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Salma Hayek recently announced that she's now Salma Hayek Pinault. Yup, the sexy actress, who's been married over a year to French fashion executive Francois-Henri Pinault, has taken her husband’s last name. "It was Valentina’s request," she told InStyle magazine, referring to the couple's 2 1/2 year-old daughter. As the story goes, little Valentina saw her mom's name on a chair on a movie set, she asked why she didn’t have the same name as Daddy.
In Hollywood, it’s common for celebs to keep their last names, even after becoming wives and mothers. Famous moms Gwen Stefani, Sarah Jessica Parker and Gwyneth Paltrow all have built brands around their maiden names. But lately, the traditional practice of name-changing seems to be making a comeback. Last year, Heidi Klum legally became Heidi Samuel, adopting hubby Seal’s last name. (It was four years after their wedding.) And recently, Jennifer Lopez sent out housewarming invitations using her husband, Marc Anthony's last name, Muniz.
I wonder why these celebs are waiting years after marriage to start using their husbands' last names. Maybe it's because, as their kids get older, it becomes important to them to show family solidarity. Or maybe having the same name is simply is less confusing for the children. But when I got married, I decided to keep my name because I feel it's an important part of my identity. I figured that if I had kids, they would be smart enough to understand that even though Mommy has a different name, she is still a part of the family. And personally, I think it’s an important lesson to teach kids that family bonds run much deeper than the name put on them – and that families aren’t all uniform. Instead of becoming Mrs. Pinault maybe Salma should've sat down with her little girl and explained that!
Whether you kept your maiden name or changed it to your husband's name, have you ever regretted the choice you made? Chime in below!
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