You can only use the letters (A-Å) in the name, as well as certain allowed special characters supported by the Danish CPR system.
> Find a list of permitted special characters on cpr.dk
Contents
Administration fee
First name (in Danish: "fornavne")
Approved first names (in Danish: "godkendte fornavne"
Non-approved first names (in Danish: "ikke-godkendte fornavne")
Gender identity and changing your child's name
Middle name
Surname
Family affiliation
Middle name as surname
Double surname with hyphen
Protected surname (in Danish: "beskyttet efternavn")
Non-protected surname (in Danish: "frit efternavn")
New surname (in Danish: "Nydannet efternavn")
Patronymic name
Special naming rules
Gender-specific surname suffixes (in Danish: "Kønsbestemte endelser på efternavne")
Where can you find more information about names?
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Administration fee
There is an administration fee when you apply for a change of name. The fee covers the processing of your application.
> Read more about the fee
> Read more about the rules on fees in the guidance (“Vejledning om navne”), section 8
First name (in Danish: "fornavne")
Your child must have at least one first name, but may have several first names, for example Ulla Camilla or Rasmus Martin. The names only become 'one' name if you hyphenate them, for example Ulla-Camilla, otherwise they are independent names. You can have as many first names you want.
Approved first names (in Danish: "godkendte fornavne")
You can choose first names from the list of approved first names.
You can choose between girl's names, boy's names and unisex names. A girl cannot have a boy's first name and vice versa.
You can put two approved first names together with a hyphen, for example Anne-Elisabeth or Jacob-Tobias.
You can check whether a first name is approved on the list of approved first names issued by the Agency of Family Law.
> Search for approved first names on familieretshuset.dk (in Danish only)
Non-approved first names (in Danish: "ikke-godkendte fornavne")
If the first name you want for your child is not on the list of approved names, you can apply to have it approved. You do this when you apply, where you are asked to explain why you want a non-approved first name.
Gender identity and changing your child's name
You can apply for a change of name to a name that fits the opposite sex if your child declares that the reason for his or her wish for a change of name is justified by his or her experience of belonging to the opposite sex.
> Read more about Gender identity and changing your child's name on familieretshuset.dk (In Danish only)
Or
> Find your local registrar
Middle name
It is optional if you want to give your child a middle name. Middle names are typically an 'extra' surname, that is placed as a middle name if, for example, you do not want a double surname with a hyphen. You can have as many middle names as you want.
Surname
Your child must have a surname. A surname is the name at the end of the string of names and usually refers to your child's family.
Only one surname is possible, but two surnames can be put together with a hyphen, for example Møller-Jensen or Berg-Vestergård. Please note: If you hyphenate two surnames, it is NOT a new surname, but a double surname. Read about double surnames further down the page.
Family affiliation
As a main rule, there must be a family affiliation with the surname you want to give your child. The surname must be directly affiliated to parents, grandparents down to great-great-grandparents. You cannot give your child the surname of, for example, an uncle or a sibling of a grandparent, as they are not in direct line.
Middle name as surname
If the child is going to have his or her current or a previous middle name as a surname, this is possible even if the name is protected. Protection is irrelevant when the name is in the family (read above). You can have a middle name as a surname from your family directly affiliated to parents, grandparents, down to great-great-grandparents.
The name must be a family name in order to get as a surname.
Double surname with hyphen
You can combine two surnames with a hyphen to get a double surname, for example Møller-Bennedsen. You can only hyphenate two surnames.
If you have a hyphenated double surname, for example Møller-Bennedsen, you can remove one of the names and keep either Møller or Bennedsen as your surname.
If you still want both names, only without the hyphen, one name can be placed as a middle name instead.
Protected surname (in Danish: "beskyttet efternavn")
If less than 2,000 people wear the same surname, the surname is protected and is not available to everyone. Your child can have a protected surname if this is in your family since you then have a family connection (see previous section).
Your child may also be given a protected surname from his or her stepparent or foster parent if they consent to this.
If the protected surname does not come from your child's family, he or she can only have the name if you obtain a written permission from everyone who wears the name as their surname. Everyone aged 12 and older who has the protected surname must sign a declaration of consent. Download the declaration below or read more about this in the act “Bekendtgørelse af Navneloven”, §3 and in the guidance “Vejledning om navne”, section 3.10.
> Find the act ”Bekendtgørelse af Navneloven” (in Danish only)
> Find the guidance “Vejledning om navne” (in Danish only)
> Find out how many people have the surname you want on Statistics Denmark
> Download the declaration of consent “Samtykkeerklæring” (pdf) (in Danish only)
Non-protected surname (in Danish: "frit efternavn")
If more than 2,000 people wear a specific surname, that surname is non-protected and can be given to anyone. You can give your child a non-protected surname either as a surname or middle name.
You can find the list of non-protected names on the website of the Agency of Family Law.
> Find non-protected surnames on the website of the Agency of Family Law (in Danish only)
New surname (in Danish: "Nydannet efternavn")
If you wish to give your child a surname that nobody wears in Denmark, you can apply to have the surname approved.
Please note: If you choose to combine two approved surnames with a hyphen, it is a double surname - not a new surname.
There are rules stipulating which names can be approved; you can read more about this in the act on Names, “Navneloven”, section 6, and in the guidance “Vejledning om navne”, section 3.16.
Please note: The registrar will forward your application to the Agency of Family Law, and the processing might last up to a year.
> Find the act ”Bekendtgørelse af Navneloven” (in Danish only)
> Find the guidance “Vejledning om navne” (in Danish only)
Patronymic name
A patronymic name is a surname consisting of the first name of the father or mother with a suffix.
If your family is from Denmark, the patronymic name may have the suffixes -søn or -datter, for example Hannessøn/Hannesdatter or Erikssøn/Eriksdatter.
If your family is from another culture with a tradition for patronymic names, the child can have a patronymic name with the suffix from that culture, for example -son and -dottir from Iceland - Vigdisson/Vigdisdottir or Sigurdsson/Sigurdsdottir
You can read more about patronymic names in the Act on Names, “Navneloven”, section 7, and in the guidance “Vejledning om navne”, section 3.12.
> Find the act ”Bekendtgørelse af Navneloven” (in Danish only)
> Find the guidance “Vejledning om navne” (in Danish only)
Special naming rules
When there is no distinction between first name and surname
In some cultures, no distinction is made between first name and surname. The Danish naming rules allow your child to have the name of one of the parents or grandparents as his/her surname, if the name originates from a tradition in another culture.
Gender-specific surname suffixes (in Danish: "Kønsbestemte endelser på efternavne")
Some surnames are traditional in a culture where there is gender-specific suffixes to the name. For example, Male: -ov and Female: -ova.
The Danish naming rules allow your child to have a gender-specific suffix to his/her surname if the name originates from a tradition in another culture. You can see the list of these gender-specific suffixes on the website of the Agency of Family Law.
> Find a list of gender-specific suffixes on familieretshuset.dk (in Danish only)
Where can you find more information about names?
Contact the registrar in the child's parish of residence or in the child's Southern Jutland municipality of birth, who can advise you both on naming rules and on how to apply for a name.
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Other relevant links
Rules on names in Denmark
How to apply for a change of name for your child