Spanish names
Maaaaaaaria, I just met a girl named Maria
Hopefully you just read that and sang the song from West Side Story in your head. Let's just say that from what I have experienced here in Spain, people really, really like this name. In fact, there are times when it seems like EVERY woman or girl is named Maria (or Maria de/l something) and though they might go by the second part of their name, their given one is still Maria. People definitely opt for traditional names here, unlike the US where names go through trends.
Recently a friend on Facebook posted a link which contained a GIF (originally from The Atlantic) showing the different female names that had been popular in the US since 1960. It is interesting to see how a name like Jennifer would be popular in one region and then would sweep the nation. Such a map would not be as cool here in Spain since not a whole lot would change. Maria. Maria del Carmen. Miriam. Marian. Mirian. Variations on a theme.
Religious names
In Spain you cannot deny religious influence when people are choosing names. Maria, Jose, Jesus and the names of many saints are common. Add to that list religious words that have been converted into names: Concepcion (Conception), Asuncion (Assumption), Inmaculada (Immaculate, in reference to the Virgin), Dolores (pains, suffering), just to name a few. And these are just for female names.
Family names
It is also very common here for names to be passed down in families. In Jose's family the tradition has been that you name your children after their grandparents. This has resulted in many names being repeated over generations. It has also meant that first cousins can have the same name (in this case Jose Antonio) which is unheard of in the US (at least in my experience).
Jose's grandpa already told us that if we have children they should be named Manuel and Carmen after my in-laws. I kindly told him I would pick any name I wanted. If they aren't nice it will be something obnoxiously English sounding...
Hopefully you just read that and sang the song from West Side Story in your head. Let's just say that from what I have experienced here in Spain, people really, really like this name. In fact, there are times when it seems like EVERY woman or girl is named Maria (or Maria de/l something) and though they might go by the second part of their name, their given one is still Maria. People definitely opt for traditional names here, unlike the US where names go through trends.
Recently a friend on Facebook posted a link which contained a GIF (originally from The Atlantic) showing the different female names that had been popular in the US since 1960. It is interesting to see how a name like Jennifer would be popular in one region and then would sweep the nation. Such a map would not be as cool here in Spain since not a whole lot would change. Maria. Maria del Carmen. Miriam. Marian. Mirian. Variations on a theme.
Religious names
In Spain you cannot deny religious influence when people are choosing names. Maria, Jose, Jesus and the names of many saints are common. Add to that list religious words that have been converted into names: Concepcion (Conception), Asuncion (Assumption), Inmaculada (Immaculate, in reference to the Virgin), Dolores (pains, suffering), just to name a few. And these are just for female names.
Family names
It is also very common here for names to be passed down in families. In Jose's family the tradition has been that you name your children after their grandparents. This has resulted in many names being repeated over generations. It has also meant that first cousins can have the same name (in this case Jose Antonio) which is unheard of in the US (at least in my experience).
Jose's grandpa already told us that if we have children they should be named Manuel and Carmen after my in-laws. I kindly told him I would pick any name I wanted. If they aren't nice it will be something obnoxiously English sounding...
I love it when you combine María with another name and squish it together and make a nickname. Otherwise there would be too many Marías. For example, María + Carmen=Maricarmen or Maricar. María + Mercedes=Merche or Merchi. María + Teresa=Marité. And my favorite, María + Jesús = Chus! I also think it's cool that guys can have a middle name of María and girls can have a middle name of José. My dear friend in Madrid, María Emilia, just goes by Emi. We often say we have the same name! Do you know of any more combinations, Allie?
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