I'm from Spain, and here we have 2 last names; one coming from our mother, and the other one from our father.
In the translation of last name, technically it's like a family name, but in my country we don't work by using family names. To my understanding, a family name is just 1.
So is it adequate if I refer to our 2 last names, as simply "last name"?
Best Answer
With respect to your own name, you can definitely refer to both of your parents' last names collectively as your last name or your surname. It is also used collectively in the same way a single last name would be: for example, even in English-language bookstores, the books of Mario Vargas Llosa are alphabetized under "V".
Formally, a last name made up of multiple names is called a compound surname. You can also call it a double surname or a double last name.
In the UK, you sometimes hear this called a double-barreled name and it was historically associated with the upper classes. This term was at one time meant to be somewhat mocking and poking fun at someone for being pompous, but that is less true today as hyphenated names become more common.