Nordisk Museologi 2016 • 2, s. 20–40 more extrovert orientation and contingent position, forcing museums to actively argue for and justify their existence to many diferent stakeholders. Tus, many museums have turned to for example strategic communication (cf. Kjeldsen 2013) and branding (cf. Skot-Hansen 2008, Korsgaard 2013), and aspects such as the museum building, logo and the museum’s name have been addressed theoretically as a means to respond to this new reality (Chong 1998, Caldwell 2000, Scott 2000, Pusa & Uusitalo 2014, Stallabras 2014). However, none of the existing scholarly contributions have studied why and how museums approach name change as a means of addressing this changing reality. Within the last decade, Danish museums have undergone major changes, by some referred to as a paradigm shif (Korsgaard 2013). Politically motivated reforms have changed the structure of the feld, and many museums have gone from being government, subsidized organizations insusceptible to ordinary market norms such as being proftable and competitive, to having a much more commercial approach competing for attention, funding and visitors (Lyck 2010, Drotner et al. 2011). Tis development has been described by many scholars (e.g. Skot-Hansen 2008, Lyck 2010) as a shif from an introvert orientation based on a self- reliant and unquestionable status, to a much Abstract: In recent years, Danish museums have experienced ideological, political and structural changes. Simultaneously, a wave of name changes has swept over the feld. From a branding perspective, the change and choice of new name can be understood as an attempt to stand out from the group of museums. Conversely, from an institutional perspective, the name change can be perceived as a way to claim membership of the transformed museum landscape. Tis paper presents a study of ten public museums that have all recently changed their names. Findings suggest that name change is employed as a means to claim category, territory but also distinctiveness. Further, the study reveals diferent practices regarding the use of the term “museum”, with practical implications for a museum name change as a way to communicate a balance between ftting in and standing out. Keywords: Museum names, institutional theory, corporate identity, corporate branding, strategic communication, multiple case study. Anna Karina Kjeldsen & Line Schmeltz A study of name changes among Danish museums What’s in a museum name?