How to Put a Symbol in Your Facebook Name Without it Being Rejected

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As long as the symbol fits naturally into your name, you can input certain characters in Facebook.

Some social networking sites allow users to post any unicode character alongside a username. Facebook is one site that doesn't allow this practice, mandating only real names be used for an account. According to Facebook's guidelines, "excessive punctuation" and "character symbols" are generally not allowed. Facebook automatically detects certain special characters, including hearts, smiley faces and stars, and these names are rejected from the system immediately. Other symbols aren't automatically rejected, making it possible for you to insert certain characters in your Facebook name.

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Step 1

Click on the Windows "Start" button.

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Step 2

Type "Character Map" into the blank search field at the bottom of the menu.

Step 3

Click on the "Character Map" icon from the results.

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Step 4

Click on the symbol you want to use. Punctuational accents are acceptable special symbols in certain cases on Facebook. However, the symbol must make sense phonetically, and it cannot be excessive. For example, you can replace a regular "u" with a "u" symbol containing an umlaut. This type of change is not automatically rejected, and it often passes additional screening by Facebook staff. As a general rule, you should only put a symbol in your name if your name actually calls for it.

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Step 5

Click "Select" and "Copy." A copy of the symbol is placed on your virtual clipboard.

Step 6

Open your Internet browser.

Step 7

Log into your Facebook account.

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Step 8

Click on the blue "Account" drop down box, then select the "Account Settings" option.

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Step 9

Click on the blue "Change" link above the "Your Name" heading.

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Step 10

Click on the place in your name where you want the symbol to appear.

Step 11

Press and hold the "Ctrl" key.

Step 12

Press the "V" key. The symbol appears in the designated place.

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Step 13

Click "Save Changes." If the symbol is rejected by the automated system, you will receive a popup immediately. Umlauts and common punctuation symbols are typically not rejected by the system, but the symbols could be manually removed if you used them in places where they don't phonetically belong.

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