first name

The first name is, for purposes of uniformity, identified with the given name of an individual, as opposed to the inherited family name. In certain African and East Asian countries, including China, Japan, and the Koreas, the first name typically follows the family name in written and spoken order.

The role of the name determines the field. A given name remains the first-name value when the person's naming convention places it after the family name.

The last name field carries the family name. Reading the first written word without considering the naming convention can therefore put a family name into the wrong field.