In the 1960s, I never questioned whether women should take their husbands' names in marrying.
In 1970, however, I read a newspaper article about women keeping their birth names, and I decided instantly that I would never change my name to that of a husband.
In 2012 my daughter Ellen married, and she decided to take her husband's surname.
It seems she hadn't really appreciated the surname Eggebroten that I in my feminist ardor had bestowed on her.
John had agreed to giving each daughter both his surname and mine: Rosamond Arthur Eggebroten, Ellen A.E., and Marie A.E. No hyphen.
But the middle surname got slighted over the years by teachers, schools, and friends. Ellen was known as Ellen Eggebroten, and she was more than happy to gain a more elegant surname: Michel.
In today's LA Times, another millennial explains her decision to add her husband's surname to her own.
http://www.latimes.com/local/la-me-alpert-changing-name-20131112,0,7533204.story#axzz2klRVD5MH
Read it. Each generation, each person has her own reasons for deciding how to represent her identity.
It's all about choice.
In 1970, however, I read a newspaper article about women keeping their birth names, and I decided instantly that I would never change my name to that of a husband.
In 2012 my daughter Ellen married, and she decided to take her husband's surname.
It seems she hadn't really appreciated the surname Eggebroten that I in my feminist ardor had bestowed on her.
John had agreed to giving each daughter both his surname and mine: Rosamond Arthur Eggebroten, Ellen A.E., and Marie A.E. No hyphen.
But the middle surname got slighted over the years by teachers, schools, and friends. Ellen was known as Ellen Eggebroten, and she was more than happy to gain a more elegant surname: Michel.
In today's LA Times, another millennial explains her decision to add her husband's surname to her own.
http://www.latimes.com/local/la-me-alpert-changing-name-20131112,0,7533204.story#axzz2klRVD5MH
Read it. Each generation, each person has her own reasons for deciding how to represent her identity.
It's all about choice.
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