# Is it illegal to take a newborn home from the hospital without naming it first? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\ **Created:** [February 8, 2013, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-to-take-a-newborn-home-from-the-hospital-without-naming-it-first/649718 "2013-02-08T17:42:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ojones01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/65b543/32.png) [@ojones01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ojones01)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-to-take-a-newborn-home-from-the-hospital-without-naming-it-first/649718/1 "2013-02-08T17:42:39Z")
There are cultures where, due to high infant mortality rates, children are not named until after their first birthday. _ETA: Link to column: [Is it illegal to take a newborn home from the hospital without naming it first? - The Straight Dope](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1278/is-it-illegal-to-take-a-newborn-home-from-the-hospital-without-naming-it-first)_ ---
**Author:** ![mollygrue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mollygrue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mollygrue)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2013, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-to-take-a-newborn-home-from-the-hospital-without-naming-it-first/649718/2 "2013-02-10T03:13:44Z")
no ---
**Author:** ![TBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@TBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TBG)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2013, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-to-take-a-newborn-home-from-the-hospital-without-naming-it-first/649718/3 "2013-02-10T04:24:09Z")
When my aunt had one of her kids (long time ago, some point in the 80’s) it took them a long time to come up with a name and they would not let them take the kid home until they did. Would’ve either been in Ohio or Indiana (forget which of her kids this was, which would determine the state). Might not have been a law but it was at least in place there somehow whether just hospital policy or whatever. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2013, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-to-take-a-newborn-home-from-the-hospital-without-naming-it-first/649718/4 "2013-02-10T04:30:01Z")
It’s definitely illegal if the kid isn’t yours. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2013, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-to-take-a-newborn-home-from-the-hospital-without-naming-it-first/649718/5 "2013-02-10T14:52:51Z")
If the family stories are correct, my older sister was taken home as “Baby _Lastname_” and was not named until several weeks later. (Parental dispute; she ended up with my dad’s rather odd choice.) I’ve heard of other “Baby Soandso” temporary names. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2013, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-to-take-a-newborn-home-from-the-hospital-without-naming-it-first/649718/6 "2013-02-10T15:09:35Z")
Sometimes it takes a little time to come up with a good first name. For example, a 66 year old driver at my company is named(first named real, last name pseudonym) “Boy Smith”. ---
**Author:** ![applebetty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4af34b/32.png) [@applebetty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/applebetty)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2013, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-to-take-a-newborn-home-from-the-hospital-without-naming-it-first/649718/7 "2013-02-10T19:42:16Z")
Remember the hooker on “Starsky and Hutch” who was named Female (rhymes with tamale)? She said after [8] kids her mom just didn’t care any more. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2013, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-to-take-a-newborn-home-from-the-hospital-without-naming-it-first/649718/8 "2013-02-10T19:57:29Z")
My grandson was expected to be a granddaughter. The parents hadn’t figured out a name until after they got home from hospital. No one arrested them that I’m aware of. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2013, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-to-take-a-newborn-home-from-the-hospital-without-naming-it-first/649718/9 "2013-02-10T20:02:05Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > My grandson was expected to be a granddaughter. That was more or less the case for my sister; being born the unexpected gender, my father refused to give up on the (somewhat unusual but 100% male) name he’d selected. It of course conditioned me; to this day I hesitate when meeting men with this name. It seems as odd to me as the many thousands of people who have found my sister’s use of it odd. ---
**Author:** ![Cartoonacy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/848f3c/32.png) [@Cartoonacy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartoonacy)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2013, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-to-take-a-newborn-home-from-the-hospital-without-naming-it-first/649718/10 "2013-02-11T15:34:13Z")
> [@applebetty](#): > > Remember the hooker on “Starsky and Hutch” who was named Female (rhymes with tamale)? She said after [8] kids her mom just didn’t care any more. No, but I remember the “Family Ties” episode in which neighbor Skippy discovered that he was adopted, and insisted that everyone call him by the name that was on his birth certificate: Baby Boy Doe. ---
**Author:** ![Powers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@Powers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Powers)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2013, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-to-take-a-newborn-home-from-the-hospital-without-naming-it-first/649718/11 "2013-02-12T19:06:48Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > My grandson was expected to be a granddaughter. The parents hadn’t figured out a name until after they got home from hospital. No one arrested them that I’m aware of. Not very useful information without knowing the jurisdiction. I think we’re all agreed it’s not illegal _everywhere_; the open question is whether it’s illegal _anywhere_. Powers &8^] ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2013, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-to-take-a-newborn-home-from-the-hospital-without-naming-it-first/649718/12 "2013-02-12T19:09:31Z")
> [@Powers](#): > > Not very useful information without knowing the jurisdiction. I think we’re all agreed it’s not illegal _everywhere_; the open question is whether it’s illegal _anywhere_. > Powers &8^] If everyone from everywhere responds as I did, we’ll have our answer. The OP, for the record, did not ask if it’s illegal _anywhere_, he or she only asked if it’s illegal. > [@](#): > > Is it illegal to take a newborn home from the hospital without naming it first? ---
