Friends , after a week out of connextion, I`m now back. Now I have moved to a Copenhagen suburb, and even I still have more than 80 boxes to emty and put up some lights, I got my computer and telephone up and on. With a weeks delay I can post a comment to the naming traditions and laws in Denmark. I can see that you are now looking for origine gambian names. I find it very interesting. But here is my delayed comment: I´m sure there are many different name-traditions, not to mention rules and regulations all over. I once studied the names and the naming traditions in Denmark in the 15 century taken all the names from the deeds and seals on documents. It was fantastic to see how many specially first names origined from The Bible, from south of Europa, very few was of nordic origine. The surnames were also "foreign". This is not unusual because most of the people who could afford to exchange deeds came from families with origine in Europe south of Denmark. Many names were also taken from the nature, animals, a custom which is more common in Sweden than in Denmark. Or else you were given the name of the place where you were born or came from, or the job you performed. Up till the last century the "normal" naming-rules among the peasants was that you took your fathers name as your surname. F.in. Peter Hansson. His son would be given a first name f.in. Kresten and his surname would be his fathers first name + son = Kresten Peterson. So Peterson was the son of Hansson, who was the son of Hans. The son of Kresten Peterson would be f.in. Niels Krestenson. So you could not recognize a famely-line on a common surname, because the surname was changed every next generation. To find the father you should look for a first name. Hans Jenson (later Jensen) Peter Hanson (Hansen) Kresten Petersen Niels Kristensen In Iceland they still practise this rule. It´s very difficult for a foreinger to find a person in the telephone-book, because you will have to know the persons first name. And if it´s a daughter she will take the fathers first name + dottir (=daughter). Ragnhild Ingemarsdottir is the daughter of Ingemar. How is todays naming-law in Denmark, when you marry ? Let say I, Asbjørn Sterner Nordam marry Grethe Mollerup Pedersen. 1. In the mariage we can continue with our own names A.S.N. and G.M.P. 2. We can also decide to take one of the surnames, so we will be A.S.Nordam and G.M.Nordam or A.S.Pedersen and G.M.Pedersen 3. We can exchage surnames: A. S. Pedersen and G. M. Nordam 4. We can keep our surnames as second name, and take the spouse´s surname: Asbjørn Sterner Nordam Pedersen and Grethe Mollerup Pedersen Nordam 4 A) If we want to make hyphen in between we can do so but it is a "name-changing" and will cost DKr. 3000: A. S. Nordam-Pedersen/ G. M. Pedersen-Nordam 4 B) If we can and want to make a surname as a combination of the two surnames, we will have to apply because that is also a "change of names" and if allowed it will cost DKr. 3000,- It is not allowed to make the combination 4), 4 A) if we both want to have the same combination as a joint surname. F.in: if we want to have Nordam Pedersen or Pedersen Nordam, because you are not allowed to have your spouse´s surname as a second name (?!) There are names which are "protected". F.in. I can not erase my surname "Nordam" and make my second name "Sterner" as my surname. The Sterner-family will not allow that to happen, so their name as many other names are "protected". You are not allowed to create a name which is so close to a protected one, that it can be misunderstood as so: f.in. "Steerner" og "Sternar" You may not use a name which can be or is offensive for other people. Historical names are also protected. The surname may not conflict with normal danish language in spelling or pronunciation, and a first name may never be used as a surname. When a child is born it will automatically get the parents surname, if they have the same surname. f.in. "Nordam" or "Pedersen" If the parents have different surnames, they can decide that the child will have a) the fathers OR the mothers surname, "Nordam" or "Pedersen" b) a combination of the parents different surnames "Nordam Pedersen" or "Pedersen Nordam" or c) within the first 6 month of the childs life it´s also free to have the combination with the hyphen: "Nordam-Pedersen" or "Pedersen-Nordam". But if not registered as so it will after 6 month have to apply and pay to get such a surname. A name will have to be registered by the authorities not later than 6 months after the birth else the authorities will automatically register the child with the surname of the mother the day she gave birth to the child I´m Asbjørn Herluf Juul Sterner Nordam, but I only use Asbjørn Nordam. "Asbjørn" is ancient nordic, "Herluf" is my grandfathers (my mothers father) first name, "Juul" is second name in my mothers family (she was Tove Agnete Juul Segalt, but took my fathers surname when they married), "Sterner" is second name in my fathers family (he was Egon Sterner Nordam), and both my parents surname was "Nordam" the day I was born. Regards from Asbjørn Nordam ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html ----------------------------------------------------------------------------