I've had issues with my last name for years. My maiden name is one of those one can easily switch into something dirty and abusive - it takes only one letter. So, naturally, I've been teased about my last name ever since I was 7.

It didn't take me long to decide that when I will get married, I will change my last name and take my husband's. When I was older, I did add: if it's any better than mine.

So, when my husband proposed, my reply was clear, and when he asked me about the name, I told him - without thinking twice - that I would take his name.

But... then came March, our wedding month. I checked (for some reason) how many people do share my last name and how many have my husband's. The numbers were surprising: 63 people had my last name, 293 had his. Although both numbers are low, this piece of information made me, for the first time, hesitate.

My maiden name, that last name, was the last clear sign that I was my late father's daughter. The man I still badly every now and then, and I have always felt pride when somebody turned to me and ask if I knew him. Now they will stop asking. One bond has been cut.

About a week before our wedding I just couldn't sleep. I was thinking: what am I doing, why am I giving up my father's name? Should change my mind? Does everybody go through this? That was my mourning period, in a way.

Now my new last name, my husband's name, is official. I've already received mail on my new name, I've changed my name in Facebook and it's time to start all the other paper wars to change credit card, passport, driver's licence, library card, bonus cards... It will take a small forever. But I'll get it done, eventually.

It's time to create a new me. Let's hope that I can recall to write my new name...I nearly screw things up with my insurance card! ;D But I've already introduced myself with my new name. It was fun. :)

I'm hoping to lose ch in the process... ;)

Sanna S

Congratulations on your new last name!  Do you have any pictures that you can share with us?

Carolyn

Really - where are the photos????? >:(

I had a virtually unpronounceable Dutch maiden name.  I never thought it was hard; it was spelled just like it sounded, but people were forever messing it up. 

Taking Mitchell when I married Brew almost 29 years ago was very liberating.  It was easy and pronounceable and the only question I ever get is "one "L" or two?"

I imagine in today's world it requires more thought than I ever gave it, taking a married name, that is. 

I was just glad to be rid of my old one and proud to take his.

Sanna, Congrats on the new name, but that does not mean you have to give up your father's name.  Just sign your name with your maiden name as your middle one.  That way you honor both your father and your husband.

All the best,

Jerry

Congratulations, Sanna! 

I wholeheartedly agree with Jerry.

My father died at the age of 42, when I was 20 years old.  He wasn't there to walk me down the aisle, or when his granddaughters were born.  I loved and was proud of my dad, and proud of my last name.  I miss him terribly today.

I went from Sandra Sue Fannin to Sandra Fannin Cullen on the day I married Tarey - 42 years ago.

Sandy

First of all: there will be pictures. I promise. I got a dvd with 172 of them last night from our photographer. And friends & relatives keep on promising to send pics from the reception, too. :)

I am proud of my new name, it has a nice ring to it, with two SSs now. My cousin's husband did joke about our wedding as an occasion in which "Esa becomes Mr H". ;) But nah, I did the traditional thing and took his name. I did get a good laugh out of the comment, though. I do suspect that some of my new relatives would find it less funny, though. Only they cared who took whose name. My side, nobody asked.

Jerry, I did think about keeping my maiden name and taking my husbands name. :) There are many women who do keep both and have long combination names, but in my ears, my name combo just didn't sound right. So went from Miss H to Mrs S.

Sandy, at first I didn't think much of the new last name. But when I understood how little amount of people do have my former last name...that's what made me reconsider. I've always felt bad that I didn't have a brother who'd keep the family name alive in our branch of the family tree. Aguess there has been a lot of daughters who changed their names.