Is it illegal to name your child anything you want?
Generally legal, but subject to specific state-level restrictions on special symbols.
Naming your child almost anything is a protected right under the First and Fourteenth Amendments, but this freedom is not absolute. While the federal government does not regulate names, individual states impose restrictions on the length of names, the use of numbers, and non-alphabetic symbols for record-keeping purposes. Courts also occasionally intervene if a name is deemed to be 'fighting words' or causes demonstrable harm to the child's well-being.
RELEVANT LAWS
- U.S. Constitution Amend. XIVDue Process Clause (parental rights)
- Cal. Health & Safety Code § 102425Restrictions on diacritical marks/symbols
- N.J. Stat. § 26:8-40.1Prohibition of names containing obscenities or numerals
- Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 36-324Requirements for names in the Roman alphabet
POTENTIAL PENALTIES
- Rejection of the birth certificate application by the Registrar
- Court orders to change a name deemed harmful or offensive
- Administrative delays in obtaining Social Security cards and passports
- Inability to register for state-funded schools or programs
JURISDICTION
While some states like Kentucky have no restrictions on naming, others like California and New York strictly limit characters to the 26 letters of the English alphabet.
In 2008, a New Jersey court removed children from their parents' custody partially because they were named Adolf Hitler and Aryan Nation, citing the names as evidence of an unsafe environment.
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