Foreigners who have lived in our community for a while should recognize the name Alejandro Aguirre. That is the short version of the name of the incumbent Chapala mayor. His full name is Alejandro de Jesús Aguirre Curiel. And if you go full tilt with his titles, it’s quite a mouthful: Presidente Municipal Licienciado Alejandro de Jesús Aguirre Curiel.

Many expats struggle to understand how names and nicknames are used in Mexico. Lesson number one in understanding the common breakdown. Primer nombre, segundo nombre, apellido paterno, apellido materno - first name, middle name, father’s surname, mother’s surname. You can abbreviate by omitting the middle name and mother’s surname, but you can’t skip dad. In other words, you would never call the mayor Alejandro Curiel for short.

The governor of Jalisco is called Pablo Lemus Navarro or Pablo Lemus. The current president is Claudia Sheinbaum, rarely known together with by apellido materno Pardo. Her predecessor was Andrés Manuel López Obrador, aka Andrés Manuel, López Obrador, or the acronym AMLO.

Professional titles are popular here. Licenciado abbreviated as Lic. Is for titled lawyers and many other university grads; Doctor (Dr.) is used for medical doctors or PhDs; Maestro (Mtro.) for Master's Degree holders and teachers; Ingeniero (Ing. or Inge) for professional engineers; Arquitecto (Arq. or Arqui) for architects. Replace “a” with “o” when talking about females.

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