Only One Name: Difference between revisions

{{trope}}

 

 

The character or characters go by a single name, with no family/clan/whatever identifier. Unlike [[No Name Given]], it's not that their full name is never made known to the viewer. The full name simply does not exist. Cher is an oft-cited example.

 

{{examples}}

 

* Caren, Coco, Noel, Sara and, actually, ''most'' characters of ''[[Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Pitch]]'' have only one name; the exceptions are the [[Power Trio|main trio]] and the men in their lives (although, in the manga, Hamasaki has only one name too).

* In ''[[Azumanga Daioh]]'', Sakaki is only known by that name, to the extent that, in the first episode, when everybody is introduced by their full name (including Osaka), she's simply introduced as "Sakaki-san, a.k.a. Sakaki-san".

** Kagura gets this treatment too. Whether Kaorin has a family name depends on what part of [[Fanon]] you want to believe. Chihiro doesn't even get that much (and is very secondary.)

* [[Blind Seer|Rezo the Red Priest]] of ''[[Slayers]]'', only known by his title. His great-grandson Zelgadis was this initially; however, his surname (Graywords) got mentioned in an interview with the creator, and it eventually gets mentioned several times. Also played straight with villains and minor characters.

* [[The Stoic|Amon]] of ''[[Witch Hunter Robin]]'', and even that might just be his [[Code Name]], as he's usually [[Badass Longcoat|described]] to the cast rather than [[No Name Given|named]].

** In fact, it's easier to list the non-Leaf village ninja that ''do'' have last names (the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist beside Chojuro, the first team of Sound nin, and according to an artbook the Mizukage, who's named Mei Terumi). Even in the Leaf village (not counting Sai and Yamato, which are code names) there's the Sannin (despite it being her grandfather's name, Senju is ''not'' Tsunade's), Rock Lee (unless Rock and Lee are really his first and last name), and Tenten.

** There's little consistency in who gets a name either as Haruno Sakura and Rock Lee presumably do not come from a clan, while 3 of the 4 living kages have no last name either. This seems tied to how everyone in ''[[Naruto]]'' is on a [[First-Name Basis]], even to the point of using [[Honorifics]] like ''-sensei'' and ''-sama'' with first names, so it's possible a lot of character just haven't had their last names revealed (it took 200 chapters for Danzo's last name of Shimura to be revealed, and we didn't find out Dan's last name was Kato until '''374''' chapters after we first saw him). (Incidentally, both Dan and Danzo are based on the real life ninja Kato Danzo, and thus only have one of his names).

* The Leafe Knights from ''[[Prétear]]'' have an excuse of not being from our world, but even outside their [[Magical Land]] they don't seem to use last names. No one in human world seems to care.

** After ''StrikerS'', four of the Numbers [[Hollywood Cyborg|Cyborgs]] were adopted by {{spoiler|Genya Nakajima}} and took his family name, with the rest remaining with only one name.

* Absolutely no one had a last name in the beginning of ''[[Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann]]''. Apparently surnames were a practice abandoned [[After the End]]. They do get them after the [[Time Skip]], though, taking them from their villages' names (Kittan Bachika, Rossiu Adai, Yoko Littner, Nia Teppelin).

** Simon, however, remains as just Simon, possibly because either he didn't like his village, or because even without a surname, everyone knows what Simon they're talking about. Like-wise Kamina.

* Poked at at the end of the manga ''[[Eerie Queerie]]''. In the omake afterwards the two characters decide that they can finally call each other by their given names, only for Hasanuma's name to be * bleeped* out. And thus he remains with only one name.

** The light novels reveal that she eventually does acquire a last name after a number of decades: {{spoiler|[[Happily Married|Prochainezo]]}}

* No one in ''[[Hidamari Sketch]]'' has two names.

** Well, {{spoiler|on Drosselmeyer's grave}} we're given "D.D. Drosselmeyer", so we know his name starts with a D...but that's the closest we ever get to a full name on the show.

* In ''[[Axis Powers Hetalia]]'' most [[Anthropomorphic Personification|nations]] have human names which are not entirely canon (they're never used in the actual manga/anime or by the creator except for two dubious instances in strips, and they originated from saved text from the author's deleted site blog), but very popular in the fandom because many fans are uncomfortable with using the actual country names. The human names are all composed of first, last, and sometimes middle names except for Germany, known only as Ludwig. Most fans borrow his 'brother' Prussia's surname Beilschmidt.

