Putting your name on the front door of the house.

[ThanksForAllTheFish]

I’ve just found out today this is a Scottish thing and the rest of the U.K. doesn’t do this. We all (well most of us) have little nameplates on our front doors that have our surname, occasionally first initial(s) of the adults living in the house.

Is this really just a Scottish thing? Do you guys in England / Wales / N. Ireland (or indeed anywhere else in the world) not have them?

Never seen it in England aside from businesses, but my family in Italy all have their names outside their flats.

I always thought it was a rural thing. The numbers often make no sense in the villages where we are, or you can have 4 “No.8’s”. In that case, it’s very useful to know if you have the right house before you go disrupting somebody.
My parents and in laws live in towns where the numbers run as you would expect, and I never see names there, just numbers.

No, I have never seen it (England) just a house number. I am sure many people wouldn't want to advertise that their family lives there-must be handy for the postman though.
Do you have to get them made?

I'm Scottish and nobody does this where we're from.

I have seen it here in England but usually rurally or on farms.

No one would do it on my street - for a start most of the houses are HMOs so there'd be too many names.

Ive lived all over England (Yorkshire, Oxfordshire, Somerset, Hampshire, Dorset) and have never seen this.

It is a Scottish thing, and I think more common in tenements (though you get on all houses - we had it in cottage flat, terraced and bungalow). It surprised me too when I first moved to England and found it wasn't usual there. You know those 'example' engravings at shops who make name plaques? In England they just have house names, but in Scotland you'll find McKay, Brown, Smith, etc, and a size of plaque you'd find hard to get in England.

I've lived in the English Midlands, South East of England and South Wales; I'd never heard of it before reading this thread.

In Germany virtually everyone will have their last name on the door, usually next to the doorbell. Only flats lived in by tenants who will move in and out after short periods of time won't. I am still midly baffled that nobody here does it (England).

I’m in Scotland and vaguely remember it from my childhood (1970s/80s) but haven’t seen any name plate like that anywhere in decades.

I’m in the NE of England and we have a few Scottish like behaviours but I’ve never seen the name plate thing.

I live in Germany and it's something I really don't like about living here!

I think it's really intrusive to have any old random person passing your door knowing your name. It also seems confusing if you live in a big apartment building and more than one person has the same name! We have two in our building and they have to put their initials on the doorbell as well. What if they had the same initial?

I hate having to have my ex's name on the door just because it's legally DS1's name. I miss post if I forget to tell an organisation that I have changed from my maiden name. It looks really unwieldy if you have several family names in the same household living together.

I miss just being "Anonymous at flat 15"! And being able to address people's letters jokily because it will go to their house rather than having to be exactly and precisely named to the person.

I can see that it makes sense in a rural location, but in an urban one I don't think it's necessary and I don't think delivery of post should be tied to a name (personally).

If it's your choice then it's ok, but the german system where it's expected, i wouldnt love that!!!

My surname is a little unusual.

There are about a dozen around my area east midlands but all of them are indian names. Some of which they've had made into their driveway gates or in the lintel stone.

It used to be essential in tenements where you'd have 6 or more flats all with the same address, no flat number. Posties used to refuse to deliver mail if there wasn't a name.

We always had our name on the door, even in houses, the little plaques were lovely. I especially liked brass ones or those made in your own tartan.

I lived in Edinburgh and remember this, especially in tenements. People didn’t update them though and they often looked decades old and likely the people were long gone.
Also that some houses had ‘name - advocate’ on a brass plate on the door?! Never seen that anywhere else.

They do it on doors in blocks of flats here in Finland. For houses they put the names on the postboxes (literal boxes separate from the house, by the side of the road, usually grouped together with neighbouring houses postboxes).

I'm in Scotland. We have one. Most of my street do too.

I’ve read books set in France & Sweden where they do it. I’m happy being anonymous though.

My elderly father lives in Scotland now with his Scottish wife and I noticed that they have their surname on the front door.

What occurred to me was how it would help any opportunist confidence tricksters calling at their door. If they claimed to be from one of the utility companies or something and called them by name my trusting Dad and his lovely wife would likely invite them in for tea and shortbread. Far less convincing if they didn’t know their name.

Or maybe I just have a suspicious mind?

It always fascinated me in Scotland that this happened, but it was only those living in flats. There’d be a little name badge saying Wilson or Gourlay etc.

@Fullofthejoysofspring

I'm Scottish and nobody does this where we're from.

Ditto

I've never seen it in England. Once when we moved into a new house and were getting post for decades worth of previous tenants I put a little sticky note on the door saying 'post for Weatherwax and Ogg only please.' but I took it down once we'd been there a little while and the postman knew our names. I don't like the idea of some random potentially catching me off guard by 'knowing' my name, and me subconsciously thinking that made them legit, iyswim.

I was about to say it’s not common in England, and have never seen on houses, but both daughters live in flats in London, in buildings that were originally single occupation houses but converted a long time ago, and the three flats within each have names against the relevant doorbells ( small flats so not multiple flatsharers ).

Makes sense for deliveries, especially as there is no convention about which flat numerically applies to which level ie is Flat 1 on the top or ground floor. Also makes greater sense atm with so much being delivered that will not go through the common area ie into common hallway , letterbox. .