Did slave children have the same last names of their parents?

Answer 1

Yes and no. One of the major problems for the slaves who were freed after the Civil War was that they had chosen their last names, but they may not have chosen the same name as the rest of the their families. Contrary to Malcolm X in this "Autobiography ..." slaves generally chose their own names and usually chose the name of their master, a neighboring master, or someone they had heard good things about, like a president or a leader.

When the slaves were freed and made concerted efforts to find family members who had been freed, emancipated, sold off, or moved, they had a considerably difficult time because everyone had changed their names, and sometimes more than once! The period from 1865 to 1875 was a very difficult time in this regard.

Answer 2

Actually, slaves had no last names of their own at all. They kept the last names of their owners. (if you're talking about America, that is).

Answer 3

i heard that slaves inherited their owners name so if the child stayed with his parent then yes, but if the child was "sold" then no, he/she would have that owners name...