When Creativity Meets the Law
Choosing a name for your baby is one of the most exciting parts of parenthood. It's your chance to express creativity, honor family heritage, or simply pick something beautiful. But what happens when your perfect name choice runs headfirst into the law?
Around the world, governments have stepped in to regulate what parents can and cannot name their children. From chocolate spreads to soccer legends, from religious figures to tech symbols, countless names have been officially banned—and the reasons range from protective to puzzling to downright bizarre.
This is the story of forbidden names: the laws that ban them, the parents who fought for them, and the surprising cultural differences that make a name acceptable in one country but illegal in another.
• Most restrictive: Denmark & Iceland (pre-approved name lists)
• Most liberal: United States & Canada (minimal restrictions)
• Most famous banned name: Nutella (France, 2015)
• Most ironic ban: Messi (in Messi's hometown of Rosario, Argentina)
• Longest protest name: Brfxxccxxmnpcccclllmmnprxvclmnckssqlbb11116 (Sweden)
The Philosophy Behind Naming Laws
Before we dive into specific banned names, it's worth understanding why governments feel compelled to regulate something as personal as a child's name.
Most naming laws rest on two fundamental principles:
Protection of the Child - Many countries argue that certain names will subject children to mockery, bullying, or discrimination. In their view, a parent's creative freedom must be balanced against a child's right to a dignified identity.
Administrative Practicality - Some restrictions exist purely for bureaucratic reasons: names must fit into computer systems, be pronounceable by officials, or follow the grammatical rules of the national language.
But where you draw the line between parental rights and state intervention varies dramatically across borders. What one nation considers child abuse through naming, another considers perfectly acceptable self-expression.
France: Where Nutella and Strawberries Are Off Limits
The Nutella Incident of 2015
Perhaps no banned name has captured public imagination quite like the case of baby Nutella in France.
In 2015, a French couple in Valenciennes decided to name their newborn daughter after the beloved chocolate-hazelnut spread. When they registered the name, local prosecutors flagged it as potentially harmful to the child's welfare and brought the case before a family court.
The parents were summoned to defend their choice but didn't show up for the hearing. In their absence, the judge issued a ruling that would make headlines worldwide: the name Nutella was officially banned.
The court's reasoning was straightforward. As stated in the official decision, the name was deemed inappropriate because it's a trademarked product, and giving a child such a name would be "contrary to the child's interest" as it "can only lead to teasing or disparaging thoughts."
The judge renamed the four-month-old baby Ella—keeping at least part of the parents' original choice while removing the commercial association.
Fraise: When Strawberry Becomes Forbidden Fruit
Just months earlier, another French court had banned the name "Fraise" (Strawberry in English). The reasoning? In French slang, the phrase "ramène ta fraise" roughly translates to a crude version of "get over here" or "move your backside."
The court ruled that little Fraise would face inevitable mockery due to this association. The parents eventually agreed to name their daughter "Fraisine" instead—an elegant 19th-century name that satisfied both the family's desire and the court's concerns.
Understanding French Naming Law
France's approach to baby names has evolved significantly. Until 1993, French law was remarkably strict, requiring parents to choose from an approved list of names—primarily Francophone versions of Catholic saints' names like Pierre, Marie, and Jean.
Napoleon Bonaparte himself decreed these restrictions in 1803, seeking to maintain French cultural identity and social order.
The 1993 reform granted parents the freedom to choose any name for their child. However, French officials retained one crucial power: the right to reject a name if they determine it goes against the best interests of the child.
Local prosecutors can flag names they consider problematic, and family courts then decide whether the name should stand. This balance between parental freedom and child protection has led to dozens of names being banned over the years, including:
- MJ (after Michael Jackson) - Rejected in 2012
- Prince William - Too closely resembling a title
- Mini Cooper - A commercial product
- Manhattan - Geographic locations deemed inappropriate
- Daemon - Too closely associated with demons
- Joyeux Noël (Merry Christmas) - Too festive for daily use
Argentina: Where You Can't Name Your Child Messi
The Rosario Ruling
In one of the most ironic naming bans in history, parents in Lionel Messi's hometown of Rosario, Argentina, are forbidden from naming their children "Messi."
The ban was implemented in 2014 after a resident named his son "Messi Varela," becoming the first in the city to use the soccer star's surname as a first name. Gonzalo Carrillo, director of the Civil Register of the Santa Fe province, quickly moved to prevent what he feared would become a flood of children named after the legendary footballer.
The official reasoning? Under Argentinian law, "Messi" is a surname and cannot be used as a forename.
The System Behind Argentine Name Restrictions
Unlike the United States, where names are largely seen as personal expression, Argentina maintains a registry of "acceptable names." If parents want to use a name not on the official list, they must petition for approval.
This system dates back to the Peronist era, when the government sought to create a more homogeneous-seeming population amid waves of immigration. At that time, foreign-sounding names had to be "Argentinized"—so Charlie became Carlos, and Matthew became MatĂas.
