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| Identity Card of the Islamic Republic of Iran |
Another family in Iranian Azerbaijan has successfully obtained an ID card for their child named AlpAslan through a legal battle. The Babapur family, living in Urmia, won the legal struggle they began approximately 5 months ago.
The Instagram account "Dan Dergisi" and Southern Azerbaijan Television (Günaz TV) have shared a copy of the ID card issued for AlpAslan Babapur, who was born on August 31 of last year.
On Instagram, a copy of the court ruling in favor of the Babapur family has also been shared.
The court ruling states that “the chosen name AlpAslan does not violate the registration law's Article 20, Paragraph 1, as it is not unpleasant, obscene, or inappropriate for the child’s gender, and it does not appear on the prohibited names list. Therefore, the West Azerbaijan Civil Registration Office must issue an ID card for this child with the name AlpAslan. The decision is final.”
In various provinces of Iran, registration offices have previously refused to issue ID cards for some Turkish names that were registered through court orders. The name AlpAslan is not the first to be registered via the legal process. The Agayi family in Tabriz also obtained an ID card for their child named AlpAslan after months of legal battles. The Avazpur family from Tabriz had to approach the court after they were unable to obtain an ID card for their son, born in October 2021, with the name AlpAslan. The Avazpur family finally succeeded in January 2024 with a court ruling.
In Iranian Azerbaijan and Tehran, there are families who have been unable to obtain ID cards for their children with the Turkish names they chose for months or even years. Because their children have not been issued ID cards, these families are unable to access public healthcare and other services and are forced to pay high fees for services in the private sector. Some families are even compelled to agree to get an ID card with a different name due to these difficulties.
In various cities, civil registration offices often refuse to issue ID cards, claiming that the names chosen by families are not of Iranian or Islamic origin, are foreign, or are not on the approved list. In some recent cases, names have not been registered due to their spelling not conforming to Persian orthographic rules.