A Turkish Court ordered a man to pay his ex-wife compensation for both material and moral damages after he saved her number as “Chubby” in his phone’s contact list.
Spouses often come up with nicknames for each other, some more endearing than others, but rarely do these end up as a reason for a divorce. Exceptions do occur, though, as was the case with a Turkish couple who broke up over how the husband had his wife’s name saved in his phone. The Court of Cassation ruled that the woman should be compensated for being saved as ‘Tombek’, which is apparently Turkish for ‘Chubby’. The nickname came to light during court proceedings as the couple went through a divorce, and the woman claimed that the derogatory nickname was degrading and damaging to their marital relationship.
According to Turkish news outlet Haberler, the court found the husband at fault for registering his wife as ‘chubby’ in a divorce case in the city of Uşak and ordered him to pay his former spouse financial compensation. The decision now constitutes legal precedent, so Turkish husbands should really think twice about saving their spouses by their nicknames in their phones.
The Court of Cassation’s ruling in this unusual divorce case has sparked a heated social media debate, with some applauding the decision and others claiming thay ‘Chubby’ may have been an endearing nickname.
“Being chubby isn’t bad, and to be called chubby ain’t an insult. It can sound cute,” one person commented. “Probably the husband didn’t mean it maliciously. I hope the wife didn’t take it so. I’m sorry such small things can send people, even a family member, to jail.”
