What My Name Says About Who I Am

Name changes can be an act of self-preservation and confirmation in how we show up in the world — and on paper

Illustration: Jenn Kitagawa

I became Mia Nakaji Monnier in college. I didn’t change my name so much as reveal more of it. While I’d always gone by Mia Monnier before then, the rest of my name appeared on all of my official documents: Mia Gabrielle…