Since we’re talking about names, I’m just curious, how do surnames work in Brazil? I know people with multiple surnames but there doesn’t seem to be any consistency to which one they go by - sometimes mom’s surname, sometimes dad’s, idk. 21-yo me was so confused and current me just has to ask on her behalf 😅
oh ok I'll answer one last question lmao (first: Brasil is really really big. So naturally I can't speak for everyone)
in my experience, in general, people will have two surnames: one from the maternal family and one from the paternal family, in that order. So three names is the norm, but not necessarily the most common.
Sometimes the name is composed, like 'Lin Manuel' (this name isn't very brasilian, but it serves my point). Composed names are very common btw.Â
so the convention goes 1. First name (composed or not) 2. Mother's last name (composed or not) 3. Father's last name (composed or not)
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now, if a name is composed how do I know if the 'Manuel' in 'Lin Manuel' is a surname or part of the first name, since it's not hyphenated? well you can't know, there's no rule. So we go by feel: if it sounds like a composed name, it probably is... probably... maybe
all of this is cultural, there isn't a law about which order or how many surnames you should have, and some people just use the names they like the most. General rule of thumb: someone goes by first name in conversation, but in a more formal environment by their first and last names (I'm including the whole composed name, but again, it depends)
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so to sum up: there are no rules and we are all winging it all the time, people just use the name they feel like
