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FIRST NAME/GIVEN NAME |
Now that few people know what a “surname” is, we usually use the term
“last name” to designate a family name, but in a host of languages the
family name comes first. For instance, “Kawabata” was the family name of author Kawabata Yasunari. For
Asians, this situation is complicated because publishers and immigrants
often switch names to conform to Western practice, so you'll find most
of Kawabata’s books in an American bookstore by looking under “Yasunari
Kawabata.” It’s safer with international names to write “given name” and
“family name” rather than “first name” and “last name.”
Note that in a multicultural society the old-fashioned term “Christian name” (for “given name”) is both inaccurate and offensive.
