“My parents finally agreed to it after I threw the divination blocks in front of our ancestral tablet and received three ‘yes’ replies from our ancestors,” Wen said.
The divination blocks are a pair wooden blocks in the shape of a crescent moon that people use to ask immortals, ancestors or a deceased person for their opinion. One block facing down while the other is facing up after being thrown to the ground implies a “yes” answer.
In fact, the two-character name Peng Chuan is also the result of a compromise, Wen said.
“The idea was to call him Peng Chuan when we’re in Taipei, but when we go back to Meinong [美濃, a predominantly Hakka township in Kaohsiung County], we can add my surname and call him Wen Peng-chuan [溫彭川],” he said.
Although Wen’s parents agreed to the decision, if Peng Chuan falls ill, Wen’s mother will still sometimes blame it on him bearing his mother’s surname.
With the passage of the amendment, Wen hopes that more people will be more accepting about the idea of taking either the mother’s or the father’s family name.
“We’re happy about the law change, but we know we still have a long way to go,” Wen said. “For instance, I’m still trying to figure out how my child’s name will be registered in the family book since he’s probably the first kid to bear his mother’s surname under regular circumstances.”
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