A name, according to the Supreme Court in a 2005 case, has two parts: (1) the given or proper name and (2) the surname or family name. The given or proper name is that which is given to the individual at birth or at baptism, to distinguish him from other individuals. The surname or family name is that which identifies the family to which he belongs and is continued from parent to child. Parents are free to select the given name of their child, but the law fixes the surname to which the child is entitled to use.
Middle names, on the other hand, are not regulated by law, although the Filipino custom is to use the mother’s surname as the child’s middle name. Still, you cannot drop or delete your middle name. Middle names serve to identify the maternal lineage or filiation of a person as well as further distinguish him from others who may have the same given name and surname as he has.
How about an illegitimate child whose filiation is not recognized by the father? Can that child use the middle name of the mother? The answer is, no. That child “bears only a given name and his mother’ surname, and does not have a middle name. The name of the unrecognized illegitimate child therefore identifies him as such.”
An illegitimate child may now use the surname of the father. This is a recognition of the fact that illegitimacy is not the child’s fault, and, therefore, the child should be shielded against the social stigma and other negative consequences arising from illegitimacy. To illustrate, what’s your first thought should you notice that a kid uses the name of the mother, and not of the father? Even the illegitimate child’s friends and contemporaries in school, should they learn that, unlike them, their friend follows the surname of the mother, would start asking why.
Another welcome amendment is with respect to the procedure in changing names. Going to court, with all the expenses that goes with it, to change first names and correct clerical errors is no longer necessary. Under Republic Act No. 9048 and its Implementing Rules and Regulations, the city or municipal civil registrar or the consul general is authorized to correct a clerical or typographical error in an entry and/or change the first name or nickname in the civil register without need of a judicial order. It must be made clear, however, a court order is still required for substantial changes such as surname, gender, nationality, and status.
R.A. 9048, which took effect on 22 April 2001, amends the Civil Code (Articles 376 and 412), which prohibits the change of name or surname of a person, or any correction or change of entry in a civil register without a judicial order. The matters that you need to know (Primer) about R.A. 9048 is found at the National Statistics Office (NSO) website.
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Hi attorney, I would like to ask what do I need to do in order to change my surname, currently using my mom’s surname, into my dad’s. What can I do if my dad’s already dead. However, he signed my birth certificate indicating that he is my father.
I have a “middle name problem” when i was about to take my professional exam for teachers i am required to submit my birth certificate and instead of ESTRADA it became EDRADA…i got no time to correct that because my exam is faSt approaching and i did a HUGE mistake… when i passed my exam EDRADA is my middle name and used it then with my passport etc…now i am here abroad and wanted to correct that mistake…what is the legal way to do it?
Thank you in advance for the advice….
Hi atty! I have a friend po kc, naanakan posya at 6yo na po Ngyn ung bata, s b.cert. po kc ng bata ay isinunod Nya s Surname Nya pti po sa middle name Nya kya lumalabas po n kptid Nya ung anak Nya, ask kolang po anu poba mga options n ppwedi Nya gawin at malaki poba mggastos Nya? Salamat po????
Hi Sir,
Tanong lang po pano ba mag patanggal ng name kc po Masyado mahaba para po sana sa anak ko eto po ang name nya “monique zara mercedeh” gusto ko po sana patanggal ang “zara mercedeh”masyado po kasi mahaba. One year old pa lang po ang baby ko. Pwede nyo po bng I explain yung proseso at need po bng dumaan sa korte ang patanggal sa name nya?. Sana po matulungan nyo ako marami salamat po
Hello good day
Just want to ask how do i report the adoption papers granted her in uk to the philippines? I want to renew my daugthers philippine passport and use my current husband lastname now,. I dont know what to do.hope anyone can help me
I ask to one friend but they say consult a lawyer and how i will do that if we are here in uk..
Thanks
Hi,
I am an illegitimate child and using both my mother’s surname and middle name since I was a child. This is all reflected to my Transcript of Records, and other ID’s. But unfortunately, I dont have a middle name in my NSO birth certificate. What should I do to reflect my mother’s middle name in my NSO birth certificate.
hi,
i have something to ask. i’ve got pregnant last year and my boyfriend and i promise to get married this year.. my daughter uses her biological father’s surname. now, he cheated on me. My mom wants to change the name of my daughter because of what he did. is there a posible way we can change it? she’s stil 5mos.
Nice response in return of this question with real arguments and telling everything about
that.
hi, i have a question. my boyfriend is having trouble getting a passport due to an error in his last name on his NSO BC. he has always used De Leon on all of his documents. as it turns out, the NSO copy is showing the middle name “Bautista De” and the last name “Leon”.
Could this be considered as a clerical error? Will he still need to go to court to clear this mess up?
Dear sir,
I would like to ask about how to change my surname in my school records? My parents were separated and they werent married when i was born. Ive been using my mothers surname since i started schooling. Later i found out that my parents were married 2 years after i was born and that my birth certificate that was forwarded to nso bears my father’s surname. Thanks!
(I Want to change my school records with my father’s surname. It’s been more than a decade since i graduated. )