It is very common for many women to want to retain their maiden name. Taking on your soon-to-be husband’s last name can be something that you just don’t want to do, but feel you must.
Fortunately for you there is increasing popularity and acceptance of making the decision to hold on to your identity.
Professional
In this day and age, women are making a name for themselves in the professional world.
If you are a single woman who has built a reputation for herself with respect to your career, it could be detrimental to your future business if you were to change your name.
Although you can notify your current business relationships of your name change, it will be difficult to find you for those who have heard of you in the past if you have a different name.
If you want to change your name, but are afraid of what it may do to your career, there is another option.
You can hyphenate and use your maiden name in the business world and use your married name in your personal world.
In time, you may be able to transfer over to your married name if you use your hyphenated name for professional purposes.
Familial Name
You may be the only child left to carry on the family name. This can be important to many families as it can be sad to see the family name die off because there are no more males to carry on the name.
In this case, you may decide to hyphenate in order to include your family name with your future offspring.
Your children can then have either your last name or the hyphenated name; you make the choice.
Don’t Want To
Not wanting to take your husband’s name is okay too. You have lived your whole life with your last name, and there is no shame in wanting to keep it. There are many reasons for this and none of them should be dismissed:
- Your husband’s last name just doesn’t sound right with your first name. This is especially true when you both have names that are indicative of your family’s culture.
- You have an unusual last name and your husband has a common one. Spending your whole life with a last name that no one else has and marrying a man with the last name of Jones may be an adjustment that you just can’t make.
- You just don’t like your husband’s last name. You may love your husband with everything in you, however his last name is just something you can’t live with for the rest of your life.
He Can Do It Too
Men can change their last names just as well as you can. There is no need to think that this is something that is a one way street.
If you and/or your husband are adamant about the fact that you both must have the same last name, but you just can’t bring yourself to make the change yourself, consider having him take on your name.
If the reason for not wanting to make the change is because you don’t like his last name, you could combine both of your last names to create an all new one.
Becoming one with your marriage vows does not mean that you have to give up your personal identity.
It is true that you are creating a new life with the man of your dreams, but it doesn’t mean that you have to throw your past out the window.
There are ways in which to retain who you are and with a little creativity, you can keep your identity with your last name.
