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ArchivesQuestions about use of Luther as a given name in Germany
Luther has been well established as a first name in English speaking countries in honor of Martin Luther for quite some time.
The surname Luther is itself derived from given names either Luither or Lothar. (Hans Bahlow's book on German surnames says it's hard to distinguish between the two origins in terms of modern surnames.) One of the given name dictionaries I have from Germany, Walter Burkart's Neues Lexikon der Vornamen, does give Luther as a variant form of Lothar.
But is Luther actually used as a first name in modern Germany? If parents in Germany wanted to name a son Luther, would they be allowed to, or would it be prohibited under the law in Germany that prevents surnames from being used as given names? How do modern Germans react when they hear of Americans with Luther as a first name, such as Luther Vandross or Luther Burbank?
The surname Luther is itself derived from given names either Luither or Lothar. (Hans Bahlow's book on German surnames says it's hard to distinguish between the two origins in terms of modern surnames.) One of the given name dictionaries I have from Germany, Walter Burkart's Neues Lexikon der Vornamen, does give Luther as a variant form of Lothar.
But is Luther actually used as a first name in modern Germany? If parents in Germany wanted to name a son Luther, would they be allowed to, or would it be prohibited under the law in Germany that prevents surnames from being used as given names? How do modern Germans react when they hear of Americans with Luther as a first name, such as Luther Vandross or Luther Burbank?
This message was edited 6/22/2009, 1:05 PM
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Replies
Luther as a given name seems to be extremely rare in Germany. W.Seibicke* lists 9 bearers of the name from the 14th century to 1985 (one in 1940, one in the sixties).
Seibicke says: "Luther is not recommendable because of the popularity of the reformer." I wouldn't name my son Luther for the very reason; he would have a hard time at school. There is no law to prohibit the name, though.
I would think that Germans are familiar with Luther at least as a middle name because of the popularity of Martin Luther King. I don't think Luther Vandross or Luther Burbank are very popular in Germany. However, usually Germans are not surprised at anything weird that comes from accross the pond ;—)
* Historisches Deutsches Vornamenbuch
Seibicke says: "Luther is not recommendable because of the popularity of the reformer." I wouldn't name my son Luther for the very reason; he would have a hard time at school. There is no law to prohibit the name, though.
I would think that Germans are familiar with Luther at least as a middle name because of the popularity of Martin Luther King. I don't think Luther Vandross or Luther Burbank are very popular in Germany. However, usually Germans are not surprised at anything weird that comes from accross the pond ;—)
* Historisches Deutsches Vornamenbuch
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LUTHER would probably be given for religious reasons in Germany, that is: denominational reasons. I can imagine quite a bit of mocking in the school yard, a boy called Luther would be confronted with. For one reason it is practically non-existent as a first name, and in Germany we are not used to giving surnames as a forename, like you are in the States. Also, especially with parents who are very religious and emphasize their Lutheranism, little Luther would probably be teased as pius (there are relatively few "pius" people in Germany, religion is not as present in society as in your country.) Of course this is no more than speculation as just about nobody bears this name.
(CALVIN is a completely different case, as fairly few people in Germany are aware of the fact, that this is another reformer's last name; they will much rather associate the name with Calvin Klein and pronounce it as if it were English.)
The word Seibicke uses, is "bekannt," which in this case should rather be translated as "well-known" than "popular." Luther is not a German hero, not for most people.
(CALVIN is a completely different case, as fairly few people in Germany are aware of the fact, that this is another reformer's last name; they will much rather associate the name with Calvin Klein and pronounce it as if it were English.)
The word Seibicke uses, is "bekannt," which in this case should rather be translated as "well-known" than "popular." Luther is not a German hero, not for most people.
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Thank you...
"Well-known" certainly makes more sense than "popular". :)
"Well-known" certainly makes more sense than "popular". :)
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I don't know about Germany ... but Afrikaans-speaking South Africa is firmly Protestant and mostly Calvinist, and both Calvin and Luther are used as boy names, with Calvin often spelled Kalvyn to fit into the modern language.I've known English-speaking South Africans called Calvin too; never a Luther, but I might have missed a few :)
We have a strong tradition of using surnames as given names, for family or personal reasons mostly, not because of fashion. Our early Dutch settlers had a very small pool of names, both surnames and given names, to choose from so they had to find creative ways of combining them.So it would be impossible to legislate against it!
We have a strong tradition of using surnames as given names, for family or personal reasons mostly, not because of fashion. Our early Dutch settlers had a very small pool of names, both surnames and given names, to choose from so they had to find creative ways of combining them.So it would be impossible to legislate against it!
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