Line #32 Main/RealNameAsAnAlias


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6	%% This list of examples has been alphabetized. Please add your example in the proper place. Thanks!
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12	%% Image selected per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1620168865062455900
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15	[[quoteright:299:[[ComicBook/{{Lazarus}} https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/jonah_kar.png]]]]
16	->'''Lara:''' You're Harry Dresden.
17	->'''Harry:''' Don't feel bad. I cleverly disguised myself as Harry the Production Assistant.
18	-->-- ''Literature/BloodRites''
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20	A character needs an alias for some reason and technically ''doesn't'' lie about what their name is... it might be their real name if they're [[OnlyKnownByTheirNickname known by a nickname]], [[EveryoneCallsHimBarkeep their occupation]], or vice versa, or their maiden name if they're a married woman, or their middle name being used as their first name, but the point is that the character can argue that it ''is'' their real name. This also has the practical advantage that they don't have to train themselves to react to someone calling out their alias' name and not react to their real one.
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22	Often used by [[KingIncognito disguised royalty]] with {{overly long name}}s, since they can just pick one of their many middle names to be called by. One common variation is for a character to use [[NomDeMom their mother's maiden name as their surname]] in place of their father's. A GenderBlenderName works particularly well for someone DisguisedInDrag or who went through a GenderBender.
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24	See also MrSmith.
25
26	SueDonym is when the alias used is the real name, after a bit of distortion in pronunciation. ThisIsMyNameOnForeign is if the name is translated to a foreign language.
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28	----
29	!!Examples:
30	[[foldercontrol]]
31
32	[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
33	* ''Literature/AndYouThoughtThereIsNeverAGirlOnline'': Ako Tamaki, who is very naive, joins the MMO game ''Legendary Age'' and calls her character "Ako".
34	* Matsuri Kazamaki of ''Manga/AyakashiTriangle'' attends high school under his real name even after [[GenderBender magically becoming female]] and acting as if he was always a girl. [[ScrewTheRulesIHaveConnections His family's connections]] handled the records, while his [[FriendlessBackground asocial history]] (and changing right before the first day) mean no one remembers a boy having that name, even classmates who went to middle school with him. It also helps that [[GenderBlenderName his name is unisex, while the way he spells it is outright feminine]]. Matsuri even uses his real name with Suzu's family, probably expecting them to have forgotten him after so many years--which backfires when they ''do'' remember, but assume Matsuri was always a girl they mistook for a boy (which would obviously complicate things if he ever becomes male again). Late in the story, Reo uses a WeirdnessCensor-manipulating device to pull a much more audacious trick, convincing the school [[LiteralSplitPersonality male and female Matsuri]] are [[FakeTwinGambit twin siblings]] who inexplicably have ''the exact same name''.
35	* A plot point in ''Literature/{{Baccano}}'' is that immortals cannot use aliases in the presence of each other: they are always forced to reveal their true names. [[spoiler:Fermet gets around this rule by using portions of his full name as aliases]].
36	* In ''Literature/BladeSkillOnline'', the protagonist Yuri uses the name "Yuri" with different Japanese characters to be his alias when signing on. It works because not only does the AI give him a gender-swapped avatar by accident, but the name "Yuri" is so generic that nobody connects the dots and realizes the lovely and borderline psychotic lady avatar he's playing as and the extremely unlucky high-school boy with the same name are one and the same.
37	* In ''Anime/CodeGeass'', the main character and his sister use their real first names and a different surname while hidden in Japan.
38	* ''Manga/CrossplayLoveOtakuXPunk'': Both Shuumei and Hanae take their [[{{Crossdresser}} female alter egos]]' names (Mei and Hana, respectively) from parts of their own names.
39	* In ''Manga/DeathNote'', Light Yagami expends a lot of effort trying to learn the real name of "L", the GreatDetective who opposes him. [[spoiler: It's eventually revealed [[AllThereInTheManual in supplementary material]] that L is his ''real'' first name -- and Lawliet, another alias he has occasionally used, is his real surname.]]
40	* In ''Anime/DragonBallZ'', the East Kaiōshin of Universe 7 enters the 25th Tenkaichi Budōkai by the name "Shin" to avoid exposing his identity to Yamuh and Spopovich. Almost 15 years later in real life when ''Anime/DragonBallSuper'' enters the Universal Survival Arc, when far more Kaiōshins are getting introduced, we get to learn that "Shin" is indeed his real name. Most people who are aware of the existence of Kaiōshins (even Shin's nemesis Babidi) only ever knew them by their titles so there was no way for the name to mean anything to Bibidi's minions.
41	* An accidental example in ''Manga/FairyTail''. [[spoiler:Doranbolt of the Magic Council]] infiltrated Fairy Tail under the alias [[spoiler:Mest Gryder]]. After the first TimeSkip, it's revealed [[spoiler:that Doranbolt was a Fairy Tail wizard that [[ManchurianAgent erased his own memories]] so he can use the Council resource to investigate the Western Continent Alakitasia. When infiltrating Fairy Tail as Doranbolt, he ended up [[AmnesiacResonance using his real name]] Mest to do so]].
42	* ''Manga/{{Gintama}}'': Katsura is an outlaw who must constantly evade authorities, but his alias skills are atrocious. His aliases are always modifications of his last name ("Katsuo", "Katsu-ura", etc), which will be rendered pointless by his continued insistence that people say his real name correctly.
43	* A weird version occurs in ''Literature/ItsukaTenmaNoKuroUsagi'': the vampire サイトヒメア (Saitohimea) takes on the name 沙糸ヒメア (Saito Himea, Saito being the surname) when attending school with Taito. Though it's technically less of an alias and more of a necessity to have a Japanese name.
44	* Ai Hayasaka from ''Manga/KaguyaSamaLoveIsWar'' has to juggle multiple personas in order to hide her status as Kaguya's valet from their classmates. All of them are named Hayasaka, though two of them do use an alternate spelling.
45	* In ''Anime/{{Monster}}'', Nina Fortner uses her previous legal name, Anna Liebert, when giving a police testimony and obtaining marksmanship training.
46	* During ''Manga/RanmaOneHalf'''s [[MartialArtsAndCrafts Martial Arts Rhythmic Gymnastics]] competition, [[SexShifter female]] Ranma freely gives her full name, confident that nobody in attendance (which includes classmates from Furinkan High) will make the connection with her male side. She's right, and everyone blows it off as a bizarre coincidence, although [[ThoseTwoGuys Hiroshi and Daisuke]] would constantly pester Ranma about introducing them to "his sister" afterwards. None of the matters either way, though, as (in the manga) they all found out shortly after and didn't really care.
47	* ''Literature/SwordArtOnline'':
48	** Asuna Yuuki just went with Asuna in ''Sword Art Online'' due to being new to MMO games, and not realizing the game was asking for an alias to use in game. It's not until the restored ''[=ALfheim=] Online'' that she creates a Sylph alt character named Erika, but still primarily plays as an Undine, still named Asuna.
