diff --git a/lib/jbuilder.rb b/lib/jbuilder.rb
index b12624b..f501b64 100644
--- a/lib/jbuilder.rb
+++ b/lib/jbuilder.rb
@@ -311,7 +311,13 @@ def _merge_values(current_value, updates)
   end
 
   def _key(key)
-    @key_formatter ? @key_formatter.format(key) : key.to_s
+    if @key_formatter
+      @key_formatter.format(key)
+    elsif key.is_a?(::Symbol)
+      key.name
+    else
+      key.to_s
+    end
   end
 
   def _format_keys(hash_or_array)