PBS Member Stations rely on viewers like you. To support your local station, go to http://to.pbs.org/DonateORIG ↓ More info and sources below ↓ Join us on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/originofeverything We understand why we have first names and how our surnames tie us to our family heritage, but what's the deal with middle names? What's the purpose of a middle name and when did different cultures start using them? Written and Hosted by: Danielle Bainbridge Produced by Complexly for PBS Digital Studios --- Follow us on... Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/originofeverythingpbs/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pbsoriginofeverything/?hl=en --- Origin of Everything is a show about the undertold histories and cultural dialogues that make up our collective story. From the food we eat, to the trivia and fun facts we can’t seem to get out of our heads, to the social issues we can’t stop debating, everything around us has a history. Origin of Everything is here to explore it all. We like to think that no topic is too small or too challenging to get started Works Cited: https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-21229475 https://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2015/05/04/illegal-baby-names-countries-with-strict-laws_n_7061544.html http://mentalfloss.com/article/25034/8-countries-fascinating-baby-naming-laws http://mentalfloss.com/article/58440/why-do-we-have-middle-names http://time.com/4451977/history-of-middle-names/ https://people.howstuffworks.com/why-do-have-middle-names.htm https://www.huffingtonpost.com/linda-murray/baby-naming-a-global-trad_b_2322969.html https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-37912748 http://blog.tesol.org/7-naming-customs-from-around-the-world/ https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-37912748 http://lisahayden.com/lch/Russian%20Names.pdf https://www.cnn.com/2013/05/01/world/asia/new-zealand-stange-baby-names/index.html https://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/13/fashion/theyre-dropping-like-middle-initials.html The Means of Naming: A Social History Stephen Wilson van Tilburg W. A. P. and Igou E. R. (2014), The impact of middle names: Middle name initials enhance evaluations of intellectual performance, European Journal of Social Psychology, 44, pages 400–411. DOI:10.1002/ejsp.2026