List of 23 baby names that are banned around the world – including the country where Tom is not allowed

The Irish Sun

3 days ago

PICKING a name for a baby is an exciting moment - but one thing parents might not immediately think about is the legality of the moniker.
Turns out, there are some
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Numerous baby names have been banned around the world for a whole host of reasons
Credit: Getty Images - Getty
Earlier this year, New Zealand released a list of all the tot names officials put on the banned list in 2024.
Several monikers were linked to royalty, with King, Prince and Princess noted as the top three most rejected name choices.
Crown, Pryncess, Royal and Emperor had also landed on the list of the names turned down.
Other picks parents were banned from giving to their newborns included Saint, Fanny, Ice and Messiah,
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In total, there were a whopping 71 instances of a moniker being declined.
By law, names in the country must not be offensive, resemble a title or rank, include numbers or symbols, or be unreasonably long.
However, this isn't the only example of illegal monikers around the world.
Hungary and
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If families want to give their child a more unique name, they are required to put in a request and wait to see if it's approved.
In other countries, there are strict laws in place around names using traditional spellings.
Marnie Simpson reveals first video of newborn baby daughter and very unusual name
In fact, numerous baby names have been banned around the world for a whole host of reasons - and here are some of them.
Metallica
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If you're a fan of heavy metal and live in Sweden, you'll be disappointed to hear that Metallica as a name has been banned
Credit: Alamy Stock Photo
Maybe
However, after public outcry, authorities withdrew their objections,
Tom
If you're considering having a baby in sunny Portugal, it's best to check out the list of approved names to choose from.
Nicknames are not allowed as a full, formal name – so while Tomás is okay, Tom isn't.
Nutella
In 2015, a court in Valenciennes, France, decided that a couple would not be allowed to name their daughter
The judge ruled it wouldn't be in the child's best interest to be named after the cult favourite chocolate spread.
Facebook
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The state of Sonora in Mexico banned a couple from naming their baby Facebook in 2014
Credit: AFP or licensors
In today's society where internet has become a vital aspect of our everyday life, it's only a matter of time before someone tries to name their child after a social media site.
The state of Sonora in Mexico banned a couple from naming their baby Facebook in 2014 because they deemed it 'derogatory, pejorative, discriminatory or lacking in meaning",
The same state has also banned the names Robocop, James Bond, Circumcision, Traffic and Lady Di.
Ikea
Parents in Sweden wanting to name their children after the country's Scandinavian-inspired superstore could fall foul of the country's naming law, which was enacted in 1982,
J
Turns out Swiss naming authorities aren't too keen on initials as first names.
When a pair tried to pay tribute to their grandparents, Johanna and Josef, with the name J, the court in Switzerland suggested using Jo instead,
Gesher
Back in 1998, a Norwegian woman landed in jail for two days when she failed to pay a fine for giving her son an "unapproved" name – Gesher, which is Hebrew for bridge,
Cyanide
In 2017, a mum, from Wales, was banned from naming her newborn daughter Cyanide (her twin brother was named Preacher),
Despite the mother insisting that Cyanide was a "lovely, pretty name", the Welsh authorities ruled that the "unusual" choice might harm the the kid growing up.
Saint
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Saint is the son of Kim and her former partner, rapper Kanye West
Credit: Instagram/kimkardashian
The name that Kim Kardashian and her now-ex partner Kanye West chose for their son may have been fine in the US.
But in New Zealand, it's not. In 2024, one set of parents had this name rejected by the naming officials within the government.
Daemon
In 2012, a French couple wanted to name their child after the character of Damon from the popular series The Vampire Diaries.
The pair added an 'e' to give it more French twist - but despite their best efforts, authorities banned it for sounding too demonic,
However, after a court battle, the parents were allowed to keep the name.
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When I was a child, all I wanted was one of those personalised keyrings with my name on it.
But no joy, the closest I could find was Rosie, Joseph (not great for a little girl) and Joanne.
Josie is short for Josephine, which is a French name, and I managed to reach my 20s without ever meeting anyone who shared it.
When I try to introduce myself to people, I get all sorts of random things - like Tracey and Stacey - which can be pretty annoying.
Although I have come into contact with a couple of Josies over the last year - there seems to be a few of us around my age - it's still a much rarer name than most of my friends have.
On the whole I don't mind it, at least it's not rude or crazily spelt.
And it means I can get away with 'doing a Cheryl' and just referring to myself as Josie.
I'm getting married this year and some friends are shocked that I'm changing my surname, as it's not seen as very cool or feminist to do so these days, but I explain to them that I'm not that attached to Griffiths as I'd always just say 'hi it's Josie' when ringing a mate up.
I think it's nice to be unique and I'll definitely try and replicate this when naming my own kids.
It's the rude names you've got to watch out for, so after nine years as a lifestyle journalist I'll definitely be avoiding those.
Talula Does the Hula From Hawaii
This unusual moniker of Talula Does The Hula From Hawaii belonged to a girl, nine, from New Zealand before a judge had her renamed during a custody battle.
"It makes a fool of the child," he said,
Akuma
In 1994, a Japanese couple attempted to call their son Akuma - which means devil.
The authorities decided this was an abuse of the parents' rights to decide a child's name,
Chow Tow AKA Smelly Head
While some countries are slowly but surely loosening their name laws, it seems that Malaysian authorities are only becoming stricter.
Case in point - Cantonese moniker Chow Tow, which translates to 'Smelly Head',
Ah Chwar AKA
Snake
The 2006 tightening of Malaysia's naming restrictions also meant the banning of Hokkien Chinese Ah Chwar, which means 'Snake'.
Peppermint
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German authorities banned Peppermint as a name because it might cause ridicule
Credit: Getty
Germany has certain criteria for baby name bans.
Pfefferminze ("Peppermint") was rejected because it might cause ridicule.
Equally, the moniker Stone was outlawed due to the fact that "a child cannot identify wi
th it,
because it is an object and not a first name
".
Linda
In 2014, the relatively inoffensive-sounding and popular moniker Linda made Saudi Arabia's banned baby names list, thanks to its association with Western culture,
Fañch
In 2017, a French court ruled a couple could not use the moniker Fañch they'd picked for their baby.
The authorities in Quimper, north-west France, ruled that the new parents would not be able to use the character ñ (called a tilde) in their baby's name,
Venerdi AKA Friday
In 2008, the Italian court banned two parents from calling their baby boy Venerdi, which translates to Friday,
The authorities behind the decision believed the name, taken from
Fraise
When a French couple attempted to name their child after a strawberry, the courts claimed that the name Fraise would lead to vicious teasing.
The couple insisted that they were only trying to give their little one an original name, and eventually went with 'Fraisine' instead,
Lucifer
Earlier this year,
Other names that have been rejected in the country include Satan, Judas and Gucci.
Anus
A child in Denmark was almost named after this particular part of the human anatomy,
Unsurprisingly, the application was denied.
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While this may seem like someone nodded off on the keyboard, that is an actual name a Swedish couple tried to give their baby in 1996,
Apparently, the name is pronounced 'Albin', and the parents chose it as a protest against Sweden's strict naming laws.