49	** Yuuki Konno just uses her first name as her alias in ''[=ALfheim=] Online'' and presumably in other VRMMO games as well, although in her case [[spoiler:given her circumstances, virtual reality ''is'' the only life she can have]].
50	* In ''Manga/TokyoMewMew'', the Mew Mews' MagicalGirlWarrior names contain their actual given names (for example Ichigo Momomiya becomes Mew Ichigo, Minto Aizawa becomes Mew Mint). The only difference is that their given names are written using a different part of the UsefulNotes/JapaneseWritingSystem, but they are still pronounced exactly the same (which is supposed to indicate that their real names are Japanese but their Mew Mew names are the English loan words for the EdibleThemeNaming instead).
51	[[/folder]]
52
53	[[folder:Comic Books]]
54	* Franchise/{{Batman}}'s butler Alfred Pennyworth has sometimes used his middle names, Thaddeus Crane, as an alias when undertaking some activity he doesn't want linked to Bruce Wayne.
55	* Quite possibly the silliest example is that ComicBook/BuckyBarnes' superhero name in UsefulNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfComicBooks was... [[ShapedLikeItself Bucky]]. [[NotMakingThisUpDisclaimer This is not a joke]], Bucky's identity was secret in the Golden Age and it was repeatedly mentioned that [[ImplausibleDeniability no one, not even his closest friends who were familiar with both of them, could tell that "Bucky" and Bucky Barnes were one and the same person.]]
56	** This was also the case with many other Golden Age kid sidekicks including Sparky/Sparkington J. Northup (Comicbook/BlueBeetle); Wing/Wing How (Comicbook/TheCrimsonAvenger); and Sandy/Sandy Hawkins (The Sandman). Parodied in ''Comicbook/JusticeLeagueInternational'' with General Glory's sidekick Ernie, whose real name is [[RepetitiveName Ernest E. Ernest]].
57	* In the ''Comicbook/DetectiveComics'' storyline "Shadows of the Bat: The Tower", one of the inmates in Arkham Tower is a woman who suffers from the delusion that she's Comicbook/HarleyQuinn. When the various undercover Team Batman members amongst the staff and patients are activated, she turns out to actually be Harley Quinn.
58	* ''ComicBook/GIJoeARealAmericanHeroMarvel'': At one point, Cobra Commander and Destro are forced to travel without their masks[[note]]Both wear fully enclosed masks, so despite being infamous terrorists, very few people know what their faces look like.[[/note]] or costumes. When they are pulled over by the highway patrol, Destro curses that he doesn't have any fake ID on him. However, Cobra Commander, who is driving, reveals that he has his driver's licence in his original given name, which he has not used for years. As such, there is no reason for the police to link the name to the terrorist Cobra Commander. He is correct, but the license winds up attracting attention for another reason.
59	* ''ComicBook/{{Invincible}}'':
60	** Nolan Grayson's real name is just Nolan; he picked up the surname while living on Earth.
61	** Several heroes have names based off their real ones, such as Atom Eve (Samantha Eve Wilkins), Rex Splode (Rex Sloan), Dupli-Kate (Kate Cha), and Shrinking Ray.
62	* ''ComicBook/{{Lazarus}}'' sees Jonah Carlyle rescued and asked about his name. He almost reveals it, but catches himself and just says it's "Jonah Kar".
63	* ''ComicBook/MsTree'': In the "Prisoner in Cell Block Hell" arc, Michael Tree is booked into jail as 'Michelle Friday' to protect from possible reprisals while she is being held. Michelle is the feminized version of her actual given name and Friday is her maiden name.
64	* ComicBook/SpiderMan was cloned, and the clone retained all of Peter's memories, to the point where he originally believed that he was the real one. Eventually the cloned Peter takes the name [[ComicBook/ScarletSpider Ben Reilly]], derived from Peter's middle name (and Uncle Ben's first name) and Aunt May's maiden name (which helps facilitate the story that the two are [[StrongFamilyResemblance oddly identical]] cousins, as long as [[FridgeLogic no-one thinks too closely]] about Peter and May's actual relationship).
65	* ''ComicBook/XMen'':
66	** ''ComicBook/TheDarkPhoenixSaga'' sees Jean Grey being seduced by a mutant named Jason Wyngarde, an aspiring member of the Hellfire Club. It turns out Wyngarde was one of their older and [[AscendedExtra slightly more obscure enemies]], the mutant villain Mastermind, and the ComicBook/XMen just never found out his real name. Although he was also a MasterOfIllusion, and thus was also able to disguise himself.
67	** Similarly, ComicBook/{{Mystique}} often posed as a secret service agent named Raven Darkholme in her early days. Turns out that's her real name. Amusingly, the AnimatedAdaptation of ComicBook/DaysOfFuturePast (with some of Bishop's future thrown in) has a woman looking just like the Raven Darkholme identity, whom Mystique copied, tied up, but ''deliberately left alive'' to be a witness to "Gambit" assassinating Senator Kelly. Presumably, this came before the revelation in the comics that Mystique was the "real" Raven Darkholme.
68	** Bishop at one point in the early noughties posed as an Australian police officer under the name "Lucas Bishop," commenting offhandedly in his internal monologue "the name is real, the badge is not." This was a GivenNameReveal after over a decade where "Bishop" was generally assumed to be either an alias or [[OnlyOneName his only name]].
69	* John Henry Jr., one of the RetGone sidekicks in ''Comicbook/TheNewGoldenAge'' takes his heroic identity from the fifties hero John Henry, real name John Wilson. However John Henry Jr.'s real name is John Henry Irons, great-uncle to the better known [[Comicbook/{{Steel}} John Henry Irons]].
70	* In ''Comicbook/YoungJustice2019'', Tim Drake, having abandoned the Red Robin identity and sharing the Robin name with Damien Wayne, was briefly inspired by his MirrorUniverse counterpart to use "Drake" as a codename, before everyone told him that was ridiculous.
71	[[/folder]]
72
73	[[folder:Fan Works]]
74	* Darth Revan in ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/11200645/1/Affably-Evil Affably Evil]]'' only needs to remove the CoolMask to remain anonymous in public; Alek doesn't believe he's ''that'' Revan when he introduces himself, and Revan remarks that it would be strange if he were [[OneSteveLimit the only Revan in the galaxy]]. (Note that in canon at the time, Revan was ''not'' the character's real name; he declared himself a ''revanchist'' earlier and adapted the Sith title from that.)
75	* In the ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' fanfic ''Fanfic/TheBrainThief'' [[http://archiveofourown.org/works/241889]], Samuel Ramkin Vimes, Viscount of Oxbury and heir to the Duke of Ankh, introduces himself to a girl he meets as Sam Ramkin, thinking "It wasn't, technically, a lie." The girl, meanwhile, is studying midwifery at the Free Hospital as Meg Garlick, rather than Princess Esmeralda Margaret Note Spelling of Lancre ("Garlick" being her mother's maiden name).
76	* ''Fanfic/ConversationsWithACryptid'': All For One is a ruthless criminal mastermind and supervillain, and he has ruled Japan's underwold since Quirks first emerged. Yet he use his real name of [[spoiler:Hisashi Midoriya]] as a civilian alias [[spoiler:when he got married to Inko]], despite the risk if both identities were connected.