**Author:** ![John\_W.Kennedy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_w.kennedy/32/1031_2.png) [@John\_W.Kennedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_W.Kennedy)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2013, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-to-take-a-newborn-home-from-the-hospital-without-naming-it-first/649718/13 "2013-02-12T20:56:45Z")
It _might_ be illegal in jurisdictions with strict naming laws, like Iceland. ---
**Author:** ![Kiwi\_Fruit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kiwi_fruit/32/12_2.png) [@Kiwi\_Fruit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kiwi_Fruit)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2013, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-to-take-a-newborn-home-from-the-hospital-without-naming-it-first/649718/14 "2013-02-12T21:05:20Z")
There’s definite culture bias in the question. How many births worldwide take place in a hospital? Even here, not all births are in a hospital, so the question assumes something which isn’t proven. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2013, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-to-take-a-newborn-home-from-the-hospital-without-naming-it-first/649718/15 "2013-02-13T00:40:04Z")
> [@NitroPress](#): > > That was more or less the case for my sister; being born the unexpected gender, my father refused to give up on the (somewhat unusual but 100% male) name he’d selected… With the genders reversed, that’s what happened to Gene Robinson, the future Episcopal Bishop of New Hampshire: [Gene Robinson - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gene_Robinson) ---
**Author:** ![mollygrue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mollygrue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mollygrue)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2013, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-to-take-a-newborn-home-from-the-hospital-without-naming-it-first/649718/16 "2013-02-13T15:00:31Z")
Your family will pressure you to name the baby far more than the hospital will. 😉 The “name lady” only calls ONCE a day. ---
**Author:** ![MacLir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9e8a1a/32.png) [@MacLir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacLir)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2013, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-to-take-a-newborn-home-from-the-hospital-without-naming-it-first/649718/17 "2013-02-13T16:07:44Z")
There is, in fact, a Picabo Idaho, ZIP 83313. 😛 > [@](#): > > Wikipedia: The name “Picabo” supposedly derives from a Native American term translated as “silver water”. The name “Picabo” was made familiar by Picabo Street, an Olympic skier who grew up in nearby Triumph. ---
**Author:** ![gscrstch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/2bfe46/32.png) [@gscrstch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gscrstch)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2013, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-to-take-a-newborn-home-from-the-hospital-without-naming-it-first/649718/18 "2013-02-15T18:39:34Z")
1 - my roommate in college was not named when he was born. his first name on his B.C. was “boy” 2- when my son was born some 24 years ago in Massachusetts, he got a SS card before leaving the hospital (don’t recall if it was “state law” or “hospital policy” or just a suggestion) - wouldn’t he have had to have a complete name ? p.s.love your columns ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2013, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-to-take-a-newborn-home-from-the-hospital-without-naming-it-first/649718/19 "2013-02-15T19:13:10Z")
There will be bureacratic pressure, and it will be nigh well unavoidable if you mean to file an honest tax return (e.g., list all dependents as asked on the form). All dependents of any age on a tax form have to be identified by Social Security number. And you can’t be issued a Social Security number without a legal name: > [@Social Security Form SS-5](#): > > You must provide current, unexpired evidence of identity in your legal name. Your legal name will be shown on the Social Security card. However, mind-blowingly, a birth certificate isn’t usually acceptable as proof of identity: > [@Social Security Form SS-5](#): > > WE CANNOT ACCEPT A BIRTH CERTIFICATE, HOSPITAL SOUVENIR BIRTH CERTIFICATE, SOCIAL SECURITY CARD STUB OR A SOCIAL SECURITY RECORD as evidence of identity. Now, I can see there might be some wiggle room: the birth cert can lack a real name (“Boy Humperdink”), and still be issued; but I doubt you’d be able to apply for the SSN at the same time if you explicitly refused to name the child. If you do, I suspect what will happen is that your legal name becomes (by default) Boy Lastname or Girl Lastname (whatever’s on the birth cert), and that’s what’ll be on the SS card. “If you don’t choose a name, one will be assigned to you.” Bureaucracies hate being circumvented, and if you do anything out of line, you have no guarantees anything will work well for you. ---
**Author:** ![Renifer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/71c47a/32.png) [@Renifer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Renifer)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2013, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-to-take-a-newborn-home-from-the-hospital-without-naming-it-first/649718/20 "2013-02-17T16:47:26Z")
_One hospital spokeswoman told me that when she was born 30 years ago in a Catholic hospital in Connecticut, her mother planned to name her Paige with no middle name. But a nun, armed with the certainty that only nuns can have, informed mom that no child was allowed to leave the hospital without two names. Glancing around, the mother spotted a box of Kimberly-Clark tissues and decided on the spot to name her daughter Kimberly Paige. (The child was never called anything but Paige.) It seems doubtful that the now-defunct hospital actually had a two-name policy, but you can see Jenn’s “belief system” goes back a long way._ My mother has a similar story. My grandparents wanted her name to be Helen Gregory Welch [for the sake of privacy, only the Gregory part of the name is real], but the nurse would not put the middle name down on the birth certificate because “Gregory is a boy’s name.” Mind you, this was only her middle name; she had an acceptably feminine first name. It was probably just the hospital’s policy, or even the nurse’s own prejudice that prevented my grandparents using Gregory as a middle name. So Mom doesn’t have a middle name. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-illegal-to-take-a-newborn-home-from-the-hospital-without-naming-it-first/649718.md?page=2)