name, male or female, has its own story. It is almost impossible to determine exactly where and under what circumstances children first began to be called by one name or another. Each has a history, dating back to ancient myths and legends. Most likely, most names simply indicate a character trait that they want to instill in a child.

But why do new names appear? The reasons are different: wars, geographical or scientific discoveries, emigration and immigration of the population.

If you look at the document of a Spanish citizen, you can see no more than 2 names and 2 surnames, despite the fact that in most European countries their number is unlimited. This is due to the fact that the state takes quite seriously this issue to avoid a lot of confusion. When baptizing babies, you can assign any names allowed (approved) by the church in unlimited quantities. Typically this is done like this:

• The eldest son receives the first name of his father, the second - his grandfather on the male line;
• The eldest daughter first takes the name of her mother, and then the name of her maternal grandmother.

In general, a Spanish name consists of three main elements: a personal name ( nombre) and two surnames ( apellido): father ( apellido paterno or primer apellido) and mother ( apellido maternoorsegundo apellido).

The Spaniards are practicing Catholics; they attach great importance to the church in their lives, and therefore most of the names have their roots in Catholic saints. Spaniards do not like unusual and extravagant names and do not accept them in their lives. There are cases where the state refused to receive foreigners due to the fact that their names were quite unusual (for example, it is impossible to determine gender carrier).

Many people associate Latin American countries with Spain, since in these territories Spanish is the official language, and when studying Spanish, the teacher can emphasize the differences between cultures and pronunciations. When it comes to names, there are also very big differences, despite the fact that Latinos use Spanish names. The only difference is that they can name the child whatever they want. Children are called English, American or even Russian names if the parents like it, and this will not be punishable by the state.

We can take the terrorist from Venezuela as an example. His name was Ilyich, and his brothers were Lenin and Vladimir Ramirez Sanchez. The staunch communist father reflected his views on life through the names of his children.

But such exceptions are extremely rare, although modernity has no boundaries or stereotypes. In Spain, simple and classic names with complex meanings remain at the peak of popularity, for example, Juan, Juanita, Julio, Julia, Maria, Diego, etc.

Separately, I would like to highlight the names and their origin (female):

• Biblical names: Anna, Mary, Martha, Magdalena, Isabel;
• Latin and greek names: Barbora, Veronica, Elena, Paola;
• Germanic: Erica, Motilda, Caroline, Louise, Frida.

• Biblical names: Miguel, Jose, Thomas, David, Daniel, Adan, Juan;
• Greek and latin names: Sergio, Andres, Alejandro, Hector, Pablo, Nicholas;
• German: Alonso, Alfonso, Luis, Carlos, Raymond, Fernando, Enrique, Ernesto, Raul, Rodrigue, Roberto.

Spanish female names and their meanings

• Agata – good
• Adelita (Adelita), Alicia (Alicia) Adela, Adelia (Adela) – noble
• Adora - adored
• Alondra – protector of humanity
• Alba – dawn, dawn
• Alta - high
• Angelina, Angel, Angelica - angel, angelic, messenger
• Anita – diminutive of Ana – benefit
• Ariadna – perfect, pure, immaculate
• Arcelia (Arcelia) Araceli, Aracelis (Aracelis) – wanderer, traveler
• Benita – blessed
• Bernardita – bear
• Blanca – clean, white
• Benita – blessed
• Valencia – domineering
• Veronica – victorious
• Gertrudis, Gertrudis – spear strength
• Gracia – graceful, graceful
• Jesusa - saved
• Juana, Juanita – merciful
• Dorotea – God's gift
• Elena – moon, torch
• Josefina - rewarder
• Ibby, Isabel (Isabel) – oath to God
• Inés – innocent, chaste
• Candelaria – candle
• Carla, Carolina – human
• Carmela and Carmelita - name in honor of Our Lady of Carmel
• Constancia – constant
• Consuela – consoler, the name is given in honor of Our Lady of Consolation (Nuestra Señora del Consuelo)
• Conchita - diminutive of Concepción - derived from the Latin concepto - “to become pregnant, to conceive.” The name is given in honor of the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary (Inmaculada Concepción)
• Cristina – Christian
• Cruz - cross, pectoral cross
• Camila - servant of the gods, priestess
• Catalina – pure soul
• Leticia – joyful, happy
• Laura – laurel, (“crowned with laurel”)
• Luisa, Luisita – warrior
• Marita – diminutive of Maria – desired, beloved
• Marta – mistress of the house
• Mercedes - merciful, all-merciful (in honor of the Virgin Mary - María de las Mercedes)
• Maribel – fierce
• Nina – baby
• Ophelia - assistant
• Pepita – God will give another son
• Perla, Perlita – pearl
• Pilar, Pili – pillar, column
• Paloma - dove
• Ramona – wise protector
• Rebeca – alluring on the net
• Reina – queen, queen
• Renata – reborn
• Sarita (diminutive of Sara) - noble woman, mistress
• Sofia - wise
• Susana – water lily
• Trinidad – Trinity
• Francisca - free
• Chiquita is a diminutive name meaning little girl.
• Abigaíl – joy for father
• Evita – diminutive of Eva – lively, lively
• Elvira – friendly
• Esmeralda - emerald
• Estela, derived from Estrella - star

