Why no one is called Linda in Saudi Arabia

ABDELMADJID LABADI, who lives in Algeria, could have chosen an Arabic name for his daughter. But he wanted one that reflected his Berber ethnicity. His choices were limited: Algeria keeps a list of around 300 approved Berber names, a way of holding the minority in check. Mr Labadi wanted none of them. So for almost four years he left his daughter officially nameless, as he fought in court for the name he preferred. In July he finally won and his daughter formally became Tanila, Berber for dove.Regimes in the Middle East and north Africa long restricted names as a way of encouraging national unity—usually centred on the majority ethnic group or religion. For example, Turkey banned Kurdish names and non-Turkish suffixes, such as the Armenian “-ian”. Post-revolution Iran banned Western names and balked at pre-Islamic Persian ones. Israeli bureaucrats gave Jewish immigrants from Europe and Muslim countries Hebrew names on arrival. Algeria’s registrars were obliged to ensure that names were “Algerian-sounding”; Morocco said they must sound Moroccan.