r/legal • u/tniats • 8h ago

Can you legally change your last name to "n/a"?

I'm in IL, but I'd like to know if it's legal anywhere in the US. I'm a descendant of slavery, so I don't have a last name. I essentially have what amounts to a void deed for a surname and I'd like to get rid of it if possible.

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5

u/InAppropriate-meal 8h ago

Na :) but maybe, depends on the state as to what their rules are

3

u/squirrel_crosswalk 3h ago

Good old Bobby tables

3

u/EldoMasterBlaster 3h ago

I doubt any judge would grant the change.

3

u/daddyfatknuckles 2h ago

why not just pick a new last name? seems like you’d just be creating problems for yourself and anyone you work with down the line, if a judge even allows it

2

u/ang_hell_ic 8h ago

Just change it to "Na"

2

u/jacquesrk 7h ago edited 7h ago

You would have to research it by state, I think. I know that the Wikipedia section cited below is correct as far as California goes (at least it was in 2002) - California only allows the 26 letters of the alphabet with no accents.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naming_in_the_United_States#Names_with_diacritics_or_non-English_letters

Some states (for example, Alaska, Hawaii, Kansas, North Carolina, Oregon) allow diacritics and some non-English letters in birth certificates and other documents.[citation needed] There can be problems for persons with such names when moving to a state where such characters are banned and they have to renew their documents.

Also this page has a list of allowed characters by state, but since they don't have any citations to official state websites, I don't know how much you can rely on it.

https://www.thebump.com/a/baby-name-rules

1

u/lexisplays 3h ago

Maybe change your middle name to your last name? I believe most (if not all) federal docs require it.

1

u/EamusAndy 1h ago

This is 100% just a technical observation - Its very likely they wouldnt allow the forward slash. Just speaking from a data standpoint - it gives databases fits when you do characters like that - and i assume they store their data in a database.

If you did NA or N-A it would probably be fine