“Owl Mirror” Officially Approved As A Name In Iceland

The Naming Committee made a historic ruling with their approval of a new name to the lexicon.

Vísir reports that the name in question, Ugluspegill (lit. “owl mirror”), has been approved by the Naming Committee, but not without reservations.

The name has an apparently rich history. The Naming Committee refered to a science column Jón Gunnar Þorsteinsson in their ruling, wherein it is pointed out that one of the earliest occurrences of this name can be traced back to a German poem, Till Eulenspiegel (“To Owlmirror”). The Owlmirror of medieval legend was a prankster and a trickster from the 14th century.

The name spread across many countries, Iceland amongst them, although in Iceland it was used more as a nickname. While nicknames have received official approval before, and Ugluspegill can be declined in accordance with Icelandic grammar, they pointed out that nicknames can be used abusively towards others. In this instance, however, the Committee decided to grant Ugluspegill the benefit of the doubt.

In other names the Committee approved, the man’s name Kinan and the women’s names Silfra, List and Susie were all given the green light.

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