Law requiring couples to share one surname hinders women in the workplace and lowers birth rate, campaigners claim ...

The introduction of a selective separate surname system for married couples in Japan, which would allow them to choose ...

A movement to change the rules around surnames has been brewing, led by women’s rights advocates and those trying to preserve the diversity of Japanese surnames in a nation where a handful of ...

That doesn't mean that within this topsy-turvy world of baby names there aren't patterns to be found. From looking through the data from the Social Security Administration (SSA), which keeps track of ...

Discover the world’s most common surnames, their origins, meanings, and how they reflect history, geography, culture, and migration.

Barriers to change Today, around 60% of Japanese people – both men and women alike – approve of a change in the law to allow husbands and wives to have separate surnames.

Having to give up their maiden names has a real-world impact for Japanese women in the workplace.

Since 1947, Japanese Civil Code has stipulated that all married couples must share a common surname. Although in theory that name could be that of the husband or wife, in practice it is almost always ...