"Markle" or "Sussex"; Why did Megan's last name become controversial?

Meghan Markle did not directly mention the royal family in her new series on Netflix, but when she said somewhere that her name is Meghan "Sussex", a wave of social media reactions took over.

Meghan's full name at birth was Rachel Meghan Markle, but she has been known as Meghan Markle for most of her career. After marrying Harry on May 19, 2018, Queen Elizabeth II conferred the title of Duke and Duchess of Sussex on the couple.

After moving to America, they retained these titles but were no longer allowed to use the high title of His Royal Highness, which marks the distinction between senior members of the royal family and other people with aristocratic titles.

Meghan could be Meghan Mountbatten-Windsor, but she has never used this name publicly, but her children Archie and Lilibeth have been officially introduced with the surname Mountbatten-Windsor.

Meghan's choice to use Sussex may seem pretentious, but it's not wrong. Until 1917, members of the royal family did not have official surnames and used their titles as surnames. This tradition still exists, for example, William and Kate's three children were educated at George Charlotte and Louis Cambridge School when they were the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, and now that their father is the Prince of Wales, they are also "Wales".

Prince Harry also used the surname "Wales" when he was in the army, before Charles III granted the title of Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh to Prince Edward and his wife Sophie in 2023. The couple was known by the surname "Wessex".