Editing German name (section)

==Forenames==
{{anchor|Vorname}}{{anchor|Rufname}}
The ''Vorname'' (in English ''[[given name|forename]]'') is usually given to a child by the parents shortly after birth. It is common to give a child several ''Vornamen''  (forenames), one of them intended for everyday use and known as the ''Rufname'' ("appellation name" or "call name"). 
This ''Rufname'' is often underlined on official documents, as it is sometimes the second or third name in the sequence of given names on official record, even though it is the given name in daily use from childhood.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20090221074430/http://www.frag-rechtstipps.de/Rufnamenbezeichnung__f10009.html Rechtstipps – der private Rechtsberater]</ref> For example, in the resume submitted by mathematician [[Emmy Noether]] to Erlangen University in 1907,<ref>Erlangen University archive, ''Promotionsakt Emmy Noether'' (1907/08, NR. 2988); reproduced in: ''Emmy Noether, Gesammelte Abhandlungen – Collected Papers'', ed. N. Jacobson 1983; online facsimile at [http://www.physikerinnen.de/noetherlebenslauf.html physikerinnen.de/noetherlebenslauf.html] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929100418/http://www.physikerinnen.de/noetherlebenslauf.html |date=2007-09-29 }}.</ref>

{{Poem quote|"Ich, Amalie <u>Emmy</u> Noether, bayerischer Staatsangehörigkeit und israelitischer Konfession, bin geboren zu Erlangen am 23. März 1882 ..."
"I, Amalie <u>Emmy</u> Noether, of [[Kingdom of Bavaria|Bavarian nationality]] and of Israelite confession, born in Erlangen on 23 March 1882..."}}

the underlining of ''Emmy'' communicates that this is the ''Rufname'', even though it is the second of two official given names.

In Germany, the chosen name must be approved by the local [[Standesamt]]  (civil registry office). Although a 1980 law previously stated that the name must indicate the gender of the child, a 2008 court ruling unanimously upheld the right of parents to decide their child's name, stating that the only legal limitation is that the name does not negatively affect the well-being of the child.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.verwaltungsvorschriften-im-internet.de/bsvwvbund_11081980_VII31331317.htm | title=Allgemeine Verwaltungsvorschrift zum Gesetz über die Änderung von Familiennamen und Vornamen (NamÄndVwV) }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.bverfg.de/e/rk20081205_1bvr057607.html | title=Bundesverfassungsgericht - Entscheidungen - Verweigerung der Eintragung eines in Indien für Mädchen und Jungen gebräuchlichen Vornamens ins Geburtsregister ohne Hinzufügung eines weiteren, das Geschlecht des Kindes eindeutig anzeigenden Vornamens verletzt Eltern und Kind in Grundrechten | date=5 December 2008 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://blogs.loc.gov/law/2017/08/naming-laws-in-germany/ | title=Naming Laws in Germany &#124; in Custodia Legis: Law Librarians of Congress | date=10 August 2017 }}</ref>

Among [[German nobility]], a fashion arose in the early modern period{{Citation needed|date=October 2015}} to give a large number of forenames, often six or more. This fashion was to some extent copied by the [[Bourgeoisie|bourgeois class]], but subsided again after the end of the 19th century, so that while two or three forenames remain common, a larger number is now rare. The practice persists among German nobility, e.g. Johann Friedrich <u>''Konrad''</u> Carl Eduard Horst Arnold Matthias, Prince of Saxe-Meiningen, Duke of Saxony (b. 1952), [[Prince Ernst August of Hanover (born 1954)|<u>''Ernst August''</u> Albert Paul Otto Rupprecht Oskar Berthold Friedrich-Ferdinand Christian-Ludwig, Prince of Hanover]] (b. 1954), [[Prince Christian of Hanover (born 1985)|''Christian'' Heinrich Clemens Paul Frank Peter Welf Wilhelm-Ernst Friedrich Franz Prince of Hanover and Dukelin, Duke of Brunswick and Lüneburg]] (b. 1985).

