The anglicisation of personal names is the change of non-English-language personal names to spellings nearer English sounds, or substitution of equivalent or similar English personal names in the place of non-English personal names.

Anglicisation of personal names

Classical, medieval and Renaissance figures

A small number of figures, mainly very well-known classical and religious writers, appear under English names—or more typically under Latin names, in English texts. This practice became prevalent as early as in English-language translations of the

New Testament The New Testament (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus, as well as events relating to Christianity in the 1st century, first-century Christianit ...

, where translators typically renamed figures such as Yeshu and Simon bar-Jonah as

Jesus Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

and

Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a su ...

, and treated most of the other figures in the New Testament similarly. In contrast, translations of the

Old Testament The Old Testament (OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible, or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew and occasionally Aramaic writings by the Isr ...

traditionally use the original names, more or less faithfully transliterated from the original Hebrew. Transatlantic explorers such as Zuan Chabotto and

Cristoforo Colombo Christopher Columbus (; between 25 August and 31 October 1451 – 20 May 1506) was an Italians, Italian explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa who completed Voyages of Christopher Columbus, four Spanish-based voyages across the At ...

became popularly known as John Cabot and Christopher Columbus; the English-speaking world typically knows the French-born theologian

Jean Calvin John Calvin (; ; ; 10 July 150927 May 1564) was a French theologian, pastor and reformer in Geneva during the Protestant Reformation. He was a principal figure in the development of the system of Christian theology later called Calvinism, ...

as John Calvin. Such anglicisations became less usual after the sixteenth century.

Non-English-language areas of Great Britain and Ireland

Most

Gaelic language The Goidelic ( ) or Gaelic languages (; ; ) form one of the two groups of Insular Celtic languages, the other being the Brittonic languages. Goidelic languages historically formed a dialect continuum stretching from Ireland through the Isle o ...

surnames of Ireland, Scotland, and the

Isle of Man The Isle of Man ( , also ), or Mann ( ), is a self-governing British Crown Dependency in the Irish Sea, between Great Britain and Ireland. As head of state, Charles III holds the title Lord of Mann and is represented by a Lieutenant Govern ...

have been anglicized at some time. The Gaels were among the first Europeans to adopt surnames during the Dark Ages. Originally, most Gaelic surnames were composed of the given name of a child's father, preceded by

Mac Mac or MAC may refer to: Common meanings * Mac (computer), a line of personal computers made by Apple Inc. * Mackintosh, a raincoat made of rubberized cloth * Mac, a prefix to surnames derived from Gaelic languages * McIntosh (apple), a Canadi ...

(''son'') or Nic (or ''Ní'', both being variants of ''nighean'', meaning ''

daughter A daughter is a female offspring; a girl or a woman in relation to her parents. Daughterhood is the state, condition or quality of being someone's daughter. The male counterpart is a son. Analogously the name is used in several areas to show r ...

'') depending on the

gender Gender is the range of social, psychological, cultural, and behavioral aspects of being a man (or boy), woman (or girl), or third gender. Although gender often corresponds to sex, a transgender person may identify with a gender other tha ...

. These

surname In many societies, a surname, family name, or last name is the mostly hereditary portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family. It is typically combined with a given name to form the full name of a person, although several give ...

s would not be passed down another generation, and a

woman A woman is an adult female human. Before adulthood, a female child or Adolescence, adolescent is referred to as a girl. Typically, women are of the female sex and inherit a pair of X chromosomes, one from each parent, and women with functi ...

would keep her birth surname after

marriage Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

. The same was originally true of Germanic surnames which followed the pattern ather's given nameson/daughter (this is still the case in

Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...

, as exemplified by the singer

Björk Guðmundsdóttir Björk Guðmundsdóttir ( , ; born 21 November 1965), known mononymously as Björk, is an Icelandic singer, songwriter, composer, record producer, and actress. Noted for her distinct voice, three-octave vocal range, and eccentric public pe ...

and former

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

Sigmundur Davíð Gunnlaugsson Sigmundur Davíð Gunnlaugsson (; born 12 March 1975) is an Icelandic politician who was the prime minister of Iceland from May 2013 until April 2016. He was also chairman of the Progressive Party from 2009 to October 2016. He was elected to t ...

