Anglicizing Portuguese Names at the Library of Congress

As if a chance could rest on a surname,
As if someone’s identity could be shaped by how a name is spelled—
We anglicized our names to find comfort, to avoid disfavor,
To pass through history, if not language’s savor.

But surnames are complicated things.
They twist in capricious ways,
As I found at the Library of Congress—
A curious mix of names:

Andrews replacing Andrade,
Bridges for Pontes, Clay for Barros.

A name that echoes red, white, and blue—
Francis or Frates for Freitas, Miller for Melo,
Oaks for Carvalho, Quail for Coelho.

One might hear the crack of the bat,
With Wood for Madeira, Pine for Pinheiro,
Oliver for Oliveira.

Relish the taste of juicy burgers, as Stan
for Santos, Day for Dias, and Rogers or Roderick
for Rodrigues.

And lift their eyes to the sky,
To behold and belong to the explosion
Of color and light on the Fourth of July—
With Silver for Silveira, Peter for Pires, or
Peter Francisco.

Yet surnames are delicate things—
Ferry for Ferreira, Holmes for Gomes,
Marshall for Machado.

To love America as much
As being Jesse for Jacinto,
Perry for Pereira, and Roberts for Ribeiro.

RoseAngelina Baptista is a bilingual poet, residing in Florida, USA.