 Since 2014, women in Turkey are allowed to keep their birth names alone for their whole life instead of using their husbands' names.Previously, the Turkish Code of Civil Law, Article 187, required a married woman to use her husband's surname; or else to use her birth name in front of her husband's name by giving a written application to the marriage officer or the civil registry office.In 2014, the Constitutional Court ruled that prohibiting married women from retaining only maiden names is a violation of their rights.