GERMAN MALE NAMES – OF FRIENDS AND PROTECTORS Regarding popular German male names, one theme jumps out from the current prognosis for the 2024 Top Ten list – there are a lot of links to biblical sources among the up-and-coming German male names, if not necessarily citing Christian roots alone. TEXT: CORNELIA BRELOWSKI
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PHOTOS: UNSPLASH
Let’s see what prophets and other biblical connotations are present on the nationwide trend prognosis for German male names in 2024 – truth be told, it is a wild mix of influences, so we will also cast a glance at the more obvious influences through phenomena of the popular culture. The top German male name ‘Matteo’ stays in 1st position and is the Italian version of the more traditional German names Matthias and Matthäus. ‘Matteo’ stands for ‘God’s 94
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Issue 11 3
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January 2024
(or Yahweh’s) gift’. That way, it relates to both the Old Testament and the Tanakh. Now the second name on the list, deriving from Greek, is Theo, basically carrying the same meaning. In Greek, it relates directly to the word ‘theos’, meaning ‘God’. In third position, the former No. 10 of German male names ‘Liam’ has Irish roots and is a variation of William – obviously a name of longstanding royal tradition, both here and abroad. Liam stands for ‘the deter-
mined, strong-minded protector’ and may thus be given to the son who is hoped to help protect the family during hard times (much like Ganesha, the most popular deity in India). The name has been popular in the UK since the 80s , in Ireland it had its revival in popularity during the 90s – possibly due to the fast ascent of the band ‘Oasis’ with lead singer Liam Gallagher as of 1991. Looking at No. 4, we have ‘Ben’ as a newcomer. The abbreviation of Benjamin simply means ‘son’ – but also stands for the blessed, and the ‘good speaker’. It has both Germanic, Hebrew as well as Arabic connotations, however the current trend may have been sparked by Berlin-based singer and TV presenter ‘Ben’, whose career has closely been