77	* Fanfic/ACrownOfStars: [[spoiler: Chapter 74 reveals that Gendo had snuck into the Army Asuka and Shinji lead back to Earth, using his birth surname of Rokubungi so as to not draw attention.]]
78	* ''Fanfic/LunasHubby'': Harry attends Hogwarts under the name "Harry Lovegood". Since the Lovegoods adopted him, this is his actual legal name, and despite Dumbledore's frantic search for the Boy Who Lived, he never catches on.
79	* In ''Fanfic/TheMysteriousCaseOfNeelixsLungs'', Seska uses her real surname while undercover as a Bajoran for the Obsidian Order. After being outed she says her real given name's Jiana, not Harani.
80	* ''FanFic/PoniesOfOlympus'': Trixie enters the Atlas Strongest Tournament in a disguise and under her last name Lulamoon. Twilight recognizes her at the end of her match anyway.
81	* Early in the fan novel ''Teen Titans: Call of Blood'', Superman asks Wonder Woman why her sister, Princess Donna, uses the surname "Troy" for a SecretIdentity instead of "Prince" like she does. She explains Donna wasn't born an Amazon, but adopted by Queen Hippolyta after washing up on their island ten years before, so her birth name really is Donna Troy.
82	* ''Fanfic/TransformersMHA'': When using his HardLight avatar to interact with humans while remaining undercover, Optimus Prime uses the name Orion Pax as his alias, which ''was'' his name before becoming Prime.
83	* ''Fanfic/VowOfNudity'': The Jackal is a fearsome pirate who doesn't let anybody but her closest confidants know her real name. But during her FacingTheBulletsOneLiner, which Haara overhears, she reveals her true name: [[spoiler: Jacqueline.]]
84	[[/folder]]
85
86	[[folder:Films — Animated]]
87	* In ''WesternAnimation/SantaClausIsCominToTown'', SantaClaus was a DoorstopBaby with a tag that said "Claus", but was adopted by [[ChristmasElves the Kringle family of elves]], who named him Kris. Later, when he becomes an outlaw (for the crime of making toys) he adopts his birth name to avoid detection.
88	[[/folder]]
89
90	[[folder:Films — Live-Action]]
91	* In ''Film/BlacKkKlansman'', Ron Stallworth, a black police officer, goes undercover to infiltrate [[TheKlan the Klu Klux Klan]]... and uses his real name. His co-workers make fun of him for this, and it causes some minor problems when one of the Klan members shows up at his house, having looked the name up in the phone book.
92	* A very important plot point in ''Film/DefinitelyMaybe''. TheHero's daughter insists that he tells the story about how he met her mother whom he is now divorced. While doing so, TheHero calls his exes by alternate names to conceal their identity from his daughter who knows her mother's real name. [[spoiler: The daughter then realizes that her dad is still in love with April, one of his exes, because he didn't gave her a CodeName.]]
93	* John [=McClane=]'s wife at the beginning of ''Film/DieHard'' uses her maiden name, Gennaro. This provides a minor plot point when [[BigBad Hans Gruber]] later discovers John's real name, and doesn't realize the connection between John and Holly (for a while, anyway).
94	* In ''Film/FrankensteinAndTheMonsterFromHell'', Baron Victor Frankenstein [[FakingTheDead fakes his death]] and returns under the alias Dr. Karl Victor.
95	* ''Film/JamesBond'' does this quite often, though there are several occasions Bond uses proper aliases too. Somewhat justified in that officially he is a globetrotting employee for something called Universal Exports, which is actually a cover for [=MI6=].
96	** In ''Film/TomorrowNeverDies'' he poses as a banker named James Bond and actually has a fake employment record, but is given away as a spy because it is too perfect to be true, and because he is asking too many questions, not because of his name. Of course, making a number of blatant references about the BigBad's actions ''to his face'' doesn't help his case...
97	** In ''Film/CasinoRoyale2006'' despite spending a scene going over the details of his cover identity with Vesper (while flirting with her), Bond simply checks in to their hotel under his real name. He explains that since Le Chiffre is very well connected, he already knows who Bond really is anyway, and the fact that Le Chiffre will even continue with the game knowing there's an [=MI6=] agent at the table is a sign that he's either desperate or overconfident, so Bond will just use his real name to unnerve Le Chiffre further. Vesper thinks Bond's just being reckless.
98	--->'''Le Chiffre:''' And you must be Mr. Bliss's replacement. Welcome, Mr. Beach. Or is that Bond? I'm a little confused.\
99	'''James Bond:''' Well, we wouldn't want that, would we?
100	* The Disney Channel movie ''Film/{{Motocrossed}}'' involved a girl posing as her brother to enter a motocross race, after he breaks his leg. The siblings have the same name (Andy, short for both Andrea and Andrew), allowing her a legal loophole: since she signed up as "Andy", instead of Andrew or Andrea, she could hold on to her win after she was outed.
101	* The 1934 adaptation of ''Literature/TheScarletLetter'' clarifies that Roger Chillingworth's first name, which was only ever implied to originally have been his in the novel, is the same as it was when his name was "Prynne," him only deciding to change it halfway through signing into the town registry.
102	* In 1937's ''Film/ShallWeDance'', the two leads, who are both famous under stage names, get married quietly in [[{{Joisey}} New Jersey]] under their real names.
103	* Movie stars Vicki Lester and Norman Maine in ''Film/{{A Star Is Born\|1937}}'' get married under their real names by a town clerk who has no idea who they are.
104	* ''Franchise/StarWars'':
105	** When pretending to be a handmaiden in ''Film/ThePhantomMenace'', Queen Amidala used her lesser-known non-royal name, Padmé Naberrie.
106	** Done by Obi-Wan Kenobi in ''Film/ANewHope'', using his real last name, and the nickname "Ben".
107	** The character Dr. Cornelius Evazan (the pig-nosed human who accosts Luke at the cantina in ''Film/ANewHope'') had numerous aliases, since he was an EvilutionaryBiologist who was just as wanted as he claimed. One of them in ''Franchise/StarWarsLegends'' was simply..."Dr. Cornelius", using it as if it were his last name.
108	* ''Film/TimeAfterTime'' deals with a visit by Creator/HGWells to the present. Initially, Wells, who assumed that Sir Arthur Doyle's little amusements would have been forgotten in 100 years, uses the alias Franchise/SherlockHolmes, only to get laughed at. In the end, he realises that while he is still remembered as an author, no-one remembers what his initials stand for, and that his name is unremarkable enough to not be immediately associated with the presumed long-dead author, so he goes by Herbert George Wells.
109	* Played with by way of a CastingGag in ''Film/ToTheLimit''. Secret agent "Collette Dubois" (Anna Nicole Smith) explains at the very end of the film that she's been using a codename the whole time, and that her real name is "Vickie Lynn" -- Smith's first and middle names in RealLife. In other words, Smith used (two-thirds of) her real name as a ''fictional'' alias.
