Swedish Parents Not Allowed to Name Their Son After Czech Beer

A Swedish man with an intense passion for pivo has made an unsuccessful bid to name his child after a world-famous Czech lager

Expats.cz Staff Jason Pirodsky

Written by Expats.cz Staff,  Jason Pirodsky Published on 20.11.2017 11:38:08 (updated on 20.11.2017) Reading time: 1 minute

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In the Czech Republic, the Institute of Czech Languages presides over baby names.

Sweden has its tax agency Skatteverket which can reject names deemed to “give offense or be seen to cause discomfort for the bearer.”

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According to The Local, a Czech beer enthusiast in Sweden has vowed to fight a ruling from that agency saying that he can’t name his three-month-old son “Pilzner” after the famous Bohemian-brewed lager Pilsner Urquell.

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Should the young Swede eventually be given the name, he’d be carrying on a lengthy family tradition.

The baby’s father Matz Pilzner Johannesson legally changed his first name to Matz Pilzner as an adult. Speaking to SVT Halland he said, “I only drink Pilsner and since I was young, I have been referred to as Pilzner.”

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He went on to say that his own father was also “known as Pilzner because he used to drink Pilsner.”

Johannesson and his wife were told the name was inappropriate for a child. The couple is disappointed with the decision and plans to appeal.

The agency has overturned such rulings in the past: in 2007 the name “Metallica” was rejected but eventually, the ruling was changed when an office in another part of Sweden allowed a baby boy to be named “Google”.

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