Surname question

[Henke]

Hi guys. I'm thinking about changing my surname.
And I will probably do it regardless of the results of this poll, but I though it would be funny to see what people think here. Especially non-Swedish speakers, because I haven't asked any non-swedish speakers before, but all opinions welcome of course.
I'm going to take my mothers old family name, mainly because it's so unique, and because I've grown tired of having the most common surname in Sweden.
I also have the possibility to make up a unique name, and that seems very appealing as well. I could make up something really cool.
So what do you guys think is the coolest surname, my old name "Johansson", my new name "Kautto" or do you think I should make up a unique name? Ideas for what that could be are welcome as well.

[Tyler]

Change your name to Clint Eastwood or Frank Bullit.

[Nanohedron]

Change it to "Chiff". Aside from the obvious reasoning behind that, you'd have the cool name of Henke Chiff.

[Henke]

Acctually, my name is Henrik, not Henke.

Change your name to Clint Eastwood or Frank Bullit

Lance Uppercut also comes to mind

[Innocent Bystander]

There is a little snippet in "The White Goddess" by Robert Graves, mentioning that in 800 B.C. there was a vote in Athens to decide whether to change the inheritance of surnames from the female line to the male line. In deference to the new styles followed by the recent Dorian invaders, they decided to switch to following the male line with surnames.

It's a curious question, as to which you should take. The obvious answer is the female line, as the male line is open to question - unless you have a particularly rigid social structure.

And of course you have a completely different approach in countries like Spain, where you are "Johansson y Kautto" until such time as you make a choice - usually on the basis of what sounds more dignified.

The fact that you pose the question means you are already in favour of changing it. I wish you joy of your new name!

[chas]

Change your name to Clint Eastwood or Frank Bullit.

When Gail Zappa was pregnant with their third child, some magazine or newspaper asked Frank what they were going to name it. (This is after they named the first two Moon Unit and Dweezil.) He responded, "If it's a boy we'll name him John Wayne, if it's a girl we'll name her Clint Eastwood." They wound up naming him Ahmed.

[Tyler]

Oh yeah, I forgot about the Zappa family!

[Rod Sprague]

How about Chrystal People names, like Viagra or Tyvek?

[Whistlin'Dixie]

Change it to "Chiff". Aside from the obvious reasoning behind that, you'd have the cool name of Henke Chiff.

Well, you got me laughing there, Nano ~ NOT easy to do, I might add.

Sure, Henke Chiff.

I like it.

M

[missy]

I was born with a somewhat uncommon surname (in this area). It was always mispronounced and never spelled correctly.

When I married the first time, I didn't want to go the hyphen route - the combination of the two names sounded like someone throwing up. And I didn't necessarily want to keep my maiden name, so I just went along with the tradition and took his last name. I "thought" since is was a much easier name than my maiden name, it wouldn't get mispronounced as much, etc. - but if anything, it happened MORE often.

My surname now is somewhat common, but it's often miss spoke for a more common name by changing one letter in it. And my father-in-law somehow wound up with an extra "s" at the end of the name on his birth certificate, so it's never spelled correctly.

Growing up, my first name was also not common (it's much more so now), so I could never find any of those neat things like pencils or jewelry that had my name on them.

I guess what I'm saying is go with what YOU like, cuz no one will get it correct anyway!!!!!

[djm]

What are the laws like there in Sweden? Can you change your name easily multiple times? If so, I don't think it matters. Go with what you like. But if you can only change your name with much difficulty, then I would suggest waiting until you are a bit older and have more experience. I suspect your choice will change several times as you grow older, so if it will be difficult to change, better to wait.

djm

[Henke]

Why has 9 people responded but only 5 voted? If anything, it should be the other way around. Vote people vote!

I need to know how Kautto sounds to your ears. Growing up I always thought it was a really ugly name, but now I'm not sure about it. What I like about it is that it's quite hard to tell where it comes from. There's nothing typical to it.

[Coffee]

Kinda reminds me of "Coto" or some such.

Would you keep your current first name? If so, which sounds better with it to your ears?

(Yes, I voted)

[Paul Reid]

O'Hanson

[scottielvr]

I've had an experience quite similar to Missy's with the marital name-change thing. Any prospect of going from a difficult-to-spell-and-pronounce name to a simpler one were similarly dashed. Even though the first one didn't work, fool that I am, I did it again, and that didn't work either; I went from an obscure and difficult German surname to an Italian one that no one could spell, and now I have a 6-letter surname of French origin that no one can spell or pronounce correctly.

Having a difficult surname, as well as the bureaucratic minutiae of name changes (the sheer quantity of which one doesn't truly appreciate until faced with all the paperwork, as most married females would agree) are both nuisances.

That said, I can relate to the wish to carry a surname that is distinctive, chosen by you alone instead of foisted on you by circumstance, and reflects something of deep personal significance; in younger days, I toyed with that idea myself, and have had occasion to regret not having done so. I voted accordingly.