# Males changing their last name **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 12, 2008, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/males-changing-their-last-name/472302 "2008-11-12T04:08:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swallowed_My_Cellphone)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2008, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/males-changing-their-last-name/472302/21 "2008-11-12T15:38:20Z")
Missed the edit window. The article in the cite above says that approximately 1 in 100 men take their wives’ names (at least in Wisconsin, they didn’t have figures for California, I guess.) ---
**Author:** ![mlerose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/43a26b/32.png) [@mlerose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mlerose)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2008, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/males-changing-their-last-name/472302/22 "2008-11-12T17:01:40Z")
\*\*The Superhero \*\*and I are in the process of a legal name change to become **mlerose** and **The Superhero Newlastname**. We wanted the same name; neither liked the other’s name enough to change to that one, and we decided on a new last name that has letters from both our previous names that we both like quite a bit, thank you very much. And it was his idea in the first place. ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2008, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/males-changing-their-last-name/472302/23 "2008-11-12T17:02:27Z")
My husband offered to take my name when we married. At the time of our wedding, I was the only living American (according to the Social Security office) to have my last name. He said if I wanted to keep it “going,” he’d do that. Of course I could have not changed my name, and we never planned to have kids anyway, so one more generation would have made little difference. But I had a rotten childhood and really saw no reason to perpetuate the name, which was annoying to have to spell and explain over and over to people. I am eternally grateful to him for making the very touching offer. ---
**Author:** ![TheFifthYear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/958977/32.png) [@TheFifthYear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheFifthYear)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2008, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/males-changing-their-last-name/472302/24 "2008-11-12T17:06:49Z")
My family (father included) took my mother’s maiden name when I was in my teens. Dad’s name (my birth name) was soft of embarrassing–it led to a lot of easy jokes-- and mom’s was a nice, common, simple name. The “hassles” that Shagnasty described don’t really exist. It was pretty much a nonevent. Sure, initially it’s a little weird, but after a couple of years no one pays it any attention. I would bet that 95% of the people I know now don’t even know I was born with a different name. It’s no big deal. ---
**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2008, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/males-changing-their-last-name/472302/25 "2008-11-12T17:09:59Z")
Since both members of the couple I’m in are male, we have the option of each keeping our own name, one of us changing to the other or both changing to a third new name. We haven’t really decided yet, but it’s looking like I might take his name. ---
**Author:** ![Fish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/bc8723/32.png) [@Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fish)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2008, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/males-changing-their-last-name/472302/26 "2008-11-12T17:12:22Z")
My last name is the only remaining influence my father has on my life. I’d jettison the name without a regret, provided it wouldn’t be too much hassle — I mean, I would be creating a situation for myself where I would constantly have to remind everybody about my father’s name for years to come. I’d rather not think about the man. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2008, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/males-changing-their-last-name/472302/27 "2008-11-13T00:04:10Z")
> [@Antinor01](#): > > Since both members of the couple I’m in are male, we have the option of each keeping our own name, one of us changing to the other or both changing to a third new name. > > We haven’t really decided yet, but it’s looking like I might take his name. Something just occured to me. When a jurisdiction legalizes same-sex marriage there’s a rush of couples who’ve _already changed their names_ getting married. ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2008, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/males-changing-their-last-name/472302/28 "2008-11-13T00:13:49Z")
> [@](#): > > Originally Posted by **Antinor01** > Since both members of the couple I’m in are male, we have the option of each keeping our own name, one of us changing to the other or both changing to a third new name. You’d have that option if you were both straight, too. (Good luck with whatever choice you make.) ---
**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2008, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/males-changing-their-last-name/472302/29 "2008-11-13T00:16:12Z")
> [@CairoCarol](#): > > You’d have that option if you were both straight, too. (Good luck with whatever choice you make.) True. My point was more that at least one male is likely to change their last name in such a relationship. (and thanks) ---
**Author:** ![Bearflag70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Bearflag70](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bearflag70)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2008, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/males-changing-their-last-name/472302/30 "2008-11-13T00:27:15Z")
I was born with an ugly last name. Not horribly ugly, but ugly enough. I insisted that if and when I got married, I would take her name unless it was uglier than mine. I got engaged. As the wedding approached, I told my fiance I wanted her name. She objected, stressing the nontraditional nature of such an idea. OK, so I went and got a legal name change to my mother’s maiden name. If my fiance insisted on taking my name, it was going to be a cool name at least. Blah blah blah … we called off the wedding. At least I have a cool name now. Years later, I got married to someone else. My wife kept her last name. What a circus. ---
**Author:** ![Subway\_Prophet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecb155/32.png) [@Subway\_Prophet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Subway_Prophet)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2008, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/males-changing-their-last-name/472302/31 "2008-11-13T15:26:39Z")
Useless celebrity trivia of the day: [Jack White](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_white) of the White Stripes took his wife’s last name. He was born John Anthony Gillis, and changed his last name to White after marrying Meg White. Then they divorced, and subsequently adopted a collective stage persona as brother and sister. So yeah, non-traditional. Good music, so I can’t complain. ---
**Author:** ![Interrobang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/interrobang/32/17463_2.png) [@Interrobang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Interrobang)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2008, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/males-changing-their-last-name/472302/32 "2008-11-13T17:56:14Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > There is nothing wrong with a wife keeping her last name. Mine did for some purposes. There is something really screwed up about him taking hers. The hassles based on convention alone are enough to stop that in most cases. All you can do is accept his name as whatever he says it is. That works for everyone but it does cause problems in contexts like these. Guess I dodged a bullet with you, then. When my wife and I got married, we each changed our last name to a third, new one. (Well, _new_ – it was my mom’s maternal grandmother’s maiden name. But new to us.) The “hassle” was minimal for her and only mildly more difficult for me – mostly one particular credit card company who was, for whatever reason, reluctant to even accept certified legal paperwork. They caved eventually. I find it hard to think of any social fallout that could be described a “problem,” though. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/males-changing-their-last-name/472302.md?page=1)