History Main / ShedTheFamilyName

->''Oh Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo? ''
->''Deny thy father, and refuse thy name; ''
->''Or, if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love, ''
->''And I'll no longer be a Capulet. ''

* In [[DependingOnTheWriter some versions]] of ''ComicBook/Batman'', The Riddler's real name was not originally [[PunnyName Edward Nygma]], he legally changed it from Nashton to distance himself from his emotionally and physically abusive father,and to further sell his gimmick.

* ''Manga/TegamiBachi'': Largo takes his mother's maiden name of Lloyd [[spoiler:after leaving Kagerou]].

This can be done in a variety of forms. In cases where this issue comes up in TheMaidenNameDebate, a much bigger deal will be made over a man deciding to change his name as part of the marriage than it would if a woman were to do the same due to the fact that a woman is usually expected to change her name in any case. And speaking of maiden names, a common practice among characters who do this is to [[NomDeMom take their mother's maiden name]] (or other equivalent) after renouncing the surname they got from their father. If they were adopted, but had bad birth parents, they'll take the name of the adoptive family. Others still will take an entirely different name or give themselves an AwesomeMcCoolname. In rare cases, the person renaming themselves will decide to go around with OnlyOneName.

This can be done in a variety of forms. In cases where this issue comes up in TheMaidenNameDebate, a much bigger deal will be made over a man deciding to change his name as part of the marriage than it would if a woman were to do the same due to the fact that a woman is usually expected to change her name in any case. And speaking of maiden names, a common practice among characters who do this is to [[NomDeMom take their mother's maiden name]] (or other equivalent) after renouncing the surname they got from their father. Others still will take an entirely different name or give themselves an AwesomeMcCoolname. In rare cases, the person renaming themselves will decide to go around with OnlyOneName.

* As Jews traditionally did not have surnames (Jewish people are known by patronymics), often the surnames that Jews wound up with - especially Ashkenazi Jews - were imposed upon them by non-Jewish government authorities. In the 18th and 19th centuries, Jews living in lands controlled by Prussia, Austria, and Russia were forced to take on surnames by order of the government, as a means of assimilation. Sometimes these surnames were of a mocking and thoroughly degrading character. Thus, with the growth of the modern Hebrew language, and the Zionist movement of Theodor Herzl, Jews who emigrated to the land of Israel often Hebraized their surnames. Hence Golda Myerson became Golda Meir, David Gryn became David Ben-Gurion, and countless other examples. Though the practice has slowed somewhat, many Jews today who make aliyah still Hebraize their surnames.

* The actor born Jeremy Boring is better known by his mother's maiden name, Davies. You can guess why.

* ''WesternAnimation/DuckTales2017'': Lena changes her last name to Sabrewing at some point after her adoption, understandably wanting to distance herself from the De Spell family and [[AbusiveParents Magica]] in particular.

* In ''[[https://archiveofourown.org/works/19110040/chapters/45409126 Lessons Learned]],'' Katsuki sheds his last name as part of separating from his AbusiveParents, no longer answering to the last name Bakugou. He's adopted by Best Jeanist and takes his foster father's last name, Hakamata.

* Herbert Ernst Karl Frahm had to leave Germany when the Nazis took over in 1933 as he was a known leftist and newspaper contributor in Lübeck. He was also born out of wedlock, which was SeriousBusiness back then. The name he chose? Willy Brandt. Two decades later he'd be mayor of Berlin. A decade after that he was foreign minister, then chancellor of Germany. Yet his political opponents kept calling him "Brandt alias Frahm" to insult him.

** Sanji family history and surname, [[spoiler:Vinsmoke]], is revealed about 800 chapters in.

* ''Manga/TegamiBachi'': Largo takes his mother's maiden name of Lloyd [[spoiler:after leaving Kagerou]].
* In the ''Anime/QueensBlade'' franchise, the main heroine Leina Vance is never referred as such by herself, since she doesn't want to be associated with nobility and her family anymore, not to mention [[spoiler: in the sequel, she becomes a masked fugitive, so she doesn't want to be related with her sister Claudette, the new queen]].

