The French civil service claim it is not in the child’s interest
A couple in France who named their child Griezmann Mbappé after the national team’s star footballers face a legal battle with French authorities, who are trying to ban the parents from keeping the name.
The boy was born in the central town of Brive earlier this month to the football mad parents, and was immediately named after Antoine Griezmman and Kylian Mbappé, regional newspaper La Montagne reported Wednesday.
Griezmann and Mbappé themselves may be honoured by the gesture, but the civil service do not see it that way.
Authorities tasked with ensuring children’s names are in their interests have flagged the case to prosecutors, the local mayor’s office told the newspaper.
If prosecutors agree that such a name could cause the child problems in life, a family court could order the couple to change the name.
These cases are apparently quite common in France. Earlier this month, authorities in the eastern city of Dijon launched a legal bid to stop a mother naming her son “Jihad”.
The mother made the case that the name does not necessarily have violent connotations in Arabic (it can mean a struggle against sin within oneself), authorities were concerned the baby would face prejudice.
