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Deadname
Also written: dead name, deadnaming
self-id-requiredevolving-usage
At a glance
Source-by-source
“A deadname is a name that a trans person no longer uses. Don't publish deadnames in a story unless specifically relevant, and don't ask for this information unless it's necessary for background checks.”
GCJT defines a deadname and instructs journalists not to publish it absent specific relevance, nor to solicit it unless a background check requires it — and to explain the need and reassure the source if they must ask.
“The birth name of somebody who has changed their name. It is most commonly used by trans people. Can be written as deadname or dead name. v. To call somebody by their deadname.”
The Diversity Style Guide gives a neutral definition of both the noun and the verb, notes the term is most commonly used by trans people, and documents the two accepted spellings ("deadname" and "dead name").
“The name given to a trans person at birth that they no longer use. To use or call someone by their deadname without their express permission is considered deeply offensive to most trans people.”
NLGJA defines the deadname and states that using or calling someone by it without their express permission is deeply offensive to most trans people. It adds that "deadname" is not interchangeable with "legal name," since many trans people change their legal name to match their gender identity.
Audience notes
- Journalists and editors
- Don't publish a deadname unless it is specifically relevant to the story, and don't solicit one unless a background check requires it. Obtaining a deadname through a public records request doesn't imply permission to publish it (NLGJA).
- Advocates and internal comms
- Use a person's current name; using a deadname without express permission is widely experienced as deeply offensive. Self-identification governs which name applies.
- Watch the legal-name distinction
- "Deadname" is not a synonym for "legal name" — many trans people have legally changed their name, so the current name may also be the legal one.
Synthesis
A deadname is the name a trans person was given — often at birth — and no longer uses. All three sources agree on that definition, and on the core rule that follows from it: do not use, publish, or solicit a person’s deadname without their express permission, and let self-identification govern which name applies. The Diversity Style Guide also records the two accepted spellings (“deadname” and “dead name”) and the verb form, “to deadname.”
The sources differ in emphasis. GCJT (2021) and the Diversity Style Guide (2023) treat the word as one a communicator may need to define and handle with care: GCJT gives a handling rule for journalists (don’t publish absent relevance, don’t ask absent necessity), while the Diversity Style Guide documents the noun and verb. NLGJA (2025) states the strongest position: using someone’s deadname without their express permission is “considered deeply offensive to most trans people.”
NLGJA also draws a distinction the others don’t, that “deadname” is not interchangeable with “legal name.” Because many trans people legally change their name to align with their gender identity, a person’s current name is frequently their legal name too, so treating the deadname as the “real” or “legal” name is both inaccurate and harmful. All three sources point the same way in practice: use the person’s current name, and keep any former name out of public-facing material unless the person has specifically authorized it.
Related terms