shades fills you in

When a woman gets married, she replaces her maiden name with her husband’s last name -- according to a tradition from an 11th-century Norman law

It wasn’t until 1975, in Dunn v. Palermo, that the Supreme Court of Tennessee ruled that a married woman could vote without changing her name. Read the case here

This change didn’t come easily. Time Magazine writes about Lucy Stone, a feminist in the 19th century who fought for women’s right to keep their maiden names

And in 1932, Amelia Earhart wrote to The NYT, asking them to correct her name from “Mrs. Putnam”. Read her letter here

But even without a legal requirement, about 70% of women in the U.S. take their husband’s last name -- BBC

Celebs do it, too! J.Lo changed her name to Jennifer Lynn Affleck -- Cosmopolitan

Maybe a revolution is a-coming. The Independent reports on social media’s response to BBC’s article: Most women commenting planned to keep their names

A WaPo Op: In a post-Roe world, choosing to keep your name could be a powerful symbol of women’s autonomy

The Conversation Magazine thinks it knows why women are changing their names: Patriarchy, duh. And wanting to be a “good family”

An NYT Op writes that taking your husband’s last name can also erase parts of your heritage -- and add to an identity crisis

The author of this Grotto Op chose to take her husband’s last name -- and is sick of the backlash she got for her decision

An independent Op writes that women can’t win. The choice is between being “a bad feminist or a bad wife”

Women giving up their maiden names only really happens in the U.S. and Britain. “I won’t be changing my name,” says an Op in the New Statesman

And this Washington Post cartoonist shares how she came to keep her maiden name

The decision is super complicated. In the end, women have to find a solution that works best for them -- The Cut

But maybe there’s a third option. Global News reports that some men are taking their wives’ last names

The NYT shared the stories of five husbands who chose to take their wives’ last names. Read them here

The NYT offers a creative solution: Make your own last name!

And what about the kids? That’s a whole other discussion, says Time Magazine

But for the record, the Italian court ruled that parents should give their kids both of their surnames by default

An NYT Op writes about a husband who changed his *first* name after getting married to his wife, who took his last name

We asked people on the street what they thought about taking a man’s name in marriage. Watch our TikTok here