Everything in the world has a name, from the tiniest element to the biggest planet.  The purpose of a name is to be able to identify a place, an object or a person and that name directly contributes to the way that object, place or person is perceived.

When it comes to naming our children, does it matter what name we give them? In the past, locally, much emphasis was placed on the meaning of a given name or making sure that the family tradition of name-giving was preserved. The present culture seems to be moving in a different direction: one which favours what is current or part of a trend, rather than what is perhaps perceived as more traditional. The name given to a child is more than just how that child will be referred to or how his or her friends will call out to them in the playground: the chosen name contributes to the child’s identity and sense of self. 

It is perfectly understandable for parents to spend a significant amount of time thinking about the name they want to give their child, because it is the name their child will be introduced as, the name they will put on job applications and the name they will have to spell over and over again when they are asked. For these reasons, it is also important that the thinking behind a child’s name is also about the impact of having a name that is perhaps more unique and less commonly known; names which are difficult to spell and names which can be rhymed with something undesirable or which can be misconstrued in some way. 

These reasons should not be deterrents for choosing different names, but should actually form part of the thinking behind them. If a child grows up disliking their name or if they feel that others think their name is odd or unlikeable, that child’s self-esteem may, in turn, be affected. It may also have an impact on the child’s self-confidence in presenting themselves or feeling a sense of pride in their name.

In many countries, parents are not given free rein to name as they please. Take a look at Germany: the official requirements state that one must be able to identify gender by the child’s first name, and the name given “must not negatively impact on the wellbeing of the child”.  Equally, you cannot use last names or the names of objects or products as first names.

Whether or not your chosen name will be accepted is up to the Office of Vital Statistics, the Standesamt, in the area in which the child was born. If the office rejects your proposed baby’s name, you may appeal against the decision. However, if you lose, you will have to think of a different name. Each time you submit a name you have to pay a fee, which can get costly. When evaluating names, the Standesamt refers to a book which translates to ‘the international manual of the first names’, and they also consult foreign embassies for assistance with non-German names.

Denmark's stringent Law on Personal Names is ‘in place to protect children from having unusual names that suit their parents' desires’. To enforce this, parents can choose from a list of only 7,000 pre-approved names, some for girls and some for boys. If you want to name your child by a name that is not on the list, you have to get special permission from your local church and then the name will be reviewed by governmental officials. Creative spellings of more common names are often rejected. Here, in Malta, original spellings (think of the use of ‘X’ here) are commonplace.

The Church

Given the increase in the number of unusual names appearing locally, does the Church have any views on this? When contacted this week, a spokesman for the Archdiocese of Malta said: “Canon Law 855 says that parents, sponsors and parish priests are to take care that a name is not given which is foreign to Christian sentiment”.

Does Malta have any intention of introducing naming controls?

The Commissioner for Children, Pauline Miceli, said: “The choice of names is generally the parents’ prerogative and people have all sorts of tastes and ideas regarding the names they choose for their children. Babies are too small to be given a voice in this, but they are free to change their name when they are of age. However, parents need to choose wisely to avoid embarrassment for their child. Nobody wants their child to be ridiculed or bullied because of their name. Their name is part of their identity and psychological well-being, and this needs to be taken into consideration by the parents.

“I do not think there has ever been any talk about regulation or issuing a list of names and, personally, I would not want it. Having said that, I feel that people at the Registry should be able to guide parents when they go and register their child.”

So, it would seem, regardless of personal taste or opinion, Xemx, Xailiye, Kobbu and Ennonimya will be around for some time to come.

 

Danae Gingell is a Clinical Child Psychologist and Dayna Clarke is a Senior Speech and Language Therapist