The couple’s family and friends were largely complimentary about the move, much to the pleasant surprise of the groom, who was expecting “some resistance,” he said.
Elías Hanno, 34, Jersey City, N.J.
Elías Hanno and his wife, Emily Hanno, don’t consider themselves “unconventional” people, he said. When they decided that he would take her last name upon marriage, in 2018, their reason was practical: Because her first name is very common, she wanted a distinctive last name, and both halves of his original one, Sánchez-Eppler, felt too commonplace.
“The opportunity to challenge expectations has been one of the nicest ancillary benefits that wasn’t really part of the decision-making process,” said Mr. Hanno, a manager at Schmidt Futures, a philanthropic initiative co-founded by the former Google chief executive Eric Schmidt.
The couple especially liked informing their youngest family members of the choice. “Our niece and nephew are growing up thinking that it’s totally normal for a man to take a woman’s name, and they’ll expect to have open conversations on what they want to do when they find a partner, which is really sweet and exciting,” he said.
It hasn’t all been smooth going, however. Some relatives have expressed displeasure at not having their family name continue on, and Mr. Hanno, who is Hispanic, said he had needed to be “a little more intentional about marking that identity in other ways.”
Josef Valentine, 43, Manhattan
It only took two dates with his future wife, Taylor Valentine, for Josef Valentine to seal his fate. Mr. Valentine, a Hard Rock Hotel general manager, said he told her that he loved the sound of her name so much that if they ended up together, he would happily take it on. “She tells me that once I said that, she just knew I was the one,” he recalled with a laugh.
