[I had posted this earlier, but there was a glitch that kept the comments from working; reposting it now.]

I've found that lots of women of my circle — generally professionals who, I think, would describe themselves feminists at least in the sense of believe that men and women should be fundamentally equal socially and professionally — change their last names when they marry.

That surprises me, because the symbolism strikes me as somewhat antifeminist; maybe it shouldn't, but it does. Perhaps this is because back in Russia, where I first noticed people's last names, my mother and my grandmother (who had helped raise me) had kept their maiden names, and I think so had many of my parents' friends. I distinctly remember my reaction when I met a couple my parents knew, and noticed that they had the same last name: They're not just husband and wife, I thought; they must be brother and sister. I hadn't learned yet about the incest taboo, and brother-sister marriages seemed more plausible to me than a person's changing her name.

But of course different people perceive symbols differently; and obviously many friends of mine don't take the view that I do. So let me ask a question, and seek comments, but only from women who have changed their names when they married: Why?

I think I know some possible answers, but I don't want to influence the responses, so I'll just seek comments from the readers. Again, please post comments only if you are a woman, and you changed your name when you married.

UPDATE: Tyler Cowen comments.

Many thanks to the many readers who responded to my query about why women who marry still change their last names. Note also that MetaFilter had a thread about this.

Now the obvious follow-up: If you're a woman who married and didn't change your last name, why did you do that (not why you got married, but why you didn't change), and how well do you think that worked out? Please post comments only if you are a woman, and you did not change your name when you married.

to our readers who responded to my questions about women changing (or not changing) their last names when they marry -- the comments were fascinating and enlightening.