Many people dislike their names.
Some people dislike them so much that they want to change them. These malcontents often show up at the law library to find out how to do so. This brief guide summarizes some of the basic legal principles governing names, and lists sources explaining how, and providing forms for, the legal change of personal names in New York State. Women, upon marriage, traditionally took the surname of their husband. At common law also, however, a person was free to assume any name, so long as he or she did not do so with the intent to fraud or deceive, and so long as that name did not interfere with the rights of other persons.