). When referring to siblings collectively (or to members of a family or clan that share a "Mac-" surname), the prefix for son or daughter was pluralised. By example, ''MacAoidh'' (son of Hugh'') ''becomes ''MicAoidh (''sons of Hugh'') ''and ''Clann MhicAoidh (''literally children/descendants of Hugh''). ''

The Jacksons The Jackson 5, later known as the Jacksons, are an American pop band composed of members of the Jackson family. The group was formed in Gary, Indiana in 1964, and originally consisted of brothers Jackie, Ti ...

in English (with Jack being derived from John) would in Gaelic be rendered ''a' MhicSheain (''the sons of John''). Over the centuries, under the influence of post- medieval English practice, this type of surname has become static over generations, handed down the male lineage to all successive generations so that it no longer indicates the given name of a holder's father any more than the suffix -son on a Germanic language surname does today. Among English-speaking peoples of Gaelic heritage, the use of ''Nic'' as a prefix for daughters has been replaced by ''Mac'', regardless of sex (as per

Geraldine McGowan Geraldine McGowan is a singer from Dublin, Ireland. Works (selection) *Somewhere Along The Road *MMR CD 1003 "Reconciliation" on Magnetic Music *MMR CD 1007 "´til the morning comes" on Magnetic Music *MMR CD 1029 "Timeless" on Magnetic Music *G ...

Alyth McCormack Alyth Catriona McCormack (born 1970), also known mononymously as Alyth on some of her releases, is a Scottish singer and songwriter. She was brought up on the Isle of Lewis in the Scottish Outer Hebrides. In 2020 she has collaborated with the A ...

, and

Sarah McLachlan Sarah Ann McLachlan (born January 28, 1968) is a Canadian singer-songwriter. As of 2015, she had sold over 40 million albums worldwide. McLachlan's best-selling album to date is ''Surfacing (album), Surfacing'' (1997), for which she won two G ...

). Wives also began to take on the surnames of their husbands. Another common pattern of surname was similar to that preceded by Mac/Nic, but instead was preceded by Ó or Ui, signifying a grandchild or descendant. Not all Gaelic surnames signified relationship to a forebear, however. Some signified an ancestral people or homeland, such as ''MacDhubhghaill'' (son of a dark-haired foreigner; referring to one type of Scandinavian), ''MacFhionnghaill'' (son of a fair-haired foreigner; also referring to a Scandinavian people), MacLachlainn or MacLachlainneach (son of a Scandinavian). Others indicated the town or village of a family's origin, sometimes disguised as an ancestor's name as in

Ó Creachmhaoil Ó Creachmhaoil is an Irish surname, often anglicised as Craughwell, Croughwell, Crockwell, and Croghwell. Several sources, including Edward MacLysaght's ''Surnames of Ireland'', associate the surname with the village of Craughwell () in Cou ...

, which prefixes a

toponym Toponymy, toponymics, or toponomastics is the study of ''wikt:toponym, toponyms'' (proper names of places, also known as place names and geographic names), including their origins, meanings, usage, and types. ''Toponym'' is the general term for ...

as though it was the name of a person. As with other culturo-linguistic groups, other types of surnames were often used as well, including trade-names such as ''MacGhobhainn'', ''Mac a'Ghobhainn'' or ''Mac Gabhainn'' (''son of the smith''), and physical characteristics such as hair colour. In anglicizing Gaelic names, the prefixes ''Mac'', ''Nic'', and ''Ó'' were frequently removed (the name ''Ó Fathaigh'', by example, was sometimes anglicized as ''Fahey'' or ''Fay'', identically to the given name; ''Ó Leannáin'' and ''Ó Lionáin'' have both been anglicized as ''Lennon''; ''Ó Ceallaigh'' and ''Ó Cadhla'' have been anglicized as ''Kelly''). Where they were retained, ''Mac'' was often rendered ''Mc'', ''M', ''or ''Mag-'' (the last is seen in renderings such as ''Maguire'' for ''Mac Uidhir'') and ''Ó/Ui'' became ''O. ''MacGhobhainn'', ''Mac a'Ghobhainn'' and ''Mac Gabhainn'' (''son of the smith'') were anglicized as ''McGowan'', ''Gowan'', ''McGavin'', and ''Gavin''. In surnames which had been prefixed ''Mac'' (which includes most Manx surnames), the final hard ''c'' sound remained when the ''Mac'' was removed. As Gaelic spelling rules required the first letter of a name preceded by Mac or Nic to be lenited (providing it was a consonant other than l, n, or r, which are not generally lenited in Gaelic, or c or g; although in the case of the last two, they ''are'' lenited when the intended connotation is ''"son/daughter of"'' rather than a surname. By example, if stating that ''James (Scott) is the son of Calum (Stuart)'' in Gaelic, it would be phrased ''Seumas mac Chaluim'', as distinct from ''Seumas MacCaluim'' for a James with the surname ''MacCaluim'') with the addition of an h after it (originally, this had been indicated in handscript by a dot above the letter, but with the introduction of printing with movable type the ''h'' was substituted) after a consonant (silencing it, or changing its sound), and for the last vowel to be slender (i or e) if male, the anglicized form of a Gaelic name could look quite different. By example, ''MacPhearais'' (''Mac+Pearas''=''son of Pierce'') has been anglicized as ''Corish'', and ''MacAonghais'' has been anglicized as ''MacAngus'', ''MacInnis'', ''MacInnes'', ''Innis'', ''Innes'', and ''Guinness''. As with Gaelic and Germanic surnames,

