Riviera Reporter
Riviera Reporter
THE FRENCH RIVIERA'S ENGLISH LANGUAGE NEWS MAGAZINE
THE FRENCH RIVIERA'S ENGLISH LANGUAGE NEWS MAGAZINE

Naming baby with mother or father's surname

Parents with newbornA few issues back we printed in our "20 years ago" feature an item about a French MP's vain attempt to reform the Napoleonic rule that children could only bear their father's surname. René Masson was worried that this led to the disappearance of many names: "In a few decades we’ll all be called Martin, Bernard or Durand, if not Garcia, Lopez or Ali Baba."

It seemed to us at the time – that was 1989 – "the administration was set to do nothing"; however, finally in 2002 the law was changed: parents can choose for their offspring to bear the name of the father or mother – or both in whichever order is preferred (MacTavish-Babuinelli or Babuinelli-MacTavish, for example). If only one parent "recognises" a child then normally it takes that parent’s name; if the other parent surfaces later the usual choice is available although if the child is by then 13-years-old it must consent to the name.

 

Popular: France