This was originally posted on May 3, 2013
With the news coming through this week that baby names have been banned in New Zealand, (and in most cases for good reason!), is this the sort of thing that we should accept in the modern world? With the influence of mass media and a continued move in the change of our language through texting, the Internet and other factors we are now happy to have free reign over baby names. Would you choose a name with brackets?
New Zealand saw a lot of baby names banned but some names would be happily accepted in the UK, such as Princess and Prince, even if they aren’t too popular. The table below shows names that were banned, and how often they were rejected:
Other banned names include: Constable, Queen Victoria, Regal, Emperor, Christ, Juztice, 3rd, CJ, G, Roman Numerals III, General, Saint, Lord, . (full stop), 89, Eminence, M, VI, Mafia No Fear, 2nd, Majesti, Rogue, 4real, * (star symbol), 5th, SP, C, Sargent, Honour, D, Minister, MJ, Chief, Mr, V8, President, MC, Anal, AJ, Baron, L B, H-Q, Qeen V – all with 1 ban.
Interestingly the New Zealand Naming Guidelines state that the new name (or combination of names) may not be accepted for registration if:
• it might cause offence to a reasonable person; or
• it is unreasonably long (that is, it should be less than 100 characters long, including spaces); or
• without adequate justification, it is, includes, or resembles, an official title or rank (in this case you are required to provide a letter of explanation); or
• it is not a name (for example, it must not include numbers or symbols).
Do you feel that you should have free choice over baby names, or is it right for the powers-that-be to step in and judge on which names are appropriate? It was only a few months ago when stories came from Iceland about their baby name lists; in Iceland you can only choose a name from a list of around 1000 names for both boys and girls. Should the UK stick with their current rules, or is it time to take control back from parents?
