matronymic
Americanadjective
adjective
Explanation
If your last name comes from your mother, or one of her ancestors, it's a matronymic. In most societies, matronymics are much less common than names handed down from the paternal side of the family. Any surname that's connected to the person's mother is a matronymic. It was once fairly common for babies to be given the last name of the parent who was considered to be more important (this usually had to do with wealth or a powerful family). King Henry II of England had several surnames, one of which was the matronymic "Fitzempress," or "son of an empress." The word matronymic combines the Latin māter, "mother," and the Greek onuma, "name."
Vocabulary lists containing matronymic
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
It will also allow the use of traditional patronymic and matronymic names used by the Frisian minority, which entail children’s surnames being based on their father’s or mother’s first name.
From Seattle Times • May 17, 2024
Kapalova, who runs a museum of feminist art, said she would seek further legal changes in the predominantly Muslim nation of 7 million to ensure a child can have a matronymic from birth.
From Reuters • Jul. 4, 2023
But citizens over the age of 18 can choose to swap the patronymic for a matronymic based on the name of the mother.
From Reuters • Jul. 4, 2023
Wherefore she has gotten her name in the good books of the sociological philosophers who uphold the matronymic theory touching early society.
From A Second Book of Operas by Krehbiel, Henry Edward
The name Abraham he received from his grandfather, but it was early dropped, and he was always known by his matronymic Albert.
From Albert Gallatin American Statesmen Series, Vol. XIII by Stevens, John Austin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
