A mother who calls her son, Lucifer, has defended the controversial name choice after trolls dubbed her “cruel”.
Ronni Lily, 27, and her partner, Brad, chose the unusual forename for their son, who was born in January this year.
Lucifer means ‘bearer of light’ or ‘Morning Star’, but is more commonly known as the name of the devil and is banned in some countries.
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While the name isn’t illegal in the UK, it certainly raises a few eyebrows.
The couple from Birmingham, West Midlands, are not religious and instead, were inspired to pick the name after watching the Netflix series, Lucifer.
Mum-of-four, Ronni Lily told What’s The Jam, it’s perfect for her son.
The couple also have three older children; Lola, six, Lincoln, three and Lilac, two.
She said: “We named our second son Lucifer.
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“Trolls told me it’s illegal, but we love it.
“We are so blessed to have two boys and two girls and in a boy, girl, boy, girl order.
“We had a deal that I had final say on our daughter’s names and Brad could choose our son’s names.
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“When I was pregnant, he had just finished watching the show [Lucifer] and we both agreed it was a pretty cool name.
“Of course we are aware of a certain connotation, but we are not religious.”
Little Lucifer Ashley entered the world on 20 January.
But his parents chose his name when Ronni was 16 weeks pregnant.
It wasn’t a last-minute decision and no other names swayed their choice throughout the nine months.
Ronni said: “We both loved it from the start and still do.”
Despite their firm choice, the couple have been met with a strong mix of opinions from loved ones.
Ronni said: “One family member didn’t hold back.
“Not only did she tell us she absolutely hated it, she actually said it was an ‘abomination’ to call a baby that name.
“She still won’t use his full name but she calls him Luci.
“[But] my dad loved it straight away, he said it was really different and bold and to stick with it.”
However, when Ronni announced her son’s arrival and name in a mum’s group online, she was met with fierce criticism.
Concerned strangers warned the mum that her son would be bullied, while horrified parents said it was “illegal” and “cruel”
Ronni, a trained teaching assistant, disagrees and argues children are more concerned by branded trainers than unusual names these days.
She said: “If a kid is a bully, they will find something to pick on.
“I teach all my children positive affirmations and to be confident and headstrong.
“I’m not concerned his name will cause him problems at school or later in life.”
“On Facebook, people said they hoped it was only a nickname and told me I wouldn’t be legally allowed to register him with that name.
“Other parents said I’ve named him after the devil, so he will be like the devil.
“That’s just stupid, you can’t negatively label a child.
“His name is unusual but strong and I just ignored troll comments, what we call our child has nothing to do with them.
“I’m very hard-skinned and positive comments outweighed any negative comments and most importantly, we love it.”
Ronni claims other mums have admitted they are secretly jealous they haven’t used the name themselves.
She said: “Amid the negative comments and judgement, lots of other mums admitted they loved the name and had considered using it but let their worries get the better of them and other people put them off.
“I’m sad that so many parents admitted online that they loved the name, but decided against it due to peer pressure and outdated views.
“When he was born, midwives told us they loved the name and encouraged us not to change it.”
The controversial moniker was banned in New Zealand in 2013, but Ronni insists she had no issues officially registering Lucifer Ashley in the UK.
Ronni said: “At the Registrar office, we had no problems at all.
“No raised eyebrows or gasps of disgust.
“The registrar simply confirmed the spelling and that was it.
“I’m sure they hear far worse names every day.
“I did Google where his name is illegal and I don’t know if that means he can’t live or travel there or if it’s only illegal to be registered with that name in that country.
“I haven’t given any thought to if he could get married in church, if he ever wanted to.
“I really don’t think there will be any long-term problems, but he has a common middle name he can use if he ever wants or needs to.”
When introducing Lucifer to strangers in real life, Ronni has been met with only positive experiences – and a few shocked reactions.
She said: “Generally people love it, but a few have given me a nervous laugh.
“Sometimes when people ask I warn them first and say ‘it’s quite unusual’ or controversial.
“That’s just to give them a moment to know that I’m not going to care what they say.
“Ultimately, people either like It or don’t, but their opinion isn’t relevant.
“[My son] is such a cheeky chap.
“There is nothing ‘devilish’ about his behaviour or personality.
“He is Lucifer, the legend.
“There is nothing negative about his name.”
