Nobiliary particle
Encyclopedia
A nobiliary particle is used in a family name
or surname
in many Western culture
s to signal the nobility
of a family. The particle used varies depending on the country, language and period of time. This article is dedicated to explain how noble families of different countries identify themselves by using a nobiliary particle. However, in some languages the nobiliary particle is the same as a regular prepositional particle that was used in the creation of many surnames. In some countries it became customary to distinguish the nobiliary particle from the regular one by different spelling, although in other countries these conventions did not arise, occasionally resulting in ambiguity.
, the particle de precedes a nom de terre ("name of land") in many families of the French nobility, for example: Maximilien de Béthune, but some do not have this particle de, for example: Pierre Séguier
, Lord Chancellor of France. The particle can also be "du" (it means "of the" in the masculine form), or "des" (it means "of the" in the plural).
In French, de or d', when it appears also, in accordance with the rules of orthography
, if the nom de terre begins with a vowel (e.g. "Ferdinand d'Orléans"), means the link between a person and a land, for the landlord
s or for the peasant
s.
Never in the French history was this particle proof of nobility of a person. The nobleman was always designated "escuyer" (dapifer in Latin for squire
) or better, a "chevalier" (miles in Latin for knight
). Only the knights could be designated by the spoken style "monseigneur" or "messire" (dominus in Latin for sir
): (e.g. "monseigneur Bertrand du Guesclin
, chevalier" (English version: Sir B. du Guesclin, knight).
So, in fact and by convention, surnames with the non-noble use of the particle de are spelled as a single word (e.g. "Pierre Dupont
")., but many of them conserved the "de" as a separate word.
Since the 16th century, surnames among the French nobility are often composed of a combination of patronymic
names, titles, or noms de terres (names of lands or estates), joined by the preposition de, as in "Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord"., and the use of this particle began to be an essential appearance of nobility. But, after the end of the kingdom of France
, the use of de does not, however, invariably evidence nobility, as shown in Valéry Giscard d'Estaing
's grandfather's change of name in the early 20th century. Even earlier in the eighteenth and 19th centuries many middle-class families simply adopted the particle without being ennobled; Maximilien Robespierre
's family, for example, used the particle for some generations.
, the nobiliary particle de is also used in two different styles. The first is a "patronymic-de-toponymic
" formula, as used by, among others, the fifteenth-century general Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba
, the fourteenth-century chronicler and poet Pero López de Ayala
, the European discoverer of the eastern Pacific, Vasco Núñez de Balboa
, and many other conquistador
es. The second style is use of the particle de before the entire surname. This style resembles but is more ambiguous than the French one, since there is no convention for a different spelling when the de is simply a prepositional particle in non-noble toponymic names such as De la Rúa (literally, "of the street") or De la Torre ("of the tower"). Examples of nobility particle de without patronymic include the sixteenth-century first Marquis of Santa Cruz, Álvaro de Bazán
, the conquistador Hernando de Soto, and the styling of the king of Spain as Juan Carlos de Borbón
, a common tradition in Spanish culture. Unlike French, Spanish lacks elision
, and so no contraction is used when the surname starts with a vowel (though exceptionally we find Pedro Arias Dávila), but contraction is used when the surname includes the article "el" as in Baltasar del Alcázar
.
A Spanish law on names, from 1958 and still in force, does not allow a person to add a de to their surname if it does not already have it. The law does allow for one exception. A de may be added in front of a surname that could be otherwise misunderstood as a forename. Conclusive proof of the nobility of a surname can be determined by establishing whether that surname is associated with a blazon
, since for centuries coats of arms
have been borne legally only by a persons of noble condition.
Surnames composed of two names linked by a hyphen
("-"), implying that equal importance is given to both families, do not indicate nobility. For example, the hyphenated surname Suárez-Llanos does not indicate nobility.
and Austria
, von or zu generally precedes the surname of a noble family, with a meaning identical to de in French or Spanish (in, for example, the names of Alexander von Humboldt
and Gottfried Heinrich Graf zu Pappenheim
). Occasionally, they are even used together ("von und zu"), such as with current ruler of Liechtenstein
.
As in France and Spain, not all noble families use a nobiliary particle. The most ancient nobility, the Uradel
, are especially apt to omit its use. Conversely, the prefix von occurs in the names of some non-noble families, much like van in The Netherlands.
