Double surname more popular in Brussels and Wallonia

Since June 2014, when parents in Belgium were granted the option to give their child a double surname, about twice as many parents have done so in Brussels and Wallonia than in Flanders, report the Sudpresse newspapers.

In the period between June 2014 and May 2015, 849 of the 12,358 newborns in Brussels were given a double surname, or 6.8%. In Wallonia in the same period, 2,244 of the 34,893 newborns received a double surname, or 6.4%. In 2,014 of the cases, the child first bears the father's name, followed by that of the mother.

In Flanders, there appears to be less interest in the new option: Only 1,981 of the 58,930 babies born between June 2014 and May 2015, or 3.3%, were given two last names.

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