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February 10, 2010
Swedish couple continue fight for right to name their son Q
Published: 5 May 09 12:27 CET
Online: http://www.thelocal.se/19254/20090505/
Dictionary tool Double click on a word to get a translation
A Swedish couple from Åre in northern Sweden have taken their fight to name their son Q to the Supreme Administrative Court (Regeringsrätten).
- Ingrid, 79, declared dead by Swedish tax authorities (9 Feb 10)
- 'Malmö should be called Mothvirgin in English' (8 Feb 10)
- Swedish bishop off sick after office bashing (5 Feb 10)
The parents insist that the boy was not named after the popular figure from the James Bond films and that the decision was instead a last minute one when "Q" was born.
They argue that he answers to the name which they have used since birth.
"He is quite simply Q with half of the inhabitants of the Åre area. There are stranger names in the valley," the couple claim in their appeal of a ruling by the administrative court of appeal (Kammarrätten).
The Supreme Administrative Court on April 21st granted the couple leave to appeal and will consider whether the 1982 names law allows the use of a single letter as a first name.
The couple write that as an alternative they could consider the use of the name "Q:u".
What do you think? Leave your comment below.
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In what is one of the most free societies on the planet some moron and then some followers of the moron all agreed to pass a law that actually restricts/removes the choice of human beings to be known by any name that they choose. If nothing else, as dtes states, it is a colossal waste of time and tax payers money. What use is a name in Sweden anyway, are we not all personnummers here anyway?
Stupid name
Stupid parents
The tax office should not have a say in what parents call their children, on the other hand the parents should not be so stupid.
I say let them call the kid Q and the sterilise the parents as they are clearly not too bright and probably should not be breeding.
*cue? why not snooker?*
Anyone else think Sweden's law is stupid, now?
[attachment=101:funny_we...mes_12_1.jpg]
I had a great laugh when I found out my colleague's brother was called "Jerker"
The Finish name Pekka is always amusing.
Now keeping this going with strange (in Swedish terms) immigrant names must be tricky, but I think the surname changes for example related to applications to change names. I have found in family history research quite a number who changed surnames to ones that are really unique so that only one small family have them - some feat but better than being Andersson etc for a Swede...
Just to add the latest in the UK where a woman has been refused a passport in the name of Pudsey Bear see http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/8030523.stm
The Parents don't seem too bright either, the last time we had a guy named "W" all hell broke loose ! i don`t think "Q" would do a better job.
But don't feel too bad about it Swedes, I'm sure we have them the same over here also.
(Srsly - thanks for that. I have been snarling at my monitor all afternoon.)
One ought to remember this is a two-way road; a former Swedish colleague laughed garrulously for days (not an exageration) at an English co-worker's name: Pippa
Q means cow where I come from. When you say q in Swedish I mean...ku
LOLOL!!!
Hello, my number is YYMMDD-ABCD
No q's though.
Cue was a pop artist in Sweden though...Hjulström...I'm buuuuurning...
and so on.
and certainly profanity is not acceptable as name. but seriously why can some boys be named annika but not others?
Kids should not tease or bully anyone I agree.
I was bullied for being ugly, wearing glasse and being good in school. I also have a name that is the same as a famous brand of you know what. Not easy!
I don't think parents should be allowed to name their kids adolf hitler or fitta though. They can't be proper parents.
i agree that profanity is not acceptable. but there's no reason anyone should decide the value of the name of a/an famous/infamous person. if we should judge parents by their choices of names for children should we question the "properness" of your own parents?
they were going to name me desirée, but in the last minute lol.
Anyway, I didn't spell my name like it should be until I was like 12, so my friends learnt how to say it and they didn't think it was that weird.
After I read The Local's other article on the restrictions of naming your kids, I was worried. Because ever since I was young, I have had a name in mind for my (future/maybe) son. Under the restrictions of the tax authority, it's unlikely they'd let me name my child what I want to (it's a surname, and it's a bit weird, too). But different municipalities allow different things, I can hope for that, when the time comes, or just move back with my folks in England, have the baby there, then come back. More paperwork, but I'm quite adamant about the name :)
An exception I can undrestand is for names which are genuinely offensive. If I wanted to call my daughter "F*%ta" of my son "Godhatesgays" I think I should be prevented from doing so but calling your son Q really is no ones business but your own.
Having said that, I think parents should be more responsible about nameing their kids as, despite what we may wish for, people do tend to draw conclusions based upon our names as well as our appearance.
My mother worked for many years as an infant teacher and she said that she always knew which kids were likely to be trouble by looking at thier names. She said that her heart would sink if she read the class list and saw a plethora of Kylies and Keanus.
I guess it is a product of a free society. Stupid people call their kids stupid things.
Oh and my son Ethelred agrees...
A mate of mine moved here with his kid and she had a double surname with a hyphen in the middle. Skatteverket forced them to remove the hyphen as it is against the rules.. Again, how far do they take this?? Seems like a huge waste of effort and money to me...