Embracing feminism? More women keeping maiden name after marriage, says Facebook study

But only 4% hyphenated surname with husband's

A third of married women in their 20s have kept their maiden name, according to a study by Facebook (ALAMY)

Married women in their 20s are far more likely to have kept their maiden name than women in their 60s, with experts claiming it is a sign that the younger generation is increasingly embracing feminism.

A third of married women in their 20s have kept their maiden name, according to a study by Facebook. Of the site's 33 million users in Britain, researchers analysed the profiles of women whose status was "married" and whose husbands also had Facebook.

The results, published in the Sunday Times, showed that just 4 per cent had hyphenated their surname to incorporate their maiden name and their husband's surname, while 63 per cent had adopted their husband's name.

Just 20 per cent of married women in their 30s have kept their maiden name, while for women in their 60s the figure is 9 per cent.

Angela McRobbie, the author of The Aftermath of Feminism: Gender, Culture and Social Change, told the newspaper: "The generation now in their 30s were too easily swayed by the complex backlash against feminism but we are now seeing a kind of uprising among younger women."

Rachel Thwaites, who has done research in marital name-changing at the University of York, said that the norm of name-changing remains prevalent and there is still cultural and social pressure on women to conform.

"Women who resist this pressure are often doing so as a feminist decision or a move for equality in their relationship," she said.

She claimed that some women who intend to keep their maiden names end up taking their husband's name to avoid any confusion at schools or at the doctor's when they have children.