While the law has relaxed somewhat, the prohibition on using surnames as first names remains firmly in place. However, enforcement isn't uniform across the country. One father, Hector Varela, successfully obtained special permission in the Rio Negro region to name his son "Messi Daniel Varela" after a two-week approval process.
The irony? Names like "Maradona" and "Ronaldo" are perfectly acceptable as first names in Argentina, despite also being surnames of famous footballers.
The Messi Effect on Argentine Naming
The naming ban hasn't stopped Lionel Messi from influencing Argentine baby names. When his son Thiago was born, the name exploded in popularity, becoming the fourth most popular baby name in Argentina practically overnight.
Argentinians may not be able to name their children "Messi," but they've found other ways to honor their national hero.
Sweden: Where Creativity Sparked a Protest Name
The 43-Letter Rebellion
Sweden's naming laws led to perhaps the most famous protest name in history: Brfxxccxxmnpcccclllmmnprxvclmnckssqlbb11116.
Yes, that's a real name—or at least, it was attempted.
In 1991, a Swedish couple was fined for failing to register their son's name by his fifth birthday, as required by Swedish law. Outraged by what they saw as government overreach, they submitted this 43-letter monstrosity in 1996, claiming it was an "expressionistic development that we see as an artistic creation."
They insisted it was pronounced "Albin."
Swedish authorities were not amused. The name was rejected, and the parents later submitted simply "A" (also pronounced "Albin"). That was rejected too.
Sweden's Naming Law: Protection or Restriction?
Sweden's Naming Law, enacted in 1982, was originally created to prevent non-noble families from giving their children noble names. Over time, it evolved into broader protection against names that could cause offense or discomfort.
The law states: "First names shall not be approved if they can cause offense or can be supposed to cause discomfort for the one using it, or names which for some obvious reason are not suitable as a first name."
Swedish naming restrictions have rejected:
- Metallica (initially rejected, but later won on appeal!)
- Superman
- Veranda
- IKEA (Sweden won't let you name your baby after its most famous company)
- Elvis
- Google (initially rejected, approved as middle name)
However, Sweden has also approved some surprising names:
- Google (as a middle name)
- Lego (won on appeal)
- Q (single letter approved)
The line between acceptable and unacceptable remains frustratingly arbitrary.
Germany: Must indicate gender clearly; no products or surnames
New Zealand: 71 banned names including "Justice" (62 times!) and "Fish and Chips"
Denmark: Choose from 7,000 pre-approved names
Japan: Only approved kanji characters allowed
Saudi Arabia: No Western names like "Alice" or "Linda"
USA: Minimal restrictions (varies by state)
The Global Comparison: Freedom vs. Protection
Looking at naming laws worldwide reveals a fundamental philosophical divide:
The Freedom Approach (US, Canada, Australia):
- Naming is a form of personal expression
- Parents have the right to creative choices
- Government intervention should be minimal
- Practical restrictions only (characters, length, computer compatibility)
The Protection Approach (France, Germany, New Zealand):
- Children have a right to dignity
- Names that invite mockery constitute a form of abuse
- Society has an interest in preventing harmful names
- Courts can override parental choices
The Cultural Preservation Approach (Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Denmark, Iceland):
- Names must align with national identity
- Approved lists protect cultural heritage
- Foreign influences should be limited
- Traditional naming practices must be maintained
The Administrative Approach (China, Japan, Malaysia):
- Names must work within existing systems
- Computer compatibility is essential
- Official documentation requirements matter
- Practicality trumps creativity
The Beautiful Irony
There's something wonderfully ironic about naming laws. They're created to protect children, yet they often spark the exact controversies they're meant to prevent.
Baby Nutella's story made headlines worldwide—ensuring that the "mockery" the French court sought to prevent became international news.
The ban on "Messi" in Rosario generated more attention than any number of Messi-named children ever would have.
And poor Blaer in Iceland fought for 17 years to use her own name, experiencing far more difficulty than her "non-feminine" name would likely have caused.
Perhaps the real lesson is this: names matter because we make them matter. Whether a name leads to pride or mockery depends far less on the name itself than on the society that receives it.
Conclusion: What's In a Name?
Shakespeare asked, "What's in a name?" The answer, as naming laws around the world demonstrate, is: quite a lot.
Names carry cultural identity, family history, personal values, and societal expectations. They're the first gift parents give their children and the primary way we introduce ourselves to the world.
But they're also potential sources of pride or pain, distinction or discrimination, celebration or ridicule.
The existence of forbidden names reflects our collective struggle to balance competing values: individual freedom and social protection, creative expression and cultural preservation, parental rights and children's welfare.
Whether you think Nutella is a charming name or child abuse probably says as much about your cultural background and personal philosophy as it does about the name itself.
What's certain is this: as long as parents seek creative ways to name their children, and as long as governments feel responsible for protecting those children, the list of forbidden names will continue to grow—and with it, the fascinating stories of the names that weren't allowed to be.
For expectant parents: Before you fall in love with that perfect name, make sure to check your local naming laws. What's legal where you live might surprise you—and what you think is perfectly reasonable might already be on a forbidden list somewhere in the world.
After all, you don't want your baby's first official document to be a court case.