, the nobiliary particles de, borrowed from French, and of often were used in England
and Wales
by, among many others, Simon de Montfort
and Richard of Shrewsbury, 1st Duke of York
.
In modern times, a nobiliary particle is rarely used.
, de or von precedes a noble name, depending on the canton
of origin.
Furthermore, Portuguese nobility is traditionally recognised just to people being born to four noble quarters: both grandfathers and both grandmothers must have been noble for their grandson or granddaughter to be considered a noble at birth, independently of any noble name, with or without particle.
Portuguese surnames do not indicate nobility, as usually the same surnames exist in noble and non-noble families. The restriction to nobility and the clergy of bearing arms at the beginning of the 16th century, when king Manuel I extinguished the previous bourgeoisie
armorial, usually shows someone to be noble if he or she bears personal or family arms. But nobility in Portugal was never restricted to the bearers of arms, and many Portuguese nobles did not or do not have arms at all: in fact, to be a noble in Portugal, it was enough to have a University bachelor degree.
The articles de, and its different orthographic forms of do, dos, da, das, like in France, do not indicate nobility in the bearer. Portuguese modern law recognises to any citizen the right not to sign those articles, even if they are present in their identification documents, and the opposite right is legally allowed to those Portuguese citizens who, not having in their documentation any such prepositions, are able to sign it if they wish. In fact, articles and prepositions are considered in Portuguese nomenclature just as an embellishment to any name.
Good taste made usually Portuguese nobility reduce prepositions linking their many surnames, signing just one at the beginning of the name, and then the last surname being preceded by e (and), not to repeat the preposition. For instance, the name João Duarte da Silva dos Santos da Costa de Sousa may also legally be signed João Duarte Silva Santos Costa Sousa. Tradition and good taste should make him sign just João Duarte da Silva Santos Costa e Sousa. The last "and" (e) substitutes all previous surnames' prepositions except the first one, and cannot ever be used withouth a previous preposition to justify it. An exception to this rule is only shown with duplicate surnames linked by and (e), for instance when the maternal surnames come before the paternal ones: Diogo Afonso da Conceição e Silva (name and mother's duplicate surname)Tavares da Costa (paternal duplicate surname).
From the 19th century on, it become customary for Portuguese titled nobility to socially indicate their title as a subsidiary surname: for instance, Joaquim Diniz Tavares dos Santos e Silva (Paço do Lumiar). This social rule does not apply to members of the Portuguese royal house.
Furthermore, in lowland Scotland, a Laird
, would be known by the name of his estate, rather than his surname, thus removing the Nobiliary particle altogether, e.g. William Maitland of Lethington
.
Family name
A family name is a type of surname and part of a person's name indicating the family to which the person belongs. The use of family names is widespread in cultures around the world...
or surname
Surname
A surname is a name added to a given name and is part of a personal name. In many cases, a surname is a family name. Many dictionaries define "surname" as a synonym of "family name"...
in many Western culture
Western culture
Western culture, sometimes equated with Western civilization or European civilization, refers to cultures of European origin and is used very broadly to refer to a heritage of social norms, ethical values, traditional customs, religious beliefs, political systems, and specific artifacts and...
s to signal the nobility
Nobility
Nobility is a social class which possesses more acknowledged privileges or eminence than members of most other classes in a society, membership therein typically being hereditary. The privileges associated with nobility may constitute substantial advantages over or relative to non-nobles, or may be...
of a family. The particle used varies depending on the country, language and period of time. This article is dedicated to explain how noble families of different countries identify themselves by using a nobiliary particle. However, in some languages the nobiliary particle is the same as a regular prepositional particle that was used in the creation of many surnames. In some countries it became customary to distinguish the nobiliary particle from the regular one by different spelling, although in other countries these conventions did not arise, occasionally resulting in ambiguity.
France
In FranceFrance
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, the particle de precedes a nom de terre ("name of land") in many families of the French nobility, for example: Maximilien de Béthune, but some do not have this particle de, for example: Pierre Séguier
Pierre Séguier
-Early years:Born in Paris, France of a prominent legal family originating in Quercy. His grandfather, Pierre Séguier , was président à mortier in the parlement of Paris from 1554 to 1576, and the chancellor's father, Jean Séguier, a seigneur d'Autry, was civil lieutenant of Paris at the time of...
