US Black Heritage: Naming Conventions for Slaves

Profile managers: Emma MacBeath [send private message] and US Black Heritage Project WikiTree [send private message]

Please note: These naming conventions are specifically for those people who were enslaved in the United States. Other countries may have unique needs that these conventions do not assist with.

When reading these naming conventions for LNAB (Last Name at Birth), please keep the following in mind:

• The purpose of these standards is to make it easier for descendants to connect to their ancestors. Having hundreds or thousands of profiles named John Unknown does not assist in this goal.
• It is not expected that a genealogically "accurate" LNAB may ever be found for many who were enslaved. Although we hope this does happen for many, an accurate LNAB is not the main purpose of these naming conventions. Connecting to family is.
• Please don't make assumptions about what last name a slave may have taken. Some had last names that were kept secret or private while they were enslaved. Others took on a last name of their own choice after they received their freedom. Some took on the last name of their slave owner or their white father. Also, the reverse is true. Don't assume the last name of a slave owner wasn't the correct last name. It was very common for those enslaved to be related in some way to the slave owner. There is no one-size-fits-all rule to how slaves received a last name. Last names also often changed over time.
• The LNAB for those enslaved was a fluid thing and isn't a concept that existed in the way we normally think of it (the LNAB is what is found on a document). You may need to adjust your thinking away from the conventional view of an LNAB.

Please see Connecting Enslaved Ancestors for more information on the reasoning behind these naming conventions.

(See Naming Conventions for Slaves below)

Naming Conventions for Slaves

An LNAB (Last Name at Birth) for slaves or those formerly enslaved should be assigned in this order. If (A) cannot be found, move to (B) and so on:

A) The surname they state themselves (orally or on a document).

B) The LNAB of their father or their mother if the father is unknown.

C) For women, the last name of their husband (orally or on a document).

D) Whichever name is most useful to descendants as outlined below:

1. If only one slave owner is known, use the last name of that slave owner as the LNAB. If they were "owned" by an institution, use that name instead. For instance, if owned by Georgetown University, their LNAB would be Georgetown. (If an earlier slave owner is later found, do not change the LNAB. See reasoning below under "when to change the LNAB")
2. If more than one slave owner is known, use the last name of the first slave owner as the LNAB and the most recent slave owner as the Current Last Name.
3. If you know of additional slave owners for that person, use those slave owners' last names in the Other Last Name field.
4. Add the {{Slave LNAB}} template above the Biography heading any time a placeholder LNAB is used so people viewing the profile will know this is a placeholder LNAB until a documented surname can be found.
5. If a former slave is found in later census or other records, assume the surname they are going by to be their LNAB. If, after the time of that document, they change their last name, that would go in the Current Last Name field.
6. Please see the document Documenting Enslaved People in WikiTree for best practices when creating slave profiles, which includes listing all slave owners in the biography.

LNAB Examples

Please see our Examples Page for examples of how to use these naming conventions in different scenarios.

LNAB Template

The {{Slave LNAB}} template alerts researchers that the Last Name at Birth is using the slave owner's name as a placeholder. When using a slave owner's name in the LNAB field, copy {{Slave LNAB}} and paste just above the Biography header. The template displays this helpful warning:

FAQs

• Have descendants of slaves seen and agreed on these naming conventions?
  • Yes, descendants of slaves helped write these naming conventions.
• If an enslaved person has a white father, shouldn't his last name be the LNAB?
  • Not unless this is a name the person chooses to go by themselves. Historically, when a child was born out of wedlock, they received the mother's last name, not the father's. But in this case, the mother may not have a last name. Therefore, whichever name the person chooses for themselves will be the LNAB.
• What if I've already used the old convention of Unknown for the LNAB?
  • Because we don't want to change the LNAB often, don't change the LNAB until more information is found confirming a more accurate LNAB for the person. Place the most recent slave owner's surname in the Current Last Name field and any other slave owners in the Other Last Name field.

When to Change the LNAB

It is important NOT to change the LNAB every time a new name is discovered. It's best not to change it until you have found the first known last name the enslaved person went by--whether they were born with that last name or gave themselves that last name once they received their freedom.

• If a person is found in the 1870 census, this is very likely the first time they have had a "real" last name. The only time to change from this 1870 LNAB is if you find a document for that person while they were enslaved that states a last name they were going by. In that case, the LNAB would be the original last name while enslaved and the last name they are using in 1870 will be in the Current Last Name field. This is a less likely scenario, but not impossible.
• If you used a slave owner's last name for the LNAB and you then find the slave listed in later documents with a different last name, that new last name becomes the LNAB. Move the slave owner(s)' last name(s) to the Other Last Name if you feel they are still necessary for descendants to find their ancestors. Otherwise, make sure the slave owners are listed in the biography under the === Slave Owners === heading and remove the slave owner names from the name fields.
• If you gave a wife her husband's last name and you later discover her family's last name.
• It is the standard of the US Black Heritage Project to give enslaved ancestors with no documented last name the last name their descendants chose to go by to honor their choice.
  • Example: If the descendants of John, enslaved by Jacob Smith, are later found to be documented with the last name of Green, John's Last Name at Birth would be changed from the placeholder to Green.

Additional Resources

• US Black Heritage Project Home Page
• For more information on how to document slavery at WikiTree, please see: USBH Heritage Exchange Portal

Email Your Info

• If you or a friend would like to send us slavery documentation or other information about an enslaved ancestor, just email: wikitrees-usbh-exchange at googlegroups.com - replace the at with @