# Putting your full name on facebook: how do you feel about it? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 2, 2010, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/putting-your-full-name-on-facebook-how-do-you-feel-about-it/527431 "2010-02-02T20:27:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Rex\_Goliath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bcef8e/32.png) [@Rex\_Goliath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rex_Goliath)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2010, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/putting-your-full-name-on-facebook-how-do-you-feel-about-it/527431/1 "2010-02-02T20:27:37Z")
Everyone\* knows me as Jeff Jefferson, but my real name is Jeffry Jeffingstone Jefferson. I was thinking of changing my name on facebook to Jeffry Jeffingstone Jefferson, when I got to thinking about why I even wanted to change it. I’ve got a kind of cool middle name, I guess, but that’s about it. I noticed that I’ve got some sort of different feeling to facebook friends who have their full name posted, and I’m not sure how to articulate what those feelings are. So, what do you think about people who put their whole name up? A bit prententious is my first thought, but on the other hand I think it’s a neat, socially acceptable way of making yourself stand out a little bit more (unlike, say a new profile pictures with “rate me!!!” and myspace angles. Not entirely sure where I’m going with this, but if you’ve got any strong feelings, let me know. \*totally made up, but you get the idea ---
**Author:** ![Rex\_Goliath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bcef8e/32.png) [@Rex\_Goliath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rex_Goliath)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2010, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/putting-your-full-name-on-facebook-how-do-you-feel-about-it/527431/2 "2010-02-02T20:30:27Z")
Of course, there’s always the abbreviated name, Jeffry J. Jefferson. That’s definitely pretentious, I think, because it’s definitely “oh yes, my middle is quite mysterious…but I shan’t be telling _you_ that, shan’t I? Oh ho ho ho ho.” ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2010, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/putting-your-full-name-on-facebook-how-do-you-feel-about-it/527431/3 "2010-02-02T20:35:23Z")
Well, a lot of women put their full names on Facebook because if they changed their names after marriage, their college friends wouldn’t know who they were without maiden-name-as-middle-name. ---
**Author:** ![thirdwarning](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecccb3/32.png) [@thirdwarning](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thirdwarning)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2010, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/putting-your-full-name-on-facebook-how-do-you-feel-about-it/527431/4 "2010-02-02T20:41:10Z")
In at least one case I know of, it’s because some people know her by her first name and some people know her by her middle name, so she uses both. As well as her maiden and married names. She needs them all for all of her friends and family to find her. ---
**Author:** ![Gustav](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/919ad9/32.png) [@Gustav](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gustav)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2010, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/putting-your-full-name-on-facebook-how-do-you-feel-about-it/527431/5 "2010-02-02T20:41:46Z")
How could it be pretentious, it’s your actual real name? Pretentious would be if you started adding sophisticated-sounding middle names that you don’t actually have, or insisted on spelling it Geoffyngstone or something. ---
**Author:** ![Kyrie\_Eleison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kyrie_eleison/32/7682_2.png) [@Kyrie\_Eleison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyrie_Eleison)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2010, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/putting-your-full-name-on-facebook-how-do-you-feel-about-it/527431/6 "2010-02-02T22:40:56Z")
> [@thirdwarning](#): > > In at least one case I know of, it’s because some people know her by her first name and some people know her by her middle name, so she uses both. As well as her maiden and married names. She needs them all for all of her friends and family to find her. That’s my situation, too. Before college, I was known by middle name. When I went away to school, I found it tedious having to inform my professors and fellow students that although the roll said X, I really go by Y, so I gave up and started using my first name. Now I have my full name on facebook so that either set of friends can find me. ---
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2010, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/putting-your-full-name-on-facebook-how-do-you-feel-about-it/527431/7 "2010-02-04T13:32:40Z")
All three names of mine are there. ---
**Author:** ![One\_And\_Only\_Wanderers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/838e76/32.png) [@One\_And\_Only\_Wanderers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/One_And_Only_Wanderers)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2010, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/putting-your-full-name-on-facebook-how-do-you-feel-about-it/527431/8 "2010-02-04T13:36:34Z")
I put my middle name on to make finding me easier. There are a lot of other firstname lastname’s out there. I have a fairly unusual middle name so it helps. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2010, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/putting-your-full-name-on-facebook-how-do-you-feel-about-it/527431/9 "2010-02-04T14:32:00Z")
Huh. That is not a bad idea. FB is one of the only places online that has my real name. I wonder…all those people that knew me as my baby name still won’t find me though. But I love my legal name. Off to figure out how to change it in FB. ---
