A family name that is generally passed down from generation to generation (via males of the family in Western culture). Women, traditionally (but not quite so much these days) often adopt the surname of the man they marry.
In modern culture it's fine for a male to adopt the females surname (though not that common), for couples to hyphenate their existing surnames into a new surname eg. if mary jones marries john smith they may join their surnames to be jones-smith or... possibly, it's fine to just create a whole new name (also not that common). Most commonly it is fine for each person to keep their own surnames and then fight when the children come along as to whose surname the children will get.
In modern culture it's fine for a male to adopt the females surname (though not that common), for couples to hyphenate their existing surnames into a new surname eg. if mary jones marries john smith they may join their surnames to be jones-smith or... possibly, it's fine to just create a whole new name (also not that common). Most commonly it is fine for each person to keep their own surnames and then fight when the children come along as to whose surname the children will get.
by Em Wun March 8, 2005
Get the surname mug.A location in the popular video game World of Warcraft which by all intensive purposes is a land mass of pure cancerous material. It is a location which induces lots of pain to users within it, due to it's ridiculous activities and tasks required.
by Lenny Lenardo April 6, 2017
Get the Suramar mug.A fake made up word, by an Ivory Tower Elite, one whom has no connection to the english language spoken by by the American people
by T. Ruth January 6, 2011
Get the surcame mug.Get the surname mug.Past tense of succumbed, a brand new word coined by distinguished Princeton professor Cornell West, as heard on the Rush Limbaugh Show.
by Bobby Seals January 6, 2011
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A word used by Professor Cornel West incorrectly instead of using the correct tense, sucommed, when referencing how poorly of a job President Barack Obama has done. This was first pointed out on the Rush Limbaugh show on Wednesday, January 5, 2011.
Two years later, we have missed the opportunity, unfortunately. We didn't get the kind of leadership that we should. The president didn't have enough backbone. He became too milquetoast. He would not fight big business, would not fight big banks. He actually surcame too easily to big business and big banks -- and, of course, the obstructionism on the right was helping push him to the center; and now, of course, he's being pushed even more to the center, which means we...are...in...deep trouble.
by jlc500k January 6, 2011
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