Slamet Hari Natal, a resident of Malang regency, shows his ID card. He was born on Christmas Day and the Christian midwife suggested he be named after the Indonesian Christmas greeting. JAKARTA POST
A 54-year-old man living in Malang regency, East Java, was named Slamet Hari Natal, meaning Merry Christmas, by his parents because he was born on Dec. 25, 1962.
“Yes, that’s my name,” he said as quoted by tribunnews.com on Tuesday.
He showed his ID card and family card, which said his name was “Slamet Hari Natal.”
“It was supposed to be Selamat Hari Natal, but because we are Javanese, it became Slamet,” he said.
He said his mother gave birth to him in the house of the midwife, named Akas Kiyo, in Tumpang, Malang. The midwife was Christian and suggested his parents to name him Selamat Hari Natal, the Indonesian Christmas greeting. His parents, although Muslims, decided to accept the suggestion but named him Slamet instead. Slamet is a common Javanese name and loosely translates to “safe”.
“They said they didn’t want to think hard for the name, and they had that name ready, so they accepted the suggestion,” he said.
He has one sister named Mujiati.
Although his name is Slamet Hari Natal and he is a Muslim, he said he never received any criticism from his neighbors. “No, never. We practice tolerance here,” he said.