Question

In most spanish-speaking countries, married women legally __.

Answer 1

In most Spanish-speaking countries, women do not legally change their names upon marriage. The maiden surnames (the first of which is their father's paternal surname and the second of which is their mother's paternal surname) are retained. In the above examples, 'Abad' is the paternal surname, Lourdes could present herself as '... de Arias' (but legally would still be Blanco Cabrera), and PĂ©rez is the apellido materno, the maternal surname.