Double surname not a great success

A new law introduced by federal justice minister Annemie Turtelboom in May last year, allowing parents in Belgium to give their babies either the father’s or the mother’s surname, or both, has met with little success so far, reports De Morgen. Ten months after the option was made available, only 4.6% of parents have given their baby a double surname, according to figures from the FPS Justice.

Of the 83,191 children born in Belgium since May 2014, 3,865 were given both of their parents’ surnames, or 4.6%. The majority of the compound names begin with the father’s surname, while in 13.5% of the cases, the mother's name comes first.

Belgium’s Institute for the Equality of Women and Men, meanwhile, has filed a complaint with the Constitutional Court against the fact that the father has a right of veto in the determination of the name. If the parents are unable to come to an agreement, the child is given the father's surname by default.