Senders' Names Now Reversed in Mail Inbox (iOS 14.2)

The change of contacts display does impact how my email senders are named. I had the goofy issue with 14.2. Many other threads on this issue, several noting the problem only in inbox and not other folders so clearly a bug not intended. I don’t know why contact display order impacts mail senders, including many not in my contacts (likely the case fir the vast majority of iPhone users), but it clearly does. However, if I change sort order in contacts, as with others, I also have the first, last display in contact as well as mail. So mail senders read normally like they used to but contacts is harder to read because first name is displayed first which, to me, is visually confusing and makes it harder to find what I’m looking for.

I will note that after changing the display order to first, last and seeing the mailbox senders fixed, I tried changing sort order in contacts back to last, first and found that, while contacts reverted to my long-standing and preferred display of last, first, the mail sender display did NOT change back to the weird last, first order that took over with 14.2. This is good. I quit the mail app and relaunched and found it has retained the corrected sort order. I have changed it back and forth several times in preferences and, since changing it back the very first time, changing contact display preference has ceased to effect how mail senders are displayed. No matter what I set display order to, only contacts change (as one would expect), but not mail sender display, which stays “normal”, for lack of a better term.

Don’t know how long it will last (hopefully permanent), but for the moment I have the display order I want in mail and the one I want in contacts and the preference to change sort order is now only changing the display in contacts with mail unchanged since the first change to correct it. Clearly and unequivocally a bug.

I just lowered off and then back on my iPhone 12 pro and was pleased to see that the “fix” that seemed to occur after changing display order from last, first to first, last (mail senders display correctly and do NOT change with contact display preferences, but contacts display preferences do change) remains intact.

At this point, I have changed the display order and back again, which fixed the aberrant mail display issue. I the quit the mail app several time and turned the device off and back on again. The corrected display order in mail remains.

This is the fix I found for the Sender’s Name problem. In order to fix it I had to disconnect Mail and Contacts, do the sort change, then associate them again.

1. Settings, Contacts, Display order changed to First, Last corrects the sort order in Mail after a reboot.
2. In Contacts, Use the Group icon (top left) clear the dot next to the name of the email group that is the same as your Mail names.
3. Go back to Settings, Contacts, Display Order and change it back to Last, First....
4. Now go back to Contacts in the Group icon and reconnect your email group that uses your Contacts.

Hope this helps.

I also strongly encourage users to use the Apple feedback form to indicate their frustration or displeasure with this annoying change.

https://www.apple.com/feedback/iphone.html

Sharing concerns on the forums is a way to better understand a problem and seek solutions. In this case, there is no fix for this issue except to change Contacts to be displayed in the illogical and visually-problematic "first name, last name" order. So, this is either a bug or a poor engineering decision, IMO. Regardless, the more people Apple hears from the more likely they are to pay attention and take action.

Fixedi n 14.3 Thank you

Fed up with seeing people moaning about a problem that doesn’t exist any more. Update to iOS 14.3 and all is solved.

Peter, changing display order for contacts corrects sender display name for all my email, including those in my contacts list and those that are not (virtually all are not in my contacts, new incoming email as well as existing email that have already been received. If I change the setting back and forth I can watch it change back and forth for all my existing email. So, in my situation, the “fix” works different than you describe.

I have had this problem and have been on the phone with Apple several times without any solution. I keep being told that is it getting escalated to the engineers than they come back and tell me something to do with contacts. Yes if I change the display in contacts to First, Last it does fix the email problem of emails being backwards but then I have to have my contacts show First name first than last which is stupid. So basically you are giving up one thing to fix another and there are no solutions in the 10 pages on this board about a real fix that fixes the emails and keeps your contacts in the preferred order of last name first. I know for a fact this is a 14.2 bug because this issue started after my I Phone upgraded and my I Pad was fine. Then as soon as my iPad updated it changed my email to backwards. Why can't Apple just fix the bug!!!!

Peter, I have been reading your “work around” instructions and have tried them a couple of times. Totally ruins your contact organization-no matter what. You are pretty judgmental of lots of folks here. Someone else suggested that I update iOS again. That fixed the problem.

Thank you Peter! Changing display order to first, last solved the problem! Grateful for the suggestion!

Yes, it absolutely does. I change the setting in Contacts preferences, and my email display changes. Notice the names in this screen shot of my email. “Communities Apple Support”. It is backwards.

changing the setting makes things right in mail, but not how I want it in Contacts. Notice now that it says “Apple Support Communities”, as it should.

Settings, contacts, Display order

Change to first, last

It will only affect new emails- I just tested both scenarios

You say “you” as if Apple is reading this.

They are not, we are users like you.

If you think it is a bug send Apple some

Feedback

https://www.apple.com/feedback/iphone.html

You will have to wait for new mail to arrive, but I would like to know if changing Settings, Contacts , Display order, First,Last will affect sender names of new mail that are not in your contacts.