Change of Name

Deed poll was used in Victoria until October 1986 to change a person's name by making a deed stating the intention to be known by another name. A solicitor drew up the deed, and then lodged it with the Registrar-General's Office, which was part of the Land Titles Office. From November 1986, a change of name requires that the original name birth registration be cancelled and a new entry made. A Register of Changes of Name is maintained by Births Deaths Marriages Victoria and contains all the deed polls previously held by the Registrar-General's Office. Change of Name records are restricted from public access for 100 years or until the person is deceased, whichever is the later.

https://www.bdm.vic.gov.au/change-a-name

CHANGES OF NAME/ ALIASES

People may change their name or use an alias because they are or have been in trouble with the law. Convict, criminal, police, court and prison records may have a list of aliases used by a particular person. See Convicts. See Criminals. See Police. See Courts. See Prisons.

People may change their name or use an alias when joining the military services. Reasons for doing this may include:

• the person was of enemy origin or the person's family were of enemy origin
• the person was too young to enlist or they needed their parents' permission to enlist
• the person was too old to enlist
• the person did not fulfill the military service's entry requirements
• the person was married or had a family and did not want part of their pay to be allocated to them.

Other instances where people change their name include:

• non-British settlers who may anglicize their names to fit in.
• persons of enemy origin who during and after wartime faced persecution and changed their name to escape this. Examples of this include German-Australians during the first and second World Wars and Italian-Australians during the second World War.
• performers and entertainers such as actors, comedians, singers and musicians may assume a stage name.