* ''Anime/CodeGeass'': In his official character profile, it's stated that Rivalz goes by his mother's family name (Cardemond) rather than his father's, implying that he and his father aren't on the best of terms. But since Rivalz is merely one of ThoseTwoGuys in a series that already has a ton of characters, it never gets explored in depth.
* Subverted in ''Franchise/LyricalNanoha''. Fate opts for a compound name when she's adopted into the Harlaown family rather than fully shed the Testarossa name out of respect for her biological mother Preica (despite the fact that [[AbusiveParents Precia]] had never done anything to be worthy of that respect). Similarly, her wards Erio Mondial and Caro Ru Lushe, don't give up their family names despite having been abandoned by their families.

[[folder:Comics]]
* In ''ComicBook/YTheLastMan'', Dr. Mann took her name from Mann's Chinese Theatre to spite her father, who was a jerk and [[spoiler:accidentally caused the [[LadyLand gendercide]] in the process of sabotaging her work]].

* In ''ComicBook/{{Diabolik}}'', inspector Ginko brought this UpToEleven: everyone calls him Ginko because he shed both his family ''and his personal name'' to distance himself from his father upon discovering he was a corrupt judge. Nobody knows neither his original name nor the origins of the new one.
* In ''Comicbook/{{Nikolai Dante}}'':
** When most of the Romanovs are dead, Nikolai suggests Viktor take the name Dante, as they are half-brothers. Viktor does consider it, but then flies away forever.
** Nikolai himself inverts it after his duel with Jena during the "Tsar Wars" arc by taking on the Romanov name. At the end of the war, he reverts to Dante.
* Parody detective ComicStrip/NickKnatterton really is Nikolaus Freiherr (baron) [[TheVonTropeFamily von der Knatter]]. His aristocratic family insisted that he used a pseudonym lest the fact that he works in an occupation as unsavoury as criminal investigation besmirch the family name.
* ComicBook/RichardDragon started working on switching out his abusive father's last name for Dragon back when he was a child and has completely abandoned it as an adult.

* In ''Fanfic/SkyholdAcademyYearbook,'' sharing the backstory of their relationship reveals that [[VideoGame/DragonAgeII Fenris did this when he married Hawke]], taking his wife's surname rather than the other way around. Of course, in the actual game he [[OnlyOneName doesn't have a surname]], but in the fic universe it's this trope; he becomes a Hawke as a sign that he has put his DarkAndTroubledPast behind him.

* In ''Film/TheForceAwakens'', Kylo Ren is revealed to have once been named [[spoiler: Ben Solo]]. That's right, [[spoiler: he's Han and Leia's son, along with Luke's nephew and Anakin/Vader's grandson. Unlike his grandfather, he does not take a Darth name but he is the apparent leader of the 'Knights of Ren' so the concept still stands.]]

* Jenna, one of the protagonists of ''Literature/WhenDadKilledMom'', asks Karen at the end if she can be Melissa Pierce specifically because she doesn't want [[DeadGuyJunior her dead half-sister's given name]] or her dad's surname.
* In the ''Literature/{{Spaceforce}}'' series, Jez doesn't use her 'House' name, Aznata (although she did give it when she was presented to the Taysan Empress in the second book). She implies that it's because she fears attack from the Scree, who massacred most of her people and targeted nobles in particular.

* In ''Literature/TheBloodyRedBaron'', the undead Creator/EdgarAllanPoe dubs himself simply "Edgar Poe", because the middle name is tied to his hated foster father.

* Derek Harris from the ''Literature/AuntDimity'' series so despised his father that he changed his name; he was born [[spoiler:Anthony Evelyn Armstrong Seton, Viscount Hailesham]]. The change is also [[MeaningfulRename meaningful]] since he took the name of the estate's carpenter and he prefers to work with his hands, which is is considered unsuitable for a peer's son.