Spanish male names and their meanings

• Agustin - great
• Alberto, Alonso, Alfonso - noble
• Alfredo – elf
• Amado – favorite
• Andrés – warrior
• Antonio (Antonio) – flower
• Armando – strong, brave
• Aurelio – golden
• Basilio – regal
• Benito - blessed
• Berenguer, Bernardino, Bernardo – the strength and courage of a bear
• Valentin – healthy, strong
• Victor, Victorino, Vincente – winner and conqueror,
• Gaspar – teacher, master
• Gustavo - staff, support
• Horatio – excellent eyesight
• Damian - to tame, to subdue
• Desi - desired
• Herman (German) – brother
• Gilberto – light
• Diego – doctrine, teaching
• Jesus (Jesús) - named after Jesus, diminutives: Chucho, Chuy, Chuza, Chuchi, Chus, Chuso and others.
• Ignacio – fire
• Yousef - God will give another son
• Carlos – man, husband
• Christian (Cristian) – Christian
• Leandro – lion man
• Lucio - light
• Mario (Mario) – man
• Marcos, Marcelino, Marcelo, Marcial, Martin - names derived from the name of the Roman God of War - Mars, warlike
• Mateo – gift from Yahweh
• Mauricio – dark-skinned, Moor
• Modesto - modest, moderate, sober
• Maximino (Maximino), Maximo (Máximo) – great
• Nicholas (Nicolás) – victory of the people
• Osvaldo (Osvaldo) – owning, having power
• Pablo – baby
• Paco – free
• Pasqual – child of Easter
• Pastor – shepherd
• Patricio – noble, of noble origin
• Pio (Pío) – pious, virtuous
• Rafael – divine healing
• Ricardo, Rico – strong, persistent
• Rodolfo, Raul – wolf
• Rodrigo – ruler, leader
• Rolando - famous land
• Raynaldo - sage - ruler
• Sal, diminutive of Salvador - savior
• Sancho, Santos – saint
• Severino, Severo – strict, stern
• Sergio – servant
• Silvestre, Silvio – forest
• Salomón – peaceful
• Tadeo – grateful
• Teobaldo - a brave man
• Thomas (Tomás) – twin
• Tristan – rebel, rebel
• Fabricio – artisan
• Fausto – lucky guy
• Felipe – horse lover
• Fernando – brave, courageous
• Fidel - the most devoted, faithful
• Flavio – golden-haired
• Francisco (Francisco) - free
• Juan, Juanito – good God
• Julian, Julio - curly
• Edmundo – prosperous, protector
• Emilio – rival
• Enrique – powerful ruler
• Ernesto – diligent, diligent
• Esteban - name means crown
• Yusbayo, Yusebio - devout

The most popular names among adults:

• Jose (José)
• Antonio
• Juan
• Manuel
• Francisco

Among newborn babies:

• Daniel
• Alejandro
• Pablo
• David
• Adrian

If we return to female names, the following names are now popular among women:

• Maria
• Carmen
• Ana
• Isabel (Isabel)
• Dolores

And among girls, that is, recently born children:

• Lucia
• Maria
• Paula
• Sarah (Zara)
• Carla

As you noticed, it is very important for Spaniards that their names are easily understood, abandoning rare and unusual options, which significantly affects the reduction of the language barrier with foreign citizens.

Sometimes the connection between a full and a diminutive name is almost impossible to determine by ear: for example, at home little Francisco can be called Paco, Pancho and even Curro, Alfonso - Honcho, Eduardo - Lalo, Jesus - Chucho, Chuy or Chus, Anunciación - Chon or Chonita. In the same way, it is difficult for foreigners to understand why we call Alexander Shurik :)

Almost all Spanish names are simple but beautiful. We hope that getting to know them will make it easier for you to communicate with native Spanish speakers, because now you know a little more about the Spaniards!

Spanish names consist of three main elements: personal name (Spanish. nombre ) and two surnames (Spanish. apellido ). A feature of the structure of a Spanish name is the presence of two surnames at once: father (Spanish. apellido paterno or primer apellido ) and mother (Spanish) apellido materno or segundo apellido ). The choice of personal names in Spanish-speaking countries is usually determined by church and family traditions.

From Wikipedia:

In addition to the name received from their parents, Spaniards have names received at baptism from the baptizing priest and godparents. Most of the names received by the Spaniard are not used, but only one or two names are used, e.g. the current king of Spain five personal names- Juan Carlos Alfonso Maria Victor (Spanish) Juan Carlos Alfonso Ví ctor Marí a ), but all his life he uses only two of them - Juan Carlos.

According to Spanish law, a person can have no more than two names and two surnames recorded in his documents. In fact, at baptism you can give as many names as you like, depending on the wishes of the parents. Usually the eldest son is given the first name in honor of his father and the second in honor of his paternal grandfather, and the eldest daughter is given the name of her mother and the name of her maternal grandmother.

The main source of names in Spain is the Catholic calendar. There are few unusual names, because Spanish registration legislation is quite harsh: not so long ago, the Spanish authorities refused to obtain citizenship to a certain Colombian woman named Darling Velez on the grounds that her name is too unusual and it is impossible to determine the gender of its bearer from it.

In Latin America there are no such restrictions, and parents' imagination can work unhindered. Sometimes this fantasy gives rise to absolutely marvelous combinations, like Taj Mahal Sanchez, Elvis Presley Gomez Morillo and even Hitler Eufemio Mayora. And the famous Venezuelan terrorist Ilyich Ramirez Sanchez nicknamed Carlos the Jackal there were two brothers whose names were... Vladimir and Lenin Ramirez Sanchez.

However, these are all rare exceptions. In the Spanish-speaking world, the hit parade of names has been headed by familiar classic names for years: Juan, Diego, Carmen, Daniel, Camila, Alejandro and, of course, Maria.

Simply Maria.

For obvious reasons, this name is one of the most common in Spain. It is given to both girls and boys (the latter as an appendage to a man’s name: Jose Maria, Fernando Maria). However, many Spanish and Latin American Marys are not just Marys: their documents may include Maria de los Mercedes, Maria de los Angeles, Maria de los Dolores. In everyday life they are usually called Mercedes, Dolores, Angeles, which in literal translation sounds quite strange to our ears: “mercy” (exactly so, in plural), "angels", "sorrows". In fact, these names come from various Catholic titles for Our Lady: Marí a de las Mercedes(Mary the Merciful, lit. “Mary of Mercies”), Marí a de los Dolores(Mary of Sorrows, lit. “Mary of Sorrows”), Marí a la Reina de los Á ngeles(Mary is the queen of angels).