, Lord Chancellor of France. The particle can also be "du" (it means "of the" in the masculine form), or "des" (it means "of the" in the plural).
In French, de or d', when it appears also, in accordance with the rules of orthography
Elision (French)
In French, elision refers to the suppression of a final unstressed vowel immediately before another word beginning with a vowel. The term also refers to the orthographic convention by which the deletion of a vowel is reflected in writing, and indicated with an apostrophe.- Written French :In...
, if the nom de terre begins with a vowel (e.g. "Ferdinand d'Orléans"), means the link between a person and a land, for the landlord
Landlord
A landlord is the owner of a house, apartment, condominium, or real estate which is rented or leased to an individual or business, who is called a tenant . When a juristic person is in this position, the term landlord is used. Other terms include lessor and owner...
s or for the peasant
Peasant
A peasant is an agricultural worker who generally tend to be poor and homeless-Etymology:The word is derived from 15th century French païsant meaning one from the pays, or countryside, ultimately from the Latin pagus, or outlying administrative district.- Position in society :Peasants typically...
s.
Never in the French history was this particle proof of nobility of a person. The nobleman was always designated "escuyer" (dapifer in Latin for squire
Squire
The English word squire is a shortened version of the word Esquire, from the Old French , itself derived from the Late Latin , in medieval or Old English a scutifer. The Classical Latin equivalent was , "arms bearer"...
) or better, a "chevalier" (miles in Latin for knight
Knight
A knight was a member of a class of lower nobility in the High Middle Ages.By the Late Middle Ages, the rank had become associated with the ideals of chivalry, a code of conduct for the perfect courtly Christian warrior....
). Only the knights could be designated by the spoken style "monseigneur" or "messire" (dominus in Latin for sir
Sir
Sir is an honorific used as a title , or as a courtesy title to address a man without using his given or family name in many English speaking cultures...
): (e.g. "monseigneur Bertrand du Guesclin
Bertrand du Guesclin
Bertrand du Guesclin , known as the Eagle of Brittany or the Black Dog of Brocéliande, was a Breton knight and French military commander during the Hundred Years' War. He was Constable of France from 1370 to his death...
, chevalier" (English version: Sir B. du Guesclin, knight).
So, in fact and by convention, surnames with the non-noble use of the particle de are spelled as a single word (e.g. "Pierre Dupont
Pierre Dupont
Pierre Dupont , French song-writer, the son of a blacksmith, was born in Lyon.His parents both died before he was five years old, and he was brought up in the country by his godfather, a village priest. He was educated at the seminary of L'Argentire, and was afterwards apprenticed to a notary at Lyon...
")., but many of them conserved the "de" as a separate word.
Since the 16th century, surnames among the French nobility are often composed of a combination of patronymic
Patronymic
A patronym, or patronymic, is a component of a personal name based on the name of one's father, grandfather or an even earlier male ancestor. A component of a name based on the name of one's mother or a female ancestor is a matronymic. Each is a means of conveying lineage.In many areas patronyms...
names, titles, or noms de terres (names of lands or estates), joined by the preposition de, as in "Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord"., and the use of this particle began to be an essential appearance of nobility. But, after the end of the kingdom of France
Kingdom of France
The Kingdom of France was one of the most powerful states to exist in Europe during the second millennium.It originated from the Western portion of the Frankish empire, and consolidated significant power and influence over the next thousand years. Louis XIV, also known as the Sun King, developed a...
, the use of de does not, however, invariably evidence nobility, as shown in Valéry Giscard d'Estaing
Valéry Giscard d'Estaing
Valéry Marie René Georges Giscard d'Estaing is a French centre-right politician who was President of the French Republic from 1974 until 1981...
's grandfather's change of name in the early 20th century. Even earlier in the eighteenth and 19th centuries many middle-class families simply adopted the particle without being ennobled; Maximilien Robespierre
Maximilien Robespierre
Maximilien François Marie Isidore de Robespierre is one of the best-known and most influential figures of the French Revolution. He largely dominated the Committee of Public Safety and was instrumental in the period of the Revolution commonly known as the Reign of Terror, which ended with his...
's family, for example, used the particle for some generations.
