changing name to a very simple/common English name a good or bad idea?

[2scoops]

ever since I've been in the US, I've used a very generic English name. Let's say it's almost as common as "John" and my last name is also very common, almost like "Smith"....... When I Googled the exact name, I got more than 16 million results.

On my N-400 application, I wrote "John Smith" in the name change section. No middle name, just "John Smith"..............

Is this a good or bad idea, or should I used my original first name in my native language as the middle name, to avoid any future confusion?

 

[Bobsmyth]

It's more a question of what your legal name is rather if it's good or bad idea. Apply by your legal name that you have been using on any legal forms in the past to avoid confusion.

 

[2scoops]

It's more a question of what your legal name is rather if it's good or bad idea. Apply by your legal name that you have been using on any legal forms in the past to avoid confusion.

No... I mean after the naturalization I'll have a very, very common name
that is probably shared by maybe hundreds of thousands of other Americans.
Will this create a problem when I fly or get wrong phone calls, for example?
Right now all my IDs and documents have my original name, which is the
English pronounciation of my name in English. But almost everyone knows
me by my common English name... Did a quick search on the Census bureau
and apparently my last name is shared by more than half a million people
in this country.

I'm already at the very last stage of my N-400 process(29 days, 4 hours
and 12 minutes to my interview date)

Thanks!

 

[Huracan]

So, I guess you asked for a change of name when you applied for N-400? It is anybody's guess if it will cause problems. On the other hand it might give you some anonymity as a common name appears everywhere it gets difficult to distinguish one John Smith from the other if someone is trying to dig some dirt on you. By the way, what document or page did you use in the Census Bureau to perform the count? I would be curious to try it.

 

[Bobsmyth]

No... I mean after the naturalization I'll have a very, very common name
that is probably shared by maybe hundreds of thousands of other Americans.
Will this create a problem when I fly or get wrong phone calls, for example?
Right now all my IDs and documents have my original name, which is the
English pronounciation of my name in English. But almost everyone knows
me by my common English name... Did a quick search on the Census bureau
and apparently my last name is shared by more than half a million people
in this country.

I'm already at the very last stage of my N-400 process(29 days, 4 hours
and 12 minutes to my interview date)

Thanks!

I supposed there is a slight increase in the probability that common names have greater chances of getting flagged but I don't think it's a big concern since many people with common names have gone their whole lives without any problems. Think about it..if there are 3 million Americans with the name John Smith what are the chances that the majority of them suffered from being on a no fly list or some sort of identify confusion that had serious consequences?

 

[2scoops]

So, I guess you asked for a change of name when you applied for N-400? It is anybody's guess if it will cause problems. On the other hand it might give you some anonymity as a common name appears everywhere it gets difficult to distinguish one John Smith from the other if someone is trying to dig some dirt on you. By the way, what document or page did you use in the Census Bureau to perform the count? I would be curious to try it.

believe it or not... a few years ago I actually considered changing my name to "Dragon" (because that's the literal
English translation of my first name in my native language... but I thought it was too silly to be used in English.

this is the Census.gov page I used:
http://www.census.gov/genealogy/www/

 

[2scoops]

......
Think about it..if there are 3 million Americans with the name John Smith what are the chances that the majority of them suffered from being on a no fly list or some sort of identify confusion that had serious consequences?

Bobsmyth,

Excellent point! I guest I just never thought of it that way. I'll stop
worrying and enjoy using my new name. (well... after the oath )

 

[cafeconleche]

I think Dragon would be a cool name. There are names like Forrest, Wolfgang, etc., so Dragon would NOT be that weird. Maybe Super Dragon or Dragon Master... that would be AWESOME...

The translation of my name is, loosely, Lord of the Universe. What do you think? Could you guys call me Lord?

 

[Huracan]

Thanks for the census webpage link.

 

[2scoops]

I think Dragon would be a cool name. There are names like Forrest, Wolfgang, etc., so Dragon would NOT be that weird. Maybe Super Dragon or Dragon Master... that would be AWESOME...

The translation of my name is, loosely, Lord of the Universe. What do you think? Could you guys call me Lord?

Lord of the Universe,

I almost fell off my chair while reading that...

On the other hand, I have a friend whose name is Princess. No, she's not royalty. But we call her Princess and don't feel any need to bow to her! At least her name isn't Princess Consuela Banana Hammock!

I dont' think people will take me seriously if I do change my name to Dragon. Or imagine going to the naturalization interview and hear the interviewing officer call "Mr. Dragon xxxxxxxx, you're next!"


Super Dragon

 

[Feliz-LA]

hi Dragon ))

i am in the same position as you, my original name is un-pronounceable for Americans plus associates with curse word ))) but it means Sweetness ))

i think it's kinda cool that we get to choose our names )))

as to John Smith - i strongly recommend you to keep simple first name, you can even spell it Jon, and pick a longer less common but still easy to pronounse last name

PM me, we'll think together about our names )))