Parents told by court they can’t name baby after historical figure over bullying fears

A Brazilian couple were told by a court that they could not name their newborn child after an ancient king, fearing the child would be bullied.

Danillo Prímola and his wife Catarina Prímola, from Belo Horizonte, wanted to name their son Piyé, after the first black Egyptian pharaoh.

But authorities thought the child would be bullied in the future because the pronunciation of the name resembles that of a Portuguese word for a ballet dance step. The name is spelled differently in Portuguese and on paper it reads ‘Piié’.

The Minas Gerais Court of Justice initially blocked the parents’ registration of the name, but a judge on Friday reversed that decision.

Danillo Prímola and his wife Catarina Prímola pose with their son’s birth certificate

The couple welcomed their first child on August 31, but had already chosen the name in honor of the Cushitic king and founder of Egypt’s 25th Dynasty.

They chose the name after listening to the theme song for the 2023 Carnival celebrations while working on the choreography at the samba school Acadêmicos de Venda Nova.

“There was a word there that spoke of the black pharaoh,” said Danillo Prímola. “We went to investigate what it was like and we found the story of Piiê, a Nubian warrior who fought against Egypt and conquered it and became the first black pharaoh.”

They chose to name their son after Piyé because they felt it was important to maintain the connection with their African ancestors.

“Reclaiming African names is a powerful way to give a new narrative to the history of black people,” said Danillo Prímola. “We have the right to raise our children with this strength, this culture, and in a way that they are represented in their name.”

The Minas Gerais Court of Justice initially sided with the Belo Horizonte registry office and banned the naming, saying it could not “register first names that could ridicule their bearers.”

The boy’s name is spelled ‘Piié’ in Portuguese

Camila Prímola and her husband Danillo Prímola chose this name to maintain the connection with their African ancestors.

Piyé was the first black Egyptian pharaoh and ruled Egypt from 744-714 BC.

In its ruling, the court stated that the pronunciation of the pharaoh’s name is similar to that of the Portuguese word ‘plié’, a dance step from ballet.

“Therefore, the sound and spelling of the name were decisive for the rejection,” the Court of Justice of Minas Gerais said, “since they could cause shame to the child in the future.”

“We know that bullying cannot be fought by banning it, nor by suppressing it,” said Danillo Prímola. “Bullying can be fought by studying and working on the ignorance of society as a whole.”

Due to the legal battle, the baby did not receive the required vaccinations.

He was also overdue for a screening that is done when a newborn is about five days old to detect rare but serious conditions.

Camila Primola was originally due to give birth on September 19.

She lost her pregnancy in 2020 and found out earlier this year that she was expecting the couple’s first child, according to Danillo Prímola.

“And it was euphoric. It was already planned, it was something we wanted,” he said. “And in the meantime, we learned about the story of the Pharaoh, who was a great black leader.”