José Angel Aquinas, a Central Electoral Commission judge in the Dominican Republic, has submitted a proposal for legislation that would make it impossible for parents to give their offspring bizarre or confusing names. Children, he claims, should not be named after car (or any other) brands, fruits, or body parts. Names should also give some indication of the child’s gender. He also would like vulgar names or those having more than three words banned. Among the unique names he cites from the civil registry are Mazda Altagracia, Toshiba Fidelina, Querida Piña (Dear Pineapple), Te Quiero por Siempre (I Love You Forever), Tonton Ruiz (Dummy Ruiz) and Winston Churchill de la Cruz.
The commission is expected to consider the proposal sometime this year.
A second judge suggested civil registry officials should simply explain to parents the consequences of choosing and using such names. Judge Aura Celeste Fernando said in a statement yesterday the government shouldn’t have the final say on names parents give their children.