110	* Italian comedy actor [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lino_Banfi Lino Banfi]] played the part of a policeman named "Pasquale Zagaria", whose name was also featured in the title of the movie he starred in. The fact is, Pasquale Zagaria is his actual given name, and "Lino Banfi" a stage name he used throughout all his career.
111	[[/folder]]
112
113	[[folder:Literature]]
114	* In ''Literature/SixteenThirtyTwo'', King Gustav II Adolf of Sweden decides to send cavalry to help out his time-displaced American allies, and despite the misgivings of his prime minister puts the 'notably headstrong and reckless' Captain Gars in command. It's only after Gars helps save the Americans from an attack that it's explained to them that his name is an acronym for '''G'''ustavus '''A'''dolphus '''R'''ex '''S'''ueciae -- 'Gustav Adolf the King of the Swedes' in Latin.
115	* Emperor Andreas Komnenos in ''Literature/AnAgeOfMiracles'' goes by Andreas when he has to go incognito for a while. [[JustifiedTrope Justified]] by the fact that as a very popular emperor, he looks younger than most commoners his age and there are a lot of people named Andreas.
116	* ''Literature/TheBelgariad'':
117	** In ''Belgarath the Sorcerer'', the eponymous character once uses his old name Garath when working undercover. It lasts until he has to use magic to fend off an attack.
118	** As well, his daughter Polgara sometimes goes as the Duchess of Erat, a title she technically owns although the duchy itself has been gone for thousands of years.
119	** After several centuries of mothers naming their daughters after the "legendary" Polgara, the real one can get away with just calling herself Pol.
120	* In ''The Birthday Ball'', Princess Patricia Priscilla dresses as a peasant and goes to the village school. When the schoolmaster asks for her name, she calls herself Pat. ("Quite a short name because I'm [[MostDefinitelyNotAVillain merely a humble peasant]].")
121	* In ''The Goose Girl'' from the ''Literature/BooksOfBayern'' series, the princess' full name is Anidori-Kiladra Talianna Isilee. When she goes into hiding, she calls herself Isi.
122	* ''Literature/TheBoxcarChildren'': Twice in the first book.
123	** When Henry takes part in a free-for-all race at Silver City's annual Field Day event and wins, he identifies himself as Henry James, his real first and middle names.
124	** Later, when James Henry Alden meets his grandchildren for the first time (after having found out why they were avoiding him), he uses the name "Mr. Henry" to avoid scaring them off.
125	** In book #2 (''Surprise Island''), the Aldens meet their long-lost cousin John Joseph Alden. Before and after the reveal though, he just goes by "Joe".
126	* In the ''Literature/CiaphasCain'' novel, ''For The Emperor'', Inquisitor Amberley Vail goes undercover as an entertainer named Amberley Vail. She also uses her real last name for two different undercover identities in ''Duty Calls'' -- the Lady haut Vail near the beginning of the novel, and Corporal Vail near the end. Possibly justified, in that anyone who can legally look at a roster of active Inquisitors already knows where she is and what she's doing, and she can kill anyone else who might blab.
127	* In ''Literature/TheCountOfMonteCristo'', the aristocrat-born radical Nortier de Vilefort just goes by the name Nortier. In contrast, his conservative son calls himself de Vilefort. This is plot important, as the direct reason Dantes ended up wrongfully imprisoned is because he unknowingly told de Vilefort about a letter that incriminated Nortier for treason.
128	* In Katharine Kerr's ''Literature/{{Deverry}}'' novels, the character Nevyn (meaning "no one", and hence often taken to be a joke) uses his long-abandoned original name (Galrion) when he needs to be taken seriously by some nobles. Everyone who knows him assumes he just made it up.
129	* In ''Literature/TheDresdenFiles'', Harry Dresden goes undercover as Harry the technical assistant. It still fools [[spoiler: Lara Raith]] until he gets into a fight with Thomas. Harry, [[DeadpanSnarker being Harry]], points out [[PaperThinDisguise it really wasn't that hard to see through]].
130	--> "You're Harry Dresden."\
131	"Don't feel bad," I said, "I cleverly disguised myself as Harry the Production Assistant."
132	** The trope gets a sort-of inversion in the same book. One of the characters tries to frame Harry, but she's so vapid and shallow that she can't remember his name, telling the cops that his name was Larry. Or Barry.
133	* In ''Literature/{{Earthborn}}'', a character whose life has been greatly extended travels among people to whom she has become ShroudedInMyth. She uses her own name, and people assume her parents named her after the legendary figure.
134	* In the sequels to ''Literature/EndersGame'', Ender simply goes by his given name of Andrew Wiggin. He is secretive about the fact that he's the same Andrew Wiggin who killed off the Bugger race thousands of years ago, but everyone thinks of that boy as "Ender," and the name "Andrew Wiggin" doesn't ring a bell for them. The few who do recognize the name assume his parents chose poorly when naming him.
135	* In Creator/RobertAHeinlein's ''Literature/{{Friday}}'', the title character runs out of fake passports and falls back on the real one to pull a switcheroo with one of the fake [=IDs=].
136	* In ''How Not to Spend Your Senior Year'', when Jo and her father fake their deaths and go into witness protection, she uses her middle name and her mother's maiden name to enroll at another school. When the federal marshals who put them in witness protection want her to use a completely fake name, Jo tells them about an incident when she and a friend switched names as a prank on a substitute teacher and couldn't pull it off because they weren't used to responding to someone else's name.
137	* In ''Literature/InCryptid'', this was [[InvokedTrope invoked]] by Antimony's and her cousin Elsie's parents in naming them. Antimony Timpani Price can go by Annie, Tim, or either of her actual given names with the (several generations removed) NomDeMom Brown to fool any spells that detect if someone is giving a false name. The same applies to Elsinore Norelle Harrington, who can go by Elsie, Nore, Elle, or either of her given names. (Antimony's the one sent to infiltrate the Covenant (as Timpani Brown) though, since she's human and Elsie is a succubus)
138	* In the western novels of Creator/JTEdson, Dusty Fog frequently uses his middle names Edward Marsden as an alias, to the point that they become his GoToAlias.
139	* ''Literature/LordPeterWimsey'': The eponymous character, whose full name is Lord Peter Death Bredon Wimsey, uses the name Death Bredon in the Creator/DorothyLSayers novel ''Murder Must Advertise'' and the short story "The Bibulous Business of a Matter of Taste". When someone notices the coincidence, he claims to be his own cousin.
140	* ''Literature/AMemoirByLadyTrent'': In the short story "The Long Fall", [[TheAtoner Aaron Mornett]] goes by his middle name, Geoffrey, and his [[NomDeMom mother's maiden name]], Foss, to try and escape his past.
141	* ''Literature/MonstrousRegiment'':
142	** A regiment composed of [[SweetPollyOliver women dressed up as men]] dress up [[RecursiveCrossdressing as washerwomen]] to get themselves into a fort, and use their real names as their aliases.
143	** Prince Heinrich of Zlobenia claims to be Captain Hortenz when captured. It's been speculated by fans that he has a ''lot'' of middle names, and is pulling the same trick as King Gustav, above.
