When a woman gets married, it’s typical in today’s society for her to adopt her spouse’s last name. However, between 20% and 30% of women reject this custom. They may decide to preserve their current last name, hyphenate it with the new last name, or even create a completely new last name that they can both use.
It takes a lot of consideration, as you might expect, to decide not to adopt your husband’s last name. Recently, a tweet from @MercyFul that posed the following query garnered a lot of attention: “I’d really like to hear the reasoning behind women who won’t take their husband’s last name,” the tweet stated.
And boy, did Twitter users provide. There is a tonne of reasons, it seems, why women choose not to adopt their husband’s last name after marriage. See the most popular comments below (including one from Chrissy Teigen) and make sure to read the entire conversation here.
1.
my husband didn’t even take his last name? https://t.co/BMo6OsgcVv
— chrissy teigen (@chrissyteigen) March 22, 2018
2.
I had too much business, legal, and personal, in my maiden name to dissuade me from changing it. It never mattered. Perk: I have a credit card in my maiden name, and a credit card in my married name. It’s no big deal. You get 1 SS #. It stays with you😘
— Marty Jones (@JonesMartyha) March 22, 2018
3.
Paperwork. And new social. And with new social, new ID new drivers license new bank accountinfonewnumberstoremembernewsignituretopracticenewwaytointroduceyourselfnewblablabla…
Skip all that. Keep what you got.— 2 (@monster_dnd) March 22, 2018
4.
1. I'm a journalist & made my career on my name.
2. Can't be arsed with bureaucracy of changing my name.
3. It's a tradition that's not for me.
4. I don't love my husband any less because I kept my name.
5. Men don't have to identify themselves by marital status so why should I? https://t.co/N4w5cV2JTs— Georgia Lewis (@georgialewis76) March 22, 2018
5.
it would feel like losing a part of myself. Also why should I take his and he not take mine .Who created this tradition ?Men did🚮
— Gücci (@BlackCoffee_74) August 20, 2017
6.
My last name is my history.
— Swan (@Grendelrocks) March 22, 2018
7.
My name is my name, his name is his name
— bored. (@zedabesaying) August 20, 2017
8.
https://twitter.com/kwinnit/status/976807807088345088?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E976807807088345088%7Ctwgr%5E7d9511edb42409aadb7a7efdbc7c3eeac1164d43%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Ftiphero.com%2Fdidnt-take-husbands-last-name
9.
1. I like my name
2. I’m too lazy to do all the paperwork
3. This isn’t 1952— Jess (@adventures_jess) March 22, 2018
10.
I just like my last name. Simple.
— 🖤BORN TIRED🖤 (@AbbyLuscious_) August 20, 2017
11.
Kept mine because I am my own person. But I tell my husband it is to keep my options open, that he is my *current* husband.
— SoniaJ (@sj_ca1867) March 22, 2018
12.
Because no one can eclipse my sun honey. You must step to the side and stand beside me and not in front of me. My equal not my owner.
— Doreen🫶🏾 (@Doreenglm) August 21, 2017
13.
it's my Ph.D, not his lmfao https://t.co/9JEG6koGhp
— stream guts | ass crack bandit (@ass_crackbandit) March 22, 2018
14.
Why wouldn’t I want to take a man’s last name? Cause he’s marrying me, not adopting me? Duh. My last name works just fine. Thanks.
— Kristy (@geekhausen) March 22, 2018
15.
Is part of my identity and dilutes my pre wife accomplishments, felt taking hubby name devalues me, independence, identity and successes
— Keri-Lynn Power (@LadyJusticeNL) August 26, 2017
16.
It honestly never occurred to me to take his name. I'm still the same person. Why would I change my name?
— Robynn (@woollythinker) August 23, 2017
17.
My husband‘s last name was his stepdad‘s stepdad‘s last name. AND the first name “Rain“ does not go with very many last names, especially my husband’s (Slaughter). But even so: I would probably have kept mine because I see no good reason to change identities because I married.
— Rain Perry (@rainperry) March 22, 2018
Why or why not do you favor adopting a man’s last name?
