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It depends on the jurisdiction. In the Netherlands changing your given name(s) is possible if you can convince a judge of its negative impact on you. Gender tra

It depends on the jurisdiction. In the Netherlands changing your given name(s) is possible if you can convince a judge of its negative impact on you. Gender transitioning is an obvious rationale, but a well-worded explanation of why your current name doesn't match who you are or damages you (e.g., past traumatic experiences, abuse, but also a name simply not suiting you) tends to suffice. It's not something you can get done at a whim or frequently of course. The judge will weigh the needs of society (i.e., to be able to consistently refer to citizens by a constant name in various types of records) against your personal motivation for changing names.

ummwhat 7y ago
The US is much more liberal about this. You have to pay a fee and put in some paperwork and make an announcement in a news paper with a certain amount of readers and a judge will deny requests that violate a very limited set of common sense criteria. Sometimes the judges can get a bit lazy about actually filtering requests. Jesus Christ literally lives in New York.
- Freak_NL 7y ago
  Why would a judge in a nation that separates state and religion care about someone calling himself Jesus Christ? Jesus is a common given name, and Christ a common enough surname. (Or Kris Kringle for that matter.)
  - ummwhat 7y ago
    It's not about "calling himself" Jesus Christ so much as convincing others that he is literally Jesus Christ. Basically it's a form of fraud (or maybe insanity, who knows) One of the common sense criteria is you're not allowed to assume the identity of well known public figures or entities.
- notahacker 7y ago
  In the UK it's even more liberal - you need a piece of paper and some witnesses' signatures. I knew Mr 118 Taxi back when he thought a name change might help promote his business...
  - denton-scratch 7y ago
    You don't even need that. You can just start using a new name - perfectly legal in the UK.[1] You need to execute a 'deed poll' if you want the new name recorded on official documents, or accepted by organisations like banks. [1] www.gov.uk/change-name-deed-poll
- amyjess 7y ago
  > and make an announcement in a news paper with a certain amount of readers And even that depends on what state you're in. For example, Texas doesn't require it (source: I legally changed my name in Texas in 2014). And some states that do require it can waive the requirement if you can demonstrate that you have legitimate privacy concerns and the judge is sympathetic; e.g. if you're changing your name to hide from an abusive family member or if you're transgender. On the other hand, many states require a clean record in order to change your name. Using Texas as an example again, I had to do a fingerprint background check before they would even schedule my court date. My record was clean, but if I had a criminal record, I would've only been allowed to change my name under limited circumstances.

ummwhat 7y ago

The US is much more liberal about this. You have to pay a fee and put in some paperwork and make an announcement in a news paper with a certain amount of readers and a judge will deny requests that violate a very limited set of common sense criteria. Sometimes the judges can get a bit lazy about actually filtering requests. Jesus Christ literally lives in New York.

Freak_NL 7y ago
Why would a judge in a nation that separates state and religion care about someone calling himself Jesus Christ? Jesus is a common given name, and Christ a common enough surname. (Or Kris Kringle for that matter.)
- ummwhat 7y ago
  It's not about "calling himself" Jesus Christ so much as convincing others that he is literally Jesus Christ. Basically it's a form of fraud (or maybe insanity, who knows) One of the common sense criteria is you're not allowed to assume the identity of well known public figures or entities.
notahacker 7y ago
In the UK it's even more liberal - you need a piece of paper and some witnesses' signatures. I knew Mr 118 Taxi back when he thought a name change might help promote his business...
- denton-scratch 7y ago
  You don't even need that. You can just start using a new name - perfectly legal in the UK.[1] You need to execute a 'deed poll' if you want the new name recorded on official documents, or accepted by organisations like banks. [1] www.gov.uk/change-name-deed-poll
amyjess 7y ago
> and make an announcement in a news paper with a certain amount of readers And even that depends on what state you're in. For example, Texas doesn't require it (source: I legally changed my name in Texas in 2014). And some states that do require it can waive the requirement if you can demonstrate that you have legitimate privacy concerns and the judge is sympathetic; e.g. if you're changing your name to hide from an abusive family member or if you're transgender. On the other hand, many states require a clean record in order to change your name. Using Texas as an example again, I had to do a fingerprint background check before they would even schedule my court date. My record was clean, but if I had a criminal record, I would've only been allowed to change my name under limited circumstances.