Elderly man in China demands daughter’s child take his surname as he provides for whole family or he will ‘die’
- It is uncommon but legal for children to take their mother’s surname instead of their father’s in China
- According to the Ministry of Public Security’s yearly report on names, around 7.7 per cent of newborns in 2020 took their mother’s surname
A man who supports his daughter’s family has demanded his granddaughter adopt his surname as the price of his support.
The man’s daughter, from Shanghai in eastern China, called a local family conflict resolution programme on July 16 to complain about her father’s demands.
“I have recently been hounded to death by my father,” the woman, whose name was withheld to protect her identity, told a mediator. “My child is already 10 years old, but my father insists on changing her surname to his, or he claims he will die,” she said.
According to the woman, her family of three rely on her father for food and housing.
“My father feels exploited as his granddaughter does not have his surname,” the mother told the mediator.
Many people online expressed support for the grandfather, saying his request was “fair.”
“It appears that the son-in-law is unwilling to lose any advantage,” one person commented.
