Ask Lemmy

I have an extraordinarily rare last name combined with an extraordinarily rare first name, I’m literally the only person who has ever had my full name in the entire history of humanity, I’m keeping it.

Hell no, people can finally spell it.

No, I hope I’d have the self-confidence to own it.

• I went to school with a kid named “dick”. Not Richard or rich, but he insisted on “dick”. He was the first to joke about his name and he laughed about it. I don’t know how he truly felt but everyone loves the comedian, and even bullies couldn’t make fun of him
• I just got a new coworker with the same name as a famous comedian, and same deal. His intro speech started with “not that one”, and he can quote movie lines with the best of us. Actually I haven’t worked with him so know nothing else about him. I remember his name and that he has a good sense of humor
• my name Isn’t at all common but there’s a professor in Chicago with the same name, who has authored a bunch of text books. Does it count that I sometimes joke about my “alternate life”?

Why should I change? He's the one who sucks.

An ex of mine had the same name as the wife of a killer. I find it hilarious that when you Google her name, that person comes up. I hope it forever is an impediment to her finding employment. What? No, I'm not bitter.

I already share a name with a fairly famous (although now deceased) comedian so I doubt it.

Probably not. I'm too lazy.

Why should I change? They're the one who sucks!

Changing your name is an insane amount of work and it is not worth it

Harvey Epstein is crazy bad luck for a name.

For me, it depends on the crime and how common or uncommon the name is but still probably not.

The were 4 other guys in my high school with my name. So no, can't see bothering to change it.

I guess I'd just get married

My last name is lame anyways

Sure. I have no attachment to my last name.

I guess it depends how common your last name is where you live. If you're a Smith/Johnson/Brown/Williams in the USA, those are pretty common. If you've got one of those names in China, maybe a name change is in order.

If your last name is Summerbell, that's a bit rare, and maybe you need to distance yourself.

I share an almost identical name with some right winged POS. But I think the people I run into aren't going to confuse us.

One of my last names was severely misspelled a long time ago so I doubt anyone else not from my family has it, and I wouldn't change it. As for the other last name, it's kinda common so no I wouldn't change it either.

No, because my name is already very common and there are several prominent murderers, war criminals and even traitors who share my name, and I barely rate among them.

I have an ancestor who invented a famous sport and a second cousin who set someone on fire and buried them alive.

The spelling of my last name is rare enough where I live that I sincerely doubt anybody here, who isn't already part of my family, would be heinous enough to do that.

So, probably not. I already don't really associate much with extended family to begin with, so I'd probably be out of the loop for a long time anyways.

My whole name - first, middle, and last - is one of those that’s so generic I’m damn near impossible to Google without already knowing other key identifying details. Details that, if you already knew, you probably wouldn’t need to Google me anyway.

Probably, because my last name is pretty rare. I actually have my mother's surname so I think I'd just change it to my father's.

Weinstein might be a fairly common jewish name? Definitely not changing mine, it's very common.

I'd definitely consider it if my family name was Hitler, or something that's a common swear word nowadays to the point that few people even know the original meaning anymore. "Ficker" is a relatively common name in my country, but to contemporary people it's basically "fucker". Many change the name into "Fischer" or use their spouse's name instead.

If my name was uncommon and had become infamous? Yeah, I think I might change it in that case— it’d be a hard call and I’d have to think it through carefully, but I might come to the conclusion that I’d have to do it. But a common name? While it might get smudged a bit by the villain, there’d be too much dilution for anyone to care.

I feel for you, OP. That sucks.

I am from the Netherlands. The media etc. do not reveal surnames when court cases are being mentioned. I could be wrong but I believe that is set in law.

My last name is limited to my 5 closest relatives. This is due to a bizarre misspelling 3 generations back followed by mostly female descendants.

One of the worst US congress members shares a last name with me, but it's also so common that it's pretty diluted. It needs to be both infamous and uncommon, sharing a last name with millions of people ain't that.

Then again, Epstein is kinda common and I can't help giggle when I bring up a certain researcher with that last name and call her model the Epstein model.

Nah, too common.

Jokes on me there are close to a hundred million people with the same last name as me, I'm not changing

No, this has happened and I did not feel the need to change my name. Nobody even associates my name with his because his heinous crime happens so often in my country.