Babies named after mythological gods and wild animals?
Yes, Americans should expect many of that next year when a "full-blown baby naming revolution" is bound to sweep the country, according to the editors at Nameberry, a popular baby naming website.
New conservative parents in America will be looking to "defy convention" in 2017 by giving their babies "invented names with unique spellings and non-traditional gender identities," the editors said.
"Next year parents will skip directly to the head of the power line. Yes, we're talking about God, whose names will be conferred on an increasing number of babies. Expect to meet lots of little deities with names drawn from multicultural mythology: Thor, Persephone, Odin, Freya, Jupiter, Luna, Atlas, Clio, Orion, Morrigan, Pandora, and Zeus," they said.
Nameberry noted that this will not be the first time that American parents will be be giving their babies non-traditional names that all project power. In fact, in 2015, more than 1,500 baby boys were name "Messiah"; 40 baby girls were named "Goddess"; 27 boys called "Savior"; 20 others named "Lord," five named "Yahweh," and five other boys literally named "God," the website said.
In 2013, the name "Messiah" became the subject of a controversy when a judge in Tennessee ordered a young couple to change their baby boy's name from "Messiah" to something else, saying that's title reserved only for Jesus Christ, according to Nameberry.
The order triggered a public outcry. In the end the judge was cited by a court panel for inappropriate religious bias, it said.
If there are Americans giving holy names to their babies, there are others who go for the other extreme—those who name their babies after evil beings. According to Nameberry, some parents have given their children such names as Lucifer (the devil in Christian tradition), Lilith (a demon of Jewish folklore), and Kali (the Hindu destroyer).
Meanwhile in Australia, the state government of Victoria has included God, Christ, Lord and Satan on a list of more than 40 baby names that cannot be used for naming babies, The Christian Post reported.
According to the state government of Victoria, "Parents can usually choose any given name for their child. However, the registrar can refuse to register a prohibited name."
A name under Victoria's Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration Act 1996 can be prohibited if it's considered, among other things, to be: obscene or offensive; cannot be established by repute or usage; because it is too long; because it contains symbols without phonetic significance, such as an exclamation or question mark, or for any other reason.
The prohibited names include: Admiral, Anzac, Australia, Baron, Bishop, Brigadier, Brother, Cadet, Captain, Chief, Christ, Commodore, Constable, Corporal, Dame, Duke, Emperor, Father, General, God, Honour, Judge, Justice, King, Lad, Lieutenant, Lord, Madam, Majesty, Major, Messiah, Minister, Mister, Officer, Premier, President, Prime Minister, Prince, Princess, Queen, Saint, Satan, Seaman, Sergeant, Sir and Sister.
