Where Noah and Charlotte topped the popular list last year, Prince was the most often declined by the Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, according toTe Tari Taiwhenua Department of Internal Affairs.
The department said that for the previous 13 years, King was the most declined name. A total of 64 registrations were declined last year.
It’s no surprise that the names are commonly denied.
While parents are given mostly free rein when it comes to naming their little bundle of joy, New Zealand does have strict guidelines to ensure no offence is taken, they are a reasonable length and they do not represent an official title or rank.
The name most often declined in New Zealand last year was 'Prince'. Photo / 123rf
If parents present a name that doesn’t meet the criteria for any of the given reasons, it is escalated to the Registrar-General who allows the parents to express their reasoning and then makes a decision on a case-by-case basis and considers whether it meets the statutory criteria.
“Names are a gift, and they are an important part of a person’s identity. We encourage parents to think about their child and how they might feel about their name later in life,” says the Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Russell Burnard.
“When a name is in review, we give parents the opportunity to present the reasoning for the name. Then we make a decision, considering the balance of how the name may be perceived by the public and the department’s obligations under the law.”
Other names that have been declined include Bishop, Major, Princess, Fanny, and Kingkillah - all of which were proposed less than five times last year.
The Registrar-General suggests that when parents are naming their newborn, they should stay away from numeric characters or symbols, avoid names that may be seen as offensive, and limit the name to 70 characters or less.