In addition, children are often given names in honor of revered icons or statues of the Mother of God. For example, the famous opera singer Montserrat Caballe(who turns out to be Catalan, upon closer inspection of the name) is actually called Maria de Montserrat Viviana Concepción Caballe y Folk, and named it in honor of Mary of Montserrat, revered in Catalonia - the miraculous statue of the Virgin Mary from the monastery on Mount Montserrat.

Pancho, Honcho and Lupita.

The Spaniards are great masters of education diminutives. The easiest way is to add diminutive suffixes to the name: Gabriel - Gabrier lito, Fidel - Fide lito, Juana - Juan ita. If the name is too long, then the main part is “torn off” from it, and then the same suffix is ​​used: Concepcion - Conchita, Guadalupe - Lupita and Lupilla. Sometimes truncated forms of names are used: Gabriel - Gabi or Gabri, Teresa - Tere. My beloved Penelope Cruz is simply called by my loved ones "Pe."

However, not everything is so simple. Sometimes it is generally impossible to recognize the connection between a diminutive and a full name by ear: for example, little Francisco may be called at home Pancho, Paco or Curro, Eduardo - Lalo, Alfonso - Honcho, Anunciación - Chon or Chonita, Jesus - Chucho, Chuy or Chus. The situation is complicated by the fact that different names can have the same diminutives: Lencho - Florencio and Lorenzo, Chicho - Salvador and Narciso, Chelo - Angeles and Consuelo (female names), as well as Celio and Marcelo (male names).

Diminutive forms are formed not only from individual names, but also from double ones:

Jose Maria - Chema
Jose Angel - Chanhel
Juan Carlos - Juanca, Juancar, Juanqui
Maria Luisa - Marisa
Jesus Ramon - Jesusra, Hera, Herra, Chuymoncho, Chuymonchi

Man or woman?

Once upon a time, at the dawn of the popularity of soap operas, the Venezuelan series “Cruel World” was broadcast on our television, the name main character which our viewers initially heard as Rosaria. A little later it turned out that her name is Rosari O , and the diminutive is Charita. Then again it turned out that it was not Charita, but Charit O, but our viewers, who had already gotten used to Conchitas and Esthersites, continued to call her “in the feminine gender” - Charita. That’s what they said, retelling the next episode to each other: “And Jose Manuel kissed Charita yesterday...”.

In fact, the soap character's real name was Rosario, not Rosaria. Word rosario in spanish language masculine and means rosary, according to which a special prayer is read to the Virgin Mary, which is also called Rosario(in Russian - Rosary). Catholics even have a separate holiday of the Virgin Mary, Queen of the Rosary (Spanish. Maria del Rosario).

In Spanish-speaking countries, the name Rosario is very popular, given to both girls and boys, but traditionally it is considered feminine. And that's not the only thing female name - "hermaphrodite": names Amparo, Socorro, Pilar, Sol, Consuelo derived from Spanish words amparo, socorro, pilar, sol, consuelo grammatically masculine. And, accordingly, the diminutive forms of these names are also formed in a “masculine” way: Charito, Charo, Coyo, Consuelito, Chelo (although there are also “feminine” forms: Consuelita, Pilarita).

The most common Spanish names.

10 most common names in Spain (whole population, 2008)

Features of the Spanish Surname.

And finally, let's talk a little about Spanish surnames. Spaniards have two surnames: paternal and maternal. Moreover, as already mentioned, the father's surname ( apellido paterno ) is placed before the mother ( apellido materno ): Federico Garcia Lorca (father - Federico Garcia Rodriguez, mother - Vicenta Lorca Romero). At In official address only the father's surname is used: Accordingly, contemporaries called the Spanish poet Señor Garcia, not Señor Lorca.

True, there are exceptions to this rule: Pablo Picasso(full name - Pablo Ruiz Picasso) became known not under his father's surname Ruiz, but under his mother's surname - Picasso. The fact is that there are no fewer Ruizs in Spain than there are Ivanovs in Russia, but the surname Picasso is much less common and sounds much more “individual.”

Usually only the father's main surname is inherited, but in some cases (usually noble families, as well as among the Basques), children are also given the maternal surnames of their parents (in fact, the surnames of grandmothers on both sides).

In some localities, there is a tradition of adding to the surname the name of the locality where the bearer of this surname or his ancestors were born. For example, if a person's name is Juan Antonio Gomez Gonzalez de San Jose, then in this case Gomez is the first, paternal surname, and Gonzalez de San Jose is the second, maternal surname. In this case, the particle "de" is not an indicator of noble origin, as in France, but simply means that ancestors mother of our Juan Antonio were from a town or village called San Jose.

Sometimes the paternal and maternal surnames are separated by the particle “and”: Francisco de Goya y Lucientes, Jose Ortega y Gasset. In Russian transcription, such surnames are usually written with a hyphen, although in the original they are usually written without separating marks: Francisco de Goya y Lucientes, José Ortega y Gasset.

When married, Spanish women do not change their surname, but simply add the surname of their husband to the apellido paterno: for example, Laura Riario Martinez, having married a man with the surname Marquez, can sign Laura Riario de Marquez or Laura Riario, Señora Marquez.

The most common Spanish surnames.

10 most common surnames in Spain

Today many of our compatriots can easily name Spanish names (male and female). We owe this primarily to the spread of television and soap operas. Names popular in Spanish-speaking countries flooded into our lives with the advent of Mexican TV series. It is not clear what motivated people then - a passion for soap operas, or perhaps they were simply attracted by the sound of the name (beautiful Spanish names, male and female, are very popular), or our compatriots sought to claim originality...

This resulted in cases where girls began to be registered under names like Marisabel, and boys under names like Luis Alberto. Now this trend is already on the decline, as is the popularity of Mexican TV series. Nevertheless, Spanish names continue to attract increased interest today.

