Cultural Diversity - The Civil Service

Land Registry Cultural DiversityThus when Muslims feel they are doing well in life they might, if they are traditionalists,decide to add a name of this sort.Some examples are: Khan, Shah, Chaudry, Bhatti.Conversely, many Muslims in this country, particularly the young have dropped theirfinal name and adapted to our system by using only two names.It must be remembered that members of the same family usually have completelydifferent names thus kinships cannot be identified or assumed.SikhThe basic pattern is:Personal Name – Singh or Kaur – Family Name(First Name) (Religious Identification)The personal name is similar to the UK forename but the same name can be given tomales and females.The religious identification names of Singh and Kaur were originally complementarymiddle names on the Hindu naming pattern. Singh, meaning lion, is taken by all maleSikhs and Kaur, meaning princess, by all female Sikhs.The family name is often associated with place of origin or caste and is avoided bymany Sikh families. The use of Singh and Kaur as ‘surnames’ means a great deal toSikhs as a mark of religious identification and rejection of the caste system. Onmarriage a woman takes her husband’s family name where he uses it, otherwise shecalls herself Mrs Kaur or sometimes Mrs Singh.27