The term is also used when an individual changes their name, typically after reaching a certain legal age (usually eighteen or over, though it can be as low as fourteen in several European nations).
Reasons for doing so include: The Civil Code of Quebec states that "Every person exercises his civil rights under the name assigned to him and stated in his act of birth,"[10] and spouses retain their legal names upon marriage.
[11] However, a woman married prior to April 2, 1981 is entitled to use her spouse's name in the exercise of her civil rights, provided that they were doing so at that date.
Former titles of nobility became integrated into the last names in 1919 but continue to be adapted according to gender and other circumstances.
In strict English law, if there is such a thing as a "legal " surname, it is easily changed.
[20] Changes of name are usually effected through deed poll, optionally enrolled either at the High Court of Justice[21] or at the College of Arms,[22] with a notice recorded in The London Gazette.
Changes may also be made by means of a Royal Licence obtained through the College of Arms, with similar notice.
This is actually the most common method, since most women who marry do not petition a court under the statutorily prescribed method, but simply use a new name (typically the husband's, a custom which started under the theory of coverture where a woman lost her identity and most rights when she married).