What does “mother’s maiden name”? How would you explain it to a child?
What does “mother’s maiden name” mean?
If you were explaining it to a child, you would say that “mother’s maiden name” is your mother’s full name before she got married, that is, her name with her original family name (or “surname”), the name she used when she was a girl and a young woman, before she started using the title “Mrs.”
“Maiden” here means “unmarried woman.” So, “maiden name” refers to a woman’s name when she was still unmarried. As Madsen Sparler has said, in many cultures, when a woman gets married, she takes the family name of her husband’s family, so her name changes.
Let us say that your mother’s name was Mary, and she was born into the Smith family. Her maiden name would be “Mary Smith.” Then, let us say she married your Father, Tom Jones. When she married him, she became Mrs. Jones. That is her married name, but her maiden name would always be Mary Smith.
What does “mother’s maiden name” mean?
“Mother’s maiden name” refers to the mother’s unmarried name — usually the surname before she married. Mary Jones married John Smith, so Jones was her maiden name, and now Mrs John Smith (alternatively Mary Smith).
If you had to explain it to a child (presumably a relatively young one), I would suggest:
Mother’s maiden name was her real name before she married Daddy. When they married, Mummy took Daddy’s surname, and that is now her new real name.
What does “mother’s maiden name” mean?
Mother’s maiden name is the name of your mother’s Father’s family.
It is usually used to identify someone in a database.
You would explain it to a child as the name of your Mom’s dad and his family.
What does “mother’s maiden name” mean?
When I was sixteen, I went to the Social Security office for an SS card. (This was normal in those days; now, the cards are issued at birth).
The claims rep took out an SS-5 form and started filling it out for me. (I was slightly startled; I thought she would hand it to me to fill out). She asked me the usual questions about name, address, date of birth, etc.
Then she asked me, “What was your mother’s maiden name, which means the name she had before she was married?”
I shot her The Look. (“Hey, I’m sixteen years old. How dumb do you think I am?” I thought, but I didn’t say.)
She caught my expression and said, “Sorry. You wouldn’t believe what we get in here.”
I told her Mom’s maiden name while thinking nobody could be that dense.
Ten years later, I was working in a Social Security office. And I had come to realize what they get in there.
What does “mother’s maiden name” mean?
Many Americans adopt their partners’ last name upon marriage.
If Jane Smith adopts her husband’s last name of “Doe,” her last name typically becomes Smith-Doe or just Doe. Her maiden name is “Smith”.
If John Smith married James Doe, he might change his name to John Smith-Doe, John Doe, or some combination of their last names, or keep his last name.
One might describe a maiden name as one’s before marriage or a “given name.”
What does “mother’s maiden name” mean?
I would tell my child, “Before I married, I was Sue Smart. After I got married, I changed my name to Sue Love because that’s Dad’s last name. Some women change their names, some don’t, but I wanted to.”
What does “mother’s maiden name” mean?
When a woman gets married, she usually changes her surname to her husband’s surname since after they are married, they are in the same family. A woman’s “maiden name” is her surname before marriage. So, if Mary Smith becomes Mary Jones when she marries Mr. Jones, Smith becomes her maiden name.
What does “mother’s maiden name” mean?
In many societies, it is common for the wife to take the husband’s family name in marriage.
I would explain it to the child as “Your mummy’s family name before she married your daddy.”
What does “mother’s maiden name” mean?
Explaining “mother’s maiden name” to a child in a simple way:
“Your mother’s maiden name is the last name she had before she got married to your dad. It’s the family name she had when she was a child and growing up before she became a part of our family with her new last name.”
What is the mother’s maiden name?
When a female child is born, they are generally given their parent’s surname. When she marries then, traditionally, she stops using her parent’s name and starts using her husband’s. The surname she used as a child is her maiden name.
Your mother’s maiden name is the surname your mother used as a child (not usually the same as your Father’s).
What does “mother’s maiden name” mean? How would you explain it to a child?
As a term, it means the name someone’s mother had before getting married. My wife changed her surname to mine on marriage, so her maiden name would be the name she had previously.
To a child of mine, I’d probably say this:
You know how Uncle Raiko [and Auntie Kaidi – assuming my sister-in-law hasn’t changed her name through marriage at this conversation] have a different last name to us? That was Mum’s last name before marrying me; we call that a ‘maiden name.’ This form wants to know that name.
Despite the surname having occasionally taken the Slavic feminine suffix, I’m happy that it doesn’t exist in my wife’s immediate family. That would complicate the matter no end.
