Conversation so far:
When did Voltaire change his name?
The author adopted the name Voltaire in 1718, following his incarceration at the Bastille.
Why did Voltaire decide to change his name?
In a letter to Jean-Baptiste Rousseau, Voltaire writes, I was so unhappy under the name of Arouet, primarily so as to cease to be confused with the poet Roi.“
Why was Voltaire incarcerated in Bastille?
One satirical verse, in which Voltaire accused the Régent of incest with his daughter, resulted in an eleven-month imprisonment in the Bastille.
How did Voltaire choose his name?
Voltaire's name's origin is unclear. It is an anagram of AROVET LI, the Latinized spelling of his surname, Arouet, and the initial letters of le jeune, the young.
What does Voltaire mean?
Voltaire has connotations of speed and daring. Voltige means acrobatics on a trapeze or horse, volte-face, a spinning about to face one's enemies, and volatile, any winged creature.
What else does Voltaire mean, besides young and having connotations of speed and daring?
Voltaire was known as le petit volontaire, determined little thing, as a child, and he resurrected a variant of the name in his adult life.
What does Airvault mean?
The name Voltaire also reverses the syllables of Airvault, his family's home town in the Poitou region.

Question: Why did he not keep his name Arouet?
Self-contained rewrite: Why did Voltaire not keep his name Arouet?