Judgment of the District Court of Central Netherlands dated March 11, 2020
Petitioner experiences significant distress in her daily life due to her given names. This is because her names remind her of her mother, with whom she has a very poor relationship. From as far back as petitioner can remember, she has been humiliated and verbally abused by her mother. On several occasions, she was labeled as “worthless,” and her mother often hit her when she cried. Petitioner recalls that her mother would provide this as a reason for the abuse.
Other instances illustrating the strained relationship between petitioner and her mother include being kicked out of the house if she didn’t clean her room, even in freezing weather. She would often be denied food for the rest of the day and only picked up by her father in the evening. On almost a daily basis, petitioner was made to feel like “nobody loves her,” and her mother would express that she would be happier if petitioner weren’t around. Petitioner was also told by her mother that she was unwanted, and that “everything on petitioner’s birth certificate was a lie.” Her mother often claimed that everything wrong in the family was petitioner’s fault. Moreover, petitioner was left behind at home while the family enjoyed activities together, being required instead to clean the house and perform household chores. Her mother believed that “petitioner wouldn’t amount to anything” and blamed her for everything that went wrong. On one occasion, petitioner’s mother even drove her to a children’s home to frighten her.
All of these experiences led to petitioner developing post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms over the years, resulting in her having to live with the consequences of the pain and abuse she endured in her past. She still experiences flashbacks in her sleep, suffers from social anxiety, and has great difficulty trusting people. While therapy has helped petitioner make efforts to come to terms with her past, her current given names hinder her from fully healing. Her names remind her of her past in every way, as they appear on her ID, diplomas, contracts, etc. Additionally, petitioner’s mother’s first name is Nanda, and petitioner is constantly reminded of her mother due to her name.
For the past few years, petitioner has chosen to go by the nickname Isabelle, which she feels comfortable with. As such, she wishes to formalize this name change. Petitioner also wishes to retain a baptismal name as she is a Christian and wants to honor her faith. The second given name is derived from the names of both grandmothers (both maternal and paternal). Her grandmother on her father’s side played a significant role in her life, and petitioner wishes to recognize this role through the requested name change, especially given that she passed away relatively early.
Considering petitioner’s motivation, the court grants the request (in writing). There has been no oral hearing in this matter.
- The actual first name has been fictionalized.
