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The names we call our children and ourselves have significance not only within our own families, but also culturally, and can effect how we are perceived by others for the rest of our lives. In ancient times, certainly in pre-Roman Britain, individuals had just one name that they were known by. The population was so small, that duplications were not as common as they are now, and individuals would be linked to their particular tribal affiliations if further clarification was necessary. The most well known example of this would be Boudicca, the Iceni queen. If she even had a surname, it never made it into the history books, but she would undoubtedly have been known even before she became tribal leader, as "Boudicca of the Iceni". This "house" allegiance has remained for monarchs throughout most of the European continent to the present day. The house of Hapsburg was hugely influential in central Europe for many centuries. Through marriage, it has links with other major ruling families of Anju, Bourbon and Lorrain. The name gives status to it's bearers and has done through the ages. Even those who had no money or land, could command respect if they proved bona-fide links to the family of Hapsburg. It is commonly accepted that surnames became widely used in Britain by the nobility with the arrival of the Normans and the advent of the Doomsday Book in 1086.

In most cultures, the surname is either passed on from the maternal line or the paternal line, and whichever the standard is for a particular country or culture is often related to property laws. It is commonly referred to as a "last name" but in some countries such as Hungary, China and Japan, the family name comes first. Many people from these countries will reverse their names when interacting with people from western cultures. The Burmese and Javanese do not use surnames at all.

In the UK, and across Europe, the surname has evolved often from either a distinct family or physical trait, or occupation, or location of the family home. Much of the modern English language comes from the Anglo-Saxon settlers who arrived in the 5th and 6th centuries after the Roman occupations, and many surnames are now modernised versions of simple Germanic words such as "Reed" for "red" denoting someone with red hair. Locational surnames include "Lay" or "Combe" which means a valley. However the most easily recognised old English and Scots surnames are those related to occupations such as Fletcher (an arrow maker), Cooper (a barrel

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