===Popular given names===
Traditionally, there are [[German dialects|dialectal]] differences between the regions of German-speaking Europe, especially visible in the forms of [[hypocorism]]s. These differences are still perceptible in the list of most popular names, even though they are marginalized by super-regional fashionable trends: As of 2012, the top ten given names of [[Baden-Württemberg]] (Southern Germany) and of [[Schleswig-Holstein]] (Northern Germany) share the entries ''Ben, Paul, Finn, Luca, Max'' (male), ''Mia, Emma, Lea, Leonie, Anna, Lena, Hanna'', while Schleswig-Holstein retains the traditionally northern (Low German) forms ''Lasse'' (male) and ''Neele'' (female) in the top ten.<ref>[http://www.beliebte-vornamen.de/jahrgang/j2012/bw2012 Babynamen 2012 in Baden-Württemberg], [Babynamen 2012 in Schleswig-Holstein] at beliebte-vornamen.de</ref>

The following table gives the most popular given names in Germany for every tenth year (since 1890).{{clarify|date=March 2015}}<!--the source linked gives the rankings per decade also, but the lists given here seem to pertain to the single year cited. please use the decades' rankings instead--><ref>[http://www.firstnamesgermany.com/common-german-names/ firstnamesgermany.com], [http://www.beliebte-vornamen.de/jahrgang/j2020 beliebte-vornamen.de]; see also [http://www.statistik.at/web_de/statistiken/bevoelkerung/geburten/haeufigste_vornamen/ Statistik Austria] {{webarchive|url=https://archive.today/20141229173356/http://www.statistik.at/web_de/statistiken/bevoelkerung/geburten/haeufigste_vornamen/ |date=2014-12-29 }}; [http://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/portal/de/index/themen/01/02/blank/dos/prenoms/01.html Swiss Federal Statistical Office] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130804123027/http://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/portal/de/index/themen/01/02/blank/dos/prenoms/01.html |date=2013-08-04 }}; [[:wikt:de:Verzeichnis:Deutsch/Liste der häufigsten männlichen Vornamen Deutschlands|German Wiktionary (masculine)]], [[:wikt:de:Verzeichnis:Deutsch/Liste der häufigsten weiblichen Vornamen Deutschlands|German Wiktionary (feminine)]].</ref>

{|class="wikitable"
|-
|Year||Feminine||Masculine
|-
|1890
|
Anna,
Martha / Marta,
Frieda / Frida,
Berta / Beertha,
Emma,
Marie,
Maria,
Margarethe / Margarete,
Erna,
Elsa
<!-- Anyone know why Maria and Maria count as two names when Anna/Anne, Sophie/Sofie count as one? also, Luca is a version of Lucas, isn't it? -->
|
Carl / Karl,
Wilhelm,
Otto,
Heinrich,
Friedrich,
Paul,
Hans,
Gustav,
Max,
Ernst
|-
|1900
|
Anna,
Martha / Marta,
Frieda / Frida,
Emma,
Marie,
Elisabeth,
Maria,
Berta / Bertha,
Gertrud,
Margarethe / Margarete
|
Wilhelm,
Carl / Karl,
Heinrich,
Hermann,
Friedrich,
Paul,
Otto,
Ernst,
Hans,
Walter / Walther
|-
|1910
|
Gertrud,
Erna,
Martha / Marta,
Hertha / Herta,
Margarethe / Margarete,
Anna,
Käthe,
Elisabeth,
Frieda / Frida,
Hildegard,
|
Walter / Walther,
Carl / Karl,
Hans,
Wilhelm,
Otto,
Curt / Kurt,
Heinrich,
Hermann,
Paul,
Helmut / Helmuth
|-
|1920
|
Ilse,
Hildegard,
Gertrud,
Irmgard,
Gerda,
Lieselotte,
Elfriede,
Ursula,
Edith,
Erna
|
Hans,
Carl / Karl,
Heinz,
Curt / Kurt,
Werner,
Walter / Walther,
Günter / Günther,
Herbