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Ladies! Will you be changing your name when you get married? Poll.

Poll

Would you change your name after marriage?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-29804450

For me, as I want to be a writer, I think I would want to keep my own surname... unless the man I married had a much better one!

Scroll to see replies

Reply 1

Motorbiker

Personally I'd want the girl to change her name to mine but I wouldn't object if she didn't want to.

I read that article this morning and it does have some very dodgy history.

Reply 2

perflous

Not changing my name for two reasons:

1. I like my name; it's an unnecessary hassle
2. I think it's a tradition rooted in a sexist premise.

If women want to change their names after marriage that's their choice, but it's not something I would ever do. More to the point, I don't really want to get married anyway so...

Reply 3

Snagprophet

It's a no brainer that women should change their name. It's ridiculous that this is no longer enforced.

Reply 4

TheGreatImposter

Its all dependant on whether their surname is nicer sounding than mine lol

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Reply 5

Kittiara

Assuming that all goes well - I'm planning on getting married next year - I'll be changing my surname. I'm going to carry on writing under my current name, though. It's not that easy to make a name for yourself in my field, so I'm not going to complicate that! And it's not unknown for writers to have a pen-name. :smile:

Reply 6

thunder_chunky

I know a man who changed his surname to his wife's surname. Some people do that these days.

Reply 7

Graceful_Lawyer

I would certainly. There's nothing wrong in it.

Reply 8

Maid Marian

Definitely, unless he had a truly awful surname.

Reply 9

Yawn!

If any of you fine ladies want to take 'Sunnybottom' as a surname......you know what to do.

Spoiler

Reply 10

Odd socks

Hell no. Plus it's more likely Id marry a woman so if anything we'd hyphenate or just keep our own names preferably

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Reply 11

pane123

Original post by thunder_chunky

I know a man who changed his surname to his wife's surname. Some people do that these days.

You would have to be a serious pussy to do that.

I did.

I'll see how I feel when the time comes. I'm open to keeping my name (frequent misspellings aside), changing it or double-barelling. It depends on what my partner's surname is and how well it goes with mine, given I know some spectacular examples of people who have changed their names! (I know not one, but two, Hillary Hills and a Harry Harrison, whose parents changed his name when they married...)

(edited 9 years ago)

Reply 14

DeadGirlsDance

I definitely would :h:

. Unless it was a really really bad surname like Mooney or Butts :lol:

.
And yes I have known people with those surnames

Reply 15

UsurperSlayer

I'm a male and anti-feminist but I think the whole tradition is a bit silly. I'd just go with whatever whoever has the nicest name lmao.

Reply 16

Rakas21

As a man, i do expect my future wife to take my name.

Reply 17

lilymoran

A lot of women keep their own name for professional reasons. ( actors, nurses, teachers, politicians, barristers etc. ) Changing your name means that you become very difficult to trace in the future and in many fields networking is very important.

Think, how are people to recognise that you are the Mary Smith they knew at school, at uni, at the last job they were in if you are now called Jones? You are giving yourself a huge handicap if you change your name professionally. When you attend a conference, a meeting, a course often the organisers will send out a list of attendees and this is an opportunity for people to keep in contact.

Also what happens if the marriage doesn't work out ( and upto half won't.) Do you revert to your maiden name and lose the possibility of being contacted by the next swathe of people who knew you under your married name?

What happens when you remarry? Do you lose the possibility of being recognised by not only those people who knew you under your maiden name and those who knew you when you were married?

I know your family and your close friends will still know who you are but previous work contacts will be non the wiser.

It makes more sense for everyone, men and women, to keep their own names at work but use a married name within their intimate circle if they want to.

As children usually live with their mothers there is also an argument that it would make more sense for them to have their mother's maiden name as their surname so it would stay the same as hers even if she remarried and make life simpler for all concerned. ( Ed Balls children have his wife's maiden name, Cooper - though admittedly there is another reason why that was decided on! )