Welsh surnames Fixed surnames were adopted in Wales from the 15th century onwards. Until then, the Welsh had a patronymic naming system. History In 1292, 48 per cent of Welsh names were patronymics and, in some parishes, over 70 per cent. Other names were ...

and

Cornish surnames Cornish surnames are surnames used by Cornish people and often derived from the Cornish language such as Jago, Trelawney or Enys. Others have strong roots in the region and many in the UK with names such as Eddy, Stark or Rowe are likely to hav ...

had originally been mostly

patronymic A patronymic, or patronym, is a component of a personal name based on the given name of one's father, grandfather (more specifically an avonymic), or an earlier male ancestor. It is the male equivalent of a matronymic. Patronymics are used, b ...

, though others contained

ic elements, or were derived from trades, or personal characteristics. Surnames which remained fixed across generations, passed down along the male line of descent (provided parents were married) were adopted under the dictate of the English Government from the

sixteenth century The 16th century began with the Julian year 1501 (represented by the Roman numerals MDI) and ended with either the Julian or the Gregorian year 1600 (MDC), depending on the reckoning used (the Gregorian calendar introduced a lapse of 10 days in ...

. As in the Gaelic-speaking areas, many

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, of or about Wales * Welsh language, spoken in Wales * Welsh people, an ethnic group native to Wales Places * Welsh, Arkansas, U.S. * Welsh, Louisiana, U.S. * Welsh, Ohio, U.S. * Welsh Basin, during t ...

(''Cymric'') patronyms were anglicised by omitting the prefix indicating ''son of'' and either exchanging the father's Welsh forename for its English equivalent, or re-spelling it according to English spelling rules, and, either way, most commonly adding ''-s'' to the end, so that the such as 'ap Hywell' became Powell, and 'ap Siôn' to

Jones Jones or Joneses may refer to: People and fictional characters *Jones (surname), a common Welsh and English surname * List of people with surname Jones, including fictional characters ** Justice Jones (disambiguation) ** Judge Jones (disambiguati ...

Upjohn The Upjohn Company was an American pharmaceutical manufacturing firm (est. 1886) in Hastings, Michigan, by Dr. William E. Upjohn, an 1875 graduate of the University of Michigan medical school. The company was originally formed to make ''friable ...

. The first generation to adopt this Anglicisation hereafter handed it down unchanged to children. Many Cornish (''Kernewek'') names have been anglicised in similar ways.

Immigration to English-speaking countries

Anglicisation of non-English-language names was common for immigrants, or even visitors, to English-speaking countries. An example is the German composer

Johann Christian Bach Johann Christian Bach (5 September 1735 – 1 January 1782) was a German composer of the Classical era, the youngest son of Johann Sebastian Bach. He received his early musical training from his father, and later from his half-brother, Carl ...

, the "London Bach", who was known as "John Bach" after emigrating to England. During the time in which there were large influxes of immigrants from

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

to the United States and United Kingdom during the 19th and 20th centuries, the given names and surnames of many immigrants were changed. This became known colloquially as the "

Ellis Island Special An Ellis Island Special is a family name that is perceived or labeled, incorrectly, as having been anglicized or otherwise altered by immigration officials at the Ellis Island immigration station when a family reached the United States, typically f ...