What does “mother’s maiden name” mean? How would you explain it to a child?
Maiden names are the last name you have before marriage. Your mother’s maiden name is the name she was born with or is on the birth certificate. My mother’s married name was Maguire, but the name she was born with and is on her birth certificate is Donovan. Even if your Mom had several husbands, her maiden name would remain the same. Your grandfather’s last name.
I was born with my last name, Dobbie. When I was 10, my stepfather adopted me, so legally, my last name (or maiden name) was Maguire. If I were to get married again, my maiden name would still be Maguire
What does “mother’s maiden name” mean? How would you explain it to a child?
In most European countries except Spain, a female’s maiden name is her Legal name (nom de jeune fille ). If she gets married in French, she assumes her husband’s name, but it is not hers; it is a courtesy title.
In France, her identity card will show her maiden name with the addition of the wife of XYZ.
In Spain, females do not change their name when they marry, and offspring are given the first surname of both parents irrespective of whether they are married.
What does “mother’s maiden name” mean? How would you explain it to a child?
It is your mother’s last name at birth before she married your Father when she was a maiden.
I would explain that when girls marry, they sometimes change their last name to match their husband’s just to be lovely to him. It’s honest. There isn’t a better reason.
Or it is her superhero identity.
What does “mother’s maiden name” mean? How would you explain it to a child?
The “mother’s maiden name” is the family name she was given at birth. It is usually her Daddy’s name. When Mummy was a girl, her name was Christine George because her Mummy and Daddy were your Nanny and Grandad George. When she married your Daddy, she changed her name to the same as his, and when we had you, you had the same name – so we all now have the last name, Cox.
But before your Mummy got married, she was known by her “maiden name, ” George.
“Maiden” is another name for a girl or young unmarried woman.
What does “mother’s maiden name” mean? How would you explain it to a child?
This will answer several questions in the list.
Technically, your maiden is a virgin; I think it is, or was, a euphemism (polite word) for it. Virginity was, ideally, kept intact until a maiden married – and I think it still is in Spain and Italy – after which ‘all hell broke loose’ – sex education has been a rather polite affair – and the reality was often full of surprises; some good, some not so.
So, the maiden name is a woman’s surname before she marries.
What does “mother’s maiden name” mean? How would you explain it to a child?
“It’s like this, Mandy, sweetheart. Do you know what your name is, Mandy Smith? And Daddy’s name is Bob Smith? And my name is Emma Smith.
Of course, you do.
Well, before I got married to Daddy, my name was Emma Brown. When I got married, I changed my name to be the same as Daddy’s. Lots of married ladies do that, though they don’t have to.
When my name was Emma Brown, the “Brown” part was called my “maiden name.” It just means the surname a lady had before she got married.
So, your maiden name is Smith. And when you get married, you can choose whether to keep Smith as your name or change it to match your husband’s name.”
What does “mother’s maiden name” mean? How would you explain it to a child?
In Italy, the Father is considered the head of the family; when he (who for argument’s sake is named Lucy Greco) takes a wife (whose name for argument’s sake is ‘Gianna Pesce’), she officially becomes Gianna Pesce in the family of Greco. Her name will always be Pesce; when she took her wedding vows, she said, “I Gianna Pesce, etc., etc. When she signs the register, she signs (& remembers she is now married) Gianna Pesce, not Gianna Greco. The children of the union will take the Father’s name; there his children with the woman he chose to be the mother of, the woman who accepted his proposal to be his wife, to be in his ‘family”. I don’t know where this ‘maiden name’ came from; the name she was named when she was born is the same as when she died. She marries in her name, and she signs the register in HER name when she is married.
What does “mother’s maiden name” mean? How would you explain it to a child?
In cultures where the Father’s name is passed to the child, and the wife takes the husband’s last name, the mother’s name changes upon marriage. Example: Mary Jones marries John Wilson. Her married name is now Mary Wilson. So, her “maiden” name recognizes her Father, while her married name recognizes her husband. So, to a child, you would say…Before Mommy married Daddy, her name was Mary Jones….But when l married your Daddy, l took his last name, so now I’m Mary Wilson.
What does “mother’s maiden name” mean? How would you explain it to a child?
My mother explained it thus.
Q: Who are your grandparents?
A: Grandmother and Granddad and Gramps and Gram.
Q: Grandmother and Granddad have a last name.
A: Ainsworth!
Q: Who else has that last name?
A: Uncle Don and Aunt Marti [and my male cousins].
Q: Right. And who is Uncle Don?
