South African court rules that men can take wife's surname

South African law only allowed women to take the surnames of their husbands

South Africa's highest court has ruled that husbands can take the surname of their wives, overturning a law that barred them from doing so.

In a victory for two couples who brought the case, the Constitutional Court ruled that the law amounted to gender-based discrimination.

Henry van der Merwe was denied the right to take the surname of his wife Jana Jordaan, while Andreas Nicolas Bornman could not hyphenate his surname to include Donnelly, the surname of his wife, Jess Donnelly-Bornman, the public broadcaster, SABC, reports.

Parliament will now have to amend the Births and Deaths Registration Act, along with its regulations, for the ruling to take effect.

The two couples had argued that the law was archaic and patriarchal, and violated equality rights enshrined in the constitution that South Africa adopted at the end of white-minority rule.

They successfully challenged the law in a lower court, the High Court, but asked the Constitutional Court to confirm its ruling.

A legal body, The Free State Society of Advocates, joined the court case in support of the two couples.

It argued that by restricting a man's right to assume their wife's surname, the law perpetuated harmful stereotypes, as it denied men a choice available to women, the Sowetan news site reports.

Neither the Minister of Home Affairs Leon Schreiber nor the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development Mamoloko Kubayi opposed the two couples' application, according to the IOL news site.

More BBC stories on South Africa:

• Childhood obesity: The South African campaigners fighting for healthy food

• The death of 'soul of South African storytelling' sparks grief and anger

• South Africa minister under fire over racial slur

Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.

Follow us on Twitter @BBCAfrica, on Facebook at BBC Africa or on Instagram at bbcafrica