People take names and especially surnames so damn seriously and act like they’re written in stone but the big secret here is they’re all fake, it’s all made up. David Tennant picked out his name at 16 because his real name was barred from the actor’s union he joined on account of their No Doubles Allowed rule, and he wound up naming himself after Neil Tennant from the Pet Shop Boys of all things, and now many years later his whole family carries on that same made-up name he committed to as a teenager. All names are made up and fake as hell, call yourself whatever feels right.
As a trans person it actually always makes me sad when even a cis person tells me they hate their name. I’m always like, change it, and they’re like “oh I dont want to go through the paperwork etc” and I’m like, you don’t have to, just use a different name socially, have your friends call you what you want, and they never know how to respond it seems, like they can’t really wrap their head around that concept being easy and acceptable.. It just makes me sad for them cause I live in such a different social world with fellow trans people in which having a chosen name is expected by most people AND respected, no one will ever mention your legal/deadname.
Cis people can do it too! Normalize it!! You don’t have to be trans to have a chosen name! No one should ever have to go through the burden of hearing yourself being called something you can’t stand, as someone who knows how terrible that feels. Your identity is your own to dictate and dont let the world stop you
(Ofc just be sure to avoid appropriating names outside of your culture that aren’t meant to be shared)