That probably won't work as there is a list of first names you can have and if the name isn't on that list you would have difficulty justifying it. But maybe worth trying.
I find the name thing here completely infuriating and mystifying - seeing as our problem is the exact opposite of the OP's.
When we went to register, without informing us, the Gemeinde issued my resident's permit in the correct name but double-barreled my wife's by adding her maiden name to the end of our surname - despite her passport carrying, correctly, only her 'my' married surname. She never asked for this and certainly isn't happy about it - the name sounds quite bonkers as the two parts are in 2 completely different languages and is now freakishly long - so much so that it doesn't fit on most forms! - however when challenged they simply said that is how they do things here.
Therefore, like some sort of intelligence service operative, she has 2 completely separate identities - one in Switzerland which some banks and officials use, and another for anywhere else in the world, which some banks and officials here choose to use.
To further add to the possible permutations I know another couple where both husband and wife had the wife's maiden name hypenated onto their correct surname, again against their wishes and without prior warning! So certainly some parts of Switerland CAN and DO do this - and will do so completely of their own initiative -whether they choose to do so may be down to the quirks of a particular community?
A couple I know has a similar problem. they use only his name in all their dealings. Nobody besides their closer friends even know what her maiden name is. The letter box and doorbell have only his name. But the authorities insist on using her name in correspondence with the result that a lot of mail doesn't get delivered.
This was very very stupid. He already had a bargaining chip with the wife keeping her last name, he could have said, "OK, no problem, no need to hyphenate, but the kids will have my name." A coin flip? FFS.
Personally, if we get married I have no problem with her keeping her last name. Changing names is annoying and hyphenating becomes a bit silly when you've got two very, ahem, "native" last names. The thought of her having a half German and half Russian last name is just weird. The kids are gonna be little Ruskies, though, this is non-negotiable.
I was able to keep my last name and take my husband's name if I didn't hyphenate them. I don't know about eventual children though, they would probably have to take my husband's family name.
Your friend can give his children his family name as their middle-names?
I think the new ruling about hyphenating names is quite recent.... two years or so. Certainly my son and his wife had discussed her hyphenating the names for her but discovered that it was no longer allowed when they finally tied the knot in the summer of 2010 (canton Geneva).
She does still use her own name for business purposes and has had business cards with both names on to introduce her clients to the idea that she will change it eventually, it's not hyphenated though. But on all official paperwork to do with their personal lives (banks and so on) she now only uses his.
Tax forms and so on do mention both names, as they do in France. It's probably bureaucracy's way of letting you know they know everything about you!
I have four 'identities', depending on who I'm dealing with... one of the advantages of being a pesky foreigner!
Well, we got married last September in Ticino, and both of us were free to choose our last name, not just she, i.e. we both could keep our own, both take mine, both take hers, swap names, do the hyphen thing, make up a new name, etc.
My wife's cousin (here in CH) decided he didn't like tradition, and when he married his Aussie wife he took her name. I've now heard of this happening a few times over here.
Heck, I'd have been happy to do that, if sticking my wife's surname onto my name would have sounded good, but frankly it would have sounded terrible spoken aloud, and she was happy to take my name anyway.
However in your friend's case, choosing a coin toss means he already made the decision to forfeit if he lost, which he did. Tell him to man up, build a bridge and get over it.
His parents must have loved that. But seriously, I've actually considered doing that, as having a Germanic last name that people can actually pronounce here would help with integration, but ultimately I think it's selling out. Wife keeping her last name makes sense for practical and logical reasons, but actually taking hers is blatantly emasculating, not to mention a spit in your family's face (I know women do it, yada, yada, but parents are brainwashed to accept it).
My name would sound awesome if I took hers, though. Some strong alliteration that would give an overall "this guy means business" quality. Alas...
They loved it! Went out of their way to point out to friends and family what he did and how proud they were (and are) of him. They love his wife and have accepted her into the family.
Coin toss wouldn't have been my choice either, but that is for a different post. I guess I just don't get what the problem is using both the mothers maiden name and the fathers name with a hyphen. How does it hurt the child? What is the reason behind not allowing this to happen? I know many friends back home who are doing the hyphenated last names because some people find it old fashioned to simply dump their maiden names. I guess I just don't see why this law was written and enacted.
It's my understanding that they were fed-up with the parents changing their mind about which name to use so there was a risk of ending up with Smith-Jones, Jones-Smith, Jones and Smith, all within the same family.
Or they would if swiss families had more than one child, anyway.
I wasn't married to my daughters dad, and she has both of our surnames hyphenated. Luckily neither of the names are 20 letters long and too much of a mouthful and together they have quite a nice ring. I can only imagine with some names it would be horrible.
Also, from her perspective, it makes her feel that she is part of both families as she carries both surnames, and she likes that.
It may be a good thing he lost the coin toss... My sister-in-law married a man from Portugal. They took his name and they are now reconsidering changing all their names back to her family name due to (sad to say) racist problems. He has realized when applying for job positions, a lot of people will just toss his resume to the side due to his last name. Somehow they have found it more of a plague than a benefit...