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Alternative formsEdit


From Ancient Greek πατήρ (patḗr, father) + ὄνομα (ónoma, name). Also patronym +‎ -ic, from patri- +‎ -onym


patronymic (not comparable)

  1. Derived from one's father
  2. By extension, derived from one's ancestors
    a patronymic denomination


patronymic (plural patronymics)

  1. Name acquired from one's father.
  2. By extension, name acquired from one's father's, grandfather's or earlier (male) ancestor's first name. Some cultures use a patronymic where other cultures use a surname or family name; other cultures (like Russia) use both a patronymic and a surname.
    • 2013 May 16, European Court of Human Rights, Garnaga v. Ukraine[1], number 20390/07, marginal 7–10:
      According to the applicant, for many years she had been living as part of a family with her stepfather, mother and half-brother and wanted to associate herself more closely with them by taking the surname of her stepfather and also a patronymic derived from his forename.
      On 24 March 2004 the applicant lodged a request with the Civil Status Registration Office in Bila Tserkva (hereinafter “the Registration Office”) seeking to change her patronymic from Volodymyrivna (Володимирівна) to Yuriyivna (Юріївна).
      By a letter of 27 March 2004 the Registration Office refused the applicant’s request, referring to the Rules on Civil Status Registration in Ukraine, approved by the Ministry of Justice, which provided that the patronymic of a physical person could only be changed in the event of a change of forename by his or her father.
      On 23 April 2004 the applicant challenged this refusal in the Bila Tserkva Local Court. She complained that her patronymic, along with her forename and family name, was part of her full name and she had the right to change it. She maintained that the refusal violated her constitutional rights, was unconstitutional and was not based on law. She further contended that she had good reasons for changing her patronymic - to disassociate herself from her biological father and associate herself more closely with her stepfather and half-brother.

Usage notesEdit

A patronymic is often formed by adding a prefix or suffix to a name.

First Name Affix Patronymic
Peter -son, -sen Peterson, Petersen
Patrick Fitz- Fitzpatrick
Hugh -es Hughes
Donald Mac, Mc MacDonald, McDonald
Ilya -ich Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Pyotr -ovich Petrovich
Sergey -evich Sergeyevich
Ilya -ichna Ilyinichna
Pyotr -ovna Petrovna
Sergey -evna Sergeyevna
Gonzalo -ez González
Kevork -ian Kevorkian


Coordinate termsEdit


See alsoEdit