All About Middle Names

Middle Names.

Do you have one? Do you like it? Know what it means and how it’s affecting you?

Did you know… 17 American Presidents weren’t given one!

We didn’t even have them in the UK until the 16th century.

How they began is as an extra Christian name at confirmation ceremonies. These extra names were usually the mother’s maiden name, the idea being that this would preserve her name.

What happened later on in history was that other names were taken on as middle names to make the name seem more interesting. They were sometimes then used as an alternative if someone didn’t like their first name.

Some people love their middle names so much they adopt them permanently as their first name.

Here are some famous names examples of their original names, and you’ll see the middle names that they went on to use as a first name:

Nelust Wyclef Jean

Alexander James Naughtie

George Ivan (Van) Morrison

Dorothy Faye Dunaway

Marie Dionne Warwick

Roberta Joan (Joni) Mitchell

Can you imagine Van Morrison being called George? It just doesn’t have the same ring to it does it?

Or how about ‘Heartbreaker’ being sung by Marie instead of Dionne? It’s unimaginable isn’t it?

Here are some celebrity middle names:

Uma Karuna Thurman

Geri Estolle Halliwell

Ben Geza Affleck

Quincy Delight Jones

Kate Garry Hudson

I’m relieved none of them decided to use their middle name in place of their first name!

The meaning of your middle name affects you equally as much as your first name or surname.

Find out all about Name Numerology here

Go from Middle names to Home page - Meaning of names