*** The Italy brothers could actually be considered a subversion, as they are both called Italy but also have their own given names to differentiate them: the northern half is [[Keet|Italy Veneziano]] (human name Feliciano Vargas), and the southern [[Tsundere|Italy Romano]] (Lovino Vargas). Interestingly, though Southern Italy is almost always called Romano, Northern Italy is usually called just Italy.

** At one point the human names were considered to be somewhat canon, as Himaruya answered a fan question and said that they would find out one day why Ludwig didn't have a surname. But as it was an old question on the deleted blog and the names have not been ever officially used, it remains unknown if that "significance" will ever come to light.

* In the ''[[Sonic the Hedgehog The Movie|Sonic the Hedgehog]]'' OVA, Sara's last name is never given. Her dad is only referred to as [[Everyone Calls Him "Barkeep"|Mr. President]].

* Many characters in ''[[One Piece]]'' have only one name, including Usopp, Nami, Sanji, Kaya, Nojiko, Bellemere, Chaka, Pell, Dr. Hiruluk, Burgess, Professor Clover, Pagaya, Conis, Enel, Hotori/Kotori/Satori/All of the priests/every Angel except Gan Fall...

** This becomes jarring when other characters get wanted posters. Money D. Luffy, Roranoa Zoro, Nico Robin, Tony-Tony Chopper, and... just Nami? It's as if the Marines pick and choose when to find out their full names.

** Most (if not all) [[Demonic Invaders|Crimson Denizens]] have only one name. Semi-justified by them being not human.

 

* Although his gangster pursuers refer to him as "[[Everyone Calls Him "Barkeep"|The Stooge]]", the protagonist of Paul Pope's graphic novel, ''[[Heavy Liquid]]'', is generally known as "S". "[[One-Letter Name|Why have a name when a letter will do?]]"

* [[Tintin]]. BTW, in the German translation his name becomes Tim. Which is a first name in Germany too, but people still call him "Herr Tim". [[Two First Names]]?

* When the [[Metal Men]] got human [[Secret Identity|secret identities]] towards the end of their original run, Tin and Mercury's identities were known only as "Tinker" and "Mercurio".

* Comic book versions of characters from mythological pantheons usually go by one name, as do "new" gods or godlike beings created for the comics. Such as [[The New Gods]], [[The Eternals]], [[The Inhumans]], etc.

* The vast majority of ''[[Elf Quest]]'' characters have only one name, justified in that they live in small tribal groups. Last names really only crop up with humans later in the timeline.

 

* Another good (and famous) example is Palpatine, the main villain from the ''[[Star Wars]]'' films. If he has another name, it hasn't been given (canonically, at least).

** Same applies to Yoda, Chewbacca and prequel-villain Count Dooku.

* [[Withnail and I|Withnail]], of course.

* Swan ("he has no other name"), Beef and Phoenix from ''[[Phantom of the Paradise]]''. Winslow Leach and Arnold Philbin are generally referred to as Winslow and Philbin respectively.

* Nathaniel in ''[[Enchanted]]''. Even when he writes a book, the author's name is listed only as "Nathaniel".

* Although his full name, Irwin M. Fletcher, is mentioned, the titular character usually insists on being called [[Fletch]].

 

* Likewise, in ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]'', most humans only have a given name and a patronymic. Aragorn, for example, is "Aragorn, son of Arathorn".

** ''[[Inheritance Cycle|Eragon]]'' does this too with the people of Carvahall. Roran is "Roran Garrowsson".

** Presumably he does have a first name, as we know his brother had one (Mikey). Glen Cook's just avoided revealing it to tease his readers.

* In [[Jasper Fforde]]'s ''[[Thursday Next]]'' books, the titular character's father is referred to only as "Colonel Next". It is revealed that he actually ''has'' no first name, due to having been erased from the timeline by [[Time Police|the Chronoguard]] after he went rogue.

* In [[Charles Dickens]]' ''Great Expectations'', the main character Pip is raised by his sister and her husband Joe, but the sister's given name is never mentioned. She is referred to only as "Mrs. Joe".

** This is a common device of Dickens', used to dehumanise his villains, e.g. Fagin, Mr. Smallweed, etc.

* [[Street Urchin]] Fred "No-Name" in Avi's ''[[Beyond the Western Sea]]''.

