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Living with a pseudonym…..

arley

arley

knowlegable brummie
Hello everyone,
I have a very sensitive question. I will keep it pretty guarded as there may be decedents of the family who are alive today and may not be aware of the situation. My family research has a surname, a pseudonym and a maiden name. I can track all three names until the death of a female. Could a death really be certified using a pseudonym? I think the family lived with the pseudonym for so long that they accepted it as real. The one time in my life I have registered a death, I can’t remember being asked for proof of identity. Any thought you have would be very welcome
 
If the person registering the death only knew them by the pseudonym then that would, I Imagine, be the name on the death cert.

When I did a search the following came up:
You do not have to follow a legal process to start using a new name. But you might need a 'deed poll' to apply for or to change official documents like your passport or driving licence.

Hope that helps.
 
pjmburns said:
If the person registering the death only knew them by the pseudonym then that would, I Imagine, be the name on the death cert.

When I did a search the following came up:
You do not have to follow a legal process to start using a new name. But you might need a 'deed poll' to apply for or to change official documents like your passport or driving licence.

Hope that helps.
Click to expand...
Thank you Janice. I think I may have a female buried using a pseudonym but her ‘partner’ using his birth name. These things are sent to try us…..
 
Last time I registered a death I was asked for a birth certificate, perhaps to avoid another The Day of the Jackal?

Even with a birth certificate 'the authorities' don't get it right. We had a relative born in a place with, at the time, a Roman name, Holme, the coroner was adamant that they must have been born in a care home.
 
I can't remember having to take either of my parent's birth certificates when I registered their deaths, I think the official hospital / doctors note and my verbal dates of birth was enough.
I could be remembering wrong though!
 
I registerd my Father's death in July and it was done over the phone - no certificates needed. (I assume the hospital cert went electronically). When I registered my Mom's death in 2015 I just needed the cert from the hospital.
 
The two most common reasons I've come across for deaths not being registered with the 'correct' name are children taking the name of a step father and women (single, widowed or married to someone else) taking the name of a 'husband' without marrying them. I don't imagine any checks were made.
 
A Sparks said:
I can't remember having to take either of my parent's birth certificates when I registered their deaths, I think the official hospital / doctors note and my verbal dates of birth was enough.
I could be remembering wrong though!
Click to expand...
I registered the death of a maiden aunt. I didn’t know her exact place of birth but gave the general area which seemed to suffice. Luckily, no one will be researching our family in years to come, so I haven’t put a spoke in their research wheel.
 
MWS said:
The two most common reasons I've come across for deaths not being registered with the 'correct' name are children taking the name of a step father and women (single, widowed or married to someone else) taking the name of a 'husband' without marrying them. I don't imagine any checks were made.
Click to expand...
I can add to your list - not marrying someone who’s using a pseudonym but claiming to be married on the census. Hey ho….
 
I registered a death by phone in March and the registrar sent a long list of required documentation. However my memory is that not much was used in the end. (Possible a case of those organisations that carelessly ask for a Driving Licence AND Passport when they mean Driving Licence OR Passport?).

They didn't seem to be as rigorous as I expected. They were quite happy for me to challenge the Coroner's Office date of death for instance. (I didn't believe it, based on evidence from neighbours, but the later the death the better in terms of pension refunds etc. so there was no benefit to the family to dispute it).
 
arley said:
I can add to your list - not marrying someone who’s using a pseudonym but claiming to be married on the census. Hey ho….
Click to expand...

Does your pseudonym tie in with that person's family? My grandad's cousin, who was a bit of a rogue, used his mother's maiden name.
 
MWS said:
Does your pseudonym tie in with that person's family? My grandad's cousin, who was a bit of a rogue, used his mother's maiden name.
Click to expand...
No sadly, they chose a very common name in the Birmingham area. No one else in the family tree has this name, apart from their descendants.
 
I have researched my husbands extended family tree (his aunts), it is no secret that their names were Costello who suddenly became Barton, I think to avoid a rent man.
The majority of the family reverted to Costello except one George Barton and his descendants band his descendants went on to be Bartons.
There is a thread about George on this forum.

As for death certificates or even marriage ones , years ago the registrar just wrote what he was told by the informant.

Many people in the past couldn't read and had to make their mark so the registrar wrote what you said your surname was, with so many accents in UK that could make some interesting mistakes,
 
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