When a bride gets married a question has traditionally arisen: will you change your surname?
It’s not always a simple decision and it’s not just women making it, with some men opting to taking their wife’s last name. That’s why a court decision in Japan this week seems so archaic: a schoolteacher was told she must keep her married name at work. The decision has been dubbed a setback to the country’s campaign for sexual equality.
So why do some people change their name while others don’t? It’s even more complicated when you have children: does it matter if you have the same name as your kids? Whose name do they get? Do you go double-barrelled? A Mumsnet user started a debate online after she asked for opinions on whether she should give her baby a double-barrelled surname.
We want to hear what you decided and whether this has caused complications or confusion in your family. If you all have different surnames in your family – does it make life harder? Do you have the same surname as your kids? Do you have any regrets about not changing your name? What does your last name mean to you? Do you feel your “tribe” has a single identity despite the different names? Tell us in the form below and we will use a selection in our reporting.