144	* ''Literature/NickVelvet'': In "The Theft of the Meager Beavers", Nick uses the alias 'Mr. Nicholas' while posing as a sports journalist.
145	* In ''Literature/TheOrdinaryPrincess'', Princess Amethyst works as a kitchen maid under her nickname, Amy. [[spoiler:The king of the kingdom she's working in does the same thing -- she knows the king's name is Algernon, but he uses one of his many middle names.]]
146	%%* The prince in Sherwood Smith's ''A Posse of Princesses''
147	%%* The Creator/LMMontgomery short story "The Pot and the Kettle" combines a double use of this with a TwoPersonLoveTriangle.
148	* In Creator/AndreNorton's ''Literature/ThePrinceCommands'', Michael uses this while passing himself off as the American friend of the prince.
149	* In ''Literature/{{Revival}}'', Charles Daniel Jacobs manages an impressive variety of combinations of real names as aliases.
150	* Whenever Prince Arutha has to go KingIncognito in ''Literature/TheRiftwarCycle'', he goes by the name Arthur, which is close enough to his real name that any mistakes in answering or saying his real name can be brushed off as mishearings.
151	* Andrew Clements' ''The School Story'' stars two schoolgirls hiding their identities so one of them can pseudonymously publish her book as an adult (with the other acting as her agent). When a lawyer points out that literary agents can't use fake names, the wannabe agent (Zoey) instead goes by the nickname "Zee Zee" and translates her last name into a foreign language.
152	* ''Literature/SienkiewiczTrilogy'' begins whith Skrzetuski rescuing a man from brigands. The man introduces himself as "Abdank" at first, then admits that Abdank is his coat-of-arms and his name is actually Bohdan Chmielnicki. This happening before Chmielnicki becomes famous, Skrzetuski doesn't worry about this, but the readers familiar with history do.
153	* In ''Literature/TheShadowCampaigns'', Princess (and later Queen) Raesinia Oroboan uses the alias of Raesinia Smith when going among the people incognito. Since there was often a fad of commoners naming their children after a recently born royal, there are literally thousands of girls in Vordan named Raesinia around, and since she looks younger than she actually is, she can easily pass as one of them.
154	* In ''Spindle's End'', when Katriona and Aunt take in the little princess, they take the last of her many names, Briar-Rose, and decide to call her Rosie.
155	* In ''The Truth-Teller's Tale'', members of the royal family have secret names that no one outside the family knows. A prince in disguise uses his as an alias. The narrator is a Truth-Teller, who [[LivingLieDetector can detect when someone is lying]], but since it's technically the prince's real name, she doesn't register that as a lie. Since his traveling companion ''is'' using a false name, the prince's gambit inadvertently ensures that she doesn't totally distrust the pair.
156	* In ''Literature/UnnaturalIssue'', Lord Peter Almsley temporarily takes on the post of gamekeeper at the estate of his friends, with his valet Garrick as his scholar half-brother, in order to befriend Susanne (working as a dairy maid) and find out more about her. While in disguise, the two go by Peter Devlin (Devlin being Peter's middle name) and Clive Garrick (Clive being Garrick's).
157	* ''Literature/VorkosiganSaga'': Miles Naismith Vorkosigan spent ten years running top secret operations under the cover identity of Admiral Miles Naismith. Once, on the point of being found out, he covered by pretending that "Admiral Naismith" was his clone, who used his Betan mother's maiden name because Betan law grants clones the legal status of family members. Admittedly, this mostly works because his cover identity is not officially connected in any way to Barrayar, and tends to show up on the other side of the galaxy. The clone cover is helped by Vorkosigan actually having a clone.
158	[[/folder]]
159
160	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
161	* In the TV movie adaptation of ''Theatre/BreakingTheCode'', the spook from "Security" is John Smith. He can never get anyone to believe that, yes, that IS his real name.
162	* ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'': When she runs away to LA, Buffy Summers calls herself "Anne", which is actually her middle name.
163	* Christopher Perry [[spoiler:Halliwell]] from ''Series/Charmed1998'' called himself "Chris Perry" when he first introduced himself. Since he's [[KidFromTheFuture from the future]] and hadn't been born yet, this didn't really raise any eyebrows.
164	* In ''Series/TheCosbyShow'', lawyer Clair once introduced herself by her maiden name in order to speak on son Theo's behalf when he got ripped off by a T-shirt company.
165	* ''Series/CriminalMinds'':
166	** In "Lucky," the team profiles the unsub back to his stay in a juvenile psych ward and get his legal name, Floyd Feylinn Ferell. When looking at adult men who fit the profile and trying to figure out which one is his alias, they come across Floyd Feylinn. The local sheriff asks if he would really be that stupid, and the team says that yes, he would. (In his defense, he's delusional and literally thinks the devil is protecting him so he cannot get caught.)
167	** In another episode, a fraud investigator the team is working with refers to a man with many aliases as "Bill" because in his earliest cons, he always gave some variation of that name (William, Will, Billy, etc.), so he figures he started out using his real name before he was able to keep track of a different identity. For what it's worth, the unsub's wife does indeed call him Bill, but it's never confirmed if that actually is his real name (based on the timeline, he was running scams long before their son was born, so it's possible he met her while using the alias and stuck with it).
168	* ''Series/LawAndOrderCriminalIntent'': In "Trophy Wine", a con man who has been living for years under the name 'Bing Cullen', rents an apartment under his original name Arnold Binder.
169	* In ''Series/{{Leverage}}'', Sophie Devereaux once had to conjure an alias from nowhere or risk losing the mark, so she introduces herself as the Duchess of Hanover. She assures the rest of the team that "this identity is very well backed up" but the mark isn't convinced. He arranges to introduce her to someone who's known the real Duchess for a very long time. While the rest of the team are convinced that Sophie's cover is blown, the Duchess's aunt takes one look at Sophie and says.... "Why Charlotte, it's so good to see you". It's never made clear if this is Sophie's real identity but it's the oldest one revealed on the show.
170	* Agent Tony [=DiNozzo=] of ''Series/{{NCIS}}'' spends season 4 running a long-term undercover op as Tony [=DiNardo=].
171	* In ''Series/SleepyHollow'', a captured [[spoiler:Hessian]] claims he knows everything about [[spoiler:Abbie Mills]], including her real name, [[spoiler:Grace Abigail Mills]].
172	* In the ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'' episode "[[Recap/StarTrekDeepSpaceNineS02E22TheWire The Wire]]", Garak tells Bashir a series of contradictory stories about a person named Elim, supposedly a high-ranking Cardassian official who either betrayed or was betrayed by Garak. Bashir later finds out that Elim is just Garak's first name, and when he confronts Garak and demands the truth, Garak says that ''everything'' he said was true. ''Especially'' the lies...
173	* In ''Series/{{Seinfeld}}'' Elaine confides in a [[LooseLips loud-mouthed rabbi]] who starts spilling her private business everywhere, including on TV:
174	-->"A young lady I know—let's call her 'Elaine'—happened to find herself overwhelmed with feelings of resentment and hostility toward her friend—let's call him 'George'..."
