What is the best way to record name changes in adoptions?
And how do you handle illegitimate children that were legitimized later in life (sometimes also changing their name)?
You should use alternative names for that. You can define there the type of the name and its origin.
Ever person has a birth name e.g. illegitimate children inherit their mothers surname, legitimate children their fathers surname. For the adoption you just add another name with the new surname.
Same works for marriages where females take their husbands name, as well as name changes and name alternatives in documents. You can record as many names as you want for each person in Gramps.
The General tab of the Name Editor allows you to set date ranges for alternative Names. The Taken type can be used used for a legally changed name. And an Adoption Event, with the child in a ‘Primary’ role, rounds out the documentation. (You can ‘Share’ that Adoption event as a ‘Family’ role event in the parents’ Family.)
You’ll have to decide if your Tree uses the Birth name or the Taken name as the Primary/Preferred Name. That’s a personal choice. Some genealogist prefer to respect the life choices of the person. Some feel that their records become inaccurate if the full legal birth name isn’t used.
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For adoptions, you can edit the Family’s Children tab. Edit the adopted child and change the relationship to one or both parents.
If a father adopts a step-child, change only the father’s relationship leaving the mother as still a Birth parent.
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