* Almost everyone in ''[[Uglies]]'', save for Tally Youngblood and Andrew Simpson Smith. Most of the ''Extras'' characters get last names, but we still never learn the last names of the characters from the original trilogy who show up. Dr. Cable is also only ever Dr. Cable, and David may not actually ''have'' a last name.

** For twice your pleasure, at least one of the bad guys refers to her as "bystander" rather than her given name.

* And who can forget Elizabeth from ''House Of Night'', who literally named herself 'Elizabeth No Last Names' because she couldn't be bothered to come up with a new last name? Hell, this trope might as well be named after her!

* Several characters in [[Sergey Lukyanenko]]'s ''[[Line of Delirium]]'' only appear to have one name. This is justified in the case of Sedimin, the ruler of the [[Silicon-Based Life|Silicoids]], as his name is synonymous with the title (the Foot of the Foundation), which he gained after becoming the ruler through [[Klingon Promotion]]. Not justified in the case of the human Emperor Grey. Nowhere in the trilogy is any other name mentioned. The [[The Cyborg|Meklar]] also appear to only have one name, which tends to be written with an apostrophe or a slash (it's translated from machine code anyway). A [[Everything Is Worse With Bears|Bulrathi]] named Ahhar is, at one point, calls himself Shivukim Ahhar, although Shivukim could be a Bulrathi title or honorific. The cyborg Andrey never reveals his last name; presumably, he feels he no longer needs one, as he is not human anymore. The famous weapons designer Martyzenski doesn't appear to have a first name. Then again, he only shows up in one scene.

 

* Klingons in ''[[Star Trek]]'' may also have a [[Patronymic]] ("Worf, son of Mogh") and a House name ("Worf of the House of Mogh", later the House of Martok), but do not have true last names. Vulcans might be the same, depending on which set of contradictory evidence you prefer.

** Then there's Chakotay.

** We also have Data. And Odo. And Laas.

** And Neelix. And Kes.

*** Actually, the name that couldn't be pronounced was merely called "another name" in one episode and "the Vulcan name" (implicitly the family name) in another. Since not all cultures put the family name last or even have family names in the Western sense, we don't know if Spock's unpronounceable name is his first or last name.

** Similarly, Sulu's first name was not given in ''[[Star Trek]]'' canon until the 6th movie in the series. The name Hikaru actually came from one of the first published novels, ''The Entropy Effect''.

** Speaking of Billy Cranston and Katie Walker, it is ''very'' common for Rangers to be known only by first names, and some Rangers' last names are only known by [[Word of God]] in the form of network websites (that are often ''wrong'' about things like last names, ages, and dates when we finally do get them - even Cranston and Walker come from the same source as Sky Blake and Jack and Z Manners <ref>[[Power Rangers SPD]] takes place in 2025 and it's Sky Tate, Jack Landors, and Elizabeth "Z" Delgado. Jack and Z aren't even the same ethnicity. Network and toy-company sites often work with first-draft information.</ref>) We didn't get "Zack Taylor" and "Trini Kwan" until the ''day of their departure,'' and had heard "Jason Lee Scott" ''once'' before. Tommy Oliver and Kimberly Hart, the first last names we get, are heard a mere ''54'' episodes into the original series! And again, though his tenure lasted 202 episodes, we never heard Billy's. Last names weren't deliberately avoided, just... if nobody had a good reason to speak it (martial arts tournament, TV appearance, etc.) it didn't get spoken.

** ''[[Power Rangers Samurai]]'' is following in MMPR's footsteps. Presumably the site has it, but unless being in the Shiba House makes Jayden's last name Shiba, we only know one last name out of six from the series itself (Antonio Garcia.)

* James Ford on ''[[Lost]]'' goes by the alias Sawyer. It's never clearly stated if Sawyer is his fake first name or fake last name.

** Though [[He Who Must Not Be Seen|Jacob]] probably has a last name, no one has bothered to say what it is after five seasons. This is probably because [[Luke, I Am Your Father|he's someone's father or relative]], in typical ''Lost'' fashion.

'''Student''': Is that your only name, like Madonna?

'''Cromartie''': Madonna? Why? No. }}

* Lt. [[Columbo]] (No first name)

** Same for Mrs. Columbo.

**** And then Lt. Columbo said that ''that'' woman was an impostor...so we re-iterate, same for Mrs. Columbo.

** His ID card identified him as Frank Columbo, but that was only onscreen for a few seconds and reportedly isn't canon.

** Paris had occasion to say, "He's dead, Jim."

* ''[[Inspector Morse]]'' in the television version. The source novels provided only an initial, E. Name eventually revealed as 'Endeavour'.