175	* In the 2016 Amazon Prime series ''[[Series/TheTick2016 The Tick]]'', Arthur Everest is arrested while out sleuthing in costume and invokes the right not to reveal his secret identity. They then ask him for his name (meaning his superhero name) and he immediately responds "Arthur," which from then on is his in-costume identity.
176	[[/folder]]
177
178	[[folder:Pro Wrestling]]
179	* In Wrestling/{{WWE}}, Shawn Michaels' mid-2009 absence was explained by him taking the job of a [[strike:[[LessEmbarrassingTerm cook]]]] chef at an office complex under the last name of Hickenbottom -- that being Michaels' real-life last name.
180	[[/folder]]
181
182	[[folder:Radio]]
183	* ''Radio/CabinPressure:'' When Arthur pretends to be a customer to trick him mom into being around for a meeting with her horrible sister as a misguided birthday present, he books it under "Arthur Milliner", because the first ''is'' his name, and the other is a name "someone else might have". For [[TheDitz Arthur]], this is pretty deep thinking.
184
185	[[/folder]]
186
187	[[folder:Theatre]]
188	* In Shakespeare's ''Theatre/HenryV'', King Henry goes undercover as a common soldier to learn the views and morale of his troops more closely. He gives his name to the soldier Pistol as "Harry Leroy" (Harry being a common nickname for Henry, and ''le Roi'' being French for "the King"). He says he's a Welshman, which is true, as he was born in Wales.
189	[[/folder]]
190
191	[[folder:Video Games]]
192	* In the Japanese version of ''VideoGame/ChronoTrigger'', "Marle" is the alias used by Princess ''Marle''dia. This doesn't carry over to English, where she was renamed Princess Nadia, making her alias both more clever and less explicable.
193	* Being set in a fictional MMORPG wherein players create a digital avatar to role-play with other players, the various entries in the ''Franchise/DotHack'' franchise often invoke this, with some [=PCs=] sporting the names of their actual players instead of a made-up online handle. It's specifically mentioned that optional party member Ryoko Terajima erroneously submitted her real name when prompted to make a user account, so the accidental version of the trope is also represented.
194	* Though somewhat unclear without [[AllThereInTheManual supplementary material]] and partially LostInTranslation, ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXV'''s Ardyn Izunia technically never lied about his name; although he would have been known as Ardyn [[spoiler:Lucis Caelum [[Really700YearsOld 2000 years ago]], Izunia is indicated to have been the family's surname before being chosen by the crystal to be kings.]]
195	* ''Website/GaiaOnline'': Frank, the first NPC you meet in ''zOMG!'', is actually [[spoiler:Labtech 123]]; no official statement has been made, but the general assumption is that "Frank" is in fact his real name. Pretty much confirmed by one of the [=H2k10=] [=NPCs=], who has mentioned him by name.
196	* An interesting version can be found in ''VideoGame/GhostTrick''. After [[LaserGuidedAmnesia losing his memory]] upon death (but still existing as a soul), the main character assumes the identity of a nearby corpse, along with the name Sissel. Through a [[JigsawPuzzlePlot series of plot twists]], he learns that [[spoiler:the corpse does not belong to the main character and also only used Sissel as a fake name... however, as it turns out, Sissel ''is'' the main characters real name.]]
197	* ''VideoGame/HiddenCity'': In the "Dreamweaver" case, Mr. Black decides to investigate a pseudo-religious order whom he suspects to be involved in the sleep epidemic, and suggests to the player character that they use aliases when they visit the Foggy Oasis. He then instructs the player character to call him Ivor, which is just his actual first name. This ends up being moot anyway, since the members of the order already recognize him as the Head of the Security Service, and he never uses this alias again.
198	* The titular NYPD detective in ''VideoGame/MaxPayne'' uses that name both in his legitimate life and for his undercover criminal identity. His cover gets blown early in the first game but it's explicitly due to a mole in the department and not due to using his real name to infiltrate the Mafia.
199	* ''VideoGame/TalesOfTheAbyss'': [[spoiler:Tear and Van's]] names are nicknames born from their full names -- [[spoiler:Mystearica and Vandesdelca]] -- and their last names are taken from their adoptive grandfather, successfully hiding their origin [[spoiler:as from Hod and Van's connection in particular]]. [[spoiler: Guy Cecil did something similar; his full name is ''Gai''lardia Galan Gardios and his mother's maiden name was ''Cecil''le.]]
200	* In ''VideoGame/TalesOfXillia2'', Gaius goes by "Erston" while [[KingIncognito traveling Elympios incognito]]. This is actually his birth name, while "Gaius" is an alias he assumed to protect his family from his enemies.
201	* In ''VideoGame/YakuzaLikeADragon'', when Ichiban introduces himself to Nanba, Nanba tells him that it's okay to use an alias in the homeless camp since nobody will pry too much. Ichiban disappointedly tells Nanba that it actually is his real name[[note]]Ichiban is Japanese for "the best" or "number one"-- him introducing himself as "Ichiban" is like if someone called themself "Fantastic"[[/note]], but the exchange causes him to think "Nanba" is a fake name... only for him to later find out his full name is actually Yu Nanba. When confronted, Nanba points out that [[ExactWords he never said]] ''his'' name was fake, and all that mattered was that people ''thought'' it was fake-- Ichiban was just dumb enough to fall for it.
202	[[/folder]]
203
204	[[folder:Visual Novels]]
205	* In ''VisualNovel/ApolloJusticeAceAttorney'', the surname of the first victim, Shadi Smith, turns out to be an alias. His real name is Shadi Enigmar, and he can get away with it [[spoiler:because he's better known as Zak Gramarye]].
206	* Near the beginning of ''VisualNovel/NineHoursNinePersonsNineDoors'', the participants of the DeadlyGame each choose a codename for themselves based on their bracelet number to avoid revealing any unnecessary information about themselves to each other or to their captor who they assume is listening in.[[note]]Well, everyone except the protagonist Junpei, who had his real name blurted out by another participant who knew him previously before they all decided on the codename thing. Since everyone already knew his real name, him having a codename would be pointless.[[/note]] Near the end of the game, it's revealed that [[spoiler:Clover's real name is actually Clover. It just so happened to line up with her number (4) so she could use it without anyone being the wiser (except her brother, Snake, who must have been internally screaming when she just gave her real name freely like that)]].
207	[[/folder]]
208
209	[[folder:Webcomics]]
210	* ''Webcomic/DumbingOfAge'' had one arc villain -- [[spoiler:Ryan, the date rapist]] -- avoid being found out for a long time because they used their middle name.
211	* In ''Webcomic/TheFarSideOfUtopia'' Peter Kepler starts going by... Peter Kepler. If he was trying to stay HiddenInPlainSight , assumed no one that knew the name was watching, or using it as TheBait remains to be seen.
