I thought of this in the shower, then deleted it when someone in a discord I asked it to eventually said duh it’s Michael Jackson, and another replied Michael Jordan you dumbass … oof … but then while deleted it got upvotes somehow so whatever lol
I thought of this in the shower, then deleted it when someone in a discord I asked it to eventually said duh it’s Michael Jackson, and another replied Michael Jordan you dumbass … oof … but then while deleted it got upvotes somehow so whatever lol
Is Jackson a “first” name? Sure, I understand that some people use it as a first name, but I would say someone named Jackson Smith has two last names.
Michael Jordan though, that’s legit.
Jackson is a patronymic last name: Jack’s son.
Smith is an aptronymic last name: a smith.
So yeah, bang on.
I’d love to know why you know these terms. I’m a huge etymology nerd and I eat this stuff up.
This entire thread begs the question, why do some people have a first name for a last name? Is it just a less-clear patronym?
I too am an etymology geek, I had to look up “aptronym” (I already knew there was a word for it, but couldn’t remember it) but already knew “patronym”. I can occasionally work out the approximate Latin roots of words and take a stab at what to search for.
Regarding names’ positions moving around… that’s just people. People name their children all sorts of stupid things that eventually become normal.
There are a bunch of aptronymic last names, especially in English culture. The Baker family, the Tanner family, the Shoemaker family etc.
Don’t ask about the Dickinsons.