Experimental pop singer Grimes and husband Elon Musk, he of Tesla fame, garnered a bit of attention earlier this year when the two announced that their first child’s name was X Æ A-12.
The explanation for the name involved elven spelling, aircraft, and a great song by Burial, and sure. But as many people quickly pointed out: The name was not technically permissible by California law.
California says names must be made up of the “26 characters” of the English language, which would seem to exclude any numbers, hyphens, or characters like Æ.
In an Instagram post on Sunday, Grimes responded to a commenter, and said that the name had in fact been changed.
So, the number is gone, but they’re still using the Æ character, which again — might not be permitted.
If you’re wondering how the name is pronounced, don’t worry, it’s not clear that Grimes and Musk are even in agreement in how it’s pronounced.
Via Uproxx:
As for how to say the name, Grimes and Musk have offered two different explanations. Grimes said earlier this month, “It’s just X, like the letter X. Then A.I. Like how you said the letter A then I.” Meanwhile, Musk told Joe Rogan, “So, it’s just X, the letter X, and then the Æ is pronounced ‘Ash.’”
Anyway, that’s what’s going on with all of this.
