For reasons that are too detailed to go into here, I’ve decided to change my last name. Getting married seems like a lot of trouble just to change my name (I’m not seeing anyone right now.)
So, I’d like suggestions for a new last name. My first and middle names are similar to Annette Lynn. My current last name is difficult to spell and pronounce, so I’d like my new name to be easier to spell and pronounce, at least in the US. The other requirement is that it not sound or look like a made up name.
All suggestions, serious or not, are welcome. Any tips from people who have changed their names in the past would also be nice, as I’m sure there are ramifications that I haven’t thought of yet.
Why don’t you just go by the name Annette Lynn? Use your middle name as your last name. Lynn is a very typical American last name, and it might save you hassles down the road if you can prove you really didn’t “change” your name, you simply dropped your old last name.
Otherwise, I might suggest changing your last name to Rockefeller. Should open a whole new bunch of doors for ya.
DMark - that’s a great idea! The only downside would be feeling like I was in trouble every time I heard my “new” name. I suppose that would pass, though.
Or have your first name be Savage and last be Devereaux…SAVAGE DEVEREAUX…hmm, on second thought, sounds like an evil Golden Girl…
I always thought it would be cool to have a name like Dick Danger…of course, one look at me would have people rolling in the aisles, but it would look good on paper.
I’m assuming that your last name is the same as your mother’s or father’s last name. How about going farther back in your family and taking a last name from there? That’s what I was going to do when it looked like I was going to want to change my last name.
If your current last name is simply too long for most Americans to cope with, how about truncating it (Think “Tomaczewski” shortened and Anglicized to “Thomas”)?
How about spelling your name phonetically? That could look “made up,” though, to people who do know how to spell and pronounce your original name. If you’re trying to reduce, but not eliminate, the ethnic distinctiveness of your name, this might work (Think “Smrt” respelled “Smirt”).
How would your family feel about your changing your last name? They might see your name change as an attempt to distance yourself from them or your origins.
Hitler is easy to read and spell, and most pronounce it correctly.
You also might try "TPFKAJBWANLN,’ of course, for “The Poster Formerly Known as Jahdra, But With A New Last Name.” If you remember all of the letters, it will be very easy to spell. Can’t help you with the other requirements, but this should get the ball rolling.
Don’t mention it,
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I agree with cwthree about choosing a family name from the past - might make your namechange a little more palatable to your immediate family, too.
Or… do you have an author, actress, historical figure or other famous person you admire, whom you’d like to honor? Obviously, you don’t want to choose someone whose last name is SO distinctive that you’ll get amused reactions and/or “Are you related to X?” questions all the time, but even with those caveats you’ll probably have lots of options.
Another suggestion: practice writing your new name, once you’ve tentatively selected it, and saying it aloud. Make sure it’s something you’re gonna like for a looooooong time.
I have a friend whose last name (family name, she didn’t make it up) is Lawless. How cool is that? Annette Lawless. I like it.
Other last names I like:
Barefoot (my mother-in-law’s maiden name. I tried unsuccessfully to convince my husband that we should both change our last names to Barefoot when we married.)
If I were going to pick a new last name, I’d think very seriously about picking a name starting with a letter from the first half of the alphabet–maybe first quarter of the alphabet but also think about picking a name starting with a letter like Q rather than a letter like S. In other words, in the event that you are looking for something in alphabetical order, make your name earlier in the list, and also make it part of a smaller pile-if every alphabet letter had a separate pile, I’d want to be part of the a short pile, rather than a very tall pile.
Can you tell my last name starts with a popular letter in the last half of the alphabet? It’s silly, but as long as you get to start from scratch, why not think about that kind of thing while you are at it?
My brother and his wife chose a new last name when they got married. It was a reflection of their shared heritage (German) and their shared characteistic (dark hair). Kieran, which they assure me, means “dark haired one” in German.
Maybe something of that sort. I’m Irish, German and Native American. I should call my self "alchoholic’. I kid, I kid. If I were to choose a new last name, it would be Irish, as I’m quite proud of my Irish immigrant great-grandparents.
I suppose that would pass, though.
I kid, I kid. If I were to choose a new last name, it would be Irish, as I’m quite proud of my Irish immigrant great-grandparents.
Sweetcorn? Let’s not go there.