Rename first_name_prefixes to bound_first_names

The name first_name_prefixes clashed with the project convention that
"prefixes" (PREFIXES, NON_FIRST_NAME_PREFIXES) refer to last-name
particles. Since this Constants attribute hasn't been released yet
(added in the unreleased 1.3.0), rename it and its helpers
(is_first_name_prefix, _join_first_name_prefix) to bound_first_names /
is_bound_first_name / _join_bound_first_name across config, parser,
tests, and docs.

Author: derek73

AGENTS.md

@@ -76,7 +76,7 @@ Each module defines a plain Python set of known name pieces:
 - `titles.py` — `TITLES` (prenominals) and `FIRST_NAME_TITLES` (e.g. "Sir", which treat the following name as first, not last)
 - `suffixes.py` — `SUFFIX_ACRONYMS` (with periods, e.g. "M.D.") and `SUFFIX_NOT_ACRONYMS` (e.g. "Jr.")
 - `prefixes.py` — `PREFIXES` (lastname particles, e.g. "de", "van")
-- `first_name_prefixes.py` — `FIRST_NAME_PREFIXES` (bound given-name prefixes, e.g. "abdul", "abu"); `_join_first_name_prefix` joins the first non-title piece to its following piece before the main assignment loop
+- `bound_first_names.py` — `BOUND_FIRST_NAMES` (bound given-name prefixes, e.g. "abdul", "abu"); `_join_bound_first_name` joins the first non-title piece to its following piece before the main assignment loop
 - `conjunctions.py` — `CONJUNCTIONS` (e.g. "and", "of") used to chain multi-word titles
 - `capitalization.py` — `CAPITALIZATION_EXCEPTIONS` mapping (e.g. `{'phd': 'Ph.D.'}`)
 - `regexes.py` — compiled regular expressions wrapped in a `TupleManager`
@@ -97,7 +97,7 @@ Parse flow:
 3. `parse_pieces()` — splits on spaces, detects dotted abbreviations like "Lt.Gov." and adds them to constants dynamically
 4. `join_on_conjunctions()` — merges pieces adjacent to conjunctions into single tokens (e.g. `['Secretary', 'of', 'State']` → `['Secretary of State']`); also joins prefix particles to the following lastname token
    — a piece merged with a title *or prefix* neighbor is re-registered into that constant set so later steps still recognize it, e.g. `von`+`und`+`zu` → registered as a prefix so the whole phrase joins to the last name (German "von und zu"; PR #191)
-4a. `_join_first_name_prefix()` — called immediately after step 4 in both the no-comma and lastname-comma paths; merges bound given-name prefixes (e.g. "abdul") with the next piece before the assignment loop runs; suffixes are still in `pieces` at this point, so the `reserve_last` guard must count non-suffix pieces only
+4a. `_join_bound_first_name()` — called immediately after step 4 in both the no-comma and lastname-comma paths; merges bound given-name prefixes (e.g. "abdul") with the next piece before the assignment loop runs; suffixes are still in `pieces` at this point, so the `reserve_last` guard must count non-suffix pieces only
 5. Iterates pieces, assigning to `title_list`, `first_list`, `middle_list`, `last_list`, `suffix_list`
 6. `post_process()` — `handle_firstnames()` swaps first/last when only a title + one name; then, gated on `patronymic_name_order`, `handle_east_slavic_patronymic_name_order()` and `handle_turkic_patronymic_name_order()` reorder Russian-formal-order and reversed Turkic patronymics; then, gated on `middle_name_as_last`, `handle_middle_name_as_last()` folds `middle_list` into `last_list`; finally `handle_capitalization()` applies optional auto-cap. Any new `self._attr` used by `post_process()` helpers must be initialized in `__init__` (with its default value) — the direct-kwargs path bypasses `parse_full_name()`, so the attribute won't exist otherwise.
 
@@ -116,7 +116,7 @@ Each named attribute (`title`, `first`, etc.) is a `@property` that joins its co
 
 Add a dedicated `copy.deepcopy()` round-trip test for it too (see `test_regexes_deepcopy_roundtrip`/`test_nickname_delimiters_deepcopy_roundtrip` in `tests/test_constants.py`), not just reliance on conftest's autouse snapshot/restore exercising it incidentally. `TupleManager`/`RegexTupleManager.__getattr__` answer *any* unknown attribute lookup — including dunder probes like `__deepcopy__` — so a new manager subtype or a `__getattr__` tweak can silently break `copy.deepcopy` (this bit `RegexTupleManager` before the dunder-lookup guard was added). A direct test on the new attribute's own manager instance catches that where the conftest fixture, which never asserts on the copy, would not. As with the scalar-attribute pattern above, also check `AGENTS.md` itself for now-stale references when you touch this.
 
