In Tabriz, East Azerbaijan province, after the Registration Department opposed issuing an ID card for an Azerbaijani child named Volkan, the court also denied the issuance of an ID card for the name.
According to information released by human rights defenders in the region, although nearly four months had passed since the child's birth, after the parents' unsuccessful attempts to obtain an ID card for their child, the General and Legal Court of Tabriz ruled against the family’s claim, arguing that the name was "foreign."
After four months of administrative procedures, the parents attempted to bring a lawsuit in court to force the Registration Department to issue the ID card. However, the court ruled in favor of the Registration Department. The court argued that the name Volkan was a foreign name and invalidated the parents' claim.
Despite the presence of non-Islamic foreign names among approved names in Iran, the court refused to issue an ID card with the name Volkan, stating that it was foreign.
The name Volkan is commonly used in Turkey.
Many Turkish families living in Iranian Azerbaijan are unaware of the ban on giving their children Turkish names and apply to the Registration Department, only to be informed that it is impossible to issue an ID card with such a name. The department’s staff members suggest alternative Persian or even other foreign names that are similar to the Turkish names the parents have chosen and attempt to change their minds.
According to some observers, because of the lengthy administrative process and reluctance to approach the courts, many families abandon the name they initially chose and obtain an ID card for their child under another name approved by the state. Some families, however, go through the lengthy administrative and legal processes and sometimes manage to obtain a favorable court ruling and an ID card with the name they want for their child.
Although many obstacles are placed in the way of Azerbaijani parents who want to give their children Turkish names in Iran, according to officials, Turkish names have become some of the most popular names in recent years.
Link to the original text in Turkish on the Azerbaijani section of Voice of America:
Təbrizdə məhkəmə ailənin övladına "Volkan" adı verməsinin əleyhinə qərar çıxarıb