evidence freedom-of-speech name passport freedom-of-information
Are there states that don&#39;t require having a family name?
<p>I know this session might seem absurd.</p>

<p>I don't like the family name appearing in my passport and will likely change it in a <em>bureaucratic procedure</em> in an <em>interior ministry</em> affiliated <em>consulate</em> (outside the borders of the state of which I hold citizenship) or in a <em>population bureau branch</em> (inside the borders of the state of which I hold citizenship) sometime in the future.</p>

<h2>My problem</h2>

<p>I know that in the past, before states became existent generally everywhere besides Antarctica,<br> some people didn't always used family names (people would have been named by a nickname or by one or more parents or by town of origin).</p>

<p>My problem is that I never came across a modern state that allows issuing a passport without a family name (let alone a country that accepts a person from such a state, as an expat); so just a <code>personal name</code> would appear there alongside some <code>identification number</code>.</p>

<h2>My questions</h2>

<p>Regarding my problem, I (exceptionally) have two questions:</p>

<ul>
<li><p>Are there states that don't require having a family name in passport?</p></li>
<li><p>Are there states that allow a family name to be a number (say, <code>0</code>, and not as the word <code>zero</code> but as in integer only)?</p></li>
</ul>

<h2><a href="/questions/tagged/australia" class="post-tag" title="show questions tagged &#39;australia&#39;" rel="tag">australia</a></h2>
<p>There is no limitation on the number of names you can have so long as it is at least 1.  You cannot have a prohibited name (NSW <a href="http://classic.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/nsw/consol_act/bdamra1995383/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Births Deaths and Marriages Registration Act 1995</a>, other states are similar):</p>
<blockquote>
<p><strong>&quot;prohibited name&quot;</strong> means a name that--</p>
<p>(a) is obscene or offensive, or</p>
<p>(b) could not practicably be established by repute or usage--</p>
<p>(i) because it is too long, or</p>
<p>(ii) <strong>because it consists of or includes symbols without phonetic significance, or</strong></p>
<p>(iii) for some other reason, or</p>
<p>(c) includes or resembles an official title or rank, or</p>
<p>(d) is contrary to the public interest for some other reason.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>(b)(ii) prohibits you from having the name &quot;0&quot;.</p>
<p>However, having any particular name does not mean that a passport will be issued in that name. The <a href="http://www8.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/viewdoc/au/legis/cth/consol_act/apa2005261/s53.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Australian Passports Act 2005</a> says:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>(4)  The Minister may refuse any name or signature of the person that the Minister considers to be unacceptable, inappropriate or offensive.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>If the Minister decides that you need 2 or more names to get a passport - you need 2 or more names. AFAIK, no Minister has ever decided that.</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>I don't like the family name appearing in my passport and will likely
  change it in a bureaucratic procedure in an interior ministry
  affiliated consulate (outside the borders of the state of which I hold
  citizenship) or in a population bureau branch (inside the borders of
  the state of which I hold citizenship) sometime in the future.</p>
</blockquote>

<p>Almost all jurisdictions allow you to legally change your name for a proper purpose (what constitutes a proper purpose varies from country to country). Marriage, adoption, taking on holy orders (as a priest, monk, or nun), joining a foreign legion, and immigration and naturalization from a country with names not easily transliterated into the local languages, are among the most common proper reasons. Some jurisdictions allow you to legally change your name for any reason that is not improper (identity theft, for example, might be an improper reason).</p>

<p>You generally don't get to choose which country issues your passport. Only a country in which you are a citizen or national will do so, and you have to follow their laws and regulations. Often you are only a citizen or national of one country, although dual citizenships are not uncommon and three citizenships are not unheard of.</p>

<p>The United States affords people great freedom in choosing and changing their names. Most countries have rather strict regulation of naming practices for both bureaucratic purposes and to enforce a national identity.</p>

<p>In principle many U.S. states allow their residents to adopt single word names, or to adopt names with atypical forms, such as numbers. In bureaucratic practice, it is very hard to deal with many kinds of businesses and government agencies if you do that even though it is in theory permitted, and even slight complications like hyphenated names or double barreled names separated by a space that are common place in some cultures are difficult to manage.</p>

<p>For example, many countries have a list of approved names for citizens of their country and this can only be deviated from with government permission approved on  a case by case basis subject to various legal standards. For example, a naturalized citizen might be allowed to retain a name received at birth even though it would ordinarily not be on the approved list for citizens of that country.</p>

<p>It would be more fruitful to examine the laws and rules of the one or two or three countries than to try to consider this question in the abstract. There is no point in knowing that the practices you desire might be available in the United States or Indonesia, if you are a dual citizen of France and South Korea, for example.</p>