* ''Becoming Anna'' by Anna J. Michener is a memoir detailing the years of abuse at the hands of her family members that led to her decision to shed her original forename ''and'' surname.
* The events of ''The Ends of the Circle'' (second book in the Pelbar Cycle) are kicked off by the deliberate mistreatment of Stel by his wife's family. In the next book, Stel and Ahroe have renounced Ahroe's family name.
* In ''Literature/LegendsOfDune'', after Xavier Harkonnen performs a HeroicSacrifice to kill the evil Grand Patriarch Iblis Ginjo, Ginjo's wife labels him a traitor and elevates her late husband to martyrdom. The stigma on the Harkonnen name results in Xavier's children adopting their mother's name Butler. One of them, Wandra, marries Quentin Vigar, who then changes his name to Butler. Inverted by Quentin's son Abulurd, who finds out the truth about his grandfather and changes his name to Harkonnen despite his father's protests.
* In ''Literature/FlowersInTheAttic'', Chris Sr. and Corrine changed the family surname from Foxworth to Dollanganger after being disowned for their incestuous marriage. When Corrine's children escape from her after [[spoiler: she poisons them, killing Cory,]] Chris Jr. disassociates himself from her by taking the name Sheffield, the man who subsequently adopted them.
* In Theodor Fontane's ''Literature/DerStechlin'' Count von Barby's elder daughter Melusine stops using the surname of her first husband, Count Ghiberti, after their divorce, but interestingly she also does not revert to her maiden name. To those who know her, she is simply Countess Melusine.
* In the Creator/ElleryQueen novel ''There Was an Old Woman'', Sheila Potts sheds "Potts" because it's tied to her controlling mother and three mad siblings from her mother's first marriage. She takes her [[ItMakesSenseInContext father's maiden name]] of "Brent". [[spoiler: At the end of the novel, she further changes her name to "Nikki Porter", becoming Ellery's secretary.]]
* ''Blunted Lance'' by Max Hennessy. Coby Goff's eldest son Robert marries into a wealthy family and adds their name to his own (as well as spelling his own Gough, causing Coby to snark that if their name had been Ball he'd call himself Testicle). He makes a point of bringing up the name change during his TheReasonYouSuckSpeech when disinheriting Robert (who wants his father's ancestral manor).
* ''Literature/FamilySkeletonMysteries'': [[spoiler: Nelson Paul [=McQuaid=] the Third fell out with his father and legally changed his name to Nelson Paul Mannix, [[NomDeMom taking his mother's surname]]. His son goes by the same surname.]]
* ''Literature/FirestarSeries'': A weird variant; Liz Dubois is the daughter of the famous Ned Dubois. Ned pronounces his name the regular way (Dew-Bwah) while Liz, after entering the military academy, pronounces her name as Duh-Boyz so noone will know she's Ned's daughter. The reason for this, as she explains when two of her underclassmen find out, is because [[SelfMadeMan she wants to build her own military career,]] [[NeverASelfMadeWoman rather than piggyback on her father's accomplishments]]. When asked why she didn't take a different name entirely, she says it 's because she didn't want to abandon him entirely.
* In the ''Literature/DearAmerica'' book ''I Thought My Soul Would Rise and Fly,'' Patsy is a newly-freed slave, now a supposedly 'free' servant. At breakfast shortly after the war, the former house slaves are discussing what last names they'll take, now that they're no longer slaves. The Cook says she'll take her father's name, George, as her last name, while Patsy's friend Ruth says she and her son Luke will take Johnson, as Luke's father's name is John. Another girl says she can't decide until she gets a chance to speak with her mother, who lives on a different plantation. Patsy herself has a stutter and tends to answer questions slowly, so the Cook tells everyone that she'll take the name Davis, as it's the name of their former owners and most of the slaves on the plantation do indeed do that. Patsy herself is indignant at this, because that's not her name, that's ''their'' name, and decides to take her time choosing a name for herself. It takes her two years and it's after she receives mail addressed to "Patsy Davis," but the name she chooses for herself is Phillis Frederick, naming herself after the poet Phillis Wheatley and the abolitionist Frederick Douglas.

* ''Series/GeneralHospital'': After a car accident left Jason Quartermaine without any memories of his life before the accident, he distanced himself from the Quartermaines... except for his grandmother Lila ''Morgan'' Quartermaine, from whom he took his new last name, becoming Jason Morgan, mob enforcer for Sonny Corinthos.

