The World of Words: Vocabulary for College Success ... - eLibrary

Review 129and Taylors (tailors) did. Over time, however, these names lost theirmeanings, and very few Smiths living today would be able to makehorseshoes!Other last names were taken from places. Abraham Lincoln’s lastname means “from the lake colony.” And there are two places in Englandnamed Washington. One was the origin of George Washington’s surname.A third source of names is one’s father’s name. Three of the five mostpopular names in the United States have the meaning of “son”: Johnsonand Jones mean “son of John.” Williams means “son of William.” In addition,the Scottish “Mc” or “Mac” means “son,” so the name MacDonald wasonce (9)to the son of a Donald. Similarly,Ramirez means “son of Ramon” and Gutierrez means “son of Gutierre”(Walter, in English).A fourth source of names was the use of nicknames. Peoplemust have been (10)in a bit of fun when theygave tall people the names Longfellow or Lang. A stranger hearing thename of Short or Moody would know exactly what to expect from appearanceor behavior.The name Rich would be given to a(n) (11)person.Red might refer to a hair color or to a person who was a showoff.However, the meanings of some of these names have changed. Thename Stout, now meaning a bit overweight, once referred to a noisyand bad-tempered person likely to become (12)at gatherings. A(n)person, who never complained,might be given the name “Perry,” which means stone.Copyright © Cengage Learning. All Right Reserved.Having a surname was once (13), but in today’sworld it is required. There are many different customs for giving lastnames. (14) A(n)person, who has traveledthroughout the world, has probably observed many ways in which lastnames are formed. A single name may be (15)from two names. In Spanish-speaking countries, for example, a mother’slast name is added to a father’s with a hyphen. For example, EugenioCortez-Portillo has a father whose surname is Cortez and a mother whosesurname is Portillo. In China, last names are put first. Thus the last nameof Mao Zedong was Mao. In Russia, a father’s name is given as a“patronymic” middle name. Alexander Fekson’s son Gennady is GennadyAlexandrovich Fekson. Alexander’s daughter Sophia is SophiaAlexandrovna Fekson. The most respectful way to address a Russian is touse a first name and patronymic, as in Gennady Alexandrovich.