** In his university days, he was nicknamed "Pagan", because he wouldn't give his Christian name.

* Jarod, the lead character of ''[[The Pretender]]'', adopts a different surname each episode. Initially, this is because he doesn't know his real surname, but even after he locates and spends time with his father, his real surname is never revealed. (This sometimes causes dialogue clunkiness, not so much with Jarod as with his father, who is referred to as "Major Charles" always, by everyone, in all contexts.)

** Then there's Miss Parker, who is never given a name. Fan speculation has given us the possibility of "Angel", her father's nickname for her, being her actual name.

** Not to mention Sydney and Lyle, who only go by their first names, and Broots, who only goes by his last name.

* Mr. Chapel's first name is never revealed in ''[[Vengeance Unlimited]]''. Though the likelihood of Chapel itself being a pseudonym is rather high in this regard.

* ''[[Green Wing]]'' never reveals the first names of Dr. MacCartney or Boyce.

* Most of the people Michael Westen crosses swords with on ''[[Burn Notice]]''. Most of the [[Monster of the Week|job of the week villains]] will not be given more than one name, while many others will be given full names in passing which are never referenced again. All of the [[Myth Arc]] villains tend to go by singular names that are most likely pseudonyms (for example, Carla, Victor, and Simon).

* The protagonists of ''[[Vintergatan]]'' usually only had one name...then averted with the second season, when they got last names too.

* Brittany in the first season of ''[[Glee]]''. Her last name doesn't even show up on the school yearbook. However, in the episode "Britney/Brittany" from the second season she reveals that her name is Brittany {{spoiler|S. Pierce}}.

* Some aliens in ''[[Babylon 5]]'', notably Minbari and Narns, go by only one name, whereas others, notably Centauri, go by two.

** Although the Narns have only one name, it actually consists of two halves divided by an apostrophe. For instance, main character Na'Toth is the daughter of Shak'Toth.

* Beth on ''[[News Radio]]'' claims not to have a last name.

* Mason, from ''[[Dead Like Me]]'', has no known ''other'' name, and the name that he does have could really be either his first or last name. Kiffany doesn't have a last name, but since she has a lot less screen time than Mason, it's slightly less odd.

* Siroc in ''[[Young Blades]]''. It's unclear whether this is a first or last name.

* Vince and Lauren from ''[[What I Like About You]]'' are only main characters to not have their last names ever mentioned in any of the show's 4 seasons.

** Recurring characters Peter and Rick don't appear to have last names either.

 

* [[Madonna]] and [[Prince]], though in both cases it's actually their real first name.

* Similarly, [[Rihanna]] is always known as just "Rihanna", but that's actually her real ''middle'' name (her full name is Robyn Rihanna Fenty).

* And, to top it off, [[Morrissey]], who uses only his ''surname'' (in full, it's Steven Patrick Morrissey).

 

 

* Merlin, Sir Kay, Guenivere, Percival... in the [[King Arthur|Arthurian myths.]]

* In [[Classical Mythology]], [[Norse Mythology]], and [[Egyptian Mythology]], and nearly every other set of ancient stories, characters have only one name just as it was with most ancient cultures.

 

* Belize from ''[[Angels in America]]''; Most of the other main characters get specified middle names, for crying out loud, but not Belize.

** It's explained [[Expanded Universe|in the character page of the printed version of the script]] that his given name was Norman Arriaga; "Belize is a drag name that stuck".

* The title character of ''[[Elling]]''. Made all the more curious by the fact that no one mentions it even though everyone refers to his roommate using a [[Full-Name Basis]].

 

* ''[[2027]]'': Daniel's last name is never revealed.

* In ''[[Halo]]'', the Master Chief is only known as John-117. The closest thing we have to a family name for him is this MIT prank claiming that he's actually [http://hacks.mit.edu/Hacks/by_year/2007/halo3_john_harvard/ John Harvard].

* Most characters in ''[[Devil May Cry]]''. Kalina Ann appears to be the sole exception, but it's not even clear if "Ann" is her maiden name or a middle name, or even if "Kalina" is really the [[I Call It Vera|rocket launcher's own name/model]]. The name of Dante's father, Sparda, has occasionally been used in the context of a family name, but whether it really is is unknown.

