First element of identity of a person, the family name is of capital importance. Attributed centuries ago, these surnames are used to distinguish one sibling from another and are, for many, linked to places, professions, physical characteristics or quite simply to the father's first name, for 30% of them .
According to a survey published by INSEE in the summer of 2019, Martin has been the most common family name in France since 1650. Then come Bernard and Thomas.
The patronym, the only one that counts
In order to be able to correctly establish the parentage of citizens, the legislator got involved in the question a long time ago. However, administration and usage do not always align. In the eyes of the law, only the patronymic name counts. We speak in this case of birth name, unless it has been changed following an adoption.
At the same time, the French State allows the use of a so-called customary name in everyday life. It can be indicated on the invoices, registered with the various administrations (taxes, Social Security, Caf ...), can appear on an employment contract and even be registered on identity documents, opposite the field provided for this purpose, to avoid any problem.
Only two possibilities
But it should not come straight out of the imagination. There are only two possibilities here: choose the surname of the parent who did not pass it on (it is that of the mother in general) or choose that of a husband or wife (the his own or his and that of the user in double name).
Contrary to a widespread idea, the marital name therefore absolutely does not make disappear the patronymic name, which remains the only registered in the civil registers. On the other hand, in the event of a divorce, it will be necessary to obtain the written authorization of the ex-spouse to keep the use of his name, without which it will be necessary to renounce it.
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