'Mrs Clegg' objects

Miriam González Durántez recently received an invitation to take part in an event to mark the International Day of Women on 8 March. She was not surprised to have been invited, as she has been very active in women's rights, but she was surprised that the invitation was addressed to 'Mrs Clegg'.

She is married to former Liberal Democrat party leader and deputy prime minister Nick Clegg, but such was her displeasure at being addressed in such a way that she posted the invitation on Instagram and described it as "ironic".

A similar situation arose in Parliament recently, when prime minister Theresa May referred to the Shadow Foreign Minister Emily Thornberry, who is married to judge Lord Nugee, as 'Lady Nugee'. Thornberry was quick to protest, asking if it was correct for the prime minister to address a member of the House of Commons by her husband's surname instead of her own.

Miriam González's objection aroused interest in the media. Some newspapers supported her, but an article in the Daily Mail accused her of being aggressively feminist and there were some very negative comments from readers.

The tradition of women adopting their husband's surname dates back to the Middle Ages and was introduced by the Norman invaders, and most British women follow suit. In Spain, women retain their parents' surnames.

However, one comment pointed out that women never have a surname of their own. If they want to swap their father's for their husband's, there really isn't much difference.