Do you know why all Spanish soccer referees for over half a century officially had double last names? One of the referees in the '60s was the Spanish ruler Franco's namesake, so for a while, sports journalists could write something like "that jerk Franco" in newspapers without any problem – until a corresponding decree was issued, repealed only last year.
Well, for the user u/Puzzleheaded-End620, the narrator of our story today, a double last name for her future child would be a real godsend. The thing is, her boyfriend desperately wants to give the future baby his bio-dad's last name. Meanwhile, the dad-to-be himself has a different one…
More info: Reddit
We are used to some weird stories about picking the first name for babies, but it turns out, picking the last name sometimes can be no less exciting
Image credits: vh-studio / Freepik (not the actual photo)
The author of the post is pregnant with her first baby, and her boyfriend desperately wants to give the baby his biological dad's last name
Image credits: Freepik / Freepik (not the actual photo)
The thing is, the man was registered with his mom's boyfriend's last name, and that guy wasn't his actual father
Image credits: user25451090 / Freepik (not the actual photo)
Over the years, the man found out which last name he should've had, but he never changed his legal last name, for some reason
Image credits: Puzzleheaded-End620
So now the author is in two minds about whether to agree to the boyfriend's idea, and doesn't even know whether they have the legal right to act this way
So, the original poster (OP) is pregnant with her first child, and the due date is mid-July. The pregnancy is going well and smoothly, and perhaps the only thing that worries our heroine is choosing a last name for the baby. The thing is, her boyfriend hates his legal last name, for reasons that date back to his childhood.
The boy grew up in a dysfunctional family, and his mother, not knowing who the child's real father was, registered the baby under her then-boyfriend's last name. He, of course, wasn't the real father. Over time, the guy figured out what his last name should've been, but he never actually changed it.
And now the OP's boyfriend wants the future baby to bear his biological father's last name. The parents are also considering hyphenating the baby's name with "his" and the mother's last name. However, the author's partner's preferred option is still simply his biological father's last name...
However, the original poster isn't even sure whether they have the legal right to give the child the "random" last name and worries that this could potentially cause them a multitude of problems later, both mental and legal. So the woman took this issue online, seeking some advice from netizens.
Image credits: senivpetro / Freepik (not the actual photo)
The rules for choosing a child's last name in the US usually vary by state, especially considering that the author and her boyfriend are apparently not married. For example, in Louisiana, the law stipulates that, in such a case, the mother's last name is given to the baby by default. However, some states allow parents to choose any last name for their child.
A number of states, as this article on the US Birth Certificates website notes, have naming prohibitions regarding giving a child a last name containing obscene language, numbers, special characters, and whatnot. At the same time, the source claims that some states have a letter limit for a child's first and last names as well.
For example, in Massachusetts, a child's first, middle, and last names cannot exceed 40 letters each, while Arizona law permits names up to a total limit of 141 characters. However, there's always the option to defend your rights in court. "In summary, if the parents agree, they can choose any surname they want," the Rice Family Law blog claims.
But shouldn't the father change his own last name first? Well, many people in the comments also pointed this out. According to responders, the man still has time until July to legally change his last name and receive a new ID card within 30 days. After that, he can safely register the baby under the "new" last name. So what do you, our dear readers, think about this case?
Most commenters just suggested that the author's boyfriend change his last name himself, and then follow the default naming rules
