I can’t reveal my first name but it is old-fashioned English–think Meredith, Esther, Olga, Gretchen…

My last name makes me too identifiable. It is an Ellis Island misspelling that makes me the only person on this earth with my exact first and last name combo.

I thought I would change it with marriage but I don’t think marriage is going to happen for me, at least not anytime soon, and I’m not putting anything on hold for it anymore.

I think with my old-timey first name I could afford a zany last name. I like Winter and Snow. I don’t want it to be too “out there” or difficult to spell, so I’m not going to do something like Zephyr, and I would like suggestions that aren’t too tied to a specific concept. Interesting enough but not excessively unique.

My background is Taiwanese and white American without ties to any specific country strong enough to pick a name from some European country I only have a bit of a connection to from generations ago. The white side is Irish, Welsh, and French. I am not trying to stand out excessively. I do not feel a strong connection to my Taiwanese side, and that could be its own post. I don’t want something commonly mispronounced. I was thinking something like Shaw? It might make my ex think I’m obsessed with him but he already thinks that so whatever.

  • fuzzywombat@lemmy.world
    4·
    30 minutes ago

    Just something you should be aware, getting your name changed could be a royal pain in the butt and takes a long time, fair bit of money and a lot of patience. I recently went through the process and it’s quite the journey. First thing you need to get is a signed paper from a judge in your state. Here are the list of things you have to do afterwards. There are some dependencies so you may not be able to get them done simultaneously. Social security card and state drivers license are the two most important and everything else comes afterwards.

    • Social Security Card - Depending on your location, an appointment could take few months.
    • Driver’s License - In my state name change doesn’t require an appointment however if you’re upgrading to Real ID then it may require an appointment. Appointment could take several weeks to several months depending on your state.
    • Car registrations
    • Car titles - This could cost some money
    • Car insurance
    • Passport and Passport Card - This could take some time and may cost some money depending on your situation. https://travel.state.gov/en/passports/renew-replace/change-correct-passport.html
    • Your employer
    • If you own a company then there may be some paperwork to be done.
    • If you are renting then you’ll need to talk to your landlord or property manager
    • If you own a house you might need to talk to your city
    • Utility (Electricity, Gas, Internet, Mobile, etc.)
    • Your healthcare provider
    • Health/Life insurance
    • Property insurance
    • Voting registration
    • Bank Accounts - This requires new drivers license as ID
    • Credit Cards - Same as above.
    • Investment accounts (Broker, 401K, IRA)
    • Local public library card
    • Memberships like AAA, Costco, AARP, etc.

    EDIT: There are several more additions I just thought of.

    • If you own a house or condo with home owner’s association, you’ll need them to update their records
    • if you have children, your daycare center or school will need their emergency contact updated

    EDIT: The following don’t pertain to me personally so I really don’t know what is involved with name change. You should to do more research to find out for sure if they pertains to you.

    • If you are a certain licensed professional like doctor, lawyer, accountant, real-estate agent, electrician, plumber, etc. you may need to update those records
    • Firearm registration may need to be updated
    • if you are in your family member’s will, those may need to be updated