Spain
In SpainSpain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, the nobiliary particle de is also used in two different styles. The first is a "patronymic-de-toponymic
Toponymy
Toponymy is the scientific study of place names , their origins, meanings, use and typology. The word "toponymy" is derived from the Greek words tópos and ónoma . Toponymy is itself a branch of onomastics, the study of names of all kinds...
" formula, as used by, among others, the fifteenth-century general Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba
Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba
Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba known as The Great Captain, Duke of Terranova and Santangelo, Andria, Montalto and Sessa, also known as Gonzalo de Córdoba, Italian: Gonsalvo or Consalvo Ernandes di Cordova was a Spanish general fighting in the times of the Conquest of Granada and the Italian Wars...
, the fourteenth-century chronicler and poet Pero López de Ayala
Pero López de Ayala
Don Pero López de Ayala was a Castilian statesman, historian, poet, chronicler, chancellor, and courtier. Ayala were one of the major aristocratic families of Castile; they were later claimed to be of the Jewish converso descent, but Pero's own father composed a genealogy tracing the family from...
, the European discoverer of the eastern Pacific, Vasco Núñez de Balboa
Vasco Núñez de Balboa
Vasco Núñez de Balboa was a Spanish explorer, governor, and conquistador. He is best known for having crossed the Isthmus of Panama to the Pacific Ocean in 1513, becoming the first European to lead an expedition to have seen or reached the Pacific from the New World.He traveled to the New World in...
, and many other conquistador
Conquistador
Conquistadors were Spanish soldiers, explorers, and adventurers who brought much of the Americas under the control of Spain in the 15th to 16th centuries, following Europe's discovery of the New World by Christopher Columbus in 1492...
es. The second style is use of the particle de before the entire surname. This style resembles but is more ambiguous than the French one, since there is no convention for a different spelling when the de is simply a prepositional particle in non-noble toponymic names such as De la Rúa (literally, "of the street") or De la Torre ("of the tower"). Examples of nobility particle de without patronymic include the sixteenth-century first Marquis of Santa Cruz, Álvaro de Bazán
Álvaro de Bazán, 1st Marquis of Santa Cruz
Álvaro de Bazán, 1st Marquis of Santa Cruz de Mudela , was a Spanish admiral.-Biography:Álvaro de Bazán was born in Granada....
, the conquistador Hernando de Soto, and the styling of the king of Spain as Juan Carlos de Borbón
Juan Carlos I of Spain
Juan Carlos I |Italy]]) is the reigning King of Spain.On 22 November 1975, two days after the death of General Francisco Franco, Juan Carlos was designated king according to the law of succession promulgated by Franco. Spain had no monarch for 38 years in 1969 when Franco named Juan Carlos as the...
, a common tradition in Spanish culture. Unlike French, Spanish lacks elision
Elision
Elision is the omission of one or more sounds in a word or phrase, producing a result that is easier for the speaker to pronounce...
, and so no contraction is used when the surname starts with a vowel (though exceptionally we find Pedro Arias Dávila), but contraction is used when the surname includes the article "el" as in Baltasar del Alcázar
Baltasar del Alcázar
Baltasar del Alcázar was a Spanish poet from Seville, Spain. His poetry was about life and love, most of it spiced with a keen sense of humor.A short example of his poetry is Tres Cosas :Tres cosas me tienen preso...
.
A Spanish law on names, from 1958 and still in force, does not allow a person to add a de to their surname if it does not already have it. The law does allow for one exception. A de may be added in front of a surname that could be otherwise misunderstood as a forename. Conclusive proof of the nobility of a surname can be determined by establishing whether that surname is associated with a blazon
Blazon
In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct the appropriate image...
, since for centuries coats of arms
Coat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
have been borne legally only by a persons of noble condition.
Surnames composed of two names linked by a hyphen
Hyphen
The hyphen is a punctuation mark used to join words and to separate syllables of a single word. The use of hyphens is called hyphenation. The hyphen should not be confused with dashes , which are longer and have different uses, or with the minus sign which is also longer...
("-"), implying that equal importance is given to both families, do not indicate nobility. For example, the hyphenated surname Suárez-Llanos does not indicate nobility.
