Patronymics that were brought from the Testaments
In all western linguas, the set of names in everyday use is surprisingly narrow. In states where there is an established Biblical Church, the choice of forenames out of which a name may be selected is largely regulated by the Church or by a secular authority working within a Christian cultural tradition. These are names with some Christian relation (in particular, a name that was developed by a figure appeared in the New Testament, first saint, or a saint with a regional belief). Many of them have undergone translate German into English in the past. The main sources for such given names are the following:
• The Bible (New Testament): Names such as Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Paul, or Mary have cognates in every western lingua, with many changed and hypocoristic ways, that have given growth to countless myriads of surnames. Mention should also be made here of the Hispanic habit of Marian names, according to which an attribute of the Virgin Mary may produce a woman given name, even if the noun in question is masculine in grammar form. Such names among others: Pilar, Remedios, and Dolores.
• The Bible (Old Testament): Old Testament names are, naturally, of Hebrew etymology, and many of them are existed as Jewish forenames. In their vernacular western forms, names such as Job, Ezekiel, Ebenezer, Zillah, or Mehitabel have been used by Christian orthodox (Puritans, Dissenters) from the 16th century. There were developed language translation service even that times. Such names are not used by common groups such as Roman Catholics or High-Church Anglicans, except in cases where an Old Testament name had also been borne by an early Christian saint (e.g., David, Daniel). Some Old Testament names, specifically female names, such as Deborah and Rebecca, have appeared very popular among Protestants, partly because the scope of New Testament female names is very narrow indeed.
• Early Christian saints: Several saints’ names are very widespread (e.g., Anthony, Francis, Martin, Bernard) and are produced by Roman Catholics, Protestants, and agnostics alike. Differently, like Teresa, Dominic, Ignatius, and Aloysius, are borne mainly or only by Roman Catholics. After Roman Catholics in continental Europe, a habitual given name is often chosen in honor of a saint who is the master of the locality in which the infant is born. in other words, the Italian forename Gennaro is associated chiefly with Naples, Italy, and its saint, San Gennaro, a bishop murdered at Pozzuoli at times of persecution of Christians in 304 A.D. Leocadia is connected with Toledo, Spain and its chief saint, who was a virgin martyr who met a similar fate in or about the same year and in whose honor the male form Leocadio is also used.