-**Adding a word to a config set** — first check the *other* sets for the same word (grep `nameparser/config/` or intersect the sets in a `python3 -c`). Real overlaps exist: `do`/`st`/`mc` ∈ `PREFIXES` ∩ `TITLES`/`SUFFIX_ACRONYMS`; `abd` = "ABD" ∈ `SUFFIX_ACRONYMS`; `abu` ∈ `PREFIXES` ∩ `first_name_prefixes` (position-dependent: leading token → first-name join, mid-name → last-name join). Usually position-dependent and harmless, but can force a guard or an exclusion (the `last_base` all-particles guard; dropping `abd` from `first_name_prefixes`).
+**Adding a word to a config set** — first check the *other* sets for the same word (grep `nameparser/config/` or intersect the sets in a `python3 -c`). Real overlaps exist: `do`/`st`/`mc` ∈ `PREFIXES` ∩ `TITLES`/`SUFFIX_ACRONYMS`; `abd` = "ABD" ∈ `SUFFIX_ACRONYMS`; `abu` ∈ `PREFIXES` ∩ `bound_first_names` (position-dependent: leading token → first-name join, mid-name → last-name join). Usually position-dependent and harmless, but can force a guard or an exclusion (the `last_base` all-particles guard; dropping `abd` from `bound_first_names`).
 
 **Before adding a short/common word to `PREFIXES` globally**, test it mid-string against realistic 3-token names, not just check for English-word collisions: Korean/Vietnamese given names put a short syllable in the middle slot (`Park In Hwan`, `Nguyen To Nga`), and Western names put a bare initial there (`John V. Smith`). A word that looks safe ("nobody is named 'to'") can still swallow a real middle name/initial into the last name once it's a global prefix — confirmed regressions for `to`/`in`/`an`/`ten`/`then` and bare `v` this way (PR #191).
 
@@ -144,7 +144,7 @@ Add a dedicated `copy.deepcopy()` round-trip test for it too (see `test_regexes_
 
 **`TupleManager.__setattr__`/`__delattr__` guard dunder names too, not just `__getattr__`** — constructing a subscripted generic, e.g. `TupleManager[re.Pattern[str] | str]({...})` (needed so mypy sees the right value type instead of inferring one from the dict literal), makes `typing`'s `GenericAlias.__call__` set `__orig_class__` on the new instance right after `__init__` returns. Before this guard existed, `__setattr__` was a bare `dict.__setitem__` alias, so that assignment silently inserted a bogus `'__orig_class__'` entry into the dict itself, corrupting `.values()`/iteration for *every* `TupleManager`/`RegexTupleManager` instance, not just the one being constructed — this bit `nickname_delimiters`'s construction (#22) before the guard was added. Same fix shape as the `__getattr__` dunder guard above: fall back to `object.__setattr__`/`object.__delattr__` for dunder names, dict-backed storage for everything else.
 
-**`_join_first_name_prefix` guard must exclude trailing suffixes** — suffix tokens are still in `pieces` when the helper runs (suffix detection happens in the assignment loop, later). The `reserve_last` guard must count `if not self.is_suffix(p)` to avoid treating a trailing suffix like "Jr." as a last-name slot; otherwise `"abdul salam jr"` → `last='jr'`.
+**`_join_bound_first_name` guard must exclude trailing suffixes** — suffix tokens are still in `pieces` when the helper runs (suffix detection happens in the assignment loop, later). The `reserve_last` guard must count `if not self.is_suffix(p)` to avoid treating a trailing suffix like "Jr." as a last-name slot; otherwise `"abdul salam jr"` → `last='jr'`.
 
