63.3 percent of Men's Health followers said they would be upset if their wives kept their maiden names. 96.3 percent of Men's Health followers said they wouldn't take a woman's last name if she asked them to. What are your thoughts on women who keep their last names? Would you want to hold onto yours?
This change in women's identity, by taking a husband's name, has emerged from patriarchal history where wives had no surname except “wife of X”. The wife was the husband's possession and right up to the late 19th-century, women in England ceded all property and parental rights to husbands on marriage.
Although it's getting more popular, keeping your maiden name is still not the 'done thing'. Older generations in particular may consider this move unusual, or even disrespectful to your husband. You'll constantly have to remind people that you're married.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with going down the traditional route, so long as the ramifications and reasons for doing so are understood by both parties. Discussions about what to do with a surname may initially be nerve-wracking, but I urge you to push through.
Despite a growing feminism movement and increased gender equality, the overwhelming commonness of this practice remains. Contemporarily, “at least in the US, about 20% to 30% of women retain their name, meaning the vast majority take their spouse's name when they marry,” Carr said.
Return to tradition
She says women taking on their husbands' names in heterosexual marriages is still by far “the most common practice”. “Planning to have a family together in the future and wanting to share the same last name often motivates females to decide to change their last name after marriage,” she says.
Many women who keep their maiden names do so because they marry later in life or at a time when their careers are already in full swing, and it could be risky—both career-wise and financially speaking—to change names. That's partly due to the value of personal branding or, in simple terms, name recognition.
In some states, married women could not legally vote under their maiden name until the mid-1970s. The opposite—a man taking his wife's name—remains incredibly rare: In a recent study of 877 heterosexual married men, less than 3 percent took their wife's name when they got married.
Taking the Surname of Your Wife Upon Marriage
Although it's not common, a man taking the surname of his wife upon marriage is possible. Couples sometimes do this in an effort to change the unequal practice of women taking their husband's surname. Or in some cases, the wife's surname just represents the couple better.
"I didn't take my husband's last name because my husband and I are separate people." "He's not my father and I'm not his property — we are two equals who came together. We love and respect each other very much. But I'm me and he's him.
You won't have to change your things
Keeping your own last name might just be a simpler practical solution, even just for the ease of knowing that your name can stay yours and you won't have to navigate the weird in-between period where half of your business cards have one name and half have another.
Con: You have to tell everyone about the change
People will ask questions. They will forget that you changed your name. It may take more work than you think to contact friends, family members, co-workers, supervisors, school administrators and everyone else who needs to know.
In British tradition, a double surname is heritable, usually taken to preserve a family name that would have become extinct due to the absence of male descendants bearing the name, connected to the inheritance of a family estate.
It is a common practice for women to bear their husbands' last names when they get married. However, there's no law that makes this compulsory.
The prefix Mrs., pronounced missus, is used to describe any married woman. Today, many women decide they want to keep their last name instead of taking their husband's. These women are still referred to as Mrs. A widowed woman is also referred to as Mrs., out of respect for her deceased husband.
How Can a Man Legally Change His Name to His Wife's? The process for a man legally changing his name after marriage is exactly the same as the process for a woman.
63.3 percent of Men's Health followers said they would be upset if their wives kept their maiden names. 96.3 percent of Men's Health followers said they wouldn't take a woman's last name if she asked them to. What are your thoughts on women who keep their last names? Would you want to hold onto yours?
If married in Australia, you can take the surname of your husband, wife or partner or add their surname to yours, without registering a name change. You can use your official marriage certificate to prove your new name.
A growing number of men, in particular, have started to question the automatic assumption that their wives will take their names, and some have opted to take their wife's name. But making that choice may draw some backlash, Professor Scheuble said.
“Mrs.” is the proper title for a married woman whether she has taken her spouse's last name or not.
It may be hard for you to see it, but most ex-wives don't keep their ex-husband's last name simply to be a source of constant irritation. Continuity with children — One of the most common reasons an ex may keep your last name is to keep her name the same as any children.
It's important to accept that such a choice is ultimately an individual one. “Do what feels right, and don't let society, your partner, friends, family, in-laws, or anyone pressure you into a decision,” Sobel advises.
She may elect to retain her own surname or she may adopt the surname of her husband. The choice is hers.