A: Your big brother.
Q: Yes. So if Uncle Don and I are brother and sister, and our parents are Grandmother and Granddad, why is my last name not Ainsworth?
A: Because you liked Daddy’s name better.
Q: [keep in mind this was likely the mid-late 1970s.] Not exactly. When I was born, I was named Sue Jean Ainsworth. And when I grew up and became a teacher, the students called me Miss Ainsworth. But when I married Daddy, the students called me Mrs. Hillgren, and that’s what most people call me. Most of the time, when a woman marries, she takes her husband’s last name, and the children have that last name, too, as one family together. When I sign my name now, it’s Sue Ainsworth Hillgren. When you grow up and get married — let’s say you marry your friend Bruce.
A: What??? Ewww.
Q: You probably won’t marry Bruce, but let’s say you did. You would be Mrs. Stanley.
A: Like Dottie!!!!
Q: Yes. Bruce’s mom is Mrs. Dottie Stanley, and if you married Bruce or Bill, you would become Mrs. Stanley, too. And you could keep your original name, your maiden name, as a middle name. Amy Hillgren Stanley.
What is the difference between “Mother’s Maiden Name” and “Maiden Name”?
The easiest way to explain the difference is through an example.
Mary Elizabeth Doe married a man named Jones
She then becomes Mary Elizabeth Jones.
They have a child named Susan Jones.
Susan marries a man named Smith.
Susan’s maiden name is Jones, as that was her name before she was married.
Susan’s mother’s maiden name is Doe because that was the name Mary (Susan’s mother) had before she was married.
What is the difference between a maiden name and a married name?
Both are the same; they are a person’s last name or Family name. If you are female and marry, many women tend to take their husband’s last name; then her former family name will be referred to as her maiden name ( her last name before she married). That’s the only difference between a maiden name and a married name.
Today, many women keep their maiden name after marriage and do not use their husband’s name, or often, people will use both maiden and married names hyphenated. Some women use both married and maiden names for separate situations. For example, a woman who has a professional business, for example, a doctor, has built her reputation on her maiden name over many years. Then she marries. She will often continue to use her maiden name in her professional business but use her married name in all other non-business situations.
Why does nearly every form require you to give your mother’s maiden name?
I never thought much about it, either. And remembering things like my mom’s maiden name is getting harder and harder. She’s no longer around, so I can’t call and ask her.
I’m willing to bet it started before Social Security numbers existed. If it didn’t, it was because people either made up Social Security numbers, didn’t know theirs, didn’t have one, or made an error when they wrote it down.
Since so many people have the same name, even the same middle name, or even no middle name, their mother’s maiden name was another way to identify a person and differentiate them from someone else.
It’s always possible to have a mother with the same last name as someone else. I am trying to figure out what they do in that case.
Why does nearly every form require you to give your mother’s maiden name?
It is a password that you are likely to remember. Unfortunately, it is also not very secure; for starters, your entire extended family knows this piece of information. As such, I have decided, when asked this question, to respond with a typical English surname that only I know (instead of giving my mother’s real maiden name, a foreign name that I’d have to spell out several times carefully.)
If I am asked for both of my parent’s full names by a government authority (e.g., for a passport), I, of course, supply the correct name. But banks and other financial institutions usually ask this as a “security question,” I find my policy a more prudent choice.
The one caveat is that this information is probably requested of your next-of-kin in the unfortunate case you are deceased or otherwise incapacitated.
My maiden name is legally the same as my mother’s maiden name. When asked for my mother’s maiden name, should I use my grandmother’s maiden name?
No. Because it’s not your mother’s maiden name.
When asked for your mother’s maiden name, use your mother’s maiden name.
Because that’s the correct answer to the question.
My maiden name is legally the same as my mother’s maiden name. When asked for my mother’s maiden name, should I use my grandmother’s maiden name?
You use your mother’s maiden name just as you use your maiden name. It is irrelevant that you share the same maiden name. She either chose to keep her maiden name and use it when she married, or she was unmarried when she had you. It’s nobody’s business when you tell them that you and your mother have the last maiden name.
What does it mean if your mother’s maiden name differs from her first name?
Perhaps you have misunderstood what a “maiden name” is.
Let’s examine Linda Jo Smith. Linda is not married. Linda is her first name. Jo is her middle name. Smith is her last, or maiden, name. Your maiden name is usually your father’s surname. When a woman marries, she may take her husband’s last or surname. She may keep all her names, drop Smith, drop Jo, and keep Smith as a middle name or any combination she pleases.