Germany and Austria
In GermanyGermany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, von or zu generally precedes the surname of a noble family, with a meaning identical to de in French or Spanish (in, for example, the names of Alexander von Humboldt
Alexander von Humboldt
Friedrich Wilhelm Heinrich Alexander Freiherr von Humboldt was a German naturalist and explorer, and the younger brother of the Prussian minister, philosopher and linguist Wilhelm von Humboldt...
and Gottfried Heinrich Graf zu Pappenheim
Gottfried Heinrich Graf zu Pappenheim
Gottfried Heinrich Graf zu Pappenheim was field marshal of the Holy Roman Emperor in the Thirty Years' War.-Biography:...
). Occasionally, they are even used together ("von und zu"), such as with current ruler of Liechtenstein
Hans-Adam II, Prince of Liechtenstein
Hans-Adam II , is the reigning Prince of Liechtenstein. He is the son of Franz Joseph II, Prince of Liechtenstein and his wife Countess Georgina von Wilczek . He also bears the titles Duke of Troppau and Jägerndorf, Count of Rietberg...
.
As in France and Spain, not all noble families use a nobiliary particle. The most ancient nobility, the Uradel
Uradel
The German and Scandinavian term Uradel refers to nobility who can trace back their noble ancestry at least to the year 1400 and probably originates from leadership positions during the Migration Period.-Divisions of German nobility:Uradel : Nobility that originates from leadership positions held...
, are especially apt to omit its use. Conversely, the prefix von occurs in the names of some non-noble families, much like van in The Netherlands.
England and Wales
In the Middle AgesMiddle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
, the nobiliary particles de, borrowed from French, and of often were used in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
by, among many others, Simon de Montfort
Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester
Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester, 1st Earl of Chester , sometimes referred to as Simon V de Montfort to distinguish him from other Simon de Montforts, was an Anglo-Norman nobleman. He led the barons' rebellion against King Henry III of England during the Second Barons' War of 1263-4, and...
and Richard of Shrewsbury, 1st Duke of York
Richard of Shrewsbury, 1st Duke of York
Richard of Shrewsbury, 1st Duke of York, 1st Duke of Norfolk, 1st Earl of Norfolk, Earl Marshal was the sixth child and second son of King Edward IV of England and Elizabeth Woodville. He was born in Shrewsbury....
.
In modern times, a nobiliary particle is rarely used.
Switzerland
In SwitzerlandSwitzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, de or von precedes a noble name, depending on the canton
Cantons of Switzerland
The 26 cantons of Switzerland are the member states of the federal state of Switzerland. Each canton was a fully sovereign state with its own borders, army and currency from the Treaty of Westphalia until the establishment of the Swiss federal state in 1848...
of origin.
Portugal
In Portugal there are not, and never were, any special naming conventions to show nobility. Personal titles like Dom and Dona may be used by the clergy, for instance, before their Christian name, not implying nobility, except if one previously knows the name as belong to a private civilian.Furthermore, Portuguese nobility is traditionally recognised just to people being born to four noble quarters: both grandfathers and both grandmothers must have been noble for their grandson or granddaughter to be considered a noble at birth, independently of any noble name, with or without particle.
Portuguese surnames do not indicate nobility, as usually the same surnames exist in noble and non-noble families. The restriction to nobility and the clergy of bearing arms at the beginning of the 16th century, when king Manuel I extinguished the previous bourgeoisie
Bourgeoisie
In sociology and political science, bourgeoisie describes a range of groups across history. In the Western world, between the late 18th century and the present day, the bourgeoisie is a social class "characterized by their ownership of capital and their related culture." A member of the...
armorial, usually shows someone to be noble if he or she bears personal or family arms. But nobility in Portugal was never restricted to the bearers of arms, and many Portuguese nobles did not or do not have arms at all: in fact, to be a noble in Portugal, it was enough to have a University bachelor degree.
The articles de, and its different orthographic forms of do, dos, da, das, like in France, do not indicate nobility in the bearer. Portuguese modern law recognises to any citizen the right not to sign those articles, even if they are present in their identification documents, and the opposite right is legally allowed to those Portuguese citizens who, not having in their documentation any such prepositions, are able to sign it if they wish. In fact, articles and prepositions are considered in Portuguese nomenclature just as an embellishment to any name.
