firsttolast

Firsttolast is a term used in data management to describe a naming convention transformation that reorders person names from a first-name–last-name format to a last-name–first-name format, often for standardization in databases and bibliographic records. It is a common operation in name normalization workflows, particularly when integrating data from sources that employ different naming conventions.

In practice, firsttolast refers to an operator or function that takes an input with a known or inferred given-name and family-name structure and outputs a standardized "last, first" representation. The transformation typically preserves middle names and suffixes, and it may be part of a broader set of name-parsing tools that handle prefixes (van, de), suffixes (Jr., III), and compound surnames.

The typical workflow involves parsing the input into components, validating against language and cultural cues, then applying rules to assemble the output. Where components cannot be reliably identified, the original string may be left unchanged or flagged for review.

Applications include customer relationship management, human resources systems, library and bibliographic databases, and genealogical research, where uniform name representation improves search and sorting reliability.

Example: "John A. Smith" becomes "Smith, John A." in the last-first form.

Limitations: name structures vary by culture, and automated rules can misclassify components. Robust systems often combine heuristics with user feedback and explicit locale settings.

See also: name normalization, last-name-first, data cleaning, bibliographic data.