What was Jane Goodall's full birth name?

Jane Goodall's full birth name was Valerie Jane Morris-Goodall. She was born on April 3, 1934, in London, England, and later became internationally known simply as Jane Goodall.

Her parents were Mortimer Herbert Morris-Goodall, a businessman and racing-car enthusiast, and Margaret Myfanwe Joseph, a writer who used the name Vanne Morris-Goodall. Goodall grew up in Bournemouth, where her early fascination with animals helped shape her future career.

In 1960, she began studying wild chimpanzees at what is now Gombe Stream National Park in Tanzania. Her observations of chimpanzee tool use, family relationships, and individual personalities transformed scientific understanding of the species and challenged the sharp divide often drawn between humans and other animals.

The surname Morris-Goodall is sometimes shortened or rendered without its hyphen in references, but Valerie Jane Morris-Goodall is the standard full birth name. “Jane” was the name she chose to use publicly throughout her scientific and conservation career.