Posted on 01/03/2013 3:01:18 AM PST by Einherjar
A 15-year-old is suing the Icelandic state for the right to legally use the name given to her by her mother. The problem? Blaer, which means "light breeze" in Icelandic, is not on a list approved by the government.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
Johnsson
You’ve been around long enough to recall the Arthur McGowan ping list fiasco thread.
Indeed.
I was shocked when I learned that Iceland required the government to approve what can name your kid. Reminds me of an episode of that show “Dinosaurs” where a government official outright chose the name for the parents.
On one hand there are a LOT of stupid names I’d like to change. Though it flies in face of freedom my authoritarian side wouldn’t mind a panel that could veto ‘tarded names.
But actually requiring that your name be on a pre-approved list goes too far even for my authoritarian side. I fully support Blaer in her quest against this nonsense, her name is an Icelandic word so it doesn’t have any letters not in their alphabet.
“...How about Latrina ...”
That’s a real pisser of a name!!!!
(yeah...I know...but it’s Monday...)
“..I have encouraged the owner...”
Operative words - “the owner”. JR decides what to do with HIS website, not you.
Laz was joking. He has as much right to express himself out here as you do, until “the owner” decides otherwise.
Lighten up with the sanctimonious stuff.
While giving a government official the right to veto names chosen by parents (in many states they already can nix names to which a person can change his name) is disturbing, so are some of the names that parents select for their kids. Call me a fascist, but some of the names with which parents saddle their kids are nothing short of child abuse. Had Dwyane Wade not had basketball skills and tried to earn a living as an accountant, he would have had a difficult time getting clients because his horribly misspelled name would make people think he’s either stupid or careless (two big no-nos when selecting an accountant). And someone who I always knew to be truthful swore to me that he knew a girl whose parents named her Clitoris.
I think there should be an official registry of first names, with the correct spelling (or spellings if there’s more than one recognized spelling) of every name imaginable. If someone wants to name their kid a name that’s not on the list, and can show that it’s a real name in some other language or culture, then the name should be allowed to be given and should be added to the official list. But just as we don’t allow parents to burn their children with cigarettes, we should prevent them from doung even worse long-term damage to them by giving them names like “Madysyn” or “Budweiser” and having the state aid and abet the abusive parents by recognizing such names.
Because of my job, I know far, far more about names and their origins than I ever wanted to. (This information is recent as far as I know, but some things may have changed since I learned of them...)
Iceland has what is called a “closed class” on names. To preserve national identity, they limit official names to those that appear an an approved list of “Icelandic” names. The problem in this case appears to have been a) a lack of proper notification that the chosen name was not on the approved lists and b) perhaps the lists might be missing valid “Icelandic” names.
Note that this only applies to official documentation. If you want a nickname that isn’t “legit”, that’s fine and dandy, but your official documents will have your “legal” name on it.
Here in the U.S., we essentially have a purely “open class” system, in that there is no specific set of rules that apply to what you can or can’t name your child. That said, the “unwritten rules” of society kick in if you chose a swear word or something like “Adolf Hitler” (a case that actually happened).
Another country with a somewhat “closed class” system is Germany. Their rule works something like: “you can name your child anything you want, as long as at least 5 people currently alive use that name”. This prevents the “fanciful” names we often see in the states, but also prevents people from dipping back a few centuries for archaic names that have died out of usage.
Other places have generally open classes, but with lists of unallowed names that are either offensive or the byproduct of a cultural practice the government wants to clamp down on. In an example of the latter, a couple who have lost a few children may wish to name their next one the local equivalent of “ugly” or “stinky head” so as to convince the spirits plaguing them that this child isn’t worth their trouble — all well and good, but then the poor kid is stuck with an insulting name.
“Some of the American born hispanic names I’ve heard include Iker, Jerónimo, Jesús Concepción, Eustaquio, Casimiro, Melquaiades, Crisostromo, Rutilio, Humberto, Aniceto, and Luz (spanish for “light”).”
Iker is a Basque name, a neologism from the 1970s or so (during the Basque rennaissance after years of Spanish hegemony), and has become hugely popular because it is the first name of the goalie of the Spanish national soccer team. Jerónimo is a traditional name, the Spanish form of Jerome, and, yes, the correct spelling is with a J (the 19th century Indian was named Geronimo after an alternate spelling).
Jesús used to be one of the most common names in Spanish, and is still relatively popular in many countries. Unlike in England, naming one’s child after the Messiah was never taboo in Spain (and I should note that perhaps the most popular boy’s name in America today, Joshua, is the Hebrew form of Jesus). But Concepción is usually a girl’s name (often coupled with María) and is awkward, to say the least, when used next to Jesús.
Eustaquio, Casimiro, Melquíades (note the spelling), Crisóstomo (not Crisóstromo) and Aniceto are traditional names in Spanish, although they are used far less often in the 20th and 21st centuries. Being from Chicago, I’m sure you’ve heard of people of Polish descent named Casimir, the English form of Casimiro; and you’ve heard of at least one Melquíades: former U.S. Senator Mel Martínez (R-FL), who served until 2010.
Rutilio I’ve never heard of, but it may be a real name, I don’t know.
As for Humberto and Luz, those aren’t merely traditional names in Spain and other Spanish-speaking areas, they are extremely common and popular ones at that. If you saw a list of 1,000 children with Spanish-speaking parents, it would be surprising if at least a couple of boys weren’t named Humberto (which has remained popular while the English Hubert has fallen in popularity) or if a at least a couple of girls weren’t named Luz.
The names given by Hispanic parents that concern me the most are not traditional Spanish ones, but made-up ones such as Yarielys or Jahir.
It's not that uncommon to see a girl's name in a Hispanic boy's name as a second given name, e.g., Jesus Concepcion or Jose Maria, especially when the leading given name itself is very common. (Jose? Which Jose? Oh, Jose Maria...) You may also sometimes see it in forms like Jose de Maria or Jose Maria de (place name).
I am very familiar with the boy’s name José María (as well as the girl’s name María José), but didn’t know that Concepción was used as a middle name in boy’s names. Thank you.
I believe that Concepción, like Lordes and so many other girl’s names in Spanish, originated as part of a name for María (María de la Concepción, María de Lourdes, etc.).
You are correct that many of the names are routinely used in latin american countries, unlike the made-up white and black names I cited. I guess my objection was more to the fact that American born Hispanics are being given names that aren't used in American culture. For example my GERMAN born great-great grandfather had name "Wilhelm", but my AMERICAN born great-grandfather was named "William" because they anglicized it since he would grow up in the United States. I'm told the spanish equivalent of William is Guillermo and several Hispanics have told that it's actually quite common in Hispanic families to have a Guillermo (I didn't meet anyone named Guillermo in my life until Oct. 2012, however). But the point being that even if their birth name is Guillermo Garcia, they're at least likely to go by "Bill Garcia" in day-to-day life in the United States.
>> Jesús used to be one of the most common names in Spanish, and is still relatively popular in many countries. Unlike in England, naming one’s child after the Messiah was never taboo in Spain... But Concepción is usually a girl’s name (often coupled with María) and is awkward, to say the least, when used next to Jesús. <<
I've seen it used as a female first name, and also as a last name: there was a Hector Concepción that ran for Congress against Luis Guiterrez last year. I've also met at least one person named Jesús de Concepción in my life, or something to that effect. In any case, the Spanish practice of using sacred religious words as names comes across as quite jarring to native English speakers. It would be considered extremely arrogant to name your child "Jesus" or "Angel" in English, for example
>> and I should note that perhaps the most popular boy’s name in America today, Joshua, is the Hebrew form of Jesus) <<
I think you're wrong on this one, I remember there was an internet forum where one person argued they weren't naming their children after Jesus Christ, but that "Jesús" in spanish is simply the equvilent of the name Joshua in English. A native spanish speaker stated that information was incorrect and that the spanish form of Joshua is Josué, and while it's not as commonly used as "Jesús", it is also in use as a spanish name and is NOT a nickname for Jesús or anything. If Joshua was merely the English translation of the Hebrew word, then the old testament of the Bible rendered into English would have "The Book of Jesus" and so on since the names would be interchangeable. It doesn't -- those are two different Hebrew names.
>> Being from Chicago, I’m sure you’ve heard of people of Polish descent named Casimir, the English form of Casimiro <<
Casimir Pulaksi, yes, modern-day Polish Americans named "Casimir", no. Though I must confess a lot of polish names sound even funnier to my English-speaking ears than Spanish names. Like French names, many male polish names sound feminine to English speakers.
>> and you’ve heard of at least one Melquíades: former U.S. Senator Mel Martínez (R-FL), who served until 2010. <<
That's probably who I was thinking of, although he wasn't born in the United States so it's probably a poor example. Shortening it to just "Mel" rendered it perfectly mainstream to English speakers as well.
>> As for Humberto and Luz, those aren’t merely traditional names in Spain and other Spanish-speaking areas, they are extremely common and popular ones at that. If you saw a list of 1,000 children with Spanish-speaking parents, it would be surprising if at least a couple of boys weren’t named Humberto (which has remained popular while the English Hubert has fallen in popularity) or if a at least a couple of girls weren’t named Luz. <<
True, I was reviewing the census records surprised by the number of spanish baby names in Chicago that were some form of a name ending in "Berto", with scores of Alberto's, Roberto's, Heriberto's and Humberto's. The first two are obviously the spanish form of Al and Bob, the latter two are awkward because you rarely see any anglos named "Herbert" anymore and so. That "Luz" literally translates as "light" makes it sound like a silly made up name, but apparently it is commonly used in spanish countries. The latinas I've met with that name tell me I can just call them Lucy.
It's no less strange the girl they're arguing about in this article, with "Blaer" meaning "Light breeze" in icelandic. If I hadn't known that was a made up name, I wouldn't think it was unusual in a scandavian culture. I'm reading a swedish book right now that's been translate to English, and a lot of the "common" swedish names in the book that are left in their original form and sound far more awkward to English speakers: Göske, Håkan, Lacke, and so on. Those are mainstream names in Sweden, but I'd have an easier time getting use to "Blaer".
Well done!
My friend told me they saw a checkout girl at the store named Levitra.
She would have been long before the drug came out.
Are you sure it wasn't Mulva? ;)
“..girl at the store named Levitra.....”
Well, there is “Levi”. “Levitra” COULD be an extension of that...
(get it..”Levitra”...”extension”...I crack myself up)
You know, I may not have got it. ;p
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