Johan Hedberg: Perspektiv på efternamnsbyten: Motiv och mönster i ansökningar åren 1925–2015

Abstract

In this thesis, I examine surname change applications in Sweden for a selection of years between 1925 and 2015 and conduct interviews with recent surname changers. My aims are first to investigate why people change their surnames, second to study how important the surname has been for a sense of community within the family, and third to investigate the extent to which name changers have created their new names themselves. How these topics have developed over time is discussed in relation to changes in Swedish society. The results show that surname changes are motivated by a rather complex network of reasons with a multitude of interrelated factors. The most common reasons stated in applications are being mistaken for other people with the same surname, practical problems with pronunciation and spelling, and/or various life events, such as before a wedding, after a divorce, or when moving to a new location. During the latter part of the 20thcentury, an increasing number of name changers mention a wish to achieve or avoid surname community with specific family members. Based on the concept of collective and individual identity, the thesis suggests that surname community has been and remains important within the nuclear family, but has become less important among adult siblings. The results also indicate that surnames have been used to a greater extent to promote individual identity in late 20th century Sweden. During the late 20th and the early 21st century, surname changers seem to have created their own surnames to a greater extent. In the early and mid-20th century, they were more inclined to select names from lists of suggested surnames issued by the state and private companies. Drawing on theories of indexicality, the thesis suggests that in Sweden surnames are and have been used, on the one hand, to promote both tradition and modernity, and, on the other hand, to promote both closeness and distance.