Can a friend copy your child's name?

Dear Angry Agony Aunt,

My sister-in-law recently had a baby girl and called her ‘Eden’.  Her pregnant friend visited them in hospital and a couple of weeks later had a baby boy.  She called her baby boy, Eden.  Can a friend copy or steal your child's name?  I mean, most of us only have a couple of children, out of the thousands of baby names out there, shouldn’t they just back off?

If nothing else, life is a race to see who can get through the birth canal first.  In most cases, head first.  But in some, bum first.  And that explains a lot about a lot of people.  Especially those people who give their children unrealistic and un-subbed first names.

You know what I’m talking about.  Jack with two kay’s.  Jakk.  Peter with a silent eff.  Pfeter.   A first name merger.  Joyanne.  Phonetic name spelling.  Aalivyah.  Rebellion for the sake of rebellion.  Kymberleigh.  Then there’s just the random pot-pourri names. Charismatage.  Q’Dell.  Sham.  Torianna-Sharisse.  The parents responsible for this crime against humanity argue ‘individuality’.  I just argue ‘breech birth’.

So let me tell you what should happen.  Every hospital should have a fat and cranky matron heading the registry department who knows how to wield a red nikko pen.  She’ll be expertly trained to give any new parent a spectacular death stare through her judgemental glasses and give a squeaky red cross when you put a vowel or a consentient in the wrong place.  That’ll stop all your ZowiMitchyl’s, Quintynn’s, Maddisyn’s and Jaeson’s.  

But back to your question about name copyright.  This is a prime example as to why you should never share things with your friends.  Skirts never get returned.  Cars come back with bumper dings.  Boyfriends never look the same.  And the same goes with baby names.  Your sister-in-law should’ve either lied about her child’s name or put an embargo on the name.  In layman’s terms, she should’ve called ‘dibs’.  So really in this case, she’s only got herself to blame.

Having said that, your sister’s friend seems like she was born breech and would still do something stupid by having twin girls and calling them Jasmine and Jasmine - then wonder why Centrelink will only pay her for one child.