", after the U.S. immigrant processing center on

Ellis Island Ellis Island is an island in New York Harbor, within the U.S. states of New Jersey and New York (state), New York. Owned by the U.S. government, Ellis Island was once the busiest immigrant inspection and processing station in the United State ...

; contrary to popular myth, no names were ever legally changed at Ellis Island, and immigrants almost always changed them at their own discretion. Traditionally common Christian given names could be substituted: such as James for the etymologically connected Jacques. Alternatively phonetical similarities, such as Joe for Giò (Giovanni or Giorgio); or abbreviation, Harry for Harilaos, or Ricky for Enrique (Henry), as common in Spanish, instead of for (Ricardo) Richard as in English. The anglicisation of a personal name now usually depends on the preferences of the bearer. Name changes are less common today for Europeans emigrating to the United States than they are for people originating in, or descending from those who emigrated from,

East Asian East Asia is a geocultural region of Asia. It includes China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan, plus two special administrative regions of China, Hong Kong and Macau. The economies of Economy of China, China, Economy of Ja ...

countries. Requests that the bearer anglicize their personal name against their wishes are viewed as a form of racism or xenophobia.

French surnames

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

immigrants to the United States (both those of

Huguenot The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...

and

French-Canadian French Canadians, referred to as Canadiens mainly before the nineteenth century, are an ethnic group descended from French colonists first arriving in France's colony of Canada in 1608. The vast majority of French Canadians live in the prov ...

background) often accommodated those unfamiliar with

pronunciations and spellings by altering their surnames (or encounter having them altered) in either of two ways: spellings were changed to fit the traditional pronunciation (Pariseau became Parizo, Boucher became Bushey, Mailloux became Mayhew, Cartier became Carter, Carpentier became Carpenter), or pronunciations were changed to fit the spelling (Benoît, pronounced , became Benway, or Bennett ). * Benoit: Bennett, Benning, Benway * Boucher: Bush, Bushey * Caúvin: Calvin * Carpentier: Carpenter * Carré: Carey, Carrey * Carteret, Cartier: Carter * Croquetagne: Crockett * Cussaq: Cusack, Cusick * DeMontgomerie: Montgomery * Goúrdon: Gordon * Gránd, LeGránd: Grant * Olivier: Oliver * Parquier: Parker * Phillippe: Philips, Phillips * Poitier: Porter * Steuart: Stewart, Stuart * Vernou: Vernon

Greek given names

Some Greek names are anglicized using the etymologically related name: Agni: Agnes; Alexandros/Alexis: Alexander/Alex; Alexandra: Alexandra/Alex; Andreas: Andrew; Christophoros: Christopher; Evgenios/Evgenis: Eugene/Gene; Eleni: Helen; Georgios/Yorgos: George; Ioannis/Yannis: John; Irini: Irene; Katharini: Catherine/Kate; Markos: Mark; Michail/Michalis: Michael; Nikolaos: Nicholas; Pavlos: Paul; Petros: Peter; Stephanos: Stephen; Theodoros: Theodore/Ted; and so on. Besides simple abbreviation or anglicisation of spelling, there are some conventional English versions of or nicknames for Greek names which were formerly widely used and are still encountered: * Anestis: Ernest * Alexandros: Alexander, Alex * Apostolos: Paul * Aristotelis: Aristotle * Anastasia: Ana, Stasi, Stacey * Andreas: Andrew * Angeliki: Angela, Angel * Athanasios: Thomas, Tom, Athan, Nathan * Christos: Chris * Demosthenes: Dick * Despina: Dessi, Tessi, Tess * Dimitrios/Dimi: James, Jim, Jimmy, Demi * Dionysios: Dennis, Dean * Haralambos: Harry, Bob * Harilaos: Charles, Harry * Eleftherios/Lefteris: Terence, Terry * Eleftheria: Elli, Terrie * Eleni: Helen, Elaine * Evgenia: Eugenia * Gavriil: Gabriel, Gabe * Georgios, Yiorgos: George * Ilias: Louie, Elias, Lou, Louis * Konstantinos/Kostas: Gus, Charles, Dean, Constantine * Leonidas: Leo * Maria: Mary, Marie * Michail: Michael, Mike * Michaella: Michelle * Nikolaos: Nicholas, Nick * Panayiotis: Peter, Pete (cf. Petros) * Pavlos: Paul * Stavros: Steve * Vasilios: William, Bill; (''etymologically correct but not preferred'': Basil) Hundreds of Spiritual Christian