** That said, Dante joins the ranks of given name + patronymic, with demons frequently referring to him as "Dante, Son of Sparda". Same may be said about Vergil, too.

** ''Zelda'': Link, Zelda, Ganondorf, just to name the central three.

*** However, Ganondorf was given the last name "Dragmire" in the English manual for ''[[The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past|The Legend of Zelda a Link To T He Past]]''.

**** This was made up in the translation.

*** Zelda's last name is Hyrule, given that King mentioned in ''[[The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker|The Legend of Zelda the Wind Waker]]'' is named Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule.

** Older heroes like Pit (Kid Icarus), the Popo and Nana (Ice Climbers).

** Many of the other hunters mentioned in the ''[[Metroid]] Prime'' series only have one name.

** Nearly every character in the ''[[Fire Emblem]]'' franchise, with a few exceptions : Alpine Alm Rudolf from ''Gaiden'', Celice Baldos Chalphy and Leaf Faris Claus from ''Seisen no Keifu'', the Reed family (Brendan, Lloyd and Linus) of ''Rekka no Ken'', and Princess Elincia Ridell Crimea, Jill Fizzart, and her father Shiharam Fizzart of ''Path of Radiance''.

** Mario's enemy King Bowser Koopa and his family, on the other hand, do have a surname ([[Captain Obvious|Koopa]]) and first names. In Japan he's just "Daimaou Koopa," more of a title than a name.

** Everyone in ''[[Animal Crossing]]'' who isn't a tanuki. [http://www.aibohack.com/nds/ac_source.htm ROMSAVE.txt] reveals that the DS game stores a number from 0-65535 along with each human character's name that presumably represents an index into a list of surnames, but these aren't displayed in-game.

** Every character in the entire ''[[Kirby]]'' franchise has just one name, most notably Kirby, Meta Knight, and King Dedede. One might begin to wonder if names like Waddle Dee, Sir Kibble, and Knuckle Joe are a first and last name or just a two-word first name.

* A few "mysterious" characters follow this trope in ''[[Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney]]'': Godot (though his full name is revealed later), Iris, and Bikini, for example, are referred to by Only One Name even in court. {{spoiler|We can assume that Iris gave up her family name (Fey) when she joined the temple}}.

** What, like Zavros and Yuri had last names?

** You also have Boris. Averted, for the most part, in ''Red Alert 3'', where every named Russian character may be only known by one name but has a full name (minus patronymic) listed in the manual. Played straight with Emperor Yoshiro and Crown Prince Tatsu, but that's typical for Japanese emperors to only have one name (e.g. Hirohito, Akihito).

** The vast majority of draenei don't seem to have last names either. However, they seem to make up for it with titles (paladins are "Vindicator [Insert Name]," for example) and sobriquets (such as "Stormglory").

** Also the vrykul, who sometimes get titles to go with their names (Svala, the first boss of Utgarde Keep, is turned into a Valkyr and dubbed "Svala Sorrowgrave" by the Lich King)

** Of course, given that the Zerg are a [[Hive Mind]], there's no need for names at all, the Cerebrates are the only ones who can even be called individuals in the Swarm, except, of course, for the Overmind. There can't be enough Cerebrates to warrant last names.

* Deckard Cain is the only NPC in the ''[[Diablo]]'' games with a first and last name.

* The 1993 [[Edutainment Game]] ''[[Eagle Eye Mysteries]]'' gives us minor character Sergio, who declares he is like Madonna and Cher and has no last name, when asked on one occasion. This causes another character, Silvia Torres, to suspect him in a later mystery of being a criminal and the mystery's guilty party. {{spoiler|He's innocent}}.

* In the ''[[Metal Gear Solid]]'' series we have David (Solid Snake), John (Naked Snake/Big Boss), Adamska (Revolver Ocelot), Jack (Raiden), Rosemary, Mei-Ling, Dr. Clark (Para-Medic), Jonathan (two of them), Ed and Johnny (after his surname "Sasaki" was retconned out of existence). That's not even counting characters who are known primarily by their one-word codenames like EVA and Vamp.

** They will also refer the characters by their courtesy names (a unique name given later in life according to Chinese tradition). For example, Zhuge Liang is usually referred to as 'Konmin', a Japanese rendition of Kongming, Zhuge Liang's courtesy name.

