Following a previous post about Icelandic first names, I came across a case from the Court of Valenciennes in France – which is also nicely in time for tomorrow’s pancake celebrations in some countries…

So, the parents of a baby girl had decided to call their daughter “Nutella”.

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Une audience, à laquelle les parents n’ont pas assisté, s’est tenue fin novembre. En l’absence des parents, le juge a choisi de renommer l’enfant « Ella ». « En l’espèce, argumente la notification du jugement, le prénom « Nutella » donné à l’enfant correspond au nom commercial d’une pâte à tartiner. Et il est contraire à l’intérêt de l’enfant d’être affublé d’un tel prénom qui ne peut qu’entraîner des moqueries ou des réflexions désobligeantes. »

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More can be found in English here, and in French here.

As for the pancakes, I thoroughly recommend this recipe, by another person with an interesting first name – Nigella Lawson.

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Update

A reader has just contributed this:

I was just wondering if you’d like to add a small piece of info, as Mr. Nutella actually passed away last weekend. Mr. Michele Ferrero died aged 89 and he has been one of greatest representatives of Italian entrepreneurs, famous for the respectful relationship he had with his workers.

It would be nice to remember him when preparing Nutella pancakes!