Did Your Ancestors Have Multiple Names?

Rufnamen: Given name or German name; a person’s main given name by which they are usually known and called.

Before the 13^th century A.D. ordinary German people were given only one Rufnamen. After the 13^th century it became common to give a child two given names at baptism, although at times only one name was given.

But some children were christened with three or more given names. That practice was not common, but it did occur. Multiple given names were often the names of parents, other relatives, or baptismal sponsors. Many of these multiple names were dropped as the child matured and later records do not always use all the names the child was given at birth.

One German branch of my family, the Breuningers, liked to use multiple given names when naming their children.

In the 17^th and 18^th centuries, these Breuningers used just two names, like normal Germans. There was Hans Jacob Breuninger (1679-1758) and his son, Hans Ludwig Breuninger (1726-1782).

It was Hans Ludwig Breuninger who began giving his children three names. He named his daughter Anna Maria Catharina Breuninger (1762-1762) and his son Johann Eberhardt Heinrich Breuninger (1764-1823).

Johann Eberhardt Heinrich Breuninger (1764-1823) continued the tradition and christened three of his four children with three names: Johann Martin Friedrich Breuninger (1792-1858), Rosina Catharina Barbara Breuninger (1795-1795), and Rosina Catharina Barbara Breuninger (1796-1796). Yes, the two daughters had the same names. The first died in infancy and it was a common practice to reuse the name of a child who had died.

Johann Martin Friedrich Breuninger

The above Johann Martin Friedrich Breuninger (1792-1858) took giving his children multiple names to a whole new level, especially for his daughters. His children:

Carl Ludwig Friedrich Breuninger (called Carl) (1818-?)
Louis Frederick Peter Breuninger (called Louis) (1819-1890) [my gr-gr-grandfather]
Elisabeth Charlotte Juliana Louisa Breuninger (called “Eliza”) (1821-1872)
Johann Friedrich Ernst Breuninger (1822-1824)
Charlotte Elise Magdalena Breuninger (called Charlotte) (1824-1876)
Johann Christian Friedrich Ernst Breuninger (1826-?)
Charlotte Juliana Ernestina Wilhelmina Eleanora Breuninger (1828-1883)
Eva Charlotta Ernestina Eleanora Wilhelmina Breuninger (called “Lora”) (1831-1896)
Ernestina Frederika Elonora Breuninger (1833-1834)

That was pretty much the end of the multiple naming trend in my Breuninger family.

Except for daughter Charlotte Juliana Ernestina Wilhelmina Eleanora Breuninger (1828-1883), who remained in Germany although her siblings immigrated to America. She married Ernst Julius Huber and they continued the multiple name trend with their children, Ernst Julius Otto Wolfgang Huber, Friederike Ottilie Clara Julia Huber, and Julius Ernst Friedrich Wolfgang Otto Huber. Her siblings ceased using multiple given names in America.

“Louis” Friedrich Peter Breuninger (1819-1890)

What about all those names?

Before the Reformation, Roman Catholics were urged to name children after saints, martyrs, and angels. After the Reformation, Protestants used Biblical names to name their children, most names coming from the Old Testament.  

German children were usually given two names. Boys were usually baptized with the first name of Johannes/Johann/Hans and girls were usually baptized with the first name of Maria, Anna, or Anna Maria.

But they did not go by their first name. They went by and were known by their middle name and their surname. Their middle name was also used in legal records.

A family may have had children named Johann Friedrich, Johann Martin, Johann Ludwig, Maria Catharine, and Maria Barbara, but the children were known as Friedrich, Martin, Ludwig, Catharine, and Barbara.

Children were almost always named for one or more of their baptismal sponsors in German-speaking areas.

There are naming patterns, too, but children were not always named in the following manner, so you can’t necessarily determine parentage this way:

• first born, named after father’s father
• second born, after mother’s father
• third born, after father of the child
• fourth born and on, after uncles of the child

The same pattern applies to daughters but using the maternal side (father’s mother, mother’s mother, etc.).

Names are interesting and knowing how they were used may help with your research.