Good taste made usually Portuguese nobility reduce prepositions linking their many surnames, signing just one at the beginning of the name, and then the last surname being preceded by e (and), not to repeat the preposition. For instance, the name João Duarte da Silva dos Santos da Costa de Sousa may also legally be signed João Duarte Silva Santos Costa Sousa. Tradition and good taste should make him sign just João Duarte da Silva Santos Costa e Sousa. The last "and" (e) substitutes all previous surnames' prepositions except the first one, and cannot ever be used withouth a previous preposition to justify it. An exception to this rule is only shown with duplicate surnames linked by and (e), for instance when the maternal surnames come before the paternal ones: Diogo Afonso da Conceição e Silva (name and mother's duplicate surname)Tavares da Costa (paternal duplicate surname).
From the 19th century on, it become customary for Portuguese titled nobility to socially indicate their title as a subsidiary surname: for instance, Joaquim Diniz Tavares dos Santos e Silva (Paço do Lumiar). This social rule does not apply to members of the Portuguese royal house.
Other countries
Although many languages have nobiliary particles, their use in some countries may mislead as it does not always evidence nobility. Some examples are:- Latin AmericaLatin AmericaLatin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
:
- Brazil continued to recognize the distinction of nobility longer than its republican neighbors (Brazilian nobilityBrazilian nobilityBrazilian nobility refers to the titled nobles and fidalgo families of Brazil, which began in the early 19th century during Colonial Brazil and lasted until the end of the Empire of Brazil in 1889.-History:...
), since it remained a monarchy until 1889, but it has also been a republic ever since. Nobility in Brazil took the special Portuguese ways, with the only distinction that in the Brazilian EmpireBrazilian EmpireThe Empire of Brazil was a 19th-century state that broadly comprised the territories which form modern Brazil. Its government was a representative parliamentary constitutional monarchy under the rule of Emperors Dom Pedro I and his son Dom Pedro II, both members of the House of Braganza—a...
titles and simple nobility were conferred only on a personal basis, and were not legally able to be transmitted to their offspring, unlike Portugal. In fact, differently from colonial nobility, the Brazilian Empire nobility was awarded as a private and personal condecoration for one lifetime, even if some of the Brazilian titles, in some very rare cases, were again conferred to one or two more generations. - Spanish-speaking countries other than Spain use the particle de without legally meaning nobility. With only a few short-lived exceptions, all Spanish AmericanHispanic AmericaHispanic America or Spanish America is the region comprising the American countries inhabited by Spanish-speaking populations.These countries have significant commonalities with each other and with Spain, whose colonies they formerly were...
countries adopted a republican form of government and abolished noble distinctions (but see the article on the Mexican nobilityMexican nobilityMexican nobility refers to the titled nobles and untitled gentry families of Mexico. Most of the descendants of these families still live in Mexico today, but some can be found in Europe and other countries....
). Laws on names vary in Latin America but occasionally people are able to fashion new surnames that may sound noble: an example is Javier Pérez de CuéllarJavier Pérez de CuéllarJavier Pérez de Cuéllar y de la Guerra is a Peruvian diplomat who served as the fifth Secretary-General of the United Nations from January 1, 1982 to December 31, 1991. He studied in Colegio San Agustín of Lima, and then at Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú. In 1995, he ran unsuccessfully...
, whose father, Ricardo Pérez de Cuéllar, decided to permanently combine his last names as a more distinguishable paternal last name for his offspring.
- ItalyNobility of ItalyThe Nobility of Italy consisted of individuals and their families of Italy recognized by sovereigns, such as the Holy Roman Emperor, the Holy See, Kings of Italy or certain other Italian kings and sovereigns as members of a class of persons officially enjoying hereditary privileges which...
: The nobiliary particle di is used after the surname or the name of the title. Di is sometimes contracted when the surname begins with a vowel, in accordance to Italian orthography. An example of nobility is the name of the noted writer Giuseppe Tomasi di LampedusaGiuseppe Tomasi di LampedusaGiuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa , was a Sicilian writer. He is most famous for his only novel, Il Gattopardo which is set in Sicily during the Risorgimento...
, where Tomasi is the surname. A nonnoble use is found in the name of the American actor Leonardo DiCaprioLeonardo DiCaprioLeonardo Wilhelm DiCaprio is an American actor and film producer. He has received many awards, including a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor for his performance in The Aviator , and has been nominated by the Academy Awards, Screen Actors Guild and the British Academy of Film and Television...
