– We were open-minded in the past as well, so weddings outside our office did occasionally take place, although we always made sure that the ceremony was suitably dignified – say employees of the Civil Registry Office in Jelenia Góra. – Nor did we object to giving children unusual names, provided that the parents showed a certain degree of common sense. We tried to persuade them when we feared that a name might cause the child problems at school or nursery, because it was either ridiculing or did not clearly indicate the child’s sex. For example, Nicol could be a boy or a girl, so we suggested giving the name a different form, quite apart from the possibility of using a more traditional Polish spelling. Mikołaj or Mikołajka would also sound pleasant.
They add: – Problems also arose in the past that had to be discussed with the parents, bearing the children’s interests in mind. For example, Mercedes, which is a popular girls’ name in Spain, sounds rather masculine in Poland, quite apart from its automotive connotations. But fascinated by literature, including the novels of A. Dumas, some parents wanted to give their children the name Mercedes. Some were persuaded; others were not.
Recently, one of the more widely discussed cases concerned parents who wanted to name their daughter Truskawka. They would not accept the argument that this was not the best solution. They argued that since Jagoda is in common use as a name, Truskawka would not sound unfamiliar either—especially as the female name Malina is also used in Poland, although less commonly. The linguists consulted by the Civil Registry Office concerned did not agree with the parents’ reasoning.
One of the more original names given recently in Jelenia Góra was Moa. Although it is associated more with Polynesia than with Central Europe—or Europe in general—the Civil Registry Office staff did not make things difficult for the parents.
Jelenia Góra City Hall/ii