Helpful resources / Naming
Can you trademark your own name? Personal names and surnames
Founders, chefs, designers, consultants and creators all reach for the same name: their own. Trademark law allows it, with one refusal aimed at surnames, one consent rule aimed at living people, and one route back for names that have earned recognition. Here is how each works.
Written by Trademarky. Last checked September 5, 2026. 8 min read.
Three rules that apply to names
A personal name is judged like any other word first: is it distinctive, or does it describe the goods? The USPTO's strong trademarks page has the spectrum. On top of that, the Trademark Act has three provisions written with names in mind.
| Rule | What it says | What it means for you |
|---|---|---|
| Section 2(e)(4) | Primarily merely a surname: refused on the Principal Register | A surname alone, or with a generic word, waits until it acquires distinctiveness |
| Section 2(c) | A mark identifying a particular living individual needs written consent | You consent to your own name; anyone else named consents too |
| Section 2(f) | A mark that has become distinctive may register despite Section 2(e) | Five years of substantially exclusive use, or evidence of recognition, lifts the refusal |
A fourth, Section 2(a), sits in the background: a mark that falsely suggests a connection with a person, living or dead, is refused outright, which is why a brand cannot borrow a famous person's name.
Primarily merely a surname
Section 2(e)(4) of the Trademark Act refuses registration on the Principal Register of a mark that is 'primarily merely a surname'. Surnames are shared, and each person who carries one should be free to trade under it, so the law waits until the public associates the name with one business.
The test is the primary significance of the term to the purchasing public: a surname first, or something else? The examining attorney weighs four factors:
- How rare the surname is, measured by how many people in the United States carry it. A common surname is almost always refused.
- Whether anyone connected with your business has the surname, which counts toward surname significance, not against it.
- Whether the term has another recognized meaning: a dictionary word, a place, a given name. Rye, from our invented Hazel & Rye, is a grain and a town before it is a surname.
- Whether it has the structure and pronunciation of a surname, which is how a rare name can still be caught.
Adding words changes the analysis in predictable ways. A generic word does not help: a surname followed by Bakery, Design or Co. is still primarily a surname, with the added word disclaimed, and initials rarely help either. A given name does: a full name, first and last, is generally not treated as primarily merely a surname, because the public reads it as a particular person, which moves the question to Section 2(c). A surname joined to a distinctive word is judged as a whole and can register even though the surname alone could not.
Consent of a living individual
Section 2(c) of the Trademark Act bars registration of a mark that consists of or comprises a name, portrait or signature identifying a particular living individual, except with that person's written consent. It reaches full names, and also first names, nicknames and stage names when the public would connect them with one particular person.
When the name is yours, you are the person consenting. The application states that the name identifies a living individual whose consent is of record, and the consent is a short signed statement. If you personally are the applicant, your signature on the application does that job; if your company applies, you sign a consent for it. Two founders in the name, two consents.
Names that identify nobody in particular need no consent: an invented name is filed with a statement that it does not identify a living individual. A name that identifies someone who has died is generally outside Section 2(c), but a famous name can still fail under Section 2(a).
Acquired distinctiveness and the Supplemental Register
The surname refusal is not permanent. Section 2(f) lets a mark register on the Principal Register once it has become distinctive of your goods or services, using the tools the USPTO applies to descriptive words: a declaration of five years of substantially exclusive and continuous use may be accepted as prima facie evidence, and a common surname needs more evidence. Merely descriptive refusals sets out the evidence.
A family business that has traded under the surname for decades can often claim Section 2(f) at filing and never see the refusal. A new business cannot, and an intent-to-use applicant cannot claim distinctiveness before the mark is in use. For the years in between, the Supplemental Register accepts surnames: the registration allows the ® symbol, appears in every search and is cited against later confusingly similar applications. The fee for either register is the same $350 USPTO fee per class, and when five years of use are behind you, a new Principal Register application under Section 2(f) follows.
When a personal name works as a brand
Put the rules together and a pattern appears. A personal name registers most easily when it is one of these:
- A full name used as the brand of services or goods. With your consent on record it is a personal name, not a surname, and it registers if it is used as a mark.
- A surname with another meaning, or one joined to a distinctive word. The whole mark is judged, and the whole mark is distinctive.
- A name that has earned recognition, filed under Section 2(f) with the evidence to show it.
- A first name or a nickname that does not describe the goods and does not point to some other well-known person.
Where a name does not function as a mark is on a single work. An author's name on one book, or a performer's name on one recording, identifies the author rather than the source of a series, and the USPTO treats it like the title of a single work. As the name of an ongoing show or of live performances, the same name is a mark; Trademarks for a podcast, channel or creator brand covers that case.
One consequence deserves thought before the company is named. A trademark goes with the business. If you sell the company, the buyer owns the trademark in your name, and the sale agreement may restrict you from using your own name commercially in that field afterward. The alternatives are a distinct brand name with your name as the person behind it, or a sale agreement that carves out the personal uses you will want.
Before you file
- Decide which name is the mark: the surname alone, your full name, or the name joined to a distinctive word.
- Run the free check. Surnames repeat across the register, and the same surname registered by someone else for related goods is a likelihood-of-confusion problem before the surname rule is reached.
- If the surname is common, gather the evidence of how long and how widely you have used it.
- Prepare your own consent, and collect written consents from every other living person named in the mark.
- If the business might one day change hands, decide now whether your name should be the brand.
- Choose the register strategy with your attorney on the free call: the Principal Register outright, a Section 2(f) claim, or the Supplemental Register meanwhile.
Trading under your own name? The check shows who else has registered it, and for what, before the surname question comes up. Check my trademark for free
Questions about this topic
Do I need to consent to my own name in a trademark application?
Yes. Section 2(c) of the Trademark Act requires the written consent of any living individual a mark identifies, and that includes the applicant. The application states that the name identifies a living individual whose consent is of record; if you are the applicant your signature supplies it, and if your company applies you sign a short consent for the company.
Can I trademark a nickname or stage name?
Yes, on the same terms as any name. If the public connects the nickname or stage name with you, Section 2(c) applies and you consent to it in the application. It must be used as a brand for goods or services, such as an ongoing show or a product line, rather than only as a credit on a single work.
What happens to a trademark in my name if I sell my business?
It goes with the business, unless the sale agreement says otherwise. The buyer owns the registration, the consent you gave stays on the record, and the agreement may restrict your commercial use of your own name in that field. If you may one day sell, build the brand under a distinct name or negotiate a carve-out.
Related guides
- How to name a brand you can trademark: The distinctiveness spectrum in plain English, a naming checklist, how to screen a shortlist, the traps that get names refused, and domain checks.
- The Supplemental Register, explained: What the Supplemental Register is for, what a registration there gives and does not, how a mark gets there, and how it moves to the Principal Register.
- Merely descriptive: the refusal that catches good names: What a Section 2(e)(1) merely descriptive refusal means, where suggestive ends, acquired distinctiveness in outline, and how the attorney answers it.
This guide is general information to help you understand the process. It is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. For advice on your own mark, talk to an attorney on a free call.
Contact
Trademarky, LLC, 78 SW 7th St, 5th FL, Miami, FL 33130. (305) 562-6800, hello@trademarky.io. Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm ET. Available by appointment.
This free check is an AI-assisted preliminary screening against known U.S. trademark records. It is not a comprehensive clearance search and not legal advice. Only a licensed attorney can advise you on whether to file.