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family name

vr.tr.family-name · thing-q101352

Let an agent explain family names and their origins and systems across cultures, support genealogy and etymology questions with sources, describe naming laws and conventions, and handle names respectfully.

Thing Registry Information and virtual systems INF.MED
Bundle → Layer → Finding → QuestionsClassifiersWhat it isWhy it existsDistinguishing featuresWhat robots and AI may and may not doMoral aspectsOwnersLinks to other meta-modelsIdentity and identifiersDirect propertiesRecognitionCapabilities and actionsHazards and failure modesStandards and interfacesContext of useSources

Bundle → Layer → Finding → Questions Filled

4 bundles · 8 layers · 8 findings · 16 questions

Understand Family name systems.

Origins

Origins of surnames.

Origins

Origins.

  1. How did family names arise, and what are patronymic, occupational, locational and descriptive origins? provenance
  2. Which entry fits a specific surname tradition? action

Systems

Systems by culture.

Systems

Systems.

  1. How do naming systems differ, including name order, gendered forms, patronymics and change at marriage, across cultures such as Ukrainian, Kazakh, Azerbaijani, East Asian and Spanish traditions? provenance
  2. How should a name from this culture be written and ordered? action
Research Etymology and genealogy.

Etymology

Meaning of a surname.

Etymology

Etymology.

  1. What is the documented origin and meaning of this surname, according to onomastic sources, and what is uncertain? provenance
  2. Is a folk etymology being presented as fact? boundary

Genealogy

Genealogy.

Genealogy

Genealogy.

  1. How can family names be traced in records, and which privacy considerations apply to living people? provenance
  2. Which entry fits genealogy? action
Law Names and law.

Rules

Naming laws.

Rules

Laws.

  1. What naming laws govern family names, changes and children names here? provenance
  2. Is legal advice needed from a professional? boundary

Data

Names in data.

Data

Data.

  1. How should family names be stored, transliterated and matched in data systems? action
  2. Which standards exist? provenance
Learn History and teaching.

History

History of surnames.

History

History.

  1. When and why did hereditary surnames spread in different societies, according to historians? provenance
  2. Which references are standard? provenance

Teach

Teaching.

Teach

Teaching.

  1. How can name systems be taught respectfully? action
  2. Which misconceptions arise? provenance

Classifiers Filled

Family
Thing Registry
Category
Information and virtual systems
Entry kind
thing
Plane
INF
Domain
INF.MED
Other names and narrower kinds
surname from a specific origin, Azerbaijani surname, Kazakh surname, locational surname, family name in Ukraine, family name of Ukrainian origin, Georgian family name, compound surname, Mikautadze, affixed family name, -, undifferentiated surname

What it is Filled

A name shared by members of a family and passed between generations, added to given names to identify a person, with origins in patronymics, occupations, places and descriptions, varying by culture in form, order, inheritance and change at marriage, as in Ukrainian, Azerbaijani, Kazakh, locational and other surname traditions; family names are recorded in civil registries, studied in onomastics and genealogy, and regulated by naming laws.

Why it exists Filled

Let an agent explain family names and their origins and systems across cultures, support genealogy and etymology questions with sources, describe naming laws and conventions, and handle names respectfully.

Distinguishing features Filled

  • Inherited
  • Cultural systems
  • Etymological origins
  • Legally regulated

What robots and AI may and may not do Filled

Must not

  • Reorder, transliterate or anglicise a person's family name against their own usage.
  • Infer a person's ethnicity, religion or caste from their family name for decisions about them.
  • Present folk etymologies or claims of noble descent as established fact.
  • Link living people into family trees from a shared surname without evidence or consent.

Only with a human decision

  • Changing a family name in an official record.
  • Publishing genealogical links that involve living people.

May

  • Record and display family names in the order and spelling the person uses.
  • Explain the general origins of family names, citing sources for any etymology.

Moral aspects Filled

  • A family name carries identity and belonging; mangling it is a small daily disrespect.
  • Surnames have been used to profile and discriminate against groups.

Who is affected

  • People who bear the name
  • Relatives in genealogies
  • Minority communities

Owners Filled

Steward

The person who bears it; civil registries record it officially.

Master systems

  • Civil registration and population registers

Links to other meta-models Filled

parent

  • Q10856962 - registry parent class
  • Q4116295 - registry parent class

related

  • surname - category
  • anthroponym - category
  • Korean - a language with its own name system
  • Canadians - peoples with diverse naming traditions

What else AI and robots need to interact with it Filled

Identity and identifiers required Filled

  • Vercy registry: vr.tr.family-name
  • Wikidata: Q101352 (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q101352)

Direct properties not applicable Not applicable

Not applicable

Plane INF: no invented physical properties.

Recognition optional Filled

  • Shared and inherited name
  • Culture-specific systems
  • Given names are individual; clan names and patronymics may differ
  • Not physical; words in names and records.

Capabilities and actions required Filled

  • explain origins and systems
  • support genealogy and etymology
  • describe naming laws
  • handle names respectfully

Hazards and failure modes required Filled

  • Misordering or mangling names from other cultures
  • Folk etymologies presented as fact
  • Privacy issues in genealogy

Standards and interfaces required Filled

  • Civil registration and naming laws
  • Transliteration standards
  • Data standards for personal names

Context of use required Filled

  • Inherited names identifying families.
  • patronymic and matronymic surnames
  • occupational surnames
  • locational surnames
  • descriptive surnames
  • surnames by language and country

Sources Filled

  1. Wikidata item Q101352: family name - identity and sense of the item
  2. Wikipedia: Family name - general description of the item

Open questions

  • Should each surname tradition be a separate entry?
  • How should onomastic sources be linked?
  • How should naming laws be linked by country?

Machine files

Card as JSON Specification Card backlog vercy.card/1

Provenance

thing registry research (pass 2) · unreviewed

Built from: models/things/publications/thing-q101352/spec.json