Sorry, Star Wars Fans: No, You Cannot Name Your Child R2D2

What’s in a name?

One of the toughest tasks for new parents is picking a name for their baby.

Whether it’s the names of a cherished family member or a favorite movie character, it’s a big decision.

But did you know some baby names are illegal in the United States?

USBirthCertificates.com says a handful of names are banned in the United States, including Jesus Christ, Santa Claus, Messiah and the “at” symbol (@).

Including numerals in names will also likely result in a name not being approved.

So if you’re a big Star Wars fan, it looks like R2D2 and C3PO are not going to cut it.

While certain states have stricter naming laws, a few states, such as Kentucky, have none in place.

In New York State, first and middle names can’t be more than 30 characters each. Last can’t be more than 40. Numbers and symbols are no-nos.

California is one of the states that don’t allow the use of accents, but they do permit the inclusion of hyphens and apostrophes.

Here is a list of banned names in the United States:

• King
• Queen
• Jesus Christ
• III
• Santa Claus
• Majesty
• Adolf Hitler
• Messiah
• @
• 1069

And if you don’t like your name, can always legally change it.

According to BabyCenter.com, Olivia and Liam were the most popular bay names of 2021.

Here are top five names for girls and boys.

Girls:

1. Olivia
2. Emma
3. Amelia
4. Ava
5. Sophia

Boys:

1. Liam
2. Noah
3. Oliver
4. Elijah
5. Lucas

By the way, the top baby names so far in 2022 are Olivia for girls and Noah for boys.