The Surname in Western Europe Liberty, Equality and Paternity in Legal Systems in the Twenty-First Century

Abstract

This article examines the different transmission systems of the surname in Western Europe. The analysis focuses on the oppositions of Northern and Southern Europe (about single surnames vs. double surnames), on the freedom of uses and the selection criteria, and on the new symbolic hierarchy of patronymic (father's surname), matronymic (mother's surname) and double name. Particular attention is paid to the tension between male and female in contemporary systems compared to traditional naming systems and to the paradoxes of equality and freedom, particularly in the context of homosexual who may face very limited freedoms regarding the process of renaming.