212	* ''Webcomic/GirlGenius'':
213	** Gil is trying to get the attention of the crowd so that his father will know not to attack [[MalevolentArchitecture Castle Heterodyne]] while he's in there, but unfortunately they [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20081103#.VwZyifkrLIV don't seem to take his declaration]] that he's ''the'' Gilgamesh Wulfenbach seriously. He runs with it, pretending to be an actor pretending to be Gilgamesh Wulfenbach, and [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20081105#.VwZ0S_krLIU turns the whole thing into a massive performance]] and everyone thinks it's hilarious until he [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20081110#.VwZ01PkrLIU starts blowing things up.]] They still end up thinking it's a pretty good show, though, [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20081112#.VwZ1Q_krLIU especially after Zeetha joins in.]]
214	** A partial version occurs with Agatha -- when she's hiding from people who want to capture her because she's a Heterodyne, she hides out in a [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20041022#.VwZ6GfkrLIU Heterodyne show]], playing the part of her mother while her love interest plays her father. She's [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20050511#.VwZ7oPkrLIU fully aware of the awkwardness]].
215	* In "How The Paladin Got His Scar", one of the prequels for ''WebComic/TheOrderOfTheStick'', [[TheWisePrince Hinjo]] joins the main characters of the story in their mission to try to prevent the outbreak of a full scale war with the hobgoblin tribes, but because of political wrangling and such he can't do so in his capacity as the heir apparent of Lord Shojo. Unfortunately Hinjo didn't think of an alias ahead of time, so when O-Chul asks his name, Hinjo starts to reply with his actual name before catching himself at the last second and changing it to Hin Jozuki. When everyone there notes that they've never heard of a noble family called "Jozuki", Hinjo tries to claim it's because the family is so minor and unimportant as noble families go that not many people are familiar with it.
216	[[/folder]]
217
218	[[folder:Web Original]]
219	* In ''Franchise/{{Noob}}'', WordOfGod states that Saphir's player is doing this (the actual reveal of the fact came out looking like a SuddenNameChange). She's using her middle name Pénélope for the public and her guildmates, but her real name is Elena. The reason for which she uses an alias has not been explicitly stated, but it may have something to do with her having a real-world job and social life when she requires her guild's new recruits to have neither of these to be able to be full-time players.
220	* In the ''Podcast/RedPandaAdventures'' episode "The Missing Links", the Red Panda and Flying Squirrel are tracing the steps of supervillain the Mad Monkey, real name Anton Cresswell, and how he got hold of several pieces of high technology. A scientist they speak to reveals a close colleague of his had become close to an "Anthony Cresswell" shortly before he died. The Flying Squirrel notes that, with an alias like that, the Mad Monkey wasn't even ''trying'' to hide. The Red Panda confirms that's exactly the case, as the Mad Monkey wanted them to know it was him.
221	* ''Literature/WhateleyUniverse'':
222	** Jobe Wilkins is literally applying the trope, with his codename being Jobe Wilkins.
223	** Jimmy Trauger is making only a token effort, with his codename being Jimmy T.
224	[[/folder]]
225
226	[[folder:Western Animation]]
227	* PlayedWith in ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'' when the main characters are trying to keep a low profile in the Fire Nation. Sokka introduces himself to a master Fire Nation swordsman named Piandao using his own name. [[spoiler:Piandao realizes that "Sokka" is a Water Tribe name and puts it together that he's one of the Avatar's friends. Fortunately for the heroes, he was GoodAllAlong, and advises Sokka to be more careful about his choice of alias ("Try 'Lee'. There's a million Lees.")]]
228	* In the ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'' episode "The Man Who Killed Batman", Harley Quinn masquerades as the lawyer of the episode's eponymous character, using the name Harleen Quinzel. Later, the episode "Trial" would confirm this as her actual name.
229	* [[BigGood Franz Hopper]] of ''WesternAnimation/CodeLyoko'', whose real name is [[spoiler:Waldo Franz Schaeffer]], derived his alias from his middle name and his wife's maiden name.
230	* ''WesternAnimation/DannyPhantom'': The main character's civilian identity is Danny ''Fenton'', changed to Phantom when he's in his half-ghost form. [[ExaggeratedTrope They're pronounced identically]].
231	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Disenchantment}}'': Princess Tiabeanie normally shortens her name to "Bean" , but while working in a factory, shortens it to "Tia" instead to use as an alias.
232	* On ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy,'' Peter Griffin once tried to pull off a LineOfSightAlias. The first three things he saw were a '''pea''' on someone's plate, a girl crying a {{single\|Tear}} '''[[SingleTear tear]]''', and a '''[[UnusuallyUninterestingSight griffin]]''' that [[RuleOfFunny just happened to be flying by]], and so gave the name "Peter Griffin" as his alias before quickly [[OhCrap realizing his mistake]].
233	* ''WesternAnimation/FostersHomeForImaginaryFriends'':
234	** In the episode "Imposter's Home for Um... Make 'Em Up Pals", Goofball is introduced by his first name. When Frankie overhears a group of kids calling him "John," she believes she has more proof he is not an imaginary friend. Goofball explains that it is his middle name and that he is named after his owner, Larry. He then tacks on another explanation that "Larry" is his owner's middle name. Despite all evidence, this turns out to be true.
235	** In "Affairweather Friends", Berri disguises herself as a rich human child named [[FunWithHomophones Barry]].
236	** When Mac, Bloo and a pizza delivery teenager use a TotemPoleTrench disguise with Bloo at the top, Frankie immediately calls him "Bloo". Trying to keep his facade, he claims that "Bloo" is his last name. His first name is [[Creator/OrlandoBloom Orlando]].
237	* ''WesternAnimation/GravityFalls'': "Not What He Seems" reveals that [[spoiler:Grunkle Stan has been pulling a variant of this trope for years. After Ford got sucked into the portal, his brother decided to take his identity to cover up his disappearance until he could bring his brother back. Thus, officially, he's known by the name Stanford Pines for the next thirty years. To most people though, he's still known as Stan Pines. Considering how his first name is Stan''ley'', this trope applies. It's only after the series finale that he starts legally going by Stanley again (although most people still call him Stan).]]
238	* ''WesternAnimation/PhineasAndFerb'': In "Undercover Carl", when O.W.C.A. suspects that the titular characters are in league with Doofenshmirtz, Carl the intern is sent undercover to investigate. He tries to come up with a cool alias, but ends up introducing himself by his real name.
239	* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'': In the episode "New Kids on the Blech", when Lisa discovers Bart's boy band is part of a subliminal advertising campaign for the US Navy, their manager "L.T. Smash" turns out to actually be ''Lt.'' Smash. She discovers this because his real name was on a placard, [[RuleOfFunny which they altered by pasting on a speck of paper with a period]]. However, once this is revealed he formally introduces himself as "Lieutenant...L.T. Smash".
240	* ''WesternAnimation/SonicTheHedgehogSatAM'': When Sally travels back in time and meets her past self, she introduces herself as "Alicia". Past Sally [[LampshadeHanging comments]] that's her middle name.
241	* In ''WesternAnimation/SpacePOP'', the princesses' names are fairly long and they shorten them when they go on the run. Lunaria de Longoria becomes Luna, Junoia Atley-Wolford becomes Juno, Rhealetta Hemmings becomes Rhea, Herazanna Appleby becomes Hera, and Mettathena Mystos becomes Athena.
