Lessons from the East XVIII: Woman’s Womb, Woman’s ward, woman’s Worries, with Man’s name

Why did the practice start with the father’s surname being used to identify child?

What shook the culture of the mother’s name used as the surname for the child?

What’s the law's viewpoint on the subject of the mother’s surname being used for the child?


"God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved; God will help her when morning dawns."

Psalm 46:5

"She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue."

Proverbs 31:26


Meaning: There is no shadow, no shelter, no protector like a mother. There is no life-giver in this world like a mother.

Skanda Purana – Chapter 6.103 -104

These are some quotes, proverbs, and shlokas written about women in Christian and Sanatan scriptures.

The Past

Since time immemorial, a universal system is created in a manner where, imprints are left on one’s creations, whether it’s created by nature, animals, or humans.



Thus, for all species, the child, ward, or offspring identification is with the mother who has given the birth. However only in the case of modern human society, this has been different where the father’s name is used to establish the child’s identity.

The ancient view

Bible is largely silent on this aspect, however, the societies that existed before Jesus’s arrival believed and pursued the mother’s name to describe or distinguish oneself.

In multiple scriptures of Santana Dharma, in the context of Lord Vishnu’s incarnations in the form of Purushottam Shri Rama or Lord Shree Krishna, the identity of both these gods have been associated with their mothers and thus Rama was called Kaushalya Nandan Rama and Devaki and Yashodha Nandan Krishna respectively.

Why and how the legacy of using the mother’s name did get altered?

Before one delves into the context of surnames, it's important to know that till about the 10th century, the names mostly didn't have surnames and the emergence of surnames was largely witnessed from the 11th century onwards.
The reason why the Surname came into existence in the 11th century is to identify oneself with the nation one belongs to or the geography or the locality or one’s ascendants.

Moving ahead!

There are predominantly two contexts why the mother's name as the reference point for the child got modified to the father's name.

1. Emotional Issues

The Father’s name started to be used to establish the relationship between the child and the father and for the father to know and have a connection with the child and vice-versa. During that era polygamy was common and hence the father's name became a norm. Also using the father's name, it was believed that it will be a lot easy to establish a lineage of succession for the throne.

With the arrival of the twenty-first century and society maturing to get modernized, the concept of polygamy has become rather illegal and the concept of the throne is outdated with democracy and elected governments taking over the administration of a country. Despite these changes, the age-old tradition continues to fret that women be under the thumb of men for the want of a man’s name.

A few centuries back, one believed that keeping a father’s name will ensure that child is financially well off based on the inheritance or care one will receive from the father. But in a world where mothers are equally capable and working hard to ensure they are financially well and independent, this argument today stands convoluted.

2. Archaic Laws

Till about the 18th century, surnames were passed from one generation to another with the mother’s or maternal grandmother’s surname. However in the 18th century with the advent of coverture laws, the ancient custom took a hundred-and-eighty-degree, turn. The law stated that-

"Upon marriage, a woman's property passed into the hands of her husband."

All her real property (land) came under his control, and while he could not sell it without her consent, he took all the income and profits from it.

Coverture was the legal doctrine and was decreed to reduce the ability of women to remain independent as well as make women vulnerable and more reliant on men in every aspect of life.

This single law reversed the trend; thus, patrilineal names were started ~ three centuries back.

The law got abolished across the west in the early 19th century, however the ill of the law continued with children compelled to use their father’s name.

The Present

For the last half a century, only three to four percent of Americans have been using the mother’s surname as the family name for the child to carry on the past virtues. However the tradition and socio-psychological aspect of patrilineal has been so strong, that thinking out of it has been nearly impossible, keeping in mind the rigidity of the society to embrace change.

Using the father's name is prevalent in the United States or Germany or the Middle East or in the context of India but one also sees that in these countries the women use their husbands’ names post marriage giving up their original surnames as well.

Some Western countries are observing different customs altogether. In countries including Spain, Colombia, Puerto Rico, and Mexico—children traditionally receive the last names of both parents, creating a double-barrel surname. When two people with double-barrel last names have children, they each pass down the first of their two last names.
Icelanders, meanwhile, don’t have family last names, instead taking surnames that reflect a parent’s first name. The last name Helguson, for instance, means “son of Helga,” referring to a mother’s first name.

China seems to be more progressive in the situation. In 2018, 8.8 percent of babies born in Shanghai received their mother’s family name.

Legal viewpoint behind using the mother's surname to identify the child

1. In a historic landmark judgment, the constitutional court of Italy on 27th April 2022, ruled that the Practice of naming a child after a father only is discriminatory and harmful.

Furthermore, the court ruled that “The practice was “discriminatory and harmful to the identity” of the child, and mentioned that the system should be set up in a manner that both parents should be able to choose the surname unless they agree to the fact that their children should take just one of them.

2. On 6th Aug 2021, The Delhi High Court of India observed that every child has the right to use his or her mother’s surname if he or she wishes to.

Justice Rekha Palli Senior Judge of Delhi High Court, mentioned while hearing a petition by a minor girl’s father seeking direction to the authorities to reflect his surname in his daughter’s documents and not her mother’s.

3. In another judgment on July 28, 2022, the Supreme Court of India decided that the mother has the right to decide the surname of the child. Justices Dinesh Maheshwari and Krishna Murari of Apex Court said, "The mother is the only natural guardian of the child and has the right to decide the surname of the child. She also has the right to give the child in adoption.”

Given the above, the mother’s name should be put on all legal documents to identify the child with the father’s name being optional at the mutual agreement of the parents.