The New Zealand Department of Internal Affairs has just released its official listing of banned baby names for 2014. Among this year’s onomastic rejects are the names: Christ, Lucifer, Juztice, Anal, and 09. Other onomastic creations which the NZ officials blocked tackled in years past include: Mafia No Fear, 4Real, D, M, 89, Mr., II, III, T V8.
According to officials, the primary motivation for banning a baby name is if it is felt to be offensive. However, names which are judged to be “unreasonably” long can also get the hatchet. For example, in 2008, a NZ couple was given court orders to change the phrasal name they had chosen for their baby girl: Talula Does the Hula From Hawaii. On the other end of the spectrum, NZ authorities have also put a stop to names which were deemed impossibly short. For example, parents who wanted to give their children the symbols “.” and “*” were also stopped.