242	* In ''WesternAnimation/TeamoSupremo'', team leader Crandall's superhero alterego is... Captain Crandall. He still manages to keep his secret identity from his mom.
243	* In ''WesternAnimation/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles2012,'' [[DaddysLittleVillain Karai]] cozies up to April using the fake name Harmony, [[ThisIsMyNameOnForeign a translation]] of [[spoiler:her birth name, Miwa]]. Played with, in that Karai [[spoiler:didn't know that Miwa was her real name]].
244	* ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans'':
245	** Cyborg infiltrates the HIVE by donning a hologram to make him look human until he "powers up" into a rocklike form. He calls himself "Stone." His real name is "Vic Stone" [[MythologyGag in the comics]].
246	** Slade's real name is Slade Wilson. It's [[AwesomeMcCoolname a badass enough name]] to work for the main villain even without knowing that in the original comics, he goes by the alias of "Deathstroke the Terminator". Of course, he would have done that here too, but [[NeverSayDie the network didn't let him]].
247	* The ''WesternAnimation/TinyToonAdventures'' episode "Cinemaniacs!" has [=SuperBabs=] from the segment of the same name.
248	-->'''Hamton:''' I wonder who [=SuperBabs=] really is.\
249	'''Plucky:''' Well, let's see... [[ComicallyMissingThePoint Who do we know called Super?]]
250	* ''WesternAnimation/VoltronLegendaryDefender'': It turns out that Pidge Gunderson's real name is Katie Holt, who entered Galaxy Garrison training under an assumed name (and [[SweetPollyOliver gender]]) to search for her missing brother Matt after getting banned from the base in her real identity. She chose Pidge as an alias because that's the nickname that Matt used to call her growing up.
251	* ''WesternAnimation/WorldOfWinx'': [[spoiler:Jim is Captain ''James'' Hook]].
252	* ''WesternAnimation/YoungJustice'':
253	** Artemis's real name is... Artemis Crock.
254	** Giovanni Zatara fights crime as the superhero... Zatara. Even his daughter, Zatanna, calls him that when she's referring to him specifically as a hero. When she takes up heroing permanently, she also goes by her given name.
255	[[/folder]]
256
257	[[folder:Real Life]]
258	* British DJ Kenny Everett (real name Maurice Cole) once did a promo which ended with the words "... or my name isn't Maurice Cole!" The joke being that most of the listeners wouldn't have known his real name at the time.
259	* [[ProfessionalMaidenName Many famous women continue to use their maiden name after marrying, since they're already well-known and changing names might confuse fans.]]
260	** Creator/JKRowling continued to use her maiden name after becoming Jo Murray.
261	** Creator/JulieAndrews uses her maiden name for her film work and her married name (Julie Edwards) for some of her novels.
262	* It's quite common to use one's first and middle name as a StageName or PenName.
263	** One prominent example would be Creator/TimAllen (born Timothy Allen Dick).
264	** Another would be Creator/AngelinaJolie (Voight).
265	** Music/RayCharles (Robinson)[[note]]He dropped his last name at the start of his music career so people wouldn't confuse him with boxing great Sugar Ray Robinson, who was then in his prime. Ironically, "Ray Robinson" is itself a pseudonym; the boxer was born Walker Smith Jr.[[/note]]
266	** An even earlier acting example: Creator/RoseMarie (Mazzette).
267	** Creator/NevilShute's full name was Nevil Shute Norway. He used his full name in his day job as an aerospace engineer, and Nevil Shute as a pen name.
268	** Other first-middle name variants in CountryMusic: Music/TobyKeith (born Toby Keith Covel), Craig Morgan (born Craig Morgan Greer), and Music/GaryAllan (born Gary Allan Herzberg).
269	** Another musical example, this time in pop/rock: The leader and namesake of Music/PaulRevereAndTheRaiders was born Paul Revere Dick.
270	** Creator/JoeHill's full name is "Joseph Hillstrom King". He wanted to succeed as an author on his own without the baggage of being Creator/StephenKing's son so he simply cut his name in half.
271	** Legendary baseball broadcaster Mel Allen was born Melvin Allen Israel. He dropped his last name on-air in 1937, and dropped it legally in 1943.
272	* Bob Siebenberg joined Music/{{Supertramp}} in 1973 as the band's new drummer, and also the only American in an otherwise all-British[[note]]three English, one Scot[[/note]] band. During work on the band's next album ''Music/CrimeOfTheCentury'', he overstayed his UK visa. In an attempt to hide this from UK authorities, he was credited on that album as "Bob C. Benberg". The band's next three albums continued to credit him as such, even though the last two (''Even in the Quietest Moments...'' and ''Music/BreakfastInAmerica'') were recorded after the band had relocated to Los Angeles. It wasn't until ''...Famous Last Words...'' in 1982 — ironically, the last album featuring the band's classic lineup — that he was credited under his real name.
273	* Willem-Alexander, then Prince of Orange and now King of UsefulNotes/TheNetherlands, ran in the New York Marathon under the name "W.A. van Buren". "Count van Buren" is one of the many lesser known titles of the Dutch royal family.
274	** Likewise, Czar UsefulNotes/PeterTheGreat of Russia used the name "Pyotr Mikhailov" (Peter Michaelson) as an alias abroad. He was grandson of Czar Michael I Romanov.
275	* WWII AcePilot Major Heinrich [[WarriorPrince Prinz]] von und zu Sayn-Wittgenstein used just his rank and surname "Wittgenstein" in everyday communication.
276	* Law enforcement personnel going undercover often use their real first names so they won't seem suspiciously slow in responding.
277	* Because the Japanese language has three writing systems -- two syllabaries and a logography -- with Latin characters also in common use, many Japanese celebrities just swap between systems to make up their stage names.
278	** Japanese idol and web star [=RaMu=] makes a point of always going by her stage name and writing it in Latin characters. However, she once tweeted a partial picture of her identity document, which showed that her given name is... Ramu.
279	** Japanese actress [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hiroko_Yakushimaru Hiroko Yakushimaru]] was 薬師丸博子 but uses the homophonous 薬師丸ひろ子 as her stage name.
280	** Singer-songwriter [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miyuki_Nakajima Miyuki Nakajima]] is born 中島美雪 but known professionally as the homophonous 中島みゆき.
281	* The identity of [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sergei_Korolev Sergei Korolev]], the man who put the [[UsefulNotes/TheSpaceRace "rockets"]] in UsefulNotes/RedsWithRockets, was a closely-guarded secret, out of fear that the USA would abduct or assassinate him. Even within the space program, [[EverybodyCallsHimBarkeep most knew him as the "Chief Designer"]], assuming they ever met him, and not [[TheManBehindTheMan somebody else they were told was in charge]]. However, he did write articles for the Soviet press and technical journals, under the name "K. Sergeyev".
282	* The brothers that formed the core of the American funk band Music/KoolAndTheGang, Robert and Ronald Bell, converted to Islam in 1973, taking the respective names of Muhammad and Khalis Bayaan. They would continue to use their birth names as stage names.
283	[[/folder]]

Context Main / RealNameAsAnAlias