 **Doctests** — docstring examples in `nameparser/*.py` run under `uv run pytest` (`--doctest-modules`; `testpaths` is `tests` + `nameparser` only). The `.rst` doctests in `docs/` (`usage.rst`, `customize.rst`) are **not** run by pytest or CI (CI does `sphinx-build -b html`, not `-b doctest`), so verify `.rst` examples manually: `python3 -c "import doctest; print(doctest.testfile('docs/usage.rst', module_relative=False, optionflags=doctest.NORMALIZE_WHITESPACE))"`. Note `customize.rst` has pre-existing failures under `-b doctest` (CONSTANTS state leaks across examples — no per-example reset like `tests/conftest.py` provides — plus non-deterministic `SetManager` repr).
 

docs/customize.rst

@@ -260,10 +260,10 @@ a secondary key::
 
     sorted_names = sorted(names, key=lambda n: (n.last_base.lower(), n.first.lower()))
 
-First-Name Prefixes
--------------------
+Bound First Names
+------------------
 
-``CONSTANTS.first_name_prefixes`` controls bound given-name prefixes that attach
+``CONSTANTS.bound_first_names`` controls bound given-name prefixes that attach
 to the following word to form one first name. By default it contains
 ``{'abdul', 'abdel', 'abdal', 'abu', 'abou', 'umm'}``.
 
@@ -277,20 +277,20 @@ Example::
 To **disable** the feature entirely::
 
     >>> from nameparser.config import CONSTANTS
-    >>> CONSTANTS.first_name_prefixes.clear()
+    >>> CONSTANTS.bound_first_names.clear()
 
 To **add** a word (e.g. if your data uses ``mohamad`` as a bound prefix)::
 
-    >>> CONSTANTS.first_name_prefixes.add('mohamad')
+    >>> CONSTANTS.bound_first_names.add('mohamad')
 
 To **remove** a single entry::
 
-    >>> CONSTANTS.first_name_prefixes.remove('umm')
+    >>> CONSTANTS.bound_first_names.remove('umm')
 
 You can also pass a custom set per ``Constants`` instance::
 
     >>> from nameparser.config import Constants
-    >>> c = Constants(first_name_prefixes={'abu', 'umm'})
+    >>> c = Constants(bound_first_names={'abu', 'umm'})
     >>> hn2 = HumanName("abu bakr al saud", constants=c)
     >>> hn2.first, hn2.last
     ('abu bakr', 'al saud')
@@ -310,7 +310,7 @@ Example::
     ('', 'de Mesnil')
 
 A member must be a prefix that is never a given name in any culture, and the set
-must stay **disjoint** from ``first_name_prefixes`` (a word cannot both join to
+must stay **disjoint** from ``bound_first_names`` (a word cannot both join to
 the first name and never be a first name). Ambiguous particles that *can* be
 given names (``van``, ``von``, ``della``, ``di``, ``del``, ...) are intentionally
 excluded; add them yourself if your data warrants it::

docs/release_log.rst

@@ -29,11 +29,11 @@ Release Log
     - Fix suffix boundary lookup for prefixed last names with a title before and after (e.g. ``"dr Vincent van Gogh dr"`` producing a corrupted middle name) (closes #100)
     - Add ``patronymic_name_order`` flag to ``Constants`` and ``HumanName`` for opt-in detection and reordering of Russian formal-order names (Surname GivenName Patronymic) (#85)
     - Add Turkic (Azerbaijani/Central-Asian) patronymic detection to ``patronymic_name_order``, rotating the reversed 4-token formal shape (``Surname GivenName PatronymicRoot Marker``, e.g. ``oglu``/``qizi``) into Western order (#185)
-    - Add ``first_name_prefixes`` set to ``Constants``; bound Arabic given-name
+    - Add ``bound_first_names`` set to ``Constants``; bound Arabic given-name
       prefixes (``abdul``, ``abu``, etc.) now join forward to form a single first
       name (e.g. ``"abdul salam ahmed salem"`` → ``first="abdul salam"``,
       ``middle="ahmed"``, ``last="salem"``). Disable via
-      ``CONSTANTS.first_name_prefixes.clear()``. **Default-on: changes parsing
+      ``CONSTANTS.bound_first_names.clear()``. **Default-on: changes parsing
       output for names with these prefixes.** (#150)
     - Add ``middle_name_as_last`` flag to ``Constants`` and ``HumanName`` for opt-in folding of middle names into the last name, for naming systems with no middle-name concept (e.g. Arabic patronymic chaining) (#133)
     - Treat an unrecognized, multi-letter token ending in a period in the leading title run (before the first name is set), e.g. ``"Major."``, as a ``title`` instead of a ``first`` name; internal-period abbreviations (``"E.T."``) and single-letter initials (``"J."``) are unaffected. **Default-on: changes parsing of names with a leading unknown period-abbreviation** (closes #109)

