Mum's dying wish to name baby 'Justice'

Along with Justice, royal titles, religious references and punctuation marks were among names parents tried to bestow upon children. Photo / Thinkstock

A young Northland mum wants to fulfil her dying mother's wish to name her firstborn child Justice.

But the bid may be derailed as the most popular rejected name by the Internal Affairs Department has been Justice, along with alternate spellings Justus and Juztice.

Ama Zaharioudakis wants to name her 11-week-old boy Azariah Justice Kaka-Mgaruhe.

"When mum was diagnosed with cancer in 2009 she asked me to name my first baby Justice," Ms Zaharioudakis said.

"She died the same year. I've had my baby and now it's time to name him."

The department had already contacted the Whangarei family and questioned their reason for naming their boy Justice.

Ms Zaharioudakis, aged 20, whose last name has Greek origins, said she explained her mother's wish but was still waiting for an official response as to whether they could name their son Justice.

Along with Justice, royal titles, religious references and punctuation marks were among names parents tried to bestow upon children.

A list provided by the Internal Affairs Department shows 350 parents had the names they chose for their offspring rejected in the 10 years ending June 30, 2011.

Royal titles which featured heavily and were all rejected included King, Prince, Princess, Knight, Queen, Queen V, Queen Victoria, Lord, Lady, Baron and Duke as were Royal, Royale, Majesty and Majesti.

Religious references Messiah, Christ, Bishop, Saint and Lucifer were not allowed either.

Other titles such as President, Emperor, Chief, Constable, Sergeant and General were also rejected.

Internal Affairs Department deputy registrar-general Ross McPherson said no names were banned, but they did have to fall within the bounds of the law.