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The devil, royal titles, and cannabis strains all feature on the Department of Internal Affairs’ list of declined baby names for 2025.
A proactively-released document confirms 51 instances of names being rejected throughout the year, by the Registrar-General.
The most popular name given a thumbs down was “King” with eightrejections. It also topped the table as the most-declined name in 2024, when it was rejected 11 times.
“Prince” came in a close second to “King” with the name declined seven times last year.
“Princess” was third place with six rejections, while “Justice” had four, and “Major” had three.
“Lucifer,” a name for Satan or the devil, was also declined to be registered as a baby’s name.
“Princepepe” had the same fate.
In a statement to Newstalk ZB, Registrar-General Russell Burnard said the country’s naming laws ensure a child’s name does not “cause offense to a reasonable person, is not unreasonably long, and does not resemble an official title or rank without justification.”
Proposed names are reviewed by the Registrar-General to ensure they meet that criteria.
Where it is considered a name does not meet the threshold, the Registrar will communicate with the parent, and in many cases, the parent changes the name afterwards.
The Official Information Act (OIA) response added when parents choose not to change their proposed child’s name, the Registrar-General has the final say in declining a registration.
Before a verdict, the Registrar-General “provides the opportunity” for the parent or parents to further justify why the name should be approved, such as familial history or other matters or significance.
“Whether a name causes offense or not is a question of judgement and whether a name is offensive changes over time,” the Department of Internal Affairs’ OIA response stated.
“Names are a gift and an important part of a person’s identity. We encourage parents to consider how their child may feel about their name later in life,” Burnard told Newstalk ZB.
The compiled list was made up of names where a Registrar corresponded with a parent, and the name registered was different from the name initially proposed. The agency confirmed in some cases, names will have been changed during the registration process, while others have been declined by the Registrar-General.
Parents whose applications are declined are able to appeal to the Family Court within 28 working days.
Names declined in 2025
King - proposed eight times
Prince - proposed seven times
Princess - proposed six times
Justice - proposed four times
Major - proposed three times
Bishop - proposed two times
Heil - proposed two times
Name with no surname - proposed two times
Queen - proposed two times
Chief - proposed once
Duke - proposed once
Gunner - proposed once
Indica - proposed once
Indika - proposed once
Jhudg - proposed once
Lucifer - proposed once
Maejor - proposed once
Princepepe - proposed once
Qwen - proposed once
Rabbi - proposed once
III - proposed once
Sativa - proposed once
Sovereign - proposed once
Soverynn - proposed once
Azaria Howell is a multimedia reporter working from Parliament’s press gallery. She joined NZME in 2022 and became a Newstalk ZB political reporter in late 2024, with a keen interest in public service agency reform and government spending.