Doukhobors The Doukhobors ( Canadian spelling) or Dukhobors (; ) are a Spiritual Christian ethnoreligious group of Russian origin. They are known for their pacifism and tradition of oral history, hymn-singing, and verse. They reject the Russian Ortho ...

who migrated from Russia to Canada from 1899 to 1930, changed their surnames. Genealogist Jonathan Kalmakoff posted comprehensive lists for
Alberta (1935–1975)

British Columbia
(1936–1975)
Saskatchewan (1917–1975)

Russian surnames

Many descendants of

Spiritual Christians Spiritual Christianity () is the group of belief systems held by so-called folk Protestants (), including non-Eastern Orthodox indigenous faith tribes and new religious movements that emerged in the Russian Empire. Their origins are varied: some ...

from Russia in California, whose parents immigrated to Los Angeles (1904–1912), hid their family surnames due to real and perceived ethnic discrimination during the

Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...

. * Androff, Veronin: Andrews * Butchinoff: Baker * Baklanov: Bakly * Bolderoff: Bolder * Pivovaroff: Brewer * Chernikoff: Cherney * Arinin, Orloff: Eagles * Carpoff: Karp * Chernabieff: Sharon * Chickenoff, Chickinoff: Chick * Corneyff: Corney * Domansky: Domane * Egnatoff: Egnatu * Elinov: Eleen * Fetesoff: Martin * Fettesoff, Fettisoff: Fettis * Galitzen: Riley * Goulokin: Golf * Gvozdiff: Niles * Hallivichoff, Golovachev: Hall * Kalpakoff: Kalp * Kashirsky: Kash * Kasimoff: Kazy * Kisseloff, Kesseloff: Kissell * Klubnikin: Klubnik * Konovaloff: Conway * Kotoff: Kott * Krasilnikoff: Krase * Kriakin: Emerald * Kuznetsoff: Cousins * Laschenco: Lashin * Ledieav: Liege * Mackshanoff: Maxwell * Martinov, Martynov: Martin * Melnikoff: Melnick * Moiseve: Mosser * Petrov, Petrova: Peters * Petrovich: Peterson * Plujnkoff: Pluss * Popoff: Preston * Rabinovich, Rabinovitz, Rabinowitz: Robinson * Robertov, Robertovich: Roberts, Robertson * Robinovich, Robinov: Robinson * Rudometkin: Remmy * Rudometkin: Ruddy * Semenisheff: Samoff * Slivkoff: Martin * Smitrovich, Zmitrowicz: Smith * Syapin: Seaking * Tikhunov: Saber * Tolmasoff: Thomas, Thompson, Tolmas * Urane: Durain * Uren: Wren * Varonin: Johnson * Volkoff: Wolf

