Iceland’s Name War: Girl Sues to Use Her Given Name

One of the great pleasures, and challenges, of becoming a parent is choosing a name. You could honor family members, or mimic celebrities. Or somehow reflect your personality.

But there’s a few countries where many of those choices are actually illegal.

A 15-year-old girl in Iceland is currently suing the government for the right to legally use the name given to her by her mother.

Her name is Blaer, which means “light breeze” in Icelandic.

But it’s not on the list approved by the government.

Sveinn Gudmarsson, a reporter for the Icelandic National Broadcast Service, says the case is breaking new ground as no-one has challenged the naming board in court before.

Gudmarsson says the law came in for “nationalistic” reasons in the early 1990s, as Iceland dealt with a new phenomenon: immigration.

Invest in independent global news

The World is an independent newsroom. We’re not funded by billionaires; instead, we rely on readers and listeners like you. As a listener, you’re a crucial part of our team and our global community. Your support is vital to running our nonprofit newsroom, and we can’t do this work without you. Will you support The World with a gift today? Donations made between now and Dec. 31 will be matched 1:1. Thanks for investing in our work!