how many middle names ?

[Maciamo]

This issue was raised in another topic and I found it intersting to develop. You know that Japanese people don't have middle names. I think American jave only one, but always do. How is it in your country ?

I know that in France and Belgium, the number of middle names varies greatly from a family to another. It is now commin to have 2 (godfather and mother), but some people still have 4, 5 or more (like my parents). It is very possible to have 10 middle names (snob people ?).

I am interested to know how it is in every other country. ;)

[thomas]

I have two middle names, but they're only used on a few official documents. One of them is my father's first name, I don't know who chose the second middle name.

I've asked the same question in another thread, but haven't received any reply: I always wondered about Anglo-Saxon middle names. Some of them do not appear to be first names such as George Walker Bush.

[nebosuke]

In the U.S. anything goes. Many parents just choose a combination of names that sound good together. It is fairly common to have a middle name taken from a grandparent or other favorite relative, but there really is no tradition in most cases. It is just as likely to be a friend's name or a famous person the parents are fond of. It could also be a case where the parents couldn't exaclt agree upon a first name, so one picks the first and the other picks the middle. That is what happened in my case, my mom wouldn't go for what my dad wanted as a first name, so she told him to do whatever he wants with the middle. Luckily he didn't use what he had in mind as a first name, but gave me two middle names instead - "Otis Spann."

[deborah gormley]

here in Ireland it is very common to have two middle names, they are not ever used, and they are usually only to reflect the names of grandparents ect,,but recently a third name has been added for some reason unknown to me,, I have four middle names that are only on my birth certificate, and have never been writen anywhere else,, even at my wedding I requested that only my first and last name be used,(I hated them). as for both my children I did not allow them to be given a second or third name they are first name only children(with surname of course)and I hope they dont mind when they get older.

[Maciamo]

Yes, of course I never use my middle names neither. Even people of my family or my closest friends don't know them. It was so funny when I had to explain that to the kuyakusho in Japan to get my gaikokujin torokusho; they absolutely wanted me to write them in katakana, but it was almost impossible because there was no such sounds in kana. I told them not to care, that they were not used, but they insisted.

[Luxpyre]

I have just the one middle name. Odell. I guess it was my dad's and my grandfather's middle name too. I don't know how it got started, or if there is any significance behind it.

[moyashi]

I have 1 middle name which is "Gerhard" which is my grandfather's (opa's) first name. Peace offering .. it seems. Eleina's middle name I let my mother choose, I couldn't figure one out and it a sense a peace offering. She chose "Karinna". A combination of my mother's name and which happens to be my sister's middle name.

My last name is actually 2. So, I techinally have no parents since 1 of the names is my mothers maiden name and the other my father's family name.

Story in the family is that my Great Grandfather is Hoffmann von Fallersleben. Author of the German National Anthem. Yet, my Great Grandmother was his maid.
hahaha ....

What's in a name?

[thomas]

Interesting ancestry... :)

My family also originates from Northern Germany, being Lutheran makes them part of a very small minority in Austria.

[moyashi]

Not sure of my religious back ground.

Father seems to be Catholic, but has never been to church, neither have my Grandparents far as I can tell. I wonder if they converted before World War I? And my mother's side, I have no clue, although she was very persistant about me having had communion (err what ever the Catholic church makes children go through).

I was baptised Lutheran in the states.

[Reinaert]

In our region it's quite common to have 3 to 5 names. Southern Catholic Dutch

Boys and girls.

A boy for instance.. Official names: Johannes Wilhelmus Maria Name: Jan
In English: John William Mary

A girl: Official names: Maria Elisabeth Wilhelmina Name Marlies (Mary and Elisabeth together)

But the eldest son of a family sometimes has 5 names.
4 from his grandparents, and 1 like always.. Mary.

The tradition is to name the eldest son after the father of the father.
The eldest daughter is named after the mother of the mother.

Yes, and I have 5 names, because I am the first born of our clan. ;)

[Reinaert]

I have 1 middle name which is "Gerhard" which is my grandfather's (opa's) first name. Peace offering .. it seems. Eleina's middle name I let my mother choose, I couldn't figure one out and it a sense a peace offering. She chose "Karinna". A combination of my mother's name and which happens to be my sister's middle name.
My last name is actually 2. So, I techinally have no parents since 1 of the names is my mothers maiden name and the other my father's family name.
Story in the family is that my Great Grandfather is Hoffmann von Fallersleben. Author of the German National Anthem. Yet, my Great Grandmother was his maid.
hahaha ....
What's in a name?

Gerhard means.. Strong with a spear.
A spear fighter.

I guess Karinna is from Catharina.
Karinna seems Russian to me.

[LeBrok]

It has more sense that roots are from Italian Carina (beautiful) and Latin Carus (love).

[Orchid]

In my country people have only one middle name or don't have it at all. However, even if someone has one, they usually don't say it while introducing themselves etc.

[Antigone]

In Greece people aren't given a middle name, just their first name. Their middle name is always the name of the father, both for male and females.

Because of Greek naming traditions there is almost always x amount of cousins carrying the same name, so it is necessary to use the father's name as a middle name to differentiate between them all.

[Riccardo]

Just the second name, but it's not used officially: Alessandro.

[Reinaert]

Well, I have 5 names.
The first name I have is similar to the Irish name Ryan. In Dutch Rein or Reinaert. (The Fox)
Named after the father of my father.

My second name is after an older brother of my father, who died early as a kid.
My third name is after the father of my mother.
My fourth name is the name of my father.
My fifth name happens to be the name (or part of it) of both my grandma's.

So it's a very traditional thing to have at least 5 names.
It has nothing to do with snobbishness, like suggested somewhere in this thread.

Usually I only use my first name.

[sparkey]

Reinaert, does this map look accurate to you? If so, the regional differences in naming within the Netherlands are very interesting. Does the number of middle names also vary by region within the Netherlands?

[Reinaert]

Reinaert, does this map look accurate to you? If so, the regional differences in naming within the Netherlands are very interesting. Does the number of middle names also vary by region within the Netherlands?

No, I don't think it is.
Maybe it's only the generation born after 2000 I guess.
It's only about the first name.

The map doesn't tell much.
For instance in the yellow area, we have rather simple names that are taken from the official names.

Like I said, my first (rather elite) name given is Reinaert, and that name is used in the form of Ryan...
In the yellow area, people have complex names, but they are simplified into a short variation of the first name.
Catholic areas!
Protestants can use the more difficult names as a standard name.
The so called elite uses typical names, that have little connection with the Netherlands.
So high class girls have a name that ends with an e ;) Wooha.
Celeste.. just an example..

But in common Protestants (Holland) have only 2 names, and Catholics (Brabant) have 3-5.

But the map is correct about cultural differences in The Netherlands.

[Carlitos]

I have two names, the first saint of the day I was born and the second is Carlos because he liked my mother. Placing a child a name composed is a fashion in my country a few decades ago, before there were people with 4 or 5 names, was rare but it happened.

[MagnusAurelius]

Nagasaki is a wise man.

[Venko2257]

In Bulgaria, we generally have only three names: a given name, a patronymic and a family name. This is a relatively recent system, I believe. It must have taken form after the Liberation in 1878, so late 19th - early 20th century.

[PT Tagus]

I have two middle names.