 

* Almost none of the characters from ''[[Sluggy Freelance]]'' have last names (they probably do, but they have never been stated). Torg is known as The Lastnameless One during the ''[[Harry Potter]]'' parody arcs. He does actually have a last name, although it's not revealed; the "Lastnameless" thing is there to help hide the fact that [[Emergency Impersonation|he's not who everyone thinks he is]].

* ''[http://www.jaydenandcrusader.com Jayden and Crusader]'' has a fair few of these, Third, Smic and Crusader. Crusader is the more interesting one, because he was called Crusader and had been called Mr. Crusader by some, until we eventually found he was called Crusader Crusader. Effectively having only one name, as first and last name is the same.

* ''[[El Goonish Shive]]'' didn't reveal Sarah's last name (Brown) until 2007. When they ''did'' give Sarah's name, it was a casual toss-out (the principal was yelling at her).

* The main character of ''[[Too Much Information]]'', Ace, literally and legally has no last name.

* Sabrina and her family in ''[[Sabrina Online]]'' never had their surname revealed, though some fan fiction has tried to do the job for the strip ("Mustelidae").

* Everyone in ''[[The Whiteboard]]'' has only one name or a single nickname. One nicknamed character, Rainman, was called 'Daniel' once by his mother, but there's been no followup.

* ''[[Fall City Blues]]'': Everyone.

* [[Pibgorn]]: [http://www.gocomics.com/pibgorn/2007/03/09/ Thorax never asked whether Thorax was his personal or family name; he doesn't like to pry.]

* Members of the ''[[Voodoo Walrus]]'' cast all started off sporting simply one name, but as time and the story have progressed, full names have been revealed. Bowler, Shmeerm, Mirth, and Marron seem to be the only major characters left without last names.

* Mori of ''[[The Dragon Doctors]]'' has only one name because her family's name was literally destroyed with magic. She doesn't remember it and it's vanished from all documents.

* ''[[The Other Grey Meat]]'': Almost every character in the story only has one name. People with last names are typically only those who are referenced before the ''[[Zombie Apocalypse]]''.

* ''[[No Songs for The Dead]]'': The main character Hector, Romeo, the ''[[Big Bad]]'' Lilith.

 

* Corbin and Desmond from ''[[Splinter Cell Extinction]]''. Desmond's surname is always left out of the frame, and "Corbin" is either the protagonist's given name or code name (judging from the fact he's apparently on [[First-Name Basis]] with his [[Mission Control]]).

 

* In ''[[Avatar: The Last Airbender]]'', Toph Bei Fong, her father Lao, and her mother Poppy are the only characters to possess a surname. This itself isn't too far off with the traditional Asian theme of the series, in that traditionally, in East Asian cultures, family names were reserved exclusively for members of high nobility, much like the wealthy Bei Fong family, before common people started adopting family names for themselves. Alternatively, this may be due to the Anglicisation all of the names have undergone, which can be seen when comparing the names given to the Chinese characters occasionally used to spell them. An Ang as written, for example, is rendered as Aang when spoken, and Ai Luo becomes Iroh. In case you're wondering, yes that's probably how they made their names.

** In [[Sequel Series]] ''[[The Legend of Korra]]'', surnames are likewise rare. Lin Beifong, daughter of Toph, has one. Hiroshi Sato and his daughter Asami also have last names. They're rich, but not from nobility, as Hiroshi was stated to be a [[Self-Made Man]]. [[Fictional Sport|Pro-Bending]] [[Combat Commentator]] Shiro Shinobi also has one.

** Very few Disney characters have both a first and last name. Almost everyone in ''[[Mulan]]'' has a family name, but that's an exception (and a somewhat necessary one, since Asian cultures use the surname far more than Westerners). Some of the name shortage is justified (Arabic names usually include a patronymic, so with ''[[Aladdin (Disney film)|Aladdin]]'' not knowing who his father is, he couldn't have one) and some of it isn't (why are princes with no family identifiers running around? Usually your family is the reason you're a prince in the first place...)

*** [[Truth in Television]] Real princes don't use family names - they don't need to, at least in their own countries, their title and first given name is sufficient identification.

** Cosmo and Wanda's full names [[Word of God|were revealed to be]] Cosmo Julius Cosma (thus why his mother is always called "Mama Cosma") and Wanda Venus Fairywinkle-Cosma, respectively.

* Dib from ''[[Invader Zim]]'' has no last name. Though many fans assume that it's simply "Membrane", as his father is called "Professor Membrane", but [[Word of God]] is that "Membrane" is his father's ''first'' name. However when the Meekrob tried to get his name right and called him "Dib...Dib...whatever your last name is..." Dib simply replied with "that's right."

