patronymic

Estimated CEFR level: C2 — Proficiency

Estimated from word frequency; not an official CEFR classification.

Definition

  1. noun a family name derived from name of your father or a paternal ancestor (especially with an affix (such as -son in English or O'- in Irish) added to the name of your father or a paternal ancestor)
  2. adjective of or derived from a personal or family name

Etymology

From Ancient Greek πατήρ (patḗr, “father”) + ὄνυμα (ónuma, “name”) (a variant form of ὄνομα (ónoma, “name”)). Also patronym + -ic, from patri- + -onym.

In classic literature

Synonyms

patronym

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