, of Italian descent (his surname is spelt as a single word, in accordance with standard EnglishEnglish languageEnglish is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
practice).
- Netherlands: The particle Van is not an indicator of nobility: the percentage of Van-preceded surnames that are noble is not significantly higher than that of any other surname; they are evenly spread over the social strata. However, the particles tot and thoe, historically meaning "at" and related to German zu, are a strong indicator of nobility if combined with van in a surname, such as van Voorst tot Voorst (the prepositions tot and thoe were once used to denote the place of residence of a lordLordLord is a title with various meanings. It can denote a prince or a feudal superior . The title today is mostly used in connection with the peerage of the United Kingdom or its predecessor countries, although some users of the title do not themselves hold peerages, and use it 'by courtesy'...
, whereas van referred to the domainDemesneIn the feudal system the demesne was all the land, not necessarily all contiguous to the manor house, which was retained by a lord of the manor for his own use and support, under his own management, as distinguished from land sub-enfeoffed by him to others as sub-tenants...
whence he derived his title). Note that many noble families in the Netherlands have non-noble branches that are closely related and share the same surname. Double surnames are, therefore, a weak but significant indicator of nobility; many patrician and other families have double names as well.
- BelgiumBelgian nobilityIn the Kingdom of Belgium there are at the moment approximately 1,300 noble families. Some 20,000 individuals are titled. The noble lineage of only ca. 400 families dates back to the 17th century. As Belgium is a democratic constitutional monarchy there are no legal privileges attached to bearing a...
: The nobiliary particle is de or van. As in the Netherlands, use of a nobiliary particle is not conclusive evidence of nobility.
- SwedenSwedish nobilityThe Swedish nobility were historically a legally and/or socially privileged class in Sweden, part of the so-called frälse . Today, the nobility is still very much a part of Swedish society but they do not maintain many of their former privileges...
: Some noble families use 'af' as a nobiliary particle. This is the pre-1906 spelling of modern Swedish 'av' ("of"), and corresponds to German von. von has also been used in some noble families, either of German or of Swedish origin. Thus Carl Linnaeus upon his ennoblement took the family name von Linné. af and von do not have to be used with a toponym; it can simply be attached to the pre-noble surname. de has also been used in some families with connections to the 17th immigration of craftsmen and industrialists from Wallonia in present-day BelgiumBelgiumBelgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
. A well-known example is the De GeerDe GeerDe Geer is a family of Walloon origin which became notable in Sweden and the Netherlands...
family; other examples include Du Rietz and De Besche.
- FinlandFinnish nobilityThe Finnish nobility was historically a privileged class in Finland, deriving from its period as part of Sweden and the Russian Empire. Noble families and their descendants are still a part of Finnish republican society today, but except for the titles themselves, no longer retain any specific or...
: the old Swedish form 'af' or the German 'von', denoting descent or location, is used in some noble families.
Furthermore, in lowland Scotland, a Laird
Laird
A Laird is a member of the gentry and is a heritable title in Scotland. In the non-peerage table of precedence, a Laird ranks below a Baron and above an Esquire.-Etymology:...
, would be known by the name of his estate, rather than his surname, thus removing the Nobiliary particle altogether, e.g. William Maitland of Lethington
William Maitland of Lethington
Sir William Maitland of Lethington was a Scottish politician and reformer, and the eldest son of the poet Richard Maitland....
.
See also
- Immemorial nobilityImmemorial nobilityImmemorial nobility is nobility that is established as existing since before normal records of noble title. In its restrictive meaning, it refers to noble families whose origins can be tracked back to the fall of the Roman Empire circa 490...
- Royal and noble ranksRoyal and noble ranksTraditional rank amongst European royalty, peers, and nobility is rooted in Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages. Although they vary over time and between geographic regions , the following is a reasonably comprehensive list that provides information on both general ranks and specific differences.-...
- Spanish naming customs
- Io, Romanian royal particleIo (voievodal title particle)Io is a particle of a title used mainly by Romanian royalty from both Moldavia and Walachia, preceding their names and the complete list of titles, in all their documents , since the formation of the respective principalities up to the Hohenzollern dynasty in the 19th century.First used by the...