My daughter is 15 and half year old. My ex- husband who was torturing me and my child is dead. I have re married. My daughter does not want to use her biological father's name. She is very comfortable with her step father who is treating her fully as his own daughter. Can she use his name in her school records? Is there a legal way to do this? Please help.

A surname is a name added to a given name and is part of a personal name. In many cases, a surname is a family name; the family-name meaning of "surname" first appeared in 1375. Many dictionaries define "surname" as a synonym of "family name". It is also commonly known as a "last name", though in Hungary and in many Asian countries the family name is placed before the individual's given name.

In some cultures, the surname may be a patronymic or matronymic. Some mononymous cultures, such as the Burmese, large populations of South Indians, and some Javanese, do not use surnames at all.

The name that a person has in common with other family members, as distinguished from a Christian name or given name; family name.

A name added to a person's name, as one indicating a circumstance of birth or some characteristic or achievement; epithet.