Onomasty


Gender:
Origin: Hebrew

Meanings

A given name (also known as a first name, Christian name, or forename) is a part of a person's personal name. It identifies a specific person, and differentiates that person from other members of a group, such as a family or clan, with whom that person shares a common surname. The term given name refers to the fact that the name usually is bestowed upon a person, normally given to a child by its parents at or near the time of birth. This contrasts with a surname (also known as a family name, last name, or gentile name), which is normally inherited, and shared with other members of the child's immediate family.
Regnal names and religious or monastic names are special types of given names, as they are given to adults upon them receiving a crown or entering a religious order and as such are replacing the original given name of those persons.
Given names are often used in a familiar and friendly manner in informal situations. In more formal situations the surname is more commonly used, unless it is necessary to distinguish between people with the same surname. The idioms "on a first-name basis" and "being on first-name terms" allude to the familiarity of addressing another by a given name.