After reading this article, you will learn that traditions in Spanish-speaking countries in this area are somewhat different from Russian ones. Therefore they are quite interesting. We will present you the most popular Spanish names (male and female) and tell you about their features.

How many names are allowed to give to one child, according to Spanish law?

According to Spanish law, a person can have two names and two surnames recorded in his documents. At baptism, in fact, you can give as many names as you like. It depends on the wishes of the parents. The eldest son is usually given his first name after his father and his second name after his paternal grandfather. The eldest daughter, respectively, has the names of her mother and maternal grandmother.

Main source of names

In Spain, the main source of names is the Catholic calendar. There are few unusual options for nicknames in this country, since registration legislation in Spain is quite strict. For example, the authorities recently refused to grant citizenship to a Colombian woman on the grounds that her name (Darling Velez) was too unusual and it was impossible to determine the gender of the bearer from it.

Unusual cases

There are no such restrictions in Latin America, where parents’ imagination can work unhindered. Sometimes it produces marvelous combinations, for example, Hitler Eufemio Mayor and Taj Mahal Sanchez. And the terrorist from Venezuela, Ilyich Ramirez Sanchez, also known by his nickname Carlos the Jackal, had two brothers. Their names were Lenin and Vladimir Ramirez Sanchez. This is not surprising - their father was a convinced communist. He decided to perpetuate the name of the idol in this way. Another Venezuelan was nicknamed Mao Brezner Pino Delgado. The word “Brezner” is an attempt to reproduce the surname of another famous person, Brezhnev.

However similar names- still there are rare exceptions. The “Hit Parade” in the Spanish-speaking world has been headed by classic familiar nicknames for many years in a row: Diego, Juan, Daniel, Alejandro (Spanish male names), Carmen, Camila and Maria (female names).

Name Maria

This name, for obvious reasons, is one of the most common in Spain. Moreover, it is given not only to girls, but also to boys as a makeweight. Fernando Maria, Jose Maria, etc. are quite popular Spanish male names. However, many Latin American and Spanish Marys are not just Marys. They may have the following in their documents: Maria de los Angeles, Maria de los Mercedes, Maria de los Dolores. Usually in everyday life their names are Dolores, Mercedes, Angeles, which sounds rather strange in literal translation to our ears: “sorrows” (precisely in the plural), “mercies”, “angels”. These names actually come from the Catholic titles for Our Lady. The three options we have indicated are not a complete list. This also includes Marys, who in everyday life are simply called Ananciación, Amparo, Piedad, Milagros, Luz, Cruz, Socorro, Salud, Consuelo, Pilar.

In addition, children are often given names in honor of statues of the Mother of God or revered icons. For example, Montserrat Caballe, the famous opera singer (who is actually Catalan, not Spanish) is named Maria de Montserrat (the full name is even longer) in honor of Mary of Montserrat - a miraculous statue revered in Catalonia, located on Mount Montserrat in one of the monasteries. A photo of this Spanish celebrity is presented below.

Chucho, Pancho and Conchita

The Spaniards are great masters of forming diminutive analogues from names. The easiest way is to add diminutive suffixes to the name: Juana - Juanita, Fidel - Fidelito. If it is too long, the main part is “torn off”, after which the same suffix is ​​used: Concepcion - Conchita, or, for example, Guadalupe - Lupilla or Lupita. Sometimes truncated forms of names are used: Teresa - Tere, Gabriel - Gabri or Gabi.

Data from the Institute for National Statistics

The Institute for National Statistics has created a special section that lists the 100 most common baby names in Spain by year, starting in 2002. The list includes both popular male and female names. In 2010, for example, Daniel was the leader of the male name, and the female name was Lucia.

If we take strictly passport records into account, then in Spain as of 01/01/2010 the most popular male name was Antonio. Then there are such Spanish male names as Jose, Manuel, Francisco, Juan, David, Jose Antonio, Jose Luis. For women, the most common is Maria Carmen. Then - Maria, Carmen, Anna Maria, Maria Dolores, Maria Pilar and others.

Misleading names

Many Spanish male first and last names are misleading. So, for example, the name Chucho, which is not entirely euphonious for us, has full form Jesus (or otherwise Jesus). Pancho is a diminutive of Francisco. Lalo - from Eduardo. You say it doesn't look like it? But even a Spaniard would never guess that Alexander, Shura and Sasha are the same name. Sometimes it is completely impossible to recognize by ear the connection between a full name and a diminutive name. For example, Francisco may be called Pancho, Curro or Paco at home.

Different countries have different characteristics.

Names that can be either feminine or masculine

There are names that can be both feminine and masculine. But not like our Sasha, Vali, Zhenya and even Olga and Oleg, who stand apart. If they name a girl Chelo, she could be either Angeles or Consuelo. But if you call a boy that, there will be the following two options: Celio and Marcelo.

Rosario

There is a very funny situation with the name Rosario. It is a masculine word in Spanish. However, representatives of both sexes are called by this name. It denotes a rosary for praying to the Queen of the Rosary, that is, the Virgin Mary. It turns out that in this case the boy is simply called Rosary, and the girl is called Maria del Rosario.

Spanish surnames

Let's talk a little about Spanish surnames. Residents of Spain have two of them: maternal and paternal. The last name is placed first. Only she, without the maternal one, is used in official address. For example, Federico Garcia Lorca, a famous Spanish poet, was called Señor Garcia by his contemporaries. His photo is presented below.

Usually only the father's main surname is inherited. However, in some cases (mainly in noble and Basque families) the maternal surnames of the parents can also be passed on. There is a tradition in some regions of the country to add the name of the locality in which the bearer of a particular surname or his ancestors was born. However, it exists only as a local feature.

Spanish women do not change their last name when they get married. They just add the husband's last name.

Is originality encouraged?

