Why Oppose Selective Separate Surnames for Married Couples?

The Selective Separate Surnames System allows couples to choose separate surnames if they wish, while couples who prefer the same surname can continue using it as before.

In Japan, currently, except in the case of international marriages, all couples are required to use the same surname. Many lawsuits in the past have tried to allow selective separate surnames. In March of this year, 12 people living in Tokyo and other areas filed a new lawsuit suing the government for damages.

Many people want selective separate surnames. If it becomes law, more people can live as families with the names they desire.

However, every time this system is debated, the forced same-surname policy has been kept with reasons such as “loss of family unity” or “loss of the traditional Japanese family structure.”

In this article, we would like to reconsider these opposing views surrounding selective separate surnames.

What is Selective Separate Surnames?

The Selective Separate Surnames System, as mentioned earlier, is a system that allows couples to use their pre-marriage surnames if they wish.

While it may be seen as “normal” for couples to share the same surname, Japan is the only country in the world that forces all couples to use the same surname. 

Additionally, in Japan, nearly all couples use the husband’s surname, which is 95.5% of all couples (2019 Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare Population Dynamics Survey).

Taking into account this situation, the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women has asked Japan three times in the past to review its civil law about having the same surname. They said it is a “discriminatory provision.”

However, the Selective Separate Surnames System has not been legalized yet.

Whenever the idea of the Selective Separate Surnames System comes up for discussion, opposing views such as “we should uphold the traditional family structure,” “we would lose family unity,” and “it will change Japanese society” have interrupted the introduction of the system.

So, in the following, let us reconsider these opposing views.

Opposing Viewpoint #1: Should We Uphold “Tradition”?

A commonly heard reason against the Selective Separate Surnames System is the idea that we should uphold the “traditional” way of family life. People often say, “We should protect the ‘traditional’ family structure,” or “Allowing separate surnames would erase the ‘age-old’ Japanese family structure,” emphasizing the need to maintain the tradition of couples sharing the same surname.

However, is it truly a “tradition” for married couples to have the same surname?

According to the Ministry of Justice, the requirement for couples to share the same surname began with the introduction of the family system in 1898 (Meiji 31) under the old civil law. Before that, it was actually more common for couples to have separate surnames.

Shared surnames for couples are not a tradition from ancient times but rather a relatively recent system.

Furthermore, the fact that something has been around for a long time does not automatically become a reason to keep it unchanged.

Words like “tradition” or “ancient” which are often used in opposition to separate surname systems or same-sex marriage can skip essential discussions needed for reviewing these systems. We should be careful of these words since they are frequently used to push through the opposing view by suggesting that, “It is wrong to disrupt something that has been around for a long time.” 

Moreover, our way of life and how we relate to others continuously shifts with societal changes. Laws meant to ensure the ever-changing relationships between people should not be based only on the fact that “this is how it has always been.”

Just last year, the age of consent for sexual activity, which had not been changed since the Meiji era, was finally raised. Like the age of consent, laws should be continually reviewed to align with the values and lifestyles shared at that era.

Opposing Viewpoint #2: Will Different Surnames Lead to a Loss of “Family Unity”?

Another frequently raised reason against the Selective Separate Surnames System is the concern that “If couples are allowed to have separate surnames, the sense of ‘family unity’ will be lost.”

The argument goes that if separate surnames were legally allowed, the bond between Japanese couples would quickly weaken, leading to family breakdowns, and negatively impact children’s development. But is this really the case?

If having different surnames truly opens a crack in the relationship of families, then half of Japan’s married population—those who changed their original surnames upon marriage—should be isolated from their parents’ families, which is clearly not the case.

Furthermore, some people argue that “having separate surnames is not good for children’s well-being” because of concerns like, “Children with different surnames from their parents’ might be socially isolated.” However, we should first tackle the prejudice and stigma (negative beliefs) about having different surnames which are the reasons behind the worries about “feeling excluded” or “left out.”

Allowing separate surnames for married couples and making it legally common for parents and children to have different surnames should be the first step toward getting rid of such prejudices.

Of course, since it is “selective” separate surnames, it does not mean that all couples must have different surnames. 

Couples who believe that “having separate surnames might harm the sense of unity in the family” can still continue to keep the same surname.

However, it is also important to think about whether it is reasonable to believe the underlying idea that the opinions valuing unity and bonds, such as “once married, couples should stay together for life” or “family is a shared destiny.” This is especially important when we see that the number of domestic violence cases keeps going up each year.

Opposing Viewpoint #3: Will Society “Change”?

Another common argument against the Selective Separate Surnames System is the fear of societal changes that the system might bring. Statements like “Japanese families will break apart” or “Japan will change” are frequently heard.

Prime Minister Kishida’s recent comment, “(If same-sex marriage and separate surnames for married couples are allowed,) it will change views on families, values, and society.” is still fresh in our minds.

These statements imply an underlying belief that “there is a set model defined by existing laws for how families and lives should be,and people should live according to that model.”

However, as mentioned earlier, views on family and values are constantly changing. We should not exist just to keep functioning systems created decades ago.

Instead, politics is meant to listen to the voices of those who have fallen through the cracks of a safety net framework that hasn’t been reevaluated for years, adjust laws to fit people’s needs, and change the mindset of those who consider the current situation as “normal.”

For instance, in Sapporo City, even though they received numerous negative opinions about the partnership system, such as concerns about “decreasing birth rates” and the “breakdown of the family system,” the city government did not decide it was “too early to put the system in place due to a lack of public understanding.” Instead, they recognized that “because such prejudices exist, the system is necessary,” and they managed to start the partnership system in Sapporo City.

Rather than just accepting that society “will change” in a passive manner, it is important to face the changes already happening and create new systems “to change” society more open to everyone. This attitude will be needed in many more situations in the future to make a world where more people feel comfortable living.

Conclusion

In this article, we purposely presented views against separate surnames for married couples, and in opposition to that, considered the necessity of the Selective Separate Surnames System.

While terms like “tradition” or “family breakdown” may sound convincing and invite people to think “it was great in the past,” it is important to realize that they often “do not have strong evidence-based reasons behind them.”

According to a statement by the president of the Tokyo Bar Association in a lawsuit seeking for the realization of the Selective Separate Surnames System, the current Civil Code Article 750, which requires married couples to have the same surname, not only violates personal rights (against Article 13 of the Constitution) by making those who want to have separate surnames to change them, but is also considered as a “belief-based discrimination” (against Article 14 of the Constitution) by denying legal marriage benefits to those who believe in separate surnames.

To swiftly fix this situation, we hope that the Selective Separate Surnames System will be introduced as soon as possible.

（Translation: Jennifer Martin)