Why would anyone want to change their name legally? The truth is that it could be for just about any reason or none at all. It is actually legal to change your name unless it is for the purpose of deception, to commit fraud, to commit an illegal act, or it will result in the financial loss of a third party.
You can choose to legally change your change [delete] your name for various reasons. Each state has its own procedures regarding name changes; so, if you wish to change your name, you should first check the specific name change laws in your state.
12 Reasons to Change Your Legal Name
1. Marriage
A wife or even husband can choose to change her or his legal name after getting married. It is becoming increasingly common for husbands to take the name of their wives after marriage. Some women are quite fond of their names and want to hold on to them either for professional or sentimental reasons. A husband that wishes the family to share names, can choose to change his name to accommodate his wife.
2. Divorce
If a woman changed her name after getting married, she can choose to revert to her maiden name after getting divorced. Some women who change their name in their marriage license chose to take their maiden name back without divorce or separation. It is usually a personal choice. In some states, a woman is required to complete a name change form if she wishes to reclaim her maiden name. Other states grant a name change with the divorce decree. Women that wish to revert to their maiden name after getting divorced should first check the law in their states since different states have different rules and requirements.
3. To Leave the Past Behind
If you share a name with a person that did very bad things such as a serial killer, you can change your name legally. If you want to get away from someone that you wish to forget such as an abusive ex-boyfriend or girlfriend, you can get all your Official Records and ID changed to reflect the new name.
People that do this usually take a grandparent’s, step-father’s, or mother’s name. However, you can also choose a name you believe will suit you in the future. The New Legal name you choose can be one that you already use or one you see yourself becoming.
4. Acceptance of Paternity
If a man and woman have a child out of wedlock, the child may retain the mother’s maiden name until the father claims his or her paternity. Once the father has assumed paternity of the child, both the woman and man can choose to change the last name of the child from the mother’s maiden name to the father’s last name.
5. Dislike for a Current Name
You can choose to change your name because you are not happy with their current last, middle, or first name. Some people believe that their career aspirations will improve if they change their name. For instance, celebrities often change their names in the hope of achieving success in Hollywood.
6. Couples Hyphenating or Combining Surnames
A tradition that’s currently popular with cohabiting or married couples is creating a new surname using each partner’s name or hyphenating their two respective last names to come up with a new joint surname. If you want to do that, it is important to first check the law in your state because some states allow the hyphenation or combining of married couple’s surnames with just simple paperwork. One of the newest trends, available in some areas, is for a couple to come up with a completely new family name for themselves.
7. To Honor Someone Important
You can choose to change your name in honor of somebody important to you. It could be a grandmother, a grandfather, an ancestor, somebody that raised you, or even something or someone from your heritage. You can choose to change the last, middle, first names, or even all three to honor.
It is actually a common type of legal name change. The Court grants a Decree Changing Name if approved. Every government and the financial agency will accept your Certified Decree to change Official Records and issue new ID.
8. Desire for a More or Less ‚ Ethnic Name
If you have a name that’s identifiably ethnic, you may consider changing your name for a variety of reasons including the ease of spelling and pronunciation. Similarly, you can decide to change your name to reclaim your ethnic heritage by returning to a surname that could have been lost over the years or after adopting a new one.
9. Transgender Name Changes
If you are transgender, in a growing number of areas, you are allowed to request a name change to reflect your new gender. You can choose to change your name to simply the feminine or masculine form of your current name or you can choose new names altogether.
10. Same-Sex Partners Sharing a Surname
Same-sex couples might not be legally allowed to marry in all the states, but they can decide to share a surname, which can be incredibly empowering and convenient when it comes to legal or financial transactions.
11. To Make a Political Statement
It might be considered a bit extreme to change your name to support a cause, but the reality is that people can and have made name changes for political reasons. Whether it is to support rights, values, or causes, you can change your name to reflect what you support.
12. Religious or Spiritual Reasons
Name changes for religious reasons are common, whether it is due to a recent religious conversion or to honor a deeply held religious or spiritual belief. For instance, many people that convert to the Christian, Hindu, Muslim, or Jewish faiths often take up new names to go with their new path.
Final Thoughts
You can change your name legally for almost any real reason, as explained here. If you wish to change your name legally, you may be required by the court to complete a name change petition. Depending on the laws in your state, you may be required to publish your name change in a local newspaper for 4 weeks, or otherwise publish your intent to change your name. You might also be required to appear to court in person or if you are fortunate enough, the judge will issue the name change based on the name change documents you file. You have options. You also have the option of having a professional name change service, like EZNAMECHANGE do everything for you. The savings in time and costs can be considerable.
