When did people start going by last names?

Question

I know that way back when people usually went by their lineage or what city they were born in. But when was the transition between doing that and actually having last names?

Answer 1

I googled surname and got this

In Europe, surnames began to be used in the 12th century, but it took several centuries before the majority of Europeans had one. The primary purpose of the surname was to further distinguish people from one another. In the 13th century about a third of the male population was named William, Richard or John *. To uniquely identify them, people began referring to different Williams as William the son of Andrew (leading to Anderson), William the cook (leading to Cook), William from the river (leading to Rivers), William the brown-haired (leading to Brown), and so on. Eventually these surnames became inherited, being passed from parents to children.

Broadly, most surnames fall into four categories.

1. Surnames derived from First Names include Johnson, Williams, and Thompson. Most often they are patronymic, referring to a male ancestor, but occasionally they are matronymic.
2. Occupational surnames refer to the occupation of the bearer. Examples include Smith, Clark, and Wright.
3. Locational or Topographic surnames are derived from the place that the bearer lived. Examples include Hill, Woods, and Ford.
4. Surnames derived from Nicknames include White, Young, and Long.

Answer 2

In Europe, it was around the time of the Renaissance. More people started moving into towns and cities where there was more than one "John" or "Mary". So job identifiers (like Smith for a blacksmith or Cooper for a barrel maker), regions where the individual was from (Leonardo Da Vinci, the famous painter and inventor, his name actually means "Leonardo from Vinci"), or family lineage (like Johnson, meaning the son of John) started to be used.

Answer 3

"cata" has a good answer. It was the 14th century (1300s) according to professor Frank Marvin (cousin of Lee Marvin) who has a special lecture on last names. Dr. Marvin was a 14th century English history specialist and former Presbyterian minister. Wonderful college teacher.
The population had grown in the 1200s making it confusing having so many people with the same first name from the same area, so they added modifiers such as "son" indicating the guy who was so and so's son. Johnson, Williamson, Frederickson, and so on. Last names also came from occupations. Fletchers were people who put feathers on arrows. Thatchers put roofs on houses. Smiths and Millers are obvious. Carters were workers who moved goods in carts.
I have fun with the names of students in my classes.
I start out with this in each history course I teach. Many have no idea where their last name came from.
Good question worth a star.
My ex wife is a "Love". ' Wonder where that name came from?

Answer 4

I believe it was when people started being defined by where they were from or who they were the son of. De means from and names with son on the end told of their lineage. But that is as much as I know. I don't know when that started to come about.

Answer 5

In England and most of scotland it was by the 1400 however in wales and the Scottish Highlands not until the 17th century.

Answer 6

late 19 century,By the Japanese?