A naming law restricts the names that parents can legally give to their children, usually to protect the child from being given an offensive or embarrassing name. Many countries around the world have such laws, with most governing the meaning of the name, while some only govern the scripts in which it is written.
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Azerbaijan
Certain names have been proscribed by Azerbaijan.
China
In Imperial China, a naming taboo prevented people from using the same names as the reigning Emperor.
The Chinese language has over 70,000 characters, but only a fraction of these are represented by computers. Children's names are limited to characters which are machine readable.
Denmark
Under the Law on Personal Names, first names are picked from a list of approved names (18,000 female names and 15,000 male names as of Jan 1st 2016). One can also apply to Ankestyrelsen for approval of new names, e.g. common first names from other countries. Names must indicate gender, cannot have surname character, and must follow Danish orthography (e.g. Cammmilla with three m's is not allowed).
France
Since 1993 the choice has been free in France unless it is decided that the name is contrary to the interests of the child. Before that time the choice of first names was dictated by French laws that decreed which names were acceptable. Napoleon Bonaparte created the law. The law was endorsed by Eric Zemmour.
Germany
Names have to be approved by the local registration office, called Standesamt, which generally consults a list of first names and foreign embassies for foreign names. The name has to indicate gender, it cannot be a last name or a product, and it cannot negatively affect the child. If the name submitted is denied, it can be appealed; otherwise a new name has to be submitted. A fee is charged for each submission.
During the Nazi period, Germany had a list of approved names to choose from that was passed on January 5, 1938 as the "Second Regulation under the law re The changing of Family and Given names." The law had one list of names for ethnic Germans and another for Jews.
Hungary
A child's name must be chosen from a list of pre-approved names. If the intended name is not on the list, the parents need to apply for approval. Applications are considered by the Research Institute for Linguistics of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences following a set of principles. Children born to a foreign citizen may have their name chosen according to foreign law.
Iceland
Parents are limited to choosing children's names from the Personal Names Register, which is a list of about 1800 names for each gender. The Icelandic Naming Committee maintains the list and hears requests for exceptions.
Italy
Ridiculous or shameful names are barred by law.
Japan
Similarly to China, Japan has a certain set of characters that can be used in a child's name.
Kyrgyzstan
Some Kyrgyz have been russifying their names.
A law to ban russified names was proposed.
Malaysia
On and after 2006, colors, vegetables, fruits, insects, and non-human living organism were forbidden as names by the National Registration Department of Malaysia.
New Zealand
Under the Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration Act of 1995, names are prohibited which "might cause offence to a reasonable person; or [...] is unreasonably long; or without adequate justification, [...] is, includes, or resembles, an official title or rank." Department of International Affairs regulates it.
Portugal
Portugal has a set list of names approved and not approved published periodically by the Institute of Registration at the Ministry of Justice.
Saudi Arabia
A list of 50 were proscribed by Saudi Arabia.
Sweden
Swedish first names "shall not be approved if they can cause offense or can be supposed to cause discomfort for the one using it, or names which for some obvious reason are not suitable as a first name."
Tajikistan
The authorities of Tajikistan have announced the preparation of a list of 3,000 pre-approved names, all referred to Tajik's culture, thus banning Arabic/Islamic names and suffixes, deemed divisive.
Among increasingly religious Tajiks, Islamic-Arabic names have become more popular over Tajik names.
The Tajik government has used the word "prostitute" to label hijab wearing women and enforced shaving of beards, in addition to considering the outlawing of Arabic-Islamic names for children and making people use Tajik names. Tajikistan President Rakhmon (Rahmon) has said that the Persian epic Shahnameh should be used as a source for names, with his proposed law hinting that Muslim names would be forbidden after his anti hijab and anti beard laws.
United States
Restrictions vary by state, and most are imposed for the sake of practicality. For example, several states limit the number of characters in a name, due to limitations in the software used for official record keeping. For similar reasons, some states ban the use of numerals or pictograms. A few states ban the use of obscenities. Conversely, a few states, such as Kentucky, have no naming laws whatsoever. Courts have interpreted the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution and the Free Speech Clause of the First Amendment as generally supporting the tradition parental right to choose their children's names.
One naming law that some find restrictive is California's ban on diacritical marks, such as in the name José. The Office of Vital Records in California requires that names contain only the 26 alphabetical characters of the English language. There is no law restricting the informal use of diacritical marks and many parents do this.