Today In Bad Baby Names: Woman Names Her Son Jihad [UPDATED]

It seems like there is no end to the amount of bad baby names in the world. Who can forget tiny Adolf Hitler Campbell and his sister JoyceLynn Aryan Nation? And let’s not even talk about all of the children who are named after their parent’s favorite fast food restaurant or luxury brand; or those whose parents took a normal name and changed 7 or 8 of its letter to create a new, more unpronounceable name; and, of course, let us keep the children of celebrities in our hearts.

Well, it turns out Americans aren’t the only ones who can set our children off on a bad foot in life. A woman in Germany is getting in on the bad baby name action too. She’s named her son Jihad, an Islamic term which, in case you’ve never watched the news, describes a “religious war all followers are to wage against non-believers.” Remarkably, little Jihad is not the first person in Germany to bear this name. In 2009, a man there fought for the right to name his son “Djehad,” a variation on Jihad.

More generally the name also means “struggle,” and that is exactly what the boy—who by the way was born weighing an impressive 13 pounds!—will face with a name like that. Jihad’s mom, Elfi Yaghi, has not explained the choice in name, but is a devout muslim. At least, the Daily Mail helpfully informs us, neither his religion nor his name will mean he grows up to be a terrorist. That’s a relief!

Update: I just wanted to clarify that in no way did I mean that the name is bad because it is a religious term or an Arabic name. Rather I meant that it has negative connotations because of the way the word has been used recently in the media and has been associated with extremism and terrorism. Nor did I mean to suggest the boy himself was in any way bad; rather I meant that the name might hamper him because he lives in Germany where there is a rising tide of anti-Islamic sentiment. I apologize for jumping to conclusions, and I should have been more clear than I was. I’m really sorry that it came off as in any way offensive or racist. Please feel free to call me any name you like for being the kind of person who relies on the Daily Mail.