nameparser/config/__init__.py

@@ -37,7 +37,7 @@
 
 from nameparser.util import lc
 from nameparser.config.prefixes import PREFIXES, NON_FIRST_NAME_PREFIXES
-from nameparser.config.first_name_prefixes import FIRST_NAME_PREFIXES
+from nameparser.config.bound_first_names import BOUND_FIRST_NAMES
 from nameparser.config.capitalization import CAPITALIZATION_EXCEPTIONS
 from nameparser.config.conjunctions import CONJUNCTIONS
 from nameparser.config.suffixes import SUFFIX_ACRONYMS
@@ -262,13 +262,13 @@ class Constants:
         :py:attr:`~suffixes.SUFFIX_ACRONYMS_AMBIGUOUS` wrapped with :py:class:`SetManager`.
     :param set conjunctions:
         :py:attr:`conjunctions`  wrapped with :py:class:`SetManager`.
-    :param set first_name_prefixes:
-        :py:attr:`~first_name_prefixes.FIRST_NAME_PREFIXES` wrapped with :py:class:`SetManager`.
+    :param set bound_first_names:
+        :py:attr:`~bound_first_names.BOUND_FIRST_NAMES` wrapped with :py:class:`SetManager`.
     :param set non_first_name_prefixes:
         :py:attr:`~prefixes.NON_FIRST_NAME_PREFIXES` wrapped with :py:class:`SetManager`.
         The subset of prefixes that are never a first name, so a *leading* one
         marks the whole name as a surname. Must stay disjoint from
-        ``first_name_prefixes``.
+        ``bound_first_names``.
     :type capitalization_exceptions: tuple or dict
     :param capitalization_exceptions: 
         :py:attr:`~capitalization.CAPITALIZATION_EXCEPTIONS` wrapped with :py:class:`TupleManager`.
@@ -293,7 +293,7 @@ class Constants:
     titles = _CachedUnionMember()
     first_name_titles: SetManager
     conjunctions: SetManager
-    first_name_prefixes: SetManager
+    bound_first_names: SetManager
     non_first_name_prefixes: SetManager
     suffix_acronyms_ambiguous: SetManager
     capitalization_exceptions: TupleManager[str]
@@ -468,7 +468,7 @@ def __init__(self,
                  titles: Iterable[str] = TITLES,
                  first_name_titles: Iterable[str] = FIRST_NAME_TITLES,
                  conjunctions: Iterable[str] = CONJUNCTIONS,
-                 first_name_prefixes: Iterable[str] = FIRST_NAME_PREFIXES,
+                 bound_first_names: Iterable[str] = BOUND_FIRST_NAMES,
                  non_first_name_prefixes: Iterable[str] = NON_FIRST_NAME_PREFIXES,
                  capitalization_exceptions: TupleManager[str] | Iterable[tuple[str, str]] = CAPITALIZATION_EXCEPTIONS,
                  regexes: RegexTupleManager | TupleManager[re.Pattern[str]] | Iterable[tuple[str, re.Pattern[str]]] = REGEXES,
@@ -484,7 +484,7 @@ def __init__(self,
         self.titles = SetManager(titles)
         self.first_name_titles = SetManager(first_name_titles)
         self.conjunctions = SetManager(conjunctions)
-        self.first_name_prefixes = SetManager(first_name_prefixes)
+        self.bound_first_names = SetManager(bound_first_names)
         self.non_first_name_prefixes = SetManager(non_first_name_prefixes)
         self.suffix_acronyms_ambiguous = SetManager(suffix_acronyms_ambiguous)
         self.capitalization_exceptions = TupleManager(capitalization_exceptions)

nameparser/config/first_name_prefixes.py nameparser/config/bound_first_names.pynameparser/config/first_name_prefixes.py renamed to nameparser/config/bound_first_names.py

@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
 #: one first name (e.g. "abdul salam" → first name "abdul salam"). They are
 #: never standalone names. Join logic runs in the given-name region only,
 #: mirroring :py:data:`~nameparser.config.prefixes.PREFIXES` for last names.
-FIRST_NAME_PREFIXES: set[str] = {
+BOUND_FIRST_NAMES: set[str] = {
     'abdul',
     'abdel',
     'abdal',

nameparser/config/prefixes.py

@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-from nameparser.config.first_name_prefixes import FIRST_NAME_PREFIXES
+from nameparser.config.bound_first_names import BOUND_FIRST_NAMES
 
