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Fri 22 Apr, 2005 04:03 pm
Not sure if there's a better forum for this, but here goes.......
I have an aquaintance whose son, Edgar Whimplegiest is marrying soon, to Muriel Gestapoworth.
BOTH Edgar and Muriel are changing their last name to Whimplegiest Gestapoworth.
This aquaintance is about ready to have a stroke over this.
At first, the way she told the story, it sounded like their last name was going to be one word - Whimplegiestgestapoworth. It was so upsetting to her and her husband that their son would "abandon" his name.
Later, I found out that there would be a space between the names, they just both wanted to share the same name.
Now, personally, I couldn't give a fat rats ass what my son or daughter chose to call themselves upon their marrying. I just want to know they are happy.
I tried to comfort her by telling her that I was pretty sure there were different traditions around the world (this gals pretty convinced the entire world has the same values as her) - that in fact I knew for sure in Scandinavian countries people names change every generation. Peter Johnson has a son named Edward Peterson.
Well, I can't do anything about her being upset, I've got bigger fish to fry. It got me thinking though; is this indeed a common tradition somewhere?
Specifically, the mans surname space womans surname.
Never mind what they name the kids.
Anybody got an answer to this - and where they practice it?
well surely double barrelled surnames are everywhere?!
i know of at least four different marriages where bride and groom have combined their names.
interesting thought tho.
Living in Texas, many Hispanic women I know take their husbands name, then keep their name on the end
Gloria Saldana marries Hector Sustaita = Gloria Sustaita Saldana.
Kind of backwards from what I was used to....When I've asked Mexican friends, they say it's because the man's name comes first.
But of course the man just keeps the name Sustaita.
Is there anywhere the man adds in the womans last name to his?
The double-name tradition in the United States was inspired by feminists who objected to a woman being absorbed by her husband's family, leaving not even a name.
(Of course the woman's name came from their father's family, but this is a separate issue).
The double-name works well for single syllable names and even double syllable names, but when 3+3=6 and more than six, the family name becomes a mouthful.
My son has a two syllable name. My daughter-in-law's maiden name was four syllables. The combination would have been ungraceful--and amusing.
Through history there have been cases of a man marrying into an old family with no sons to carry on the name and changing his name to please his bride and her father.
Usually in these cases the bride came with a very generous dowery.
Mine's hyphenated, but it's 2 syllable-2 syllable. Long, long, long names tend to be, well, tough for people to spell and say, e. g. Mientkiewicz-Ceacescu.
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