So, we looked at what names the Spaniards give their children. At the same time, they very rarely deviate from the calendar, which contains Spanish male names. The list also includes female names that can be used to name a child. Only a small number of names are present in the Catholic calendar that could be considered unusual. The Spanish authorities are very disapproving of efforts towards originality. Until quite recently, the law prohibited the inclusion of diminutive forms of names in official documents. However, there is no such restriction now. The main thing is that the name clearly indicates the gender of the person to whom it refers, and at the same time sounds decent. This practice, however, has not yet become widespread.

Spanish male names sound slightly different in English or Russian. The same applies to female names. For example, Rosario sounds unusual to us as a female name. I would like to say Rosaria. Now that you know about some of the peculiarities of Spanish names, you can avoid such mistakes.

Spanish names

According to Spanish law, a person can have no more than two names and two surnames recorded in his documents. In fact, at baptism you can give as many names as you like, depending on the wishes of the parents. Usually the eldest son is given the first name in honor of his father and the second in honor of his paternal grandfather, and the eldest daughter is given the name of her mother and the name of her maternal grandmother.

The main source of names in Spain is the Catholic calendar. There are few unusual names because Spanish registration laws are quite strict: not long ago, the Spanish authorities denied citizenship to a Colombian woman named Darling Velez on the grounds that her name was too unusual and it was impossible to determine the gender of its bearer.

In Latin America there are no such restrictions, and parents' imagination can work unhindered. Sometimes this fantasy gives rise to absolutely marvelous combinations, like Taj Mahal Sanchez, Elvis Presley Gomez Morillo and even Hitler Eufemio Mayor. And the famous Venezuelan terrorist Ilyich Ramirez Sanchez, nicknamed Carlos the Jackal, had two brothers whose names were... that's right, Vladimir and Lenin Ramirez Sanchez. No wonder: Papa Ramirez was a convinced communist and decided to perpetuate the name of his idol, so to speak, in triplicate. Another unlucky Venezuelan received the pompous name Mao Brezner Pino Delgado, and “Brezner” in this case turned out to be an unsuccessful attempt to reproduce the surname Brezhnev. ( What's in a name? In Venezuela, just about anything)

However, these are all rare exceptions. In the Spanish-speaking world, the hit parade of names has been headed by familiar classic names for years: Juan, Diego, Carmen, Daniel, Camila, Alejandro and, of course, Maria.

Not just Maria

For obvious reasons, this name is one of the most common in Spain. It is given to both girls and boys (the latter as an addition to the male name: Jose Maria, Fernando Maria). However, many Spanish and Latin American Marias are not just Marias: their documents may include Maria de los Mercedes, Maria de los Angeles, Maria de los Dolores. In everyday life they are usually called Mercedes, Dolores, Angeles, which in literal translation sounds quite strange to our ears: “mercies” (that’s right, in the plural), “angels”, “sorrows”. In fact, these names come from various Catholic titles for Our Lady: Maria de las Mercedes(Mary the Merciful, lit. "Mary of Mercies"), Maria de los Dolores(Mary of Sorrows, lit. "Mary of Sorrows"), Maria la Reina de los Angeles(Mary is the queen of angels).

Here is a short list of similar names:

Maria del Amparo - Mary the Patroness, Mary the Protector
Maria de la Anunciación - Mary of the Annunciation (from Spanish Anunciación - Annunciation)
Maria de la Luz - Light Maria (lit. "Mary of Light")
Maria de los Milagros - Mary the Wonderworker (lit. "Mary of Miracles")
Maria de la Piedad - Mary the Honored
Maria del Socorro - Maria the Helper
Maria de la Cruz - Mary of the Cross
Maria del Consuelo- Mary the Comforter
Maria de la Salud - letters "Mary of Health"
Maria del Pilar - lit. "Pillar Maria" (according to legend, when the Apostle James preached in Zaragoza, over a column standing on the banks of the Ebro River, he saw the image of the Virgin Mary. Subsequently, the Cathedral of Nuestra Señora del Pilar was built on this site).

In real life, the owners of these pious names are simply called Amparo, Anunciación, Luz, Milagros, Piedad, Socorro, Cruz, Consuelo, Salud and Pilar.

In addition, children are often given names in honor of revered icons or statues of the Mother of God. For example, the famous opera singer Montserrat Caballe (who, by the way, is actually not Spanish, but Catalan) is actually called Maria de Montserrat Viviana Concepcion Caballe y Folk, and was named after Mary of Montserrat, revered in Catalonia - the miraculous statue of the Virgin Mary from the monastery on Montserrat.

Pancho, Chucho and Conchita

The Spaniards are great masters at forming diminutive names. The easiest way is to add diminutive suffixes to the name: Gabriel - Gabrielito, Fidel - Fidelito, Juana - Juanita. If the name is too long, then the main part is “torn off” from it, and then the same suffix is ​​used: Concepcion - Conchita, Guadalupe - Lupita and Lupilla. Sometimes truncated forms of names are used: Gabriel - Gabi or Gabri, Teresa - Tere.

However, not everything is so simple. Sometimes it is completely impossible to recognize the connection between a diminutive and a full name by ear: for example, little Francisco at home may be called Pancho, Paco or Curro, Eduardo - Lalo, Alfonso - Honcho, Anunciación - Chon or Chonita, Jesus - Chucho, Chuy or Chus. The difference between the full and diminutive forms, as we see, is huge (however, foreigners also cannot understand why we call Alexander Shurik: in order to reproduce the series Alexander-Alexasha-Sasha-Sashura-Shura in your mind, you need to know the Russian language too well).

The situation is complicated by the fact that different names may have the same diminutives: Lencho - Florencio and Lorenzo, Chicho - Salvador and Narciso, Chelo - Angeles and Consuelo (female names), as well as Celio and Marcelo (male names).

Diminutive forms are formed not only from individual names, but also from double ones:

Jose Maria - Chema
Jose Angel - Chanhel
Juan Carlos - Juanca, Juancar, Juanqui
Maria Luisa - Marisa
Jesus Ramon - Jesusra, Hera, Herra, Chuimoncho, Chuimonchi

Sometimes such a merging of names gives a rather shocking result: for example, Lucia Fernanda can be called ... Lucifer ( Lucifer, in Spanish - Lucifer).

