Ruling of the District Court of Rotterdam dated June 2, 2021
Requester experiences strong daily inconvenience from her official first name, Keya.* Since her birth, she has gone by the nickname Amina. As a result, there is a difference in name usage in her daily life. Everyone addresses her by the nickname Amina; she is known by this name at work, school, among family and friends. She uses her official first name almost exclusively when it is absolutely necessary, such as when dealing with official matters. In such cases, it often causes confusion for requester because she sees a name ‘that is not hers.’ It leads to a dissociation of her identity. She feels frustrated when she sees her first name on her identity card, as it gives her the feeling that she cannot be herself.
Requester also considers the name Keya as outdated. She is sometimes teased about the name, which she finds bothersome. Requester tries to use the name Amina in her daily life whenever possible. To some extent, she has been successful, such as arranging to be addressed by this name at work. However, when it comes to her first name, requester often gets involved in tiring discussions because she frequently has to explain why she effectively has two names. She has wanted to change her first name since she was 12 years old. Another reason for this request is that requester was named after her grandmother (mz.). However, her grandmother passed away before requester was born, so she was never able to form a bond with her. Requester finds it frustrating to be named after a person she has never known.
Finally, it is noteworthy that requester’s parents actually wanted to name her Amina. However, her mother was unable to arrange the birth registration herself, and the father – on his own initiative – chose the name Keya. Requester has always found this problematic, especially because her father simply addresses her by the name Amina.
The court, given the motivation of the requester, grants the request.
- Real first names are fictitious.