German surnames

German Americans are the second largest ethnic group in the USA numbering at almost 16 million of US population. with an additional 29 million with some German ancestry. Immigration from Germany can be traced back to 1608 (Jamestown, VA), but migration was highest between the mid 19th century and early 20th century. From 1876 to 1923, Germany was the largest source of US Immigrants. From 1923 to 1970, it was the 2nd largest source of US Immigrants after Italy. A formal immigration process channeling immigrants through Ellis Island only began in 1892. Immigrants arriving prior to this, did not receive official immigration papers documenting their names. This created a fluidity in how families chose to spell their names. Legal problems caused by spelling variations in Surnames were addressed by the Land Purchases Act. This Act established the principle of ''idem sonans,'' that is if differently spelled names "sounded the same," a claim of an unbroken line of ownership could be acknowledged. Since preserving the name's sound was legally important, common forms of Surname changes involved spelling adaptations that helped English readers replicate the original German pronunciation. The First and Second World Wars created pockets of xenophobia against German Americans. During the same period, The Anti-Saloon league, successfully lobbied the Government to enact prohibition, using racist "us vs them" propaganda against German Americans, who owned a large percentage of American breweries. During the window of anti-German hostilities in the US, some German Americans chose to blur their connections with their ancestral homeland, by translating part or whole of their surnames into English. Once again, translations that limited change in sound were preferred over those that sounded different. Relative to the sustained German mass immigration during the 19th and early 20th century, this practice of surname translation was unusual and not very widespread. In the 1940s, automobile registration documents, along with widespread implementation of social security, played an important role in stabilizing American surnames by legally documenting most of the US population's names. * Becker: Baker, Beck * Bennink: Benning * Bresler, Bressler: Presley * Braum, Braun: Brown * Freedman, Freedmann, Friedman, Friedmann: Freeman * Gaetz: Gates * Jensen, Jenssens: Johnson * Koch: Cook * Müller, Mueller: Miller * Nauman, Naumann, Neuman, Neumann, Nieman, Niemann, Numan, Numann: Newman * Nielsen, Nilsen: Nelson * Pieters, Pieterse: Peters * Pietersen, Pieterssen: Peterson * Presler, Pressler: Presley * Schmid, Schmidl, Schmidt, Schmitt, Schmitz: Smith * Schweigert, Zweigert: Stewart, Stuart * Siewert, Steier, Steiert, Steiger, Steuer, Steuert, Stewert: Stewart, Stuart * Stadler, Stetler: Statler * Sten, Stein, Steinn, Steiner: Stone * Wachter, Watcher, Welker, Welcker: Walker * Weber: Weaver, Webb, Webster * Werner, Werhner: Warner

Italian surnames

Italian surnames were often anglicized in the United States: for example, the i-ending of a number of Italian names becomes ''y'', ''e'', or ''ie''. * Amici: Ameche * Barbieri:

Barber A barber is a person whose occupation is mainly to cut, dress, groom, style and shave hair or beards. A barber's place of work is known as a barbershop or the barber's. Barbershops have been noted places of social interaction and public discourse ...

* Benetti, Benedetto: Benedict, Bennett, Benning * Bevilacqua: Drinkwater * Bianco: White * Bonfiglio: Bonfield * Borgnino:

Borgnine Ernest Borgnine ( ; born Ermes Effron Borgnino; January 24, 1917 – July 8, 2012) was an American actor whose career spanned over six decades. He was noted for his gruff but relaxed voice and gap-toothed Cheshire Cat grin. A popular per ...

* Brucceleri: Brooklier * Canadeo: Kennedy * Castiglia: Costello * Cestaro: Chester * Cilibrizzi: Celebrezze * Cipulli: Cipully * Crocetti: Crockett * Cucco, Cuoco: Cook * DeCesare:

Chase Chase or CHASE may refer to: Businesses * Chase Bank, a national American financial institution * Chase UK, a British retail bank * Chase Aircraft (1943–1954), a defunct American aircraft manufacturer * Chase Coaches, a defunct bus operator in ...

* DeMarti, DeMartina, DeMartini, DeMartino: Martin * Marti, Martina, Martini, Martino: Martin * Mercante:

Merchant A merchant is a person who trades in goods produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Merchants have been known for as long as humans have engaged in trade and commerce. Merchants and merchant networks operated i ...

* Morillo: Morill * Pace:

Pace Pace or paces may refer to: Business *Pace (transit), a bus operator in the suburbs of Chicago, US *Pace Airlines, an American charter airline * Pace Foods, a maker of a popular brand of salsa sold in North America, owned by Campbell Soup Compan ...

same spelling different pronunciation * Perri:

Perry Perry or pear cider is an alcoholic beverage made from fermented pears, traditionally in England (particularly Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, and Worcestershire), parts of South Wales, France (especially Normandy and Anjou), Canada, Austral ...

* Piccolo: Little * Rossellini: Russell * Rossi: Ross * Sangiovanni: St. John * Saraceni:

Sarazen Sarazen (1921–1940) was an American Hall of Fame Champion Thoroughbred racehorse. Owned by Colonel Phil T. Chinn's Himyar Stud, Sarazen won his first three starts. Chinn then sold him for a huge profit to Virginia Fair Vanderbilt, who raced ...