* Pretty much everybody in ''[[Winx Club]]'', including Bloom and Roxy, who grew up on Earth and therefore [[No Name Given|should have last names]]. Everyone else from the Magical Dimension identifies him- or herself by the realm they're from.

* [[The Nightmare Before Christmas|Sally]] has no last name, though fans usually give the last name of [[Mad Scientist's Beautiful Daughter|Finklestein]], [[Exactly What It Says on the Tin|Ragdoll]], or in [[Fan Fics]] where she's married to Jack, Skellington.

* All of the ''[[Gargoyles]]'' have only one name, if they have a name at all.

** [[Word of God]] says that his last name was Shortman, which is why his grandfather was always calling him short man.

* While a number of ''[[Recess]]'' characters have their full names revealed, some characters lack a last name, such as King Bob, Butch, Francis (Hustler Kid), Jordan, Jerome, Cindy, Hector, Spencer, Emma, Sam, and Dave.

 

*** It's quite similar in Mongolia, where family names are replaced by patronymic names.

* In Serbian history, last names were usually patronymic. For example, if a man's first name was Ivan, his children's last name would be Ivanovic. If a man was named Nemanja, his children's last name would be Nemanjic.

* Similar to the Icelandic example, surnames basically didn't exist in Gaelic cultures for a long time. O' and Mc/Mac translate to "grandson of" and "son of", with female variations as needed.

* Indonesia (or more specifically, Java) is another culture where surnames are not universal. For example, two of the country's presidents (Sukarno and Suharto) only had one name.

** Sukarno and Suharto both adopted Islamic first names (Ahmed and Rahman, respectively) after making hajj.

* In Burma, there also can be people with just one name. The Burmese Secretary General of the United Nations became known as U Thant, but U is just a honorific, like Mr.

** Of course, Burmese names are not just limited to one ''word''; modern names can usually have up to 3 or 4 syllable-words, and if the name is a bit long, some might cut down on a couple of syllables to make a shortened version or a nickname.<ref>Shortening a name or nicknaming isn't generally considered rude in Burma if you've acquainted decently with the person.</ref>

* Many famous Brazilian soccer players (Pelé, Ronaldo, Ronaldino, Romário, Robinho, Rivaldo, Garrincha) are known by their one-word nicknames, though those are not their real names.

** Ronaldo, Romário and Rivaldo are given names. Ronaldinho and Robinho are diminutive forms of their given names. Really, only Pelé and Garrincha are known by nicknames.

* An old joke revolves around this: Schwarzenegger has a long one, Richard Gere has a short one, Cher doesn't have one, and the Pope has one but never uses it. What is it? Given this article, it is obviously: {{spoiler|a last name}}.

* Raymond Joseph Teller from [[Penn & Teller]] legally changed his name to Teller.

* Radio talk show host "Lionel". "Mononymous, like God," he says. It isn't either of his real names, though.

* Renaissance artists often fall into this. Have you ever heard of the painters Senzio, Buonarotti or van Rijn? Yes, you have. {{spoiler|Their first names are Raphael, Michelangelo and Rembrandt, respectively.}}

** And the most famous example: when referring to Leonardo, using 'da Vinci' only is incorrect because it's not his surname (it means 'from the town of Vinci'). 'Leonardo' and 'Leonardo da Vinci' are the only 'right' ways to refer to him, because he didn't have a surname.

* Most pets and named livestock have only one name, although vets sometimes append the human owner's surname for ease of record-keeping.

* Two Disney actresses, Lalaine Vergara-Paras and [[Zendaya Coleman]], are credited as just Lalaine and Zendaya respectively.

* And now the Welsh, due to a shortage of distinct surnames, are repeating the process, to distinguish, e.g., Tom Jones the baker from Tom Jones the singer.

* Chukchi (Russian Eskimos) traditionally have only one name, but can add Russian names for census purposes, so their Chukchi name could be considered their truest name. For example the true name of Yuri Sergeyevich Rytkheu is simply Rytkheu ("unknown" in Chukchi). He added "Yuri Sergeyevich" when Soviet officials asked him to have a Russian-style name. Other one-name Chukchi include Tenevil (herdman who developed a crude writing system) and Kytymval (officially Antonina Alexandrovna Kytymval, a poetess).

 

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[[Category:Naming Conventions]]