No, changing one’s name is a pain in the ass.
I have an extraordinarily rare last name combined with an extraordinarily rare first name, I’m literally the only person who has ever had my full name in the entire history of humanity, I’m keeping it.
Until you meet someone with that exact name
Unless someone in my family with my last name named their kid after me, that’s not going to happen.
I guess it depends how common your last name is where you live. If you’re a Smith/Johnson/Brown/Williams in the USA, those are pretty common. If you’ve got one of those names in China, maybe a name change is in order.
If your last name is Summerbell, that’s a bit rare, and maybe you need to distance yourself.
Why should I change? He’s the one who sucks.
An ex of mine had the same name as the wife of a killer. I find it hilarious that when you Google her name, that person comes up. I hope it forever is an impediment to her finding employment. What? No, I’m not bitter.
Harvey Epstein is crazy bad luck for a name.
For me, it depends on the crime and how common or uncommon the name is but still probably not.
No, I hope I’d have the self-confidence to own it.
- I went to school with a kid named “dick”. Not Richard or rich, but he insisted on “dick”. He was the first to joke about his name and he laughed about it. I don’t know how he truly felt but everyone loves the comedian, and even bullies couldn’t make fun of him
- I just got a new coworker with the same name as a famous comedian, and same deal. His intro speech started with “not that one”, and he can quote movie lines with the best of us. Actually I haven’t worked with him so know nothing else about him. I remember his name and that he has a good sense of humor
- my name Isn’t at all common but there’s a professor in Chicago with the same name, who has authored a bunch of text books. Does it count that I sometimes joke about my “alternate life”?
my name Isn’t at all common but there’s a professor in Chicago with the same name, who has authored a bunch of text books. Does it count that I sometimes joke about my “alternate life”?
I googled my name and found some old dude with a PhD lmao.
Changing your name is an insane amount of work and it is not worth it
I would argue about insane amount, but would agree that it is not worth it.
If you’re just changing your name without getting married there’s a lot of paperwork, you have to stand in front of a judge, then you have to change all your banking information and everything else that had your previous name on it. And so help you god if you lose that paperwork that says you changed your name if you happen to need it years later it’s a huge issue. It’s a lot of work to change your name.
I did change my surname late in high school. Maybe it is cause of my country, bur yhat was not so easy. I just wrote a letter to the birth certificate register with a good reason to do so. Once they replied with “you’re good to go” I just wen to the passport issuer with that mail and changed my name. What happens next is the problem - change name in all instances - school, work, license, bank and so on.
When I was younger and less involved in this world, it was quick. Today, with all the subscriptions, payments and registrations - screw that. Too much effort.
So, just change it if and when I get married?
Apparently when getting married it isn’t quite as easy as I was thinking. But depending on your country it might be slightly easier
Hell no, people can finally spell it.
No, because my name is already very common and there are several prominent murderers, war criminals and even traitors who share my name, and I barely rate among them.
One of the worst US congress members shares a last name with me, but it’s also so common that it’s pretty diluted. It needs to be both infamous and uncommon, sharing a last name with millions of people ain’t that.
Then again, Epstein is kinda common and I can’t help giggle when I bring up a certain researcher with that last name and call her model the Epstein model.
Rewatching the Expanse is funny when they mention the Epstein Drive, and its even funnier when
spoiler
they literally have a plot point about them trafficking kids into a
islandmoon and do disgusting things… using them to create bioweaponsYeah, millions of Johnsons survive sharing a name with a guy who must have been a real prick.
The were 4 other guys in my high school with my name. So no, can’t see bothering to change it.
I guess I’d just get married
My last name is lame anyways
You are Khaby Lame?
/j
My whole name - first, middle, and last - is one of those that’s so generic I’m damn near impossible to Google without already knowing other key identifying details. Details that, if you already knew, you probably wouldn’t need to Google me anyway.
Welcome to Port Royal, Mr. Smith.
My last name is limited to my 5 closest relatives. This is due to a bizarre misspelling 3 generations back followed by mostly female descendants.
Have you searched for the name outside your family line? I know you said misspelling but my last name is rare because it was made up by immigration on Ellis Island: they couldn’t understand my ancestor so decided “close enough”. Same thing as a rare misspelling.
Before the internet, we knew of one unrelated person with the same last name but only because he was he was geographically close enough to be in a neighboring phone book. When someone took my Gmail (identical first initial, last name) it was a relative. Now with the internet and person search we’ve found a handful, but only a handful
Yes.
It was changed when my 7-year-old great grandfather was sent to school with the dozens of other immigrants from the tenement building. He spoke his name, the German school administrator wrote what he heard, and that was it.
There are 2 other super-similar names that I assume are related, but without DNA, I can’t prove it. I am the family genealogist, so I’m never done researching.
Whoa super cool! I would ask you to say what it is but do not expect you to answer :)
Yeah. I’d like to be able to, but this isn’t the kind of society where my opinions should be matched to my body.
I can tell you that the original was Sicilian.