 #: The sub-set of :py:data:`PREFIXES` that are *never* a standalone first name.
 #: A name that *starts* with one of these has no first name -- the whole thing
@@ -8,7 +8,7 @@
 #: name prefix (`abu`). When unsure, leave a word out: a missing member just
 #: means that name is not auto-fixed, whereas a wrong member misparses a real
 #: person. Must stay a subset of :py:data:`PREFIXES` and disjoint from
-#: :py:data:`~nameparser.config.first_name_prefixes.FIRST_NAME_PREFIXES`.
+#: :py:data:`~nameparser.config.bound_first_names.BOUND_FIRST_NAMES`.
 NON_FIRST_NAME_PREFIXES = set([
     "'t",
     'af',
@@ -93,5 +93,5 @@
 # happens to catch it.
 assert NON_FIRST_NAME_PREFIXES <= PREFIXES, \
     "NON_FIRST_NAME_PREFIXES must stay a subset of PREFIXES"
-assert not (NON_FIRST_NAME_PREFIXES & FIRST_NAME_PREFIXES), \
-    "NON_FIRST_NAME_PREFIXES must stay disjoint from FIRST_NAME_PREFIXES"
+assert not (NON_FIRST_NAME_PREFIXES & BOUND_FIRST_NAMES), \
+    "NON_FIRST_NAME_PREFIXES must stay disjoint from BOUND_FIRST_NAMES"

nameparser/parser.py

@@ -595,26 +595,26 @@ def is_prefix(self, piece: str) -> bool:
         else:
             return lc(piece) in self.C.prefixes
 
-    def is_first_name_prefix(self, piece: str) -> bool:
-        """Lowercased, leading/trailing-periods-stripped version of piece is in :py:attr:`~nameparser.config.Constants.first_name_prefixes`."""
-        return lc(piece) in self.C.first_name_prefixes
+    def is_bound_first_name(self, piece: str) -> bool:
+        """Lowercased, leading/trailing-periods-stripped version of piece is in :py:attr:`~nameparser.config.Constants.bound_first_names`."""
+        return lc(piece) in self.C.bound_first_names
 
     def is_non_first_name_prefix(self, piece: str) -> bool:
         """Lowercased, leading/trailing-periods-stripped version of piece is in
         :py:attr:`~nameparser.config.Constants.non_first_name_prefixes`."""
         return lc(piece) in self.C.non_first_name_prefixes
 
-    def _join_first_name_prefix(self, pieces: list[str], reserve_last: bool) -> list[str]:
+    def _join_bound_first_name(self, pieces: list[str], reserve_last: bool) -> list[str]:
         """Join a first-name prefix to its following piece.
 
-        Finds the first non-title piece; if it is in ``first_name_prefixes``,
+        Finds the first non-title piece; if it is in ``bound_first_names``,
         merges it with the next piece — unless ``reserve_last`` is True and no
         further piece would remain for the last name.
         """
         fi = next((i for i, p in enumerate(pieces) if not self.is_title(p)), None)
         if fi is None:
             return pieces
-        if not self.is_first_name_prefix(pieces[fi]):
+        if not self.is_bound_first_name(pieces[fi]):
             return pieces
         next_i = fi + 1
         if next_i >= len(pieces):
@@ -1038,7 +1038,7 @@ def parse_full_name(self) -> None:
             #            part[0]
 
             pieces = self.parse_pieces(parts)
-            pieces = self._join_first_name_prefix(pieces, reserve_last=True)
+            pieces = self._join_bound_first_name(pieces, reserve_last=True)
             p_len = len(pieces)
             for i, piece in enumerate(pieces):
                 try:
@@ -1121,7 +1121,7 @@ def parse_full_name(self) -> None:
                 #      parts[0],      parts[1],              parts[2:...]
 
                 log.debug("post-comma pieces: %s", str(post_comma_pieces))
-                post_comma_pieces = self._join_first_name_prefix(post_comma_pieces, reserve_last=False)
+                post_comma_pieces = self._join_bound_first_name(post_comma_pieces, reserve_last=False)
 
                 # lastname part may have suffixes in it
                 lastname_pieces = self.parse_pieces(parts[0].split(' '), 1)

tests/conftest.py

@@ -34,7 +34,7 @@
     "titles",
     "first_name_titles",
     "conjunctions",
-    "first_name_prefixes",
+    "bound_first_names",
     "non_first_name_prefixes",
     "capitalization_exceptions",
     "regexes",