It's not often people decide to change their first name or surname except for when they get married, of course! Most of us will have inherited our surnames and been given our first names from our parents. Surnames or last names may be related to trades or professions our ancestors were employed in - think of Butchers, Bakers, Joiners and Smiths. First names often reflect trends or celebrities of the day - like Britney, Kylie and so on
People who do change either name usually do it for good reason, sometimes reflecting a desire to distance themselves from their "inherited" family name. Nicholas Cage is one example. The Hollywood actor was actually born Nicholas Kim Coppola in Long Beach, California on 7th January 1964 to August Coppola, a part-Italian literature professor and a German choreographer, Joy Vogelsang (incidentally, her maiden name means "birdsong" in German). But Nicholas changed his last name "Cage" early in his career to avoid association with his famous film director uncle, Francis Ford Coppola. He chose Cage from a Marvel Comic superhero, Luke Cage, with whom he closely identifies. The thespian gene is certainly strong in his family. As well as having Francis Ford Coppola as an uncle, Nicholas is also the nephew of actress Talia Shire (Francis Ford Coppola's sister), whilst Robert Schwartzman, the star of the film Rushmore, is Nicholas's nephew. Nicholas Cage is also a big fan of his namesake musician John Cage.He is known to have had romantic relationships with Patricia Arquette, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Lisa Marie Presley (he was married to the first and third) and is a devoted Elvis Presley fan. Cage is currently married to former sushi waitress Alice Kim with whom he had a child in October 2005. And the comic book theme continues... Nicholas and Alice named their son Kal-El after the birth name of the Superman character. Learn more about your family name by visiting the learning centre on Ancestry.co.uk
