Can I give my child any name I want?
Not quite — the name must be on the approved register or cleared by the naming committee, and you must give a child a name within six months. The Personal Names Act no. 45/1996 says it is compulsory to give a child a name within six months of birth (Art. 2). If you ask for a given or middle name that is not on the names register, the National Registry (Þjóðskrá) does not record it at once but refers the case to the naming committee (mannanafnanefnd), which decides whether the name fits the Icelandic language system and the rules of the Act. The myth many hold is that the naming committee has been abolished and any name now goes. That is wrong: bills to change the system have come up repeatedly, including in 2025 and 2026, but none has been passed — the committee still operates and the 1996 Act stands essentially unchanged. A child may bear at most three given and middle names in total plus a patronymic, and the committee's rulings cannot be appealed to a higher authority.
📋 The rules
- Article 2 of the Personal Names Act no. 45/1996: it is compulsory to give a child a name within six months of birth.
- A given or middle name that is not on the names register is not recorded at once but referred to the naming committee for a ruling.
- The naming committee is appointed for four years with three members; it keeps the names register and its rulings cannot be appealed to a higher authority (Art. 22).
- Given names and a middle name may never exceed three in total (Art. 1), and a name must be able to take an Icelandic genitive ending and fit the language system.
- If guardians ignore a call to name the child, the National Registry can impose daily fines; the Act names ISK 1,000, but that figure is index-linked to January 1996 and so higher in reality.
🔓 Exceptions
- If one parent is a foreign national, the child may be given one name that departs from the rules if it is shown the name is valid in the parent's home country — but the child must still bear one name that fits Art. 5.
- Names already on the names register need not go before the committee; they are recorded directly by the National Registry.
- The committee can adapt foreign names to Icelandic by ruling, so a name not on the register can still be approved.
⚠️ Penalties & fines
The "penalty" for not following the rules is not prison but delay and coercion. If a child is not named within six months, the National Registry alerts the guardians to the duty and calls on them to name the child. If they ignore the call within one month without valid reasons, the National Registry may, after repeated written notice, impose daily fines that run until the child is named and go to the treasury. Here lies a classic stale figure: the Act names ISK 1,000 per day, but that amount is tied to the consumer price index of January 1996 and has therefore risen substantially in real terms — the nominal figure in the statute is not the amount that would actually be imposed today. The hidden cost is practical too: a nameless child runs into trouble with registrations, travel documents and services. If the committee rejects a name, another must be chosen, and meanwhile the child sits nameless in the system.
📎 Official sources
- Althingi · Personal Names Act no. 45/1996 (Arts. 2 and 22) →
- National Registry (Þjóðskrá) · naming a child →
- Government of Iceland · personal names and the naming committee →
❓ Frequently asked
Has the naming committee been abolished?
No, that is a widespread misunderstanding — bills to change or abolish the system have come up repeatedly, including in 2025 and 2026, but none has been passed by parliament. The Personal Names Act no. 45/1996 therefore stands essentially unchanged, and the naming committee still operates and keeps the names register.
How long do I have to name my child?
It is compulsory to give a child a name within six months of birth under Article 2 of the Personal Names Act. If naming runs past that time, the National Registry alerts the guardians to the duty and can ultimately impose daily fines if calls are ignored without valid reasons.
What if the name I want is not on the register?
Then the National Registry does not record it at once but refers the case to the naming committee, which decides whether it fits the Icelandic language system and the rules of the Act. The committee can approve the name, reject it or adapt a foreign name to Icelandic, and its rulings cannot be appealed to a higher authority.
How many names may my child bear?
Given names and a middle name may never exceed three in total under Article 1 of the Personal Names Act, in addition to a patronymic. A name must also be able to take an Icelandic genitive ending and fit the general rules of the language to be recorded without special treatment by the committee.
Does it cost anything to get a name recorded?
Recording a name already on the register is part of ordinary National Registry service, but if the matter goes before the naming committee a fee applies for the committee's consideration. Daily fines for failing to name a child are a separate measure; the Act names ISK 1,000 per day, but that figure is index-linked from 1996 and so higher in reality.
🔎 Common searches
What people search to land here:
- “naming a child iceland committee”
- “icelandic naming law 6 months”
- “is name on the register”
- “naming committee abolished”
- “allowed names iceland”
- “unnamed child daily fines”