Traditionally, the majority of women have always taken the last name of their husband through marriage. Times are changing, however, and it seems as though more and more women are choosing to keep their maiden name after tying the knot.
This has nothing to do with a lack of affection or respect for their husbands, but everything to do with the growing sense of independence within the female population.
The original reason behind women converting their maiden names to their spouse's last name stemmed from the doctrine of coverture. According to britannica.com, the coverture stated that once married, "Her [the woman's] legal existence as an individual was suspended under 'marital unity,' a legal fiction in which the husband and wife were considered a single entity: the husband." This document made it legal for men to have almost complete control of both his and his wife's property, among other personal objects and paperwork.
The coverture granted men a sense of power and dominance while leaving women with no sense of independence.
Repealed throughout the 1880s, without the coverture, women regained control of their property, finances, and lives. In 2018, women have the choice of taking their spouse's last name, and although their partner cannot gain total control of the individual's property or financial decisions through a marriage certificate, a sense of independence may subconsciously be stripped away from those who choose to do so.
According to a national survey conducted by Portland State University Sociology Professor Emily Fitzgibbons Shafer, out of 850 men, 87 percent reported that their wives took their last name, four percent stated their spouse hyphenated their last name, and six percent said their wives choose to keep their maiden name.
Although women have the choice to keep their maiden names, the majority are still choosing to take that of their spouse's. Is this due to a lack of personal independence? Not necessarily.
Many women are choosing to follow tradition and change their last name to their spouse's; not because they feel like their husband's property, but because there is a twisted concept of romance attached to sharing a last name.
Tradition is tradition, and whether it's right or wrong, people tend to make decisions based on the fact that it's "always been that way." Aside from the fact that women have historically taken their husband's last name, some women view the shared last name as a sense of unity. That the wife is her husband's partner, not his property.
As for the women who are choosing to keep their maiden names after marriage, here are some of the reasons why:
Firstly, women are choosing to keep their maiden names because they have developed themselves in the professional world and changing names would create major confusion and they are proud of themselves and want their name on full display. Additionally, they aren't planning on having children. Without kids, there's no reason to change their last names according to these women. Finally, women don't want to feel like their husband's property. They would rather not change their last names when such a negative and sexist connotation is attached to the action.
The number of women choosing to keep their maiden names is on the rise. Yet, society is still shocked and confused when these individuals choose to do so.
Several factors come into play when a woman decides to take, or not to take, their spouse's last name, many of which were not included in this article. Ultimately, women should not be shamed for choosing to keep their maiden names after marriage, nor should they be ridiculed for changing it.
