This Santa drives a bus

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Every morning in a small town just south of Salt Lake City, Santa Claus swaps his green and red indoor garb for a blue-collared bus driver's shirt. He wears his trademark cap during 10-hour shifts for the Utah Transit Authority, and a name tag on his chest reads "S. Claus" -- a nod from his employer that he is, indeed, who he claims to be.

Mr. Claus stops driving in December to prepare for the holidays with an annual round of private parties and Christmas festivals. For those who question the legitimacy of his name, he can show a driver's license and credit card issued to "Santa Claus."

An attorney helped him win the right to use the name. Mr. Claus, who until August 2001 was named David Lynn Porter, had to fight for his new moniker.

A local judge first denied the white-bearded look-alike's request for a name change, saying it would cause confusion and thwart any legitimate complaints against him from plaintiffs who would face the challenge of suing Santa Claus.

Mr. Claus had to go all the way to the Utah Supreme Court to win his case.

"It's the best thing I ever did," Mr. Claus, 44, said in an interview. "People come up to me all the time and ask, 'Is that really your name?'"

Now, with a new name and his own Web site (www.sclaus.net), the former Mr. Porter highlights a thriving business in name changes.

Americans nationwide are changing their names to reconnect with ethnic roots, fit into the culture, escape unwanted relationships, or proclaim their individuality in a way that's difficult to ignore, say lawyers who handle name-change cases.

Others simply don't like their name, and shifting to ones they prefer allows them to create new identities, said Anne Bernays, co-author of "The Language of Names: What We Call Ourselves and Why It Matters."