apellido de soltera
/apeʝido de solteɾa/from spelling rulesmasculine
The English phrase "maiden name" is apellido de soltera in Spanish.
apellido de soltera is used to refer to the original surname of a married person.
Meaning: married person's original last name (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of apellido (surname), de (of) and soltera (single woman).
How do you pronounce it?
/apeʝido de solteɾa/
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers often mistakenly use the masculine soltero when asking for a woman's maiden name. However, the adjective must agree with the gender of the person (the woman) and use soltera.
Did you know?
- In most Spanish-speaking countries, women do not traditionally change their apellido when they marry, making the concept of a 'maiden name' less common than in English.
- Because many Spanish-speaking cultures use two surnames, a woman's 'maiden name' is actually a combination of both her father's and her mother's surnames.
- The Spanish apellido shares a distant root with the English word 'appeal', as both come from the Latin 'appellare'.
Examples in context
- ¿Cuál es el apellido de soltera de tu mujer?What is your wife's maiden name?This sentence is useful for asking for the apellido de soltera of a woman.Tatoeba #9571018 by Shishir, translation #9568527 by Nylez
- Favor de indicar su apellido de soltera en el formulario.Please provide your maiden name on the form.
- En caso de cambio de estado civil, debe indicar su apellido de nacimiento.In the event of a change in marital status, you must indicate your maiden name.
- Por favor, escriba su apellido de soltera en el espacio provisto.Please write your maiden name in the space provided.
- Necesito su apellido de soltera para el formulario.I need her maiden name for the form.
- Ese es su apellido de soltera, no el de su esposo.That is her maiden name, not her husband's.
Example conversation
Sofía is filling out some official paperwork at home.
- MateoSofía, ¿cuál es tu apellido de soltera?Sofía, what is your maiden name?
- SofíaEs García, Mateo.It is García, Mateo.
- MateoGracias, ahora puedo completar el registro.Thanks, now I can complete the registration.
- SofíaNo hay problema.No problem.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “maiden name” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries apellido, de, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
