Parents in France have been banned from calling their newborn a very common name

A couple in France has said that they feel "attacked by the state" after they were banned from calling their baby boy Amber.

A court has ruled that they can't use the name as it could leave the child's sexual identity unclear. The couple, who are two women, have said that they believe the ruling is a case of homophobia, reports The Telegraph. Their son was born in January but when they went to register his name as Ambre (the French spelling of the name) with the local registrar in the town of Lorient in Brittany, they were refused. A local family court ruled earlier this year that they should be allowed to name their son Ambre but the local prosecutor is appealing the decision. “Society is very unfair,” said one of the boy’s mothers Alice Gondelle. “It allows ridiculous first names like ‘Clitorine.’ I wonder why it is that with a name as classic and ancient (as Ambre) can’t get through and it is the state that is attacking us in the courts?” The name Amber , which is relatively common in Anglophone countries, is pretty rare in France. The women are being supported by Les Enfants d'arc-en-ciil, a group that promotes the rights of gay parents.