Unless her birth name is Linda Linda, her maiden name would differ from her first name.
What is the definition of a “maiden name?” Would it be considered weird if a son took his mother’s maiden name instead of his father’s last name when he married?
Maiden name is gender specific; a married woman’s maiden name is the name she had at birth (or had legally changed by deed poll or adoption), and it usually comes from her father, unless she was illegitimate at birth and the father was not named. A woman who has been married more than once still uses her birth surname as her maiden name.
Men do not have maiden names. Should a man choose to take the surname of his spouse after marriage, he would have a birth name and a marital name.
What are the best maiden names ever?
This is one of the few photos I have of my maternal grandmother, Maggie Yokam Northcutt.
My grandmother was born in Menifee County, Kentucky, in an area known as Brushy Creek, part of which is now at the bottom of Cave Run Lake.
She passed away in 1980 at the age of 79.
Grandma Northcutt married Dr. Harley Bruce Northcutt in 1924.
My grandfather was a dashingly handsome fellow, wasn’t he? Trim the mustache, and he’s got a Christian Bale thing going on.
I’ve been intrigued with my grandmother’s maiden name, Yokam. The spelling is different, but the pronunciation is similar to that of legendary singer/actor Dwight Yoakam.
Dwight was born in Pikeville, Kentucky, but was raised in Columbus, Ohio. Pikeville is only a couple of hours from Menifee County.
Is it even remotely possible that Dwight and I are distant, distant cousins? Probably not. Yet, back when the great state of Kentucky was being settled, there could have been a clan of Yokams, and somewhere along the line, a birth certificate got the spelling wrong, and it stuck.
It’s hard for me to resist the urge at parties and elsewhere to throw out that my grandmother was a Yokam, the same last name as Dwight, and who knows, maybe he and I are distant cousins.
Makes for interesting conversation.
I should write him and say, “Hey cousin, give me a call sometime.”
Why do banks insist on using the mother’s maiden name as a security question?
In drafting good security questions, the objectives are as follows:
- Definitive: there should only be one correct answer, which does not change over time.
- Applicable: the question should be possible to answer for as large a portion of users as possible (ideally, universal).
- Memorable: the user should have little difficulty remembering it
- Safe: it should be not easy to guess or find through research
Unfortunately, many (most?) companies fail on #1, asking questions like “what is your favorite food/movie/place?” or “who is your closest friend?” the answers to which tend not to be stable over time.
Mother’s maiden name is an example of a good question on these grounds. Though, as you point out, it is weak on #4.
Another popular choice, place of birth, also needs to improve on #4 because it tends to be easily researched.
Better choices include historical firsts, like first phone number, first address, first school, first teacher, etc. Historical facts like these are unchanging and tend to be extremely difficult to research the answer for.
Why does every bank ask for a mother’s maiden name instead of a father’s name while verifying a user’s details?
In English-speaking countries, our last name is our father’s name, and as a security well, that is no security at all.
Instead, our mother’s maiden names were (we say “were” because nowadays this is not the case) taken off the equation when we were born, which is why they used to be a good security question.
If your bank is asking you for that, tell them that you want to improve your security question. There are many, many people today who have their mother’s maiden name as their last name, and therefore, its security level is close to none.
What does “write mother’s maiden name in a correct format” mean on a questionnaire?
Mother’s maiden name is her name before marriage.
The correct format would depend on the questionnaire. But generally, the Last name comes first, then the first, and so on. Some people in some countries retain their maiden (before marriage) name and take on the husband’s name.
e.g., Mary Anne Smith (mother before marriage – so her maiden name is Smith)
Mary Anne Smith Peterson (after marriage)
The correct format could be depending on the questionnaire:
Peterson, Mary Anne Smith.
Hope I answered your question
Could I go by my mom’s maiden name for my last name?
The answers covered a lot more than I thought I would!
As long as it’s not fraud/deception, any name in the US is good to go. You could ask people to use that last name in conversation or reference, but remember that what’s on your birth certificate is your legal name. Bank accounts, job stuff, legal things, they’ll refer to that name. You can get your name legally changed with no problem (do some research as it differs in some places)
You can also use it as a pen name if you’re into writing/art.
Or, as another user said, if some drunk idiot is trying to get your info and you don’t want him finding you.
I do go by my mother’s maiden name. It was a tribute to her and her family for helping raise me all these years and my grandfather, who didn’t have anyone to carry on the family name.
What does “mother’s maiden name”? How would you explain it to a child?
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