Last Updated on March 25, 2020
Many people, in recent weeks, have joked that there would be a spike in baby names to the effect of “Corona,” “Covid,” or “Virus,” but, according to reports from India, a baby has already been given a Coronavirus-relevant name.
According to local press, a baby in Uttar Pradesh has been named “Corona” after the deadly Covid-19 locks down much of the global population out of fears of the deadly disease spreading.
The uncle of a baby girl born on Sunday decided to give his niece the unorthodox name as the coronavirus has been the one issue to unite the world.
Before giving the child the unusual name, the child’s uncle asked for permission from the mother.
The baby born in Sohgaura village has become the talk of the town as India begins quarantining over a billion people.
According to NDTV:
A newborn girl in Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh, has been named Corona, after the Coronavirus pandemic that has affected millions worldwide. She was born on Sunday, the day of the ‘janata curfew’ in India when the nation observed a self-imposed curfew called by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to tackle the novel coronavirus outbreak.
India has reported over 500 cases of the deadly coronavirus and 10 reported deaths, according to the BBC.
Conflicting reports from Monterrey, in Mexico, suggested the existence of a hoax where local social media spoke about the birth of a boy named “Dylan Covid.”
However, these reports were refuted by a local journalist soon after the rumors broke.
Many continue to joke about bizarre names attributed to the coronavirus potentially emerging in upcoming months.
The bulk of the jokes appear to emanate from lesser developed countries–particular in South America and Africa–where unusual names are common in more disaffected areas.