Tuesday, December 06, 2005

So how do people feel about name changes?

mom is thinking about changing her last name to her "intended":> last name.

She has thought about always taking her husband's last name since she was a little girl, but now since it has become a reality she really has to think about it.

Her worries are not about oh gosh her career is staked on her last name, but it is an identity that she has had for 26 years.
Hmmm ... Not to mention it is a god damn pain in the ass.



What would you all do?

9 comments:

Emily Farris said...

I absolutely, positively would NOT.

http://eefers.blogspot.com/2005/06/rose-by-any-other-name-wtf.html

But that's just me.

Anonymous said...

I think the idea of changing yr name by default is bogus. It's a matter of whether you like/want the new identity or not.

For instance, my mom changed both her first and last names, and not to match a marriage, but just because she wanted to.

Anonymous said...

If the dilemna over the change has nothing to do with career, money, etc., then are we to assume it has to do with personal identity and gender equality? If that's the case, why not both your mom and frank change their names to represent the new family they are beginning together. Like, they could combine both last names in hyphenated form, or something new and cool, like reese or bichon. Just a thought.

Anonymous said...

Well, the name is going to be changed. It has been decided.

It is very exciting.

Mom has always wanted her husbands last name, ever since she was little. And since now she is getting married to someone who she loves a lot and actually likes the last name of. Why not?

Kris said...

I remain in the middle, prefering:
my last name -his last name

That is, if he last name IS NOT the same last name as mine, which would be really odd and kinda disapointing

Kris said...

I remain in the middle, prefering:
my last name -his last name

That is, if he last name IS NOT the same last name as mine, which would be really odd and kinda disapointing

Daniel said...

Yeah I remember this conversation awhile back. My comment was:

I am a firm believer in the woman keeping her own name and IF I ever get married I would except the woman to keep her name..unless it was like Dinklebutte or something..in which case I would probably be like..uh yeah you can grab that Krieger last name if you want. My sister kept her name and I gave her mad props for it.

The link to that conversation and comments is here: http://approachingmidnight.blogspot.com/2005/06/gay-marriage.html

Anonymous said...

Interesting topic. I feel strangely about it, being, how do you call eett...zee homo. When I was younger, I was very anti-name change...now as a grown up lesbian, I don't necessarily see myself taking my significant other's name, but I do feel that anything we can to do make our eventual family more of a unit in the eyes of society would be beneificial to our hypothetial children. I suppose we'll hyphenate. Yndigoyen-Nagle. Poor kids.

Jessie B said...

not sure if you two are getting married in new york, but the name change itself is easy--in fact, you can each choose a totally new identity on the marriage certificate. it's the changing licenses, bank accounts, etc., that can be a pain in the butt.

i didn't take steve's last name, but i'm not particularly ideological about it. like many negotiations of gender and tradition, too much goes into the decision to make blanket feminist statements about it.