Diminutives are used quite rarely as passport names in Spain - primarily because until relatively recently this was prohibited by Spanish law. Now the only limitation is the “decent” sound of the diminutive form, as well as the ability to determine the gender of its bearer by name.

Boy or girl?

Once upon a time, at the dawn of the popularity of soap operas, the Venezuelan series “Cruel World” was broadcast on our television, the name of the main character of which our viewers initially heard as Rosaria. A little later it turned out that her name is Rosari O , and the diminutive is Charita. Then, again, it turned out that it was not Charita, but Charito, but our viewers, who had already gotten used to Conchitas and Esthersites, continued to call her “in the feminine gender” - Charita. That’s what they said, retelling each other the next episode: “And Jose Manuel kissed Charita yesterday...”.

In fact, the soap character's name was really Rosario, not Rosaria. Word rosario V Spanish masculine and denotes the rosary with which a special prayer is read to the Virgin Mary, which is also called Rosario(in Russian - Rosary). Catholics even have a separate holiday of the Virgin Mary, Queen of the Rosary (Spanish. Maria del Rosario).

In Spanish-speaking countries, the name Rosario is very popular, given to both girls and boys, but traditionally it is considered feminine. And this is not the only female name that is “hermaphrodite”: the names Amparo, Socorro, Pilar, Sol, Consuelo are derived from Spanish words amparo, socorro, pilar, sol, consuelo grammatically masculine. And, accordingly, the diminutive forms of these names are also formed in a “masculine” way: Charito, Charo, Coyo, Consuelito, Chelo (although there are also “feminine” forms: Consuelita, Pilarita).

Most Common Spanish Names

10 most common names in Spain (whole population, 2008)

The most popular names among newborns (Spain, 2008)

The most popular names among newborns (Mexico, 2009)

Señor Garcia or Señor Lorca?

And finally, let's talk a little about Spanish surnames. Spaniards have two surnames: paternal and maternal. Moreover, the father's surname ( apellido paterno) is placed before the mother ( apellido materno): Federico Garcia Lorca (father - Federico Garcia Rodriguez, mother - Vicenta Lorca Romero). When officially addressed, only the paternal surname is used: accordingly, the Spanish poet was called Senor Garcia by his contemporaries, and not Senor Lorca.

(True, there are exceptions to this rule: Pablo Picasso (full name - Pablo Ruiz Picasso) became known not under his father's surname Ruiz, but under his mother's surname - Picasso. The fact is that there are no fewer Ruisovs in Spain than Ivanovs in Russia, but The surname Picasso is much less common and sounds much more “individual”).

By inheritance, only the father's main surname is usually passed on, but in some cases (usually in noble families, as well as among the Basques), the mother's surnames of the parents are also passed on to the children (in fact, the surnames of grandmothers on both sides).

In some localities, there is a tradition of adding to the surname the name of the locality where the bearer of this surname or his ancestors were born. For example, if a person’s name is Juan Antonio Gomez Gonzalez de San Jose, then in this case Gomez is the first, paternal surname, and Gonzalez de San Jose is the second, maternal surname. In this case, the particle "de" is not an indicator of noble origin, as in France, but simply means that the ancestors of the mother of our Juan Antonio came from a town or village called San José.

Spanish law states that every citizen has the right to officially own no more than two given names and surnames. At baptism, they can give the child several names, it all depends on the wishes of the parents. Typically, the eldest daughter is named after her mother, and the second daughter is named after her maternal grandmother. The main and main source of names in Spain are the Catholic Saints. There are very few unusual names among these people, since Spanish registration legislation very strictly controls this process. Those with unusual names have zero chance of obtaining citizenship in Spain. In the Spanish-language hit parade of names, the first places are almost annually headed by such classic names as Carmen, Camila, Maria...

Simple name Maria

The name Maria is considered a fairly common name in Spain. It is given not only to girls, but also to boys, as a makeweight: Jose Maria, for example. At the same time, most Spanish and Latin American Marias are listed in documents in a completely different way, for example, as Maria de los Mercedes, Maria de los Dolores, but in everyday life girls are called Dolores, Mercedes. Such names come from various titles of Our Lady, for example, Maria de los Mercedes means "Mary of Mercies" and Maria de los Dolores "Mary of Sorrows".

A short list of names derived from the titles of the Mother of God:

Maria del Amparo - Mary the Patroness, Mary the Protector

Maria de la Anunciación - Mary of the Blessed

Maria de la Luz - Bright Maria

Maria de los Milagros - Mary the Miraculous

Maria de la Piedad - Mary the Honored

Maria del Socorro - Mary the Helper

Maria de la Cruz - Mary of the Cross

Maria del Consuelo - Mary the Comforter

Maria de la Salud - Maria of Health

Maria del Pilar - Pillar Maria

In real life, girls with such pious names are called Amparo, Luz, Anunciación, Milagros, Socorro, Piedad, Consuelo, Cruz, Salud and Pilar.

A short list of Spanish girl names:

What do Spanish names mean: interpretation and history of origin

The formation of the Spanish national language, which belongs to the Romance group of the Indo-European language family, dates back to the 15th century, that is, to the period of the unification of the feudal states located on the Iberian Peninsula. The history of the Spaniards in previous eras explains the presence in their language of Greek, Latin, Old High German, as well as Arabic words. The above fully applies to Spanish anthroponymy.

In the 15th-16th centuries, the Spanish colonization of America began. The Spanish colonizers of the South, Central and southern parts of North America mixed with the aborigines - the local Indian population, as well as with blacks and gradually formed the ethnic core of virtually all modern Latin American nations - Argentines, Venezuelans, Colombians, Cubans, Chileans. During the era of colonial expansion and the rise of Spain, the Spanish language spread to Central and South America, except Brazil.

