Icelandic names differ from most current Western family name systems by being patronymic (occasionally matronymic): they reflect the father (or mother) of the child and not the historic family lineage. Iceland shares a common cultural heritage with the Scandinavian countries of Norway, Sweden and Denmark with the Faroe Islands. Icelanders, however, unlike other Scandinavians, have continued to use their traditional name system, which was formerly used by all Nordic nations except partly Finland. The Icelandic system is thus not based on family names (although some people do have family names and might use both systems). Generally, a person's last name indicates the first name of his/her father (patronymic) or in some cases mother (matronymic).