South Africa's highest court, the Constitutional Court, has ruled that husbands are now legally allowed to take on the surnames of their wives.

The Constitutional Court of South Africa has just delivered a judgement that, on the face of it, looks like a small administrative tweak. Husbands may now legally adopt their wives’ surnames, a right previously denied under the Births and Deaths Registration Act.

South Africa's Constitutional Court has overturned a law considered a "colonial import", which previously barred men from taking their wives' surnames after marriage.