Features of the anthroponymic model

In the Spanish anthroponymic model, we can conditionally highlight the following most typical cases:

1. a simple binary model, that is, a personal name, nombre de pila, and a family name, nombre de apellido, for example Mario Saenz;

2. three-member model, that is, two personal names and one family name, for example Juan Romulo Fernandez;

3. polynomial model:

a) one or more personal names and two family names, where surname number one can be patronymic in nature, and surname number two comes from the name of the place of birth, residence, for example Carlos Sanchez Malaga;

b) one or more personal names and two or more family names, connected using the particles y, de or a combination of the article and the particle de (de la, de los, de las, del), for example: Gustavo Arboleda y Restrepo, fosefa Fernandez de Garay, Rosa Arciniega de la Torre, Maximo Farfan de las Godos,
Antonio Espinosa de los Monteros, Teresa Alvarez del Castillo;

c) one or more personal names and those added to them different ways(a combination of particles and combinations of the article with the particle de) one (two or more) family names, for example: Oscar Quesada in de la Guerra, Teodoro Caballero in Martinez del Camp.

Roots of origin of names

Spanish male and female personal names in origin go back to Greek (Nicomedes, Medea), Roman (Romulo, Cesar), Arabic (Farida, Neguib), Germanic (Amelberga, Ricardo) and Hebrew (Uriel, Maria) sources. Most Spaniards are Catholics, and according to the canons of the Roman Catholic Church, the choice of personal names for baptism is limited to the names of saints from the church calendar. The child is given one, two, or (less common) several personal names. For a long time, there was a tradition of naming the first child after the paternal grandfather, and the second - after the maternal one or the name of some outstanding ancestor of the family. Some biblical (Lamec, Bezabel), mythological (Polux, Clitemnestra), historical (Neron) names previously used in Spain and Latin America have disappeared, others belonging to the same categories (Daniel, Lucas, Martin, Bartolome, Saul; Hector, Delia ; Anibal, Napoleon), are still used today.

Since the 30s of the 20th century in Spain, and then in other countries, names have become widespread among people of Spanish origin, the bases of which relate to the following lexical fields, using the example of female names: abstract (symbolic) names (Encarnacion “incarnation”, Concepcion “knowledge”, Libertad “freedom”), names of flowers (Rosa “rose”, Violeta “violet”, Camelia “camellia”, Flora “vegetation”), names precious stones(Diamante “diamond”, Perlas “pearl”), as well as the names of literary heroes (Ofelia, Graciela).
The Spanish name book currently includes foreign names that have entered the Spanish language as a result of a wide variety of contacts and connections with speakers of other languages, especially Romance ones: for example, English names - Milton, Uladis, French - Josette, Yvonne, Italian - Italo, Menotti.

The formation of Spanish personal names is based on derivation and suppletivism. By means of derivation, affectionate and diminutive forms of names are formed; the most common suffixes are -ito(-ita), -ico(-ica); -illo(-illa). So, for example, from the names Juan, Ana, Ines, the pet names will be Juanito, Anita, Inesita, respectively. If the personal name ends in -s, then this ending is added to the suffix of the diminutive form: Carlos - Carlitos, Dolores - Dolor esitos. Often, when forming derivative forms of personal names, the phenomenon of suppletivism occurs, as, for example, for male names - Rappo and Re-re, Francisco and Jose, or, respectively, for female names - Pancha for the name Francisca, and Pepita for the name Josefa. Instead of the female name Dolores, the diminutive name Lola is often used, instead of Concepcion - Concha, and instead of the male name Refugio - Sisa. For widespread in Spain biblical name Jesus is a frequent diminutive form of Chucho. Sometimes derivative pet names are formed by various truncations, for example Sunta from the feminine name Asuncion.

The most common male names are Alfonso, Andres, Benito, Carlos, Diego, Enrique, Felipe, Fernando, Francisco, Geronimo, Joaquin, Jose, Juan, Manuel, Miguel, Pedro, Ramon, Vicente; and female ones Ana, Catalina, Elena, Enriqueta, Francisca, Ines, Isabel, Josefa, Juana, Manuela, Maria. But along with them there are also rare names that were arbitrarily created and do not have a clear etymology, such as Anilu, Chamito, Maruchi, Coquis.

Traditions in the use of names

Under the influence of the French language, the particle de appeared in the Spanish anthroponymic model, attaching a personal name to a geographical name, from which the surname was subsequently formed. But in French, as is known, the presence of this particle in the surname was a sign noble birth, high social status; in Spanish surnames it has a purely official meaning, for example: Ferdinandez de Cordoba, that is, Ferdinand from Cordoba.

When addressing close friends, relatives and children in Spanish, the 2nd person personal pronoun tu “you” is used. The usual form of polite address Vuestra merced "Your Grace", most often abbreviated in oral form - Usted (plural - Ustedes), and in writing expressed even more briefly - V, Vd for the singular and Vs, Vv, Vds for the plural.

Forms of polite address to strangers are Don (in writing - Dn, D), Senor (abbreviation - Sr) and Excelencia (in writing - Exca) - in relation to men and Dona (in writing - Dn, Da), Senora (in letter - Sra) -in relation to to women. A young girl is addressed using the word senorita (written as Srita, Sta), and a young man is addressed as senorito. Each of these words has the meaning of “lord” or “madam” respectively.

The most ancient of all the given words used for polite address is Don, the etymology of which goes back to the Latin dominus “lord”, “master”. Initially, this word was used in the sense of a royal title, and then began to indicate aristocratic origin. Currently, such an address is used to express respect and politeness, and in combination only with a personal, and not with a family name (Don Pedro); this also applies to the corresponding feminine form. The word senor comes from the Latin word senior (from the Latin senex " an old man"). The addresses senor, senora can be combined with both the full name and only the surname, but are never used with only the personal name. The meaning of “sir” also includes the word caballero, which originally meant “horseman”, “knight”. When using forms of polite address, it matters whether the address is direct (Senor Varas) or indirect, since in the latter case it is necessary definite article- El Senor Varas.
If the surname follows the title, then the title is preceded by the definite article - El General Weyler.

