English Canadian names

In English Canada, names follow much the same convention as they do in the United States and United Kingdom. The first name on the birth certificate is the name the child is expected to go by, although use of a middle name in everyday life is not uncommon. The last name is usually the same as the father's last name though it is not unheard of for children to take their mother's last name, or for both names to be hyphenated. Middle names are optional and are generally only used on official documentation. Multiple middle names are rare but are officially recognized.

With the exception of Quebec, either spouse, though usually the wife, has the right to change their last name after marriage. Their marriage certificate is considered proof of their new name.

One of Canada's chief values is multiculturalism

Multiculturalism

Multiculturalism is the appreciation, acceptance or promotion of multiple cultures, applied to the demographic make-up of a specific place, usually at the organizational level, e.g...

. As such it is not uncommon to see names that follow patterns differing from the English and French naming conventions.

French Canadian names

Given names in Quebec

In French Canada

French Canada

French Canada, also known as "Lower Canada", is a term to distinguish the French Canadian population of Canada from English Canada.-Definition:...

, up until the late 1960s, children of Roman Catholic origin were given three names at birth (usually not hyphenated): the first, Marie or Joseph, usually indicated the gender of the child. The second was usually the name of the godfather

Godparent

A godparent, in many denominations of Christianity, is someone who sponsors a child's baptism. A male godparent is a godfather, and a female godparent is a godmother...

 or godmother

Godparent

A godparent, in many denominations of Christianity, is someone who sponsors a child's baptism. A male godparent is a godfather, and a female godparent is a godmother...

, while the third and last given name was the name used in everyday situations. Thus, a child prenamed Joseph Bruno Jean on his birth or baptismal certificate would indicate the baby to be a boy, the godfather's first name to be Bruno and that the child would be called Jean (and not Joseph) for all intents and purposes of everyday life. This naming convention was in the most part dropped following the Quiet Revolution

Quiet Revolution

The Quiet Revolution was the 1960s period of intense change in Quebec, Canada, characterized by the rapid and effective secularization of society, the creation of a welfare state and a re-alignment of politics into federalist and separatist factions...

 (late 1960s), and is now seen much more rarely. The Quebec government recommends not using more than four given names.

Surnames in Quebec

Currently, most couples give the child the surname of the father, though the Quebec civil code allows a couple to combine at most two of their surnames, with or without hyphens. Thus a couple named Joseph Bouchard-Tremblay and Marie Dion-Roy could give to their children the surnames Bouchard, Tremblay, Dion, Roy, Bouchard-Tremblay, Dion-Roy, Bouchard-Dion, Bouchard-Roy, etc.
In Quebec

Quebec

Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....

, name change upon marriage is no longer automatic, and is difficult or impossible to do if desired. Requests for a name change in Quebec require a reason, and requests to adopt a husband's name after marriage have been denied in the past.

The "nom-dit" tradition

Until the late 19th century, several families also had a "nom-dit" tradition. This was a family nickname (literally a "said name"). The origins of the noms-dits were various. Some noms-dits were the war-name of the first settler, while he was a soldier: Hébert dit Jolicoeur (Pretty Heart, cf. Braveheart), Thomas dit Tranchemontagne (mountain chopper). Some denoted the place of origin of the first settler: Langevin (Anjou

Anjou

Anjou is a former county , duchy and province centred on the city of Angers in the lower Loire Valley of western France. It corresponds largely to the present-day département of Maine-et-Loire...

), Barbeau dit Poitevin (Poitou

Poitou

Poitou was a province of west-central France whose capital city was Poitiers.The region of Poitou was called Thifalia in the sixth century....

). Others probably denoted a characteristic of the person or of his dwelling: Lacourse, Lépine, Larivière.

See also

• List of most common Canadian surnames