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Double barreled surnames?

(130 Posts)
Nonnie Fri 18-Jan-19 12:37:17

There is a fashion to keep both surnames when a couple marry. Fine, I can understand that but what happens when their children marry? If Bloggs and Smith become the Bloggs-Smiths and Jones and Whatever become the Jones-Whatevers and their children marry do they become the Bloggs-Smith-Jones-Whatever? I genuinely would like to know.

paddyann Fri 18-Jan-19 12:45:06

Always reminds me of the very pretentious woman in Coronation St who decided she would be Battersby-Brown...lol.How hard is it to decide on one name when you marry instead of doing this.It has worked for a long time.After all most of us had our fathers name

annsixty Fri 18-Jan-19 12:46:56

I personally don't know anyone with a double barrelled name, I think it a tad pretentious, says me, brought up in social housing ( a council house)
However a friend's D married a man with one, it was quite a mouthful, and we were told about it a lot.
After hearing, perhaps once too often, we referred to them as Mr and Mrs Charles Double Barrelled. We heard less after that. I know, I know, that wasn't very nice.
I can't really see how the future generations will handle it.

mcem Fri 18-Jan-19 12:55:32

Professionally my DiL is Dr X but in her personal life she is Mrs Y. They went that way to avoid the double-barrel.
Their baby will be baby Y.

tanith Fri 18-Jan-19 12:58:54

Two of my GC have a double barrelled surname, my son and his partner aren’t married and are happy for the children to use one or other name or keep both whatever suits them as they get older.
They live abroad and I know some of their friends have done the same.

EllanVannin Fri 18-Jan-19 13:01:29

A lot of consultants/doctors have double-barrelled surnames. I think it's in recognition to their forbears who themselves were in the profession. This is okay by me.

Nonnie Fri 18-Jan-19 13:03:28

I don't have a problem with it just curious about what their children will do if they marry another DB person! Life seems to have become very complicated.

Jane10 Fri 18-Jan-19 13:04:58

I have a double barrelled name. I only married it. Don't know how far back it goes. It's a mouthful and I certainly wouldn't have changed my name to it if I was getting married now but 40+ years ago it was the done thing. If rude people comment on it I just say that it's because I'm very posh. People looking at me usually laugh at that.
I use my maiden name for my writing. It's lovely to use it again.

Greyduster Fri 18-Jan-19 13:36:36

I used to work for a young Coldstream Guards Captain who was known as Captain The Honourable J. P. and then he had three surnames. He was known to all as The Hon John! All the female staff, including me, were deeply in love with him!?

Kalu Fri 18-Jan-19 13:54:29

I too have a double barrelled surname which goes back a good few generations. I’m no longer surprised at the perceptions people have of me simply because of my name.

It’s just a name, not who I am. Comments like, oooh aaah I no longer respond too??

Alima Fri 18-Jan-19 14:10:53

I have often wondered how many names a person could end up with. Years ago a double barrelled name often seemed to afflict the posh. Nowadays it seems to affect the children of the unmarried.

Septimia Fri 18-Jan-19 14:23:04

I kept my maiden name as one of my Christian names when I married - but I certainly didn't hyphenate it. It just seemed pretentious to do that. I do sometimes use it with my married name if I do anything professionally - illustrations or publications (not many of those!!). If I was getting married now, I'd probably keep my maiden name if I knew it would be useful professionally. We had an interesting conversation with Icelandic friends - they use patronyms and don't change their name on marriage. They didn't realise that we do and I pointed out that if I was known by a different name people would think we weren't married - but it was 1982 when we had this discussion!

EllanVannin Fri 18-Jan-19 14:27:41

My mum had a family surname as her middle name and coupled with her married name it appeared as double-barrelled but without the hyphen.

BBbevan Fri 18-Jan-19 14:31:58

That is what I think Alima. Often the children of the unmarried

M0nica Fri 18-Jan-19 14:45:54

In the past double barrel names usually were the result of money.

Old John Smith left his money to young nephew Albert Brown on the condition he assume the surname 'Smith'. Young Albert wants the money, but likes his current surname so becomes Albert Brown-Smith (or Smith-Brown).

I notice when I go around stately homes how often people in the past thought nothing of changing their names if it brought advantages. One of Jane Austen's older brothers was adopted by childless relatives when he was in his teens, his surname was changed theirs and he inherited a large estate and magnificent house when his adopted parents died.

Elrel Fri 18-Jan-19 14:47:37

Alima and BBbevan -Since in most cases you would have no idea why a child has a double barrelled surname why presume to judge their parents?

M0nica Fri 18-Jan-19 14:58:48

DDiL has kept her own name except for formal invites to Mr & Mrs Monicason. Children have their father's surname.

BBbevan Fri 18-Jan-19 15:09:21

Who's judging. I taught for 35 years, In the last decade of those double barrelled names became more prevalent. They were nearly always children of unmarried parents. Just stating a fact.

Alima Fri 18-Jan-19 15:10:44

An observation Elrel, not a judgement. Why so spikey?

Nonnie Fri 18-Jan-19 15:38:14

Thanks for all that but does anyone know what happens when one double barreled marries another?

Floradora9 Fri 18-Jan-19 15:52:06

I worked in a bank in a posh part of London many years ago . The manager ( who never spoke to us workers ) called himself Alan Imrie- Smith ( not his real name ) to be posh . Then came the day when chequebooks were printed with you name on them and much to his disgust his came in as Alan Smith . By the way Bill Simpson ( Dr. Findlay ) was one of our customers. One of the " older " ladies used to go weak at the knees when he came in.

M0nica Fri 18-Jan-19 18:31:35

All the children I have come across with double barrelled names recently have two surnames because they have incorporated the surnames of both their parents.

Some times the parents are married sometimes not.
Elrel not clear why you think it is judgemental for someone to say that most of them are the children of unmarried parents. Do you not approve of unmarried parents?

watermeadow Fri 18-Jan-19 19:06:27

One of my daughters took her husband’s surname, one kept her own, one double-barrelled their names because his was extremely common, one kept her ex’s name in her new relationship.
Anything goes now so it doesn’t matter. Hyphenated first names are also very common for girls. Common in both senses.

Jalima1108 Fri 18-Jan-19 20:46:43

Nowadays it seems to affect the children of the unmarried.
I must say that my friend observed that when she was teaching. That is not judgmental, it was a fact, just an observation.

Several women I worked with kept their maiden names for professional reasons but used their married names outside of work.

Iam64 Fri 18-Jan-19 20:54:34

I kept my 'maiden' name when we married. Mr Iam kept his own name as well. Our children have both names, not hyphenated. I find it difficult to think of any close friends who didn't follow the same route.
My children followed a more traditional path and shared the same name as their married partners. A number of their friends chose to keep their own names, or to make a new name by amalgamating both their original last/sir/maiden names.
Why does this less approach to last names cause consternation and dar I say it judgements?