The change in the social system of Cuba has affected the forms of address of Cubans to each other: the words Senor, Don are no longer used. In Cuba, forms of polite address such as Sotrapego “comrade” are widely used, in relation to a woman - Sotrapega. These addresses are in preposition to an individual name or surname, or even before a title.

The Spanish language contains many Latin, Greek, and Arabic words. Consequently, this is reflected in Spanish names.

Thus, most male and female Spanish names were borrowed from Latin, Greek, Germanic, Arabic and Hebrew sources. The Roman Catholic Church also played an important role, because According to Catholic canons, the choice of name is made from the names of saints from the church calendar.

Since the 30s of the 20th century, the practice of naming names associated with symbolic images (feminine names: Concepcion “knowledge”, Libertad “freedom”), with the names of precious stones (Diamante “diamond”, Perlas “pearl”) has become widespread among the Spanish peoples "), flowers (Rosa "rose", Flora "vegetation"), names of literary heroes.

Currently, the list of Spanish names includes primarily names of Romance languages: English (Milton, Gladis), French (Josette, Yvonne), Italian (Italo, Menotti), etc.

The most common male names are: Alfonso, Andres, Benito, Carlos, Diego, Enrique, Felipe, Fernando, Francisco, Geronimo, Joaquin, Jose, Juan, Manuel, Miguel, Pedro, Ramon, Vicente; and among female names, such names as Ana, Catalina, Elena, Enriqueta, Francisca, Ines, Isabel, Josefa, Juana, Manuela, Maria. But there are also rare names, such as Anilu, Chamito, Maruchi, Coquis, etc.

Unfortunately, I don’t know any rare and beautiful ones, but I’ll list those that I remember, maybe they will come in handy...
Aurelia, Soledad, Esperanza, Dolores, Felicidad, Gracia, Maria Luisa, Paquita, Xiomara, Yesenia, Carmen, Pilar, Charo, Veronica, Aurora, Eva...
And the men... Angel, Alejandro, Francisco, Rodrigo, Julio, Carlos, Miguel Angel, Javier, Jesus, Luis, Diego, Blas, Vicente...

Natalia Krasnova

Paula (Spanish: Paula)
Veronica (Spanish Verónica) - Veronica
Barbara (Spanish: Barbara) - Barbara
Catalina (Spanish: Catalina) - Catherine
Daniel (Spanish Daniel) - Daniel.
Thomas (Spanish Tomás) - Thomas.
Adan (Spanish Adán) - Adam.
Jaime (Spanish Jaime) - Jacob.
Elias (Spanish Elías) - Ilya.
Spanish names and surnames.

Basta

Aaron - high mountain
Abraham - father of many
Abraham - father of many
Agustin - venerable
Agepeto - favorite
Agepito - favorite
Adan - wind
Adolfo - noble wolf
Adrian - from Hadria
Adelberto - bright nobility
Alberto - bright nobility
Alvaro - protection of all
Aleyo - defender
Aleyandro - defender of humanity
Alonso - noble and ready
Alfonso - noble and ready
Alfredo - elf meeting
Aleno - generous
Alerico - omnipotent, ruler of all
Amadis - loves God
Amado - favorite
Ambrosio - immortal
Amidayo - demigod
Amilcare - friend
Amenkayo ​​- love
Anbessa - lion
Andres - man, warrior
Anibal - grace
Anselmo - God's Defense
Antonio - invaluable
Anzleto - summoned
Anestas - recovery
Apolinar - destroyer
Armando is a brave, resilient man
Arsenio - mature
Arturo - from the legend of King Arthur
Asdrubel - helps
Atilio - Atilius
Augusto - venerable
Aureliano - golden
Aurelio - golden
Basilio is the king
Baldomero - famous
Balduino - brave friend
Bartholome - son of Talmay
Bautista - Baptist
Beltran - bright raven
Benigno - kind
Benito - blessed one
Berengar - bear's spear Abigail - father's joy
Agata is good
Agota is good
Agueda is good
Adelaide - noble look
Adeline - noble
Adelita - noble
Adonsia - sweet
Adora - adored
Adoria - adored
Adoración - adored
Adriana - from Hadria
Adeline - noble
Aina - benefit, grace
Aleyandra - protector of humanity
Alicia - noble look
Alita - noble
Allods - foreign wealth
Almudena - city
Alondra - defender of humanity
Alba - dawn
Alta - high
Ampero - protection, refuge
Ameda - beloved
Amerenta - permanent, non-disappearing
Ana - benefit, grace
Anankiekayon - announced
Angelita - little angel, messenger
Angela - angel, messenger
Angelica - angelic
Anita - benefit, grace
Antiya - invaluable
Antonita - invaluable
Antonia - invaluable
Areseli - altar of heaven
Ariedna - completely pure
Arcelia - altar of heaven
Areseli - altar of heaven
Areselis - altar of heaven
Asucena - Madonna Lily
Askenkayon - rise
Assampkayo - speculated
Asuncion - assumed
Beatrice - traveler
Belem - the house of bread
Benigna - kind
Benita - blessed one
Berengaria - bear spear
Bernardita - brave as a bear
Betenia - home of the fig tree
Bibiena - alive
Binvenida - welcome
Blanca - white
Bonita - quite
Brunilda - armored woman - warrior
Basilia is the queen
Valencia - power
Veronica - the bringer of victories
Visitacion - visited
Gertrudis - spear strength
Grekila - pleased, pleasant
Grakiena - pleased, pleasant
Gracia - pleased, pleasant
Deborah - bee
Deiphilia - daughter of God
Delfina - woman from Delphi
Jacinta - hyacinth flower
Jesusa - god - saved