Judgment of the Gelderland District Court dated April 15, 2020

The petitioners are of Kurdish origin and have a son who is about to start secondary school. They gave their son a common Kurdish name at the time of his birth, which has a special, significant meaning in Kurdish.

When the son was a few years old, he began to experience problems with his first name. He was quickly teased and bullied by others because his name bears a strong resemblance to a certain Dutch pronoun. As a result, their son often came home from school in tears due to the amount of bullying he endured.

At a certain point, the petitioners had had enough and asked their son if he would like a different name. This was a few years ago. Their son expressed a desire to go by the name Michiel*, which he believed to be a beautiful Dutch name. Since then, he has been going by this nickname and has been registered with it wherever possible, including sports clubs and schools. Their son feels content with this name.

In the best interest of their son, the petitioners would like to formalize the long-standing nickname Michiel through this request. They have also included a note with their son’s opinion on the matter, and he fully supports the petition filed by his parents.

Based on the above, the petitioners believe they have a sufficiently compelling reason for this request. This is evident from the fact that their son has been going by the name Michiel for a significant period, and he no longer wishes to be associated with his official first name due to the negative associations it carries.

Considering the petitioners’ motivation, the court grants the request.

*The real first name has been fictionalized.