* Scalice, Scalise: Scalise, Scalish * Scornavacca, Scornavacco: Scarnavack * Scotta, Scotti, Scotto: Scott * Ta(g)liaferro: Tolliver, Toliver * Trafficante: Traficant * Valentino: Valentine * Vinciguerra: Winwar

Dutch surnames

When

Dutch Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands ** Dutch people as an ethnic group () ** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship () ** Dutch language () * In specific terms, i ...

immigrants arrived in the United States, often their names got changed. This was either done on purpose, to make the name easier to write and remember, or by accident because the clerk didn't know how to spell the name and wrote it down phonetically. * Aalderink: Aaldering, Aldering * Bennink: Benning * Buiel:

Boyle Boyle may refer to: Places United States * Boyle, Kansas, an unincorporated community * Boyle, Mississippi, a town *Boyle County, Kentucky *Boyle Heights, Los Angeles, a neighborhood Elsewhere * Boyle (crater), a lunar crater * 11967 Boyle, ...

* Damkot: Damcott * de Jong: Dejong, DeYoung, Young * Dijkstra: Dykstra * Filips: Philips, Phillips * Gerritsen: Garrison * Glieuwen: Glewen * Goudswaard: Houseworth * Griffoen: Griffin * Hoed: Hood * Janszoon, Janssens: Johnson * Kempink: Camping * Konings: King *

Kuiper Kuiper is a Dutch occupational surname meaning cooper. Common spelling variants include Kuyper, Kuipers, Kuijper, Kuijpers, Kuypers, and De Kuyper. Notable people with the name include: Kuiper * Adrian Kuiper (born 1959), South African crick ...

Cooper Cooper, Cooper's, Coopers and similar may refer to: * Cooper (profession), a maker of wooden casks and other staved vessels Arts and entertainment * Cooper (producers), an alias of Dutch producers Klubbheads * "Cooper", a song by Roxette from ...

* Langstraat: Longstreet * Meester: Master * Nieuwenhuis, Nijenhuis: Newhouse * Nieman, Niemann: Newman * Piek: Pike * Pieters, Pieterse: Peters * Pietersen, Pieterssen, Pieterszoon: Peterson * Smid: Smith * Spaak: Spock * Steyaert, Stuywaert, Styaert: Stewart, Stuart * Van Cruijningen: Cunningham * Veenhuis: Feenhouse * Welhuis, Welhuizen: Wellhouse, Willhouse * Zutphen: Sutphin

Colonization by English-speaking countries

North America

=Coastal Salish

Coastal Salish The Coast Salish peoples are a group of ethnically and linguistically related Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast, living in the Canadian province of British Columbia and the U.S. states of Washington and Oregon. They speak one o ...

people were often given "Boston names" by early European settlers. These English names often had similar sounds to original

Lushootseed Lushootseed ( ), historically known as Puget Salish, Puget Sound Salish, or Skagit-Nisqually, is a Central Coast Salish language of the Salishan language family. Lushootseed is the general name for the dialect continuum composed of two main di ...

names. When

names were integrated into English, they were often recorded and pronounced very differently. An example of this is

Chief Seattle Seattle ( – June 7, 1866; , ; usually styled as Chief Seattle) was a leader of the Duwamish and Suquamish peoples. A leading figure among his people, he pursued a path of accommodation to white settlers, forming a personal relationship wi ...

. The name Seattle is an anglicisation of the modern Duwamish conventional spelling Si'ahl, equivalent to the modern

spelling ''siʔaɫ'' . He is also known as Sealth, Seathle, Seathl, or See-ahth.{{Cite news, url=http://www.historylink.org/File/5071, title=Chief Seattle (Seattle, Chief Noah orn si?al, 178?–1866, access-date=2018-10-06

References

Bibliography

H. L. Mencken Henry Louis Mencken (September 12, 1880 – January 29, 1956) was an American journalist, essayist, satirist, cultural critic, and scholar of American English. He commented widely on the social scene, literature, music, prominent politicians, ...

, ''

The American Language ''The American Language; An Inquiry into the Development of English in the United States'', first published in 1919, is a book written by H. L. Mencken about the English language as spoken in the United States. Origins and concept Mencken was ...

'', 2nd edition, 1921, Chapter X, part 2
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* H. L. Mencken, ''The American Language'', 4th edition, 1936, pp. 510–525. * H. L. Mencken, ''The American Language'', Supplement Two, 1948, pp. 516–525. Cultural assimilation and names English language