“Christian name” is just another way of saying “first name”. Hawaii is saying all birth certificates must have a first name for the child
Yeah might be hard to believe (with all the atheism we have these days) but back then “Christian name” was just a way of saying “first name”
I think there’s more to it though. If she was unwed, then he would have been Barack Hussein Dunham - not obama.
I suppose that “Christian name” does refer to “first name” but I was already an adult listening to Brits and Europeans speaking before I ever heard anyone say “Christian name” refering to “first given name.”
Were these Hawaiian rules penned by Eiropeans, or something? It seems too, too old fashioned for Hawaii in the 1960s. My 1956 BC has “first given name” and “second given name.”
My father’s 1928 BC has “first given name” etc.
But it looks like the issue is the family name, really.
Dennis is correct. The first name was referred to as “Christian” because in the majority of cases it was given at baptism.