Legally Changing Name: Have you/would you?

[diznee25]

Legally changing your name can have a weird effect if you bump into a person from your past.

I bumped into an employee at Best Buy a few years ago. Thought he looked like someone I knew, but when I read his name tag, I thought, oh that can't be the guy I know from church. Plus his hair was chopped off, so I wasn't sure if it was him. So I didn't approch him.

So I'm at Best Buy a few weeks ago, and wouldn't you know, the same guy still works there! This time he saw me and came over. He recognized me and mentioned that he legally changed his name to James. He changed his name and he's in his late 40's, that's gotta be hard to getting use to! So then we got to talking and I asked how his wife was doing, etc.

It was just weird though, because had I known it was Woody, (his old name), I would have said hi 2 years ago!

So, have you ever considered legally changed your name?

 

[birdiesunshine]

Not me, but if one more person calls my DD Abbey one more time, I'm gonna scream. Her name is Abigail. If I wanted to name her Abbey I would have. I tell my friends all the time that I wish I could change her name!! People meet us and ask what her name is and I say Abigail. Then they look at her and say "hi Abbey" Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr. I know people are going to respond to say how cute the name Abbey is and things like when she goes to school the kids will call her Abbey, but that's not the point. I want her to be called Abigail. Wow! that feels better.

 

[poohandwendy]

I want her to be called Abigail.

I think you have given a good example of why it is important to think long and hard when chosing a childs name. No matter what you 'want' your child to be called, it really boils down to the fact that you can only control what you will say, not others. So, if it is important, be sure to choose a name that has no common 'shortened' version or accept that others may not follow your lead. Many people, especially their friends, will shorten their name or give them a nickname.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

My dad did. He changed his last name. He had a polish last name and changed it "for business purposes". It was rather long.

 

[poohandwendy]

LOL...Mystery Machine, you know I read your sentence as 'polish' like nail polish twice before I realized you meant origins in Poland...

 

[birdiesunshine]

Originally posted by poohandwendy
I think you have given a good example of why it is important to think long and hard when chosing a childs name. No matter what you 'want' your child to be called, it really boils down to the fact that you can only control what you will say, not others. So, if it is important, be sure to choose a name that has no common 'shortened' version or accept that others may not follow your lead. Many people, especially their friends, will shorten their name or give them a nickname.

While I understand what you are saying, I'm not sure that I should have to sacrifice naming my daughter a name that I love because a lot of people don't like to listen. What if I wanted her nickname to be Gail, which I don't but I'm just saying that people should think before presuming someone wants their childs name shortened when I just clearly said her name was Abigail.

 

[JayBee]

When My DH's friend Ben got married, His wife decided his middle name was more "refined" so from then on his name was "Cliff".

I still sent their Christmas card addressed to Mr and Mrs Ben

 

[browneyes]

At one time I thought about changing the spelling of my first name legally. Dumb me told my mom that. She had a "hissy fit".

 

[onecoolmama]

Originally posted by browneyes
At one time I thought about changing the spelling of my first name legally. Dumb me told my mom that. She had a "hissy fit".

I have always wanted to change my name. But, I was 9 and I went to seriously talk to my mom about it. She pretty much had the same reaction yours did.

Do we have the same mom

 

[HisEllyNelly]

Nope I have always loved my name. Now birdie I know where u are coming from. I named my son Patrick, a good Irish name....all of his teachers call him Pat. It drives me nuts. I told him that he is old enough to tell people if it bothers him which I guess it doesnt...but I told him I would NEVER call him Pat. I named him Patrick and thats who is is...unless I call him Pooh Bear, hehehehe, which DOES bother him.
As for the changing the name thing, my parents would be crushed if I ever changed mine. But I think if my kids wanted to when they were older I would be okay with it.

 

[bumcat]

After my grandmother went thru a nasty divorce she changed her last name back to her maiden name and also changed her kids (my mom and her brothers) name back to her maiden name.

If I did not get married I probably would have legally changed my last name for several reasons.

 

[snoopy]

My cousin married a guy with the last name of, ummmm, not Richard but the nickname of that. They both agreed that she would not change her name, but a year or so after they married and decided to have kids, he ended up legally changing his last name to hers.

Can't say I blame the guy.......

 

[EsmeraldaX]

No, but my BF's brother legally changed the spelling of his last name because he was sick of being mistaken for an ethnicity he is not which was having a negative effect on his business (sad, huh?) and because he does not want his kids to have to deal with it when they grow up. In our area, this ethnic group is not looked very favorably upon.

I don't want to offend anyone, I'm just saying how things are in my area, so please let me leave it at that.

To be honest, my BF is really sick of it too. But he doesn't want to deal with the hassle of changing his name.

I like my name. I would not change it. When I was little hated being named Sheri because it was different. I always wanted to be named Jennifer or something. Now I like it because it's different but it's still annoying to never find anything with it spelled the way I do!

When I was little and everyone had those dumb stickers with their names, they never had mine!

 

[lilpritch04]

I love my name, so no, I would never change it. Even when I got married I just added on DH's last name because I really love my *maiden* name.

My parents gave me 2 first names Katharine Mae, but when they tried to write it that way on the birth certificate the hospital said that I could only have one first name so they would have to give me 2 middle names instead. When I changed my name after the wedding I corrected it everywhere so that I had 2 first names, now 2 middle names and one last name.

I love my name, Katie Mae

 

[Karel]

Originally posted by birdiesunshine
While I understand what you are saying, I'm not sure that I should have to sacrifice naming my daughter a name that I love because a lot of people don't like to listen. What if I wanted her nickname to be Gail, which I don't but I'm just saying that people should think before presuming someone wants their childs name shortened when I just clearly said her name was Abigail.

Purely out of curiousity, what will you do if she wants to be called Abby or Gail?

 

[EsmeraldaX]

Originally posted by poohandwendy
I think you have given a good example of why it is important to think long and hard when chosing a childs name. No matter what you 'want' your child to be called, it really boils down to the fact that you can only control what you will say, not others. So, if it is important, be sure to choose a name that has no common 'shortened' version or accept that others may not follow your lead. Many people, especially their friends, will shorten their name or give them a nickname.

This is why I wonder about people who name their kids really bizzare things like Moonbeam or Starlight.

Those are not names. They are astronomy terms.

But part of me says if I have had a daughter, I want to name her Djeta (for personal reasons, that name means a lot to me) but I know she'd have an annoying time explaining it to people, and spelling it for people, and I think deep down I'd probably go with a more tradional name like Emma or Anna or something.

Of course, I think the name Abby is cute. But I also like Gail and Abigail. I think as long as your daughter does not mind being called Abby, people are going to call her that as it is the tradtional nickname for Abigail and the first thing people think of.

It would be like if my BF suddenly wanted everyone to call him Christopher and not Chris.

 

[SetzKitten]

Yes, first and last, and that's all I'm saying.

 

[Kitty 34]

I would like to add Kitty to my name, I have been called Kitty since I was two years old!!

 

[ead79]

When I got married I legally changed my name to take my husband's last name. I made my maiden name my middle name and got rid of my old middle name (never was a huge fan of it). I can tell you that it's been a big pain in the rear trying to get it changed on everything. I haven't even done my social security card yet, because it's really inconvenient. Bad me!

 

[macraven]

i went to court and had a legal name change. long story...............

my mom changed my name twice when i was a kid..............

our family is weird............