Here in the U.S. , you could name your youngster almost anything , but that ’s not the case everywhere in the world . Let ’s take a look at some country with pretty strict or otherwise fascinating infant - naming laws .
1. Germany
In Germany , you must be able-bodied to severalize the grammatical gender of the tiddler by the first name , and the name choose must not be negatively affect the well being of the shaver . Also , you could not use last name or the names of object or products as first name . Whether or not your choose name will be take is up to the federal agency of full of life statistics , the Standesamt , in the orbit in which the fry was born . If the office pass up your proposed baby name , you may appeal the determination . But if you lose , you ’ll have to suppose of a unlike name . Each sentence you submit a name you pay off a fee , so it can get dearly-won . When pass judgment name , the Standesamt bring up to a book which render to " the outside manual of arms of the first names , " and they also consult foreign embassies for assistance with non - German names . Because of the hassle parent have to go through to name their fry , many prefer for traditional names such as Maximilian , Alexander , Marie , and Sophie .
reject names : Matti was rejected for a boy because it did n’t indicate gender . Approved name calling : Legolas and Nemo were okay for baby boys .
2. Sweden
Enacted in 1982 , the Naming police in Sweden was originally created to forestall non - stately family from give their children noble name , but a few changes to the constabulary have been made since then . The part of the law cite first names read : " First name shall not be approved if they can cause offense or can be suppose to cause irritation for the one using it , or name which for some obvious reason are not worthy as a first name . " First name must be account to the Tax Agency , and they allow multiple first names , but if you later change your name you must keep at least one of the first names that you were originally given , and you may only transfer your name once . For instance , if you ’re describe John and want to change it to Jack , your new first name will be Jack John , keeping the original first name . Any further changes must be made through the Swedish Patent and Registration Office .
Rejected names:“Brfxxccxxmnpcccclllmmnprxvclmnckssqlbb11116 " ( pronounced Albin , naturally ) was submitted by a kid ’s parent in protest of the Naming law . It was rejected . The parents later submitted " A " ( also pronounced Albin ) as the youngster ’s name . It , too , was rejected .
Also rejected : Metallica , Superman , Veranda , Ikea , and Elvis . recognized names : Google as a center name , Lego .
3. Japan
In Japan , one given name and one surname are chosen for babies , except for the imperial mob , who only take in given name . Except for a few examples , it is obvious which are the given names and which are the last name , regardless of in what order the names have been given . There are a duo thousand " name kanji " and " normally used characters " for use in mention babies , and only these official kanji may be used in babies ' given figure . The purpose of this is to make certain that all figure can be easily study and spell by the Japanese . The Japanese also restrict names that might be deemed inappropriate .
turn down names : Akuma , meaning " devil . "
4. Denmark
Denmark ’s very stern Law on Personal Names is in place to protect children from having uneven public figure that befit their parents ' fancy . To do this , parent can choose from a list of only 7,000 pre - approved names , some for girls , some for boys . If you want to name your shaver something that is n’t on the list , you have to get special license from your local church , and the name is then review by governmental officials . Creative spellings of more common figure are often resist . The law express that lady friend and boy must have names that indicate their sexuality , you ca n’t expend a last name as a first name , and strange names may be rejected . Of the approximately 1,100 epithet that are review each twelvemonth , 15 - 20 % of the figure are decline . There are also jurisprudence in home to protect rare Danish last names .
Rejected names : Anus , Pluto , and Monkey . Approved figure : Benji , Jiminico , Molli , and Fee .
5. Iceland
The Iceland Naming Committee , mould in 1991 , is the group that decides whether a new throw name will be acceptable . If parent want to name their tyke something that is not include on the National Register of Persons , they can implement for favourable reception and pay a fee . A name has to pass a few test to be approve . It must only hold back letters in the Icelandic alphabet , and must fit grammatically with the language . Other consideration let in whether it will blockade the child in the future and how well aligned it is with Icelandic traditions . It must have a possessive ending or have been previously adopted . Also , names should be sexuality specific , and no one can have more than three personal names .
Surnames in Iceland usually come an interesting tradition . They are not kinfolk name , but are rather patronymic , or now and again matronymic , with part of a person ’s last name including their begetter ’s name . If a beginner ’s name is Erik , then his son ’s family name would be Eriksson ( or Erik ’s boy ) , and his daughter ’s family name would be Ericsdóttir ( or Erik ’s daughter ) . [ take down : concord to one of our Icelandic _ flossers , since ' degree Celsius ' is not an Icelandic letter , the correct spelling is ' EirÃkur ' and his offspring would be EirÃksson / EirÃksdóttir , for example Leifur EirÃksson ] Occasionally , there are truthful family names in Iceland , that are sink down to each contemporaries . But they are usually in class in the beginning from other commonwealth , or in families where a family name was adopt at one point .
sanction name : BambiRejected names : Harriet ( it ca n’t be conjugated in Icelandic ) and Duncan ( there is no C in Icelandic . )
6. New Zealand
New Zealand ’s Births , Deaths , and Marriages Registration Act of 1995 does n’t grant people to name their children anything that " might cause offense to a reasonable person ; or [ … ] is unreasonably retentive ; or without adequate justification , [ … ] is , include , or resembles , an official title or social station . " official at the record-keeper of births have successfully talked parents out of some more mortifying name calling .
Rejected names : Stallion , Yeah Detroit , Fish and Chips , Twisty Poi , Keenan Got Lucy , Sex Fruit , Satan , and Adolf Hitler
Approved figure : Benson and Hedges ( for a bent of Twin Falls ) , Midnight Chardonnay , act 16 Bus Shelter , Violence
7. China
Most new baby in China are now basically demand to be named based on the ability of information processing system scanner to read those name on national recognition cards . The government activity commend giving minor names that are easily clear , and encourages Simplified characters over Traditional Chinese 1 . parent can technically choose the devote name , but numbers and non - Chinese symbols and character are not allowed . In the 2000s , people were being advised to commute their name for the welfare of the recognition board , although now the government is forebode more keep for obscure character .
Rejected names:"@ " : Wang " At " was rejected as a baby name . The parents feel that the @ symbolisation had the correct meaning for them . @ in Chinese is pronounced " ai - tantalum " which is very like to a idiomatic expression that means " love him . "
8. Norway
You are not leave to utilise a first name that is traditionally a last name or a middle name , unless you come from a culture that does n’t make that differentiation . You ’re also not leave to change your name more than once every ten years . aside from that , parent are not allowed to give a child a name that would be a major inconvenience . But the veridical play comes in change surnames . If you desire to commute your last name to something more than 200 people have , go for it ! If 200 or fewer have it , you need to ask for license from everyone with that name .
Previously rejected names:“Gesher " was pass up as a boy ’s first name to the point where the kid ’s female parent was jug for refusing to pay the $ 420 amercement .
Bonus: The United States
According to UC Davis law prof Carlton Larson , inMassachusetts , each name ( first , middle , and last ) must be light than 40 characters each for computer input reasons . And many province ask using only the 26 letter of a standard keyboard . This means in California you’re able to call a child Jose , but technically not José . And inTennessee , a child of get married parent can have either the last name of the Church Father or the surname of the mother in combination with the surname of the father . Either way , the kid ’s getting the pop ’s name .
