Should A Woman Take A Man’s Last Name When Married?

In tradition, when a man and woman get married, the woman takes the man's last name.  But since times are changing, should the man now be required to take the woman's last name?

We love to help our listeners when they find themselves in situations they do not know how to handle  We are always receiving messages through Facebook and email.  Here is a message we received yesterday afternoon.

"Hey Hacker Morning Show!  I have listened many times when help listeners out and I could really use some help.  My Fiance's Dad Wants Me To Take His Daughter's Last Name I am getting ready to marry my fiance next month. She is the daughter of a very rich and powerful man. The other day while we were on his boat he asked if I'd be o.k. using his daughter's last name instead of using mine for when we get married. He said that their family name has been around forever and it has represented so much tradition over the past hundreds years. He's afraid his family name is gonna die off. When he dies so does the family name. He even said that if I say no, he will not support our marriage and will not walk his daughter down the aisle.  I am actually very insulted by this. I told my fiance about what her Dad proposed to me and she said that I should i consider doing it because her Father is a powerful man. She also told me that it's not good to say no and upset Daddy. What should I do? I love my girl but I want to give her my name. I don't want to take hers. She said she loves me with all he heart but we should consider doing this for her Father. Any advice on how I should handle this?"

We are torn.  Vahid and I say it doesn't matter.  If you truly love one another a name is just a name.  Oscar says absolutely not  If she doesn't take his last name, it's a deal breaker.  Tommy says why not combine the two and make everyone happy.  What do you think?

If you have really found the one person you want to spend the rest of your life with, a name is a small obstacle that can be figured out through communication and compromise.