**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:** [February 4, 2010, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/putting-your-full-name-on-facebook-how-do-you-feel-about-it/527431/10 "2010-02-04T14:41:26Z")
I thought people did that to help others figure out just _which_ John Smith you are. Are you John C. Smith from Springfield High class of '89? Or John R. Smith from Springfield (of no relation to John C.)? ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2010, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/putting-your-full-name-on-facebook-how-do-you-feel-about-it/527431/11 "2010-02-04T15:00:24Z")
My first day on Facebook, I posted my full name, my phone number, my hometown, my alma mater, my user names here and on Live Journal … I was just short of posting my social security number when it dawned on me what an idiot I was being. I still have my full name and home town listed but I’ve got it all filtered down to just my friends who can see it. Of course, if I fucked you over somehow 20 years ago (and that’s a very real possibility) you can at least track me down by name on Facebook. Edit: Actually, no, not my full name, but full enough. ---
**Author:** ![Neptunian\_Slug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce7236/32.png) [@Neptunian\_Slug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neptunian_Slug)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2010, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/putting-your-full-name-on-facebook-how-do-you-feel-about-it/527431/12 "2010-02-05T02:08:55Z")
If someone used their full name, I wouldn’t think anything of it. My real name is uncommon enough that if someone was searching for me, they wouldn’t have a problem finding me on Facebook, if I was using my real name. If I was using my real name on Facebook, I would use my middle initial because I have always used it. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2010, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/putting-your-full-name-on-facebook-how-do-you-feel-about-it/527431/13 "2010-02-05T03:00:36Z")
I know some people who refuse to even use their real first and last name. I don’t know why. I know I don’t have a last name on Myspace, but that’s so I can use that one security option, so spammers can’t add me, but anyone who knows my last name can. I wonder why Facebook doesn’t seem to have a spamming problem. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2010, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/putting-your-full-name-on-facebook-how-do-you-feel-about-it/527431/14 "2010-02-05T03:39:21Z")
It’s only pretentious if you use Jeffry Jeffingstone Jefferson IV. ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2010, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/putting-your-full-name-on-facebook-how-do-you-feel-about-it/527431/15 "2010-02-05T04:03:02Z")
> [@needscoffee](#): > > It’s only pretentious if you use Jeffry Jeffingstone Jefferson IV. … esq. ---
**Author:** ![Baby\_Driver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/258eb7/32.png) [@Baby\_Driver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baby_Driver)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2010, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/putting-your-full-name-on-facebook-how-do-you-feel-about-it/527431/16 "2010-02-05T05:00:29Z")
I have my full name up on Facebook, and I actually have experienced the sort of unease the OP has described. I guess it’s not quite pretentiousness, but…I worry it might be a little _too_ precise. Like your middle name is something that I would keep track of and judge you by. But, well, I like my middle name. And it does help people distinguish me from all the other “Jane Smiths” out there. ---
**Author:** ![Driver8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5a626/32.png) [@Driver8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Driver8)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2010, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/putting-your-full-name-on-facebook-how-do-you-feel-about-it/527431/17 "2010-02-05T05:43:27Z")
Ah, my wonderful parents spared me these terrible dilemmas by not giving me a middle name. Now if I could only figure out how to get it to display my Dutch surname properly (I much prefer “van Surname” to “Van Surname”, but I can’t figure out how to change it). ---
**Author:** ![EvilTOJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee59a6/32.png) [@EvilTOJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EvilTOJ)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2010, 8:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/putting-your-full-name-on-facebook-how-do-you-feel-about-it/527431/18 "2010-02-05T08:49:55Z")
I don’t use my middle name. My name is actually quite common, but I figure if someone I don’t know tries to message me either A) I already know them and it’s no problem, or 2) they have the wrong person and I’ll just mess with them. ---
**Author:** ![Serenata67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/serenata67/32/10646_2.png) [@Serenata67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Serenata67)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2010, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/putting-your-full-name-on-facebook-how-do-you-feel-about-it/527431/19 "2010-02-05T15:39:17Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > Well, a lot of women put their full names on Facebook because if they changed their names after marriage, their college friends wouldn’t know who they were without maiden-name-as-middle-name. There’s a way you can put a secondary search name on there. I did. As an adult, I go by a different nickname than I did in high school. I also got married, so my last name is different. So I put my new name (new nickname and new last name) as my default name and then I put my given first name and maiden last name as the secondary search name. Worked out okay for me, so far!