A First In Mexico: Baby Registered With Maternal Surnames

Nuevo Leon in the northern part of Mexico registered the first ever baby to have her parents' maternal surnames officially. Latin American babies usually carry two last names consisting of the surname of the father and then the paternal surname of the mother tradition but this time, tradition has not been followed.

The baby named Barbara would have been traditionally named Barbara Gonzales Vera considering her father is named Jose Gonzales de Diego and her mother is named Alicia Vera Zboralska. Following tradition, Barbara would have lost the maternal surnames of both her parents namely de Diego and Zboralska.

The couple, however, asked the Court for an injunction, according to The Guardian. The injunction granted to the couple on Dec. 28, 2016 allowed them to name the baby Barbara de Diego Zboralska. The name was officially registered in the city of Monterrey the following Monday.

"In the history of the country, no boy or girl has ever been given the maternal surnames of the father and the mother," Nuevo Leon public registries director Raul Guajardo said in a report by The Washington Post.

The manner by which Mexicans are named have always been confusing for foreigners especially for expatriates in Mexico who have to formally address Mexican nationals. Mexicans actually have two last names, one from each parents. While they usually use the last name of their father, Mexican traditionally carry two last names with their father's last name first followed by the mother's. Formal documents require the use of the second name.

But while Mexicans have two family names, Focus on Mexico notes they generally use the first name, which is inherited from the paternal family name of the father. However, this is not acknowledged in Mexico's legal documents so they also have to include the maiden name of the mother. That is also the reason why people expect Mexicans to have very long names.