Media personality, Toke Makinwa, has declared her decision not to adopt her future husband’s last name upon marriage, affirming her intention to retain her current surname.
Toke spoke about this during an episode of her podcast ‘Toke’s Moments’.
She shared her experience of maintaining her surname during her previous marriage, emphasizing that her ex-husband never pressured her to alter it.
Makinwa, who went through a divorce reportedly due to her ex-husband’s infidelity, highlighted her name as a brand she diligently established.
She expressed that, even in the event of a remarriage, she remains steadfast in not changing her last name, while acknowledging the possibility of her children adopting their father’s surname.
She said: “I kept my last name when I got married. It was supposed to be Toke Makinwa-Ayida but it was only at home that he called me Mrs. Ayida, but I was always called Toke Makinwa.”
“But he understood as well because he came from a family where his sister was a doctor, an OBGYN, a very top one, and she’s always still known as Dr. Ayida, so he never had a conversation with me about baby, why can’t you change your name? Like he wasn’t wired that way, he didn’t care.”
“I hope that whoever I end up with next would actually love it because Toke Makinwa is staying. I don’t want to hyphenate, I’m not taking anybody’s last name. My name was and is Toke Makinwa. My kids can bear their father’s surname.”
“In my marriage, my passport, my bank details, nothing changed. We divorced, thank God it didn’t change. Imagine what I would have gone through trying to change it back, “please help me o! I used to be a former Ayida, I need to become Toke Makinwa my name”, no! I’ve built this brand with blood, sweat, and tears.”