* In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyTactics'', after seeing what his stepbrothers are willing to do against commoners, namely [[spoiler:order the death of his best friend's sister, who is a commoner, to kill her abductor]], Ramza abandons the Beoulve name and the title it brings, using his commoner mother's last name for the rest of the story.

* ''Webcomic/SomethingPositive'': Jason takes Aubrey's name when they get married because he hates his father.

* ''Webcomic/DresdenCodak'': Kimiko Kusanagi took the name Kim Ross to disassociate herself from her father, who abandoned them in pursuit of his research.

* Miranda in ''Webcomic/ButImACatPerson'' goes by her mother's surname, Lake. It's also the one she used when entering into the Contract with Poe, meaning that he's not able to say it, but ''is'' able to refer to her by her father's surname.

* In the ''Literature/DearAmerica'' book ''I Thought My Soul Would Rise and Fly,'' Patsy is a newly-freed slave, now a supposedly 'free' servant. At breakfast shortly after the war, the former house slaves are discussing what last names they'll take, now that they're no longer slaves. The Cook says she'll take her father's name, George, as her last name, while Patsy's friend Ruth says she and her son Luke will take Johnson, as Luke's father's name is John. Another girl says she can't decide until she gets a chance to speak with her mother, who lives on a different plantation. Patsy herself has a stutter and tends to answer questions slowly, so the Cook tells everyone that she'll take the name Davis, as it's the name of their former owners and most of the slaves on the plantation do indeed do that. Patsy herself is indignant at this, because that's not her name, that's ''their'' name, and decides to take her time choosing a 'beautiful' name for herself. It takes her two years and it's after she receives mail addressed to "Patsy Davis," but the name she chooses for herself is Phillis Frederick, naming herself after the poet Phillis Wheatley and the abolitionist Frederick Douglas.

* Subverted in ''Franchise/LyricalNanoha''. Fate opts for a compound name when she's adopted into the Harlaown family rather than fully shed the Testarossa name out of respect for her biological mother Preica (despite the fact that [[AbusiveParents Precia]] had never done anything to be worthy of that respect).

* In ''Literature/FlowersInTheAttic'', Chris Sr. and Corrine changed the family surname from Foxworth to Dollanganger after being disowned for their incestuous marriage. When Corrine's children escape from her after [[spoiler: she poisons them, killing Cory]] Chris disassociates himself from her by taking the name of Sheffield from the man who subsequently adopted them.

* In the Literature/ElleryQueen novel ''There Was an Old Woman'', Sheila Potts sheds "Potts" because it's tied to her controlling mother and three mad siblings from her mother's first marriage. She takes her [[ItMakesSenseInContext father's maiden name]] of "Brent". [[spoiler: At the end of the novel, she further changes her name to "Nikki Porter", becoming Ellery's secretary.]]

* Paul Stenbeck from ''Series/AsTheWorldTurns'' changed his last name to Ryan (his Mom's maiden name) to distance himself from his villainous father James.

* Bobbi Kristina Brown announced her intention to change her name to Kristina Houston specifically to distance herself from her father, Music/BobbyBrown. [[ShaggyDogStory She died before that happened]].

* Inverted amongst sexual minorities or defectors of tightly-knit religious groups. Sometimes parents ''force'' the children to assume a different family name to make sure [[IHaveNoSon they no longer have to deal with]] children who have brought shame upon them by being deviant and who have defamed the family name. A subtrope of HonorBeforeReason trope, and may act as substitute for [[HonorRelatedAbuse honor killing]].

* Herbert Ernst Karl Frahm had to leave Germany when the Nazis took over in 1933 as he was a known leftist and newspaper contributor in Lübeck. He was also born out of wedlock which was SeriousBusiness back then. The name he chose? Willy Brandt. Two decades later he'd be mayor of Berlin. A decade after that he was foreign minister, then chancellor of Germany. Yet his political opponents kept calling him "Brandt alias Frahm" to insult him.