Naming traditions around the world - Spain, the UK, the USA

Naming traditions vary from country to country, group to group. family to family.

In my family, people in my grandaprent's generation turned out to have different names to their birth certificates, because when they married they found themselves sharing a house with other women of the same name and that was too confusing. 

In the UK, the kings sometimes had the same name as the father. That made succession easier. The initials stay the same. People who once swore allegiance to the king by a certain name, had a sense of continuity. Less alteration to banners and embroidery. no embarrasssement about calling somebody by their predecessor's name. Easy to rmember the name of your king for the subjects and visiting ambassaors or royalty, or scribes.

If you visit Spanin, or a Spanish restaurant, or somebody Spanish visits you and explains their system (as hapened to me) you find that often the mother's family name is kept as a middle name. That was done in the UK by Billy Jean King, tannis player, and if you are already known in your profession or trade by a name, it is easy. 

Americans tend to name sons as Junior. That way, in the USA, at least you distinguish between father and son when writing bout them. Martin Luther King Junior. Of course, the name Martin Luther itself is already a name copy of a famous long-dead person.

I have seen two posts about people who are angry that another relative or friend wants to use the same name as the writer. In one case the other person got pregnant first. In another the relative wanted to use the name of a deceased child. 

In the second case the upset writer said she was not sure what she was jealous about.

Not sure what you are jealous about? It's blindingly obvious. You are jealous that she has a daughter and you don't. You feel that she has stolen your daughter's memory. You are probably afraid feel that every time you hear the name it will remind you of your daughter. To me the whole things is absurd, to have two people in a household of the same name so when you call out they both come running. Quite simply, you have been outvoted. Your mother gave her name to her child and her grandchild. Unfortunately the grandchild died, so now your mother has another chance at immortality. Your mother also lost. You might suggest adding another middle name so that it won't cost anything to change the name if you have another child or your relative's child herself wants a unique name. 

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