While many brides take their partners' last names or hyphenate their surnames, one woman has captured the internet's attention after explaining why she's letting her wedding guests choose her future family name.
Danielle Bonadona, 36, of Kansas City, Missouri, has always loved her last name, which loosely means "good woman" in Italian. She even goes by the name Bona in professional circles, telling Newsweek that her surname "has always been important" to her.
With her wedding planned for February 2025, Bonadona faces the prospect of having to change her name. Women who don't want to lose their surnames sometimes hyphenate them with their fiancés'. According to the Pew Research Center, about 5 percent of women in opposite-sex marriages opt to do so.
However, that might not be the easiest option for Bonadona and her future husband, Jacob Bartlebaugh, 40.
On TikTok, the bride-to-be, who goes by @bona.bones on the platform, described the dilemma she faces in becoming Mrs. Bonadona-Bartlebaugh. Her video has attracted millions of views, as social media users can't get enough of the unusual name.
Bonadona said: "When my fiancé suggested hyphenating our names, I thought it was completely ridiculous in a humorous way. Our names together are so silly, and I thought, We are never going to be able to fill out any forms.
"I think it's all very funny. At this point, we would do it for the plot. I don't want to give up my last name, but I love the idea of combining them to create a new family name."
The couple has come up with a fun—and potentially risky—way of deciding their married names, with a plan to let their wedding guests decide. Bonadona said they thought it would be fun to involve their friends and family in the decision.
The options their guests will consider are letting them keep their own last names, hyphenating their surnames or developing "a new hybrid name," such as Bonabaugh or Bartledona.
"Jacob is rooting for the hyphenation for sure since it was his idea to begin with," Bonadona said. "Personally, I also hope people choose Bonadona-Bartlebaugh at this point because I think the internet will be mad if our family and friends let them down."
The Social Media Response
While she knew their hyphenated name might generate some laughter online, Bonadona never imagined it would capture quite so much attention. She said the overwhelming response has been surreal to witness.
A video explaining what her hyphenated name would be has amassed more than 3.6 million views and 455,200 likes, while the video detailing the couple's decision to let their wedding guests have the final say has more than 2.1 million views and 300,300 likes.
Bonadona told Newsweek: "It has brought Jake and I so much joy, and I see it as such a positive omen for our celebration. There's a lot of goodwill being sent out into the universe for us, and it's very touching. I am very grateful to everyone who has engaged with the videos."
The bride-to-be has loved entertaining the internet with her surname dilemma and is glad that it could provide so much laughter. She said she can't wait to announce what the guests decided following her wedding on February 28, 2025.
Needless to say, the internet is obsessed with her predicament, with one commenter writing: "The wedding guests don't need to vote. The internet has already decided! Seriously, I love this so much."
"Please go to Barbados on your honeymoon," another added.
Another user said: "I'm not a big fan of hyphenated names, but this is too good of an opportunity to pass up. What a fantastic name combo."
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