Some parents name their newborns after family members, for TV characters, or based on how pleasant the moniker sounds. But there are rare occasions when a name is frowned upon, and some countries have gone so far as to ban certain names.
Frequently, name bans are instituted to protect the child from being called something offensive or embarrassing. Some places also ban symbols and characters, as they’re unpronounceable and make it difficult to fill out government forms.
In the United States, rules vary state to state. For example, in New York, a judge can deny a name change request if the name is offensive, misleading (such as Officer or Doctor), the name of a famous person (Chance the Rapper), or the name of a company (such as Google). Some states have character limits for practical purposes, as names that are too long cause issues with official recordkeeping. Other states, including California and New Jersey, are among those that ban any obscene monikers (e.g., curses, sexual content, etc.). While obscenity is relative, this ban exists, in part, to protect children from enduring ridicule down the line.
Elsewhere around the world, Australia bans names such as Admiral, Bishop, President, and Dame to avoid confusion with formal titles. Portugal maintains a list of government-approved names that adhere to Portuguese language traditions and abide by local customs. In 2025, Japan unveiled new restrictions to discourage creativity in the naming process, claiming that less traditional names were causing confusion in places such as hospitals or schools. In Germany, surnames are banned as first names, so you won’t find a “Schmidt” or “Merkel” as a first name.
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