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Feminism: Sex and gender discussions

Should I change my last name?

107 replies

lavenderlove · 10/06/2018 21:55

Hi,
I'm getting married really soon and it's just sort of dawned on me that my last name is assumed to be changing.
I was ok with this at first but now it's getting closer I'm feeling a bit weird about it. I've brought it up with my OH and he seemed a bit put out that I wouldn't want to adopt his name.
I would feel more comfortable hyphenating my name with his name. Sounds silly but I don't even know how it works. Once your married do you write the name you want to go by on your marriage certificate? Or does that come at a later date?
Also I would love to hear the reasons you changed/ kept/ hyphenated your name.
Thanks Smile

OP posts:
lavenderlove · 10/06/2018 22:14

@53rdWay he would in no way be happy to change to mine or hyphenate! Which I think is ridiculous as he's expecting me to do this. He keeps saying "most people say I can't wait to be Mrs surname" when they are getting married. As if I'm somehow wanting marriage less than them, because I want to keep a connection to the name I've grown up with.

OP posts:
Lottapianos · 10/06/2018 22:13

Keep your name OP. It's your name. And don't listen to any claptrap about your name being your father's name, not yours. No one ever says that to men.

53rdWay · 10/06/2018 22:13

happymummy12345, out of interest, did your husband ever consider changing his name to yours?

lavenderlove · 10/06/2018 22:10

Sorry @LassWiADelicateAir I didn't see the thread. I agree, it feels weird to change my name.

OP posts:
happymummy12345 · 10/06/2018 22:10

Your name on your marriage certificate will be the name you use prior to your marriage, and therefore you will sign it with the name you use prior to marriage. (Unless you change your name by deed poll before the wedding date, your marriage certificate is your proof of name change, so your name can't change until you have that (obviously that's based on a woman taking her husbands name solely. Deed poll is required for all other varieties of name change- hyphenating, combining names, same sex couples).
Personally I always knew I'd take my husbands name. It's just something that meant a lot to me. We'd discussed having a baby and getting married. We were lucky and found out we were having a baby. We then agreed we wanted to be married before the baby was born, so we were engaged for 3 months and planned the wedding in 2. I had my second scan after the wedding and the first thing I did was change my name so the scan pictures reflected that (I was gutted the first ones don't as we weren't married then).
I love being a mrs and having my husbands name. To me that's part of being married and I don't see the point of getting not sharing a name. I don't see it as just my husbands name, it's our family name.

53rdWay · 10/06/2018 22:03

he seemed a bit put out that I wouldn't want to adopt his name

Ask him if he'd be happy to change his name to yours. If he wouldn't be thrilled to do that, then he doesn't get to be put out at you not being thrilled either. And if he is thrilled to do that, then you're sorted!

(I kept my name. Reason: it's my name! Changing it would feel as weird as changing my first name.)

LassWiADelicateAir · 10/06/2018 22:01

There is already a thread about this. I kept my name because it is my name.

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