Arguments for an 'Also Known As' field in addition to 'Maiden Name'

I have instances in my family and am sure they exist widely where a person has changed their name not because they married but for other reasons. It is wrong to say a man has a maiden name and I actually like the 'maiden name' field as it has a purpose (at least in English tradtion it has) but the AKA field should be searchable and is of greater importance than a nickname. It could also be useful where there are variant spellings.