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ArchivesPoll: Civil Names and Personal Names
What do you think of government legislation declaring that all children be given two sets of names at birth -- "civil" first and middle names, and "personal" first and middle names?
The civil names would be mandatory, and would be names taken from an "approved" government list of commonly recognized names (for the nation in which one resides) with standardized spellings. These names would be used for all dealings with government agencies, public educational institutions, health insurance providers, etc. The civil names would also be used in the business world when the child is grown.
The personal names would be optional, and could be any fanciful, esthetically pleasing, ethnic and/or religious name which the parents choose to bestow upon their child, and would be used by family and friends, and for religious purposes. The personal names may also be used in the literary or artistic world, when the child is grown.
Can anyone see any advantages to this system? Disadvantages? Would this solve problems, or create problems? Cut down on confusion (in using standardized spellings for the civil names), or create confusion (in having dual sets of names)?
Would this dual-name system be a sensible compromise to spare children the embarrassment of having dumb names imposed on them by their parents...
Or would the dual-name system be a smokescreen allowing government to take away our rights to use the names we like best in all aspects of our lives?
-- Nanaea
The civil names would be mandatory, and would be names taken from an "approved" government list of commonly recognized names (for the nation in which one resides) with standardized spellings. These names would be used for all dealings with government agencies, public educational institutions, health insurance providers, etc. The civil names would also be used in the business world when the child is grown.
The personal names would be optional, and could be any fanciful, esthetically pleasing, ethnic and/or religious name which the parents choose to bestow upon their child, and would be used by family and friends, and for religious purposes. The personal names may also be used in the literary or artistic world, when the child is grown.
Can anyone see any advantages to this system? Disadvantages? Would this solve problems, or create problems? Cut down on confusion (in using standardized spellings for the civil names), or create confusion (in having dual sets of names)?
Would this dual-name system be a sensible compromise to spare children the embarrassment of having dumb names imposed on them by their parents...
Or would the dual-name system be a smokescreen allowing government to take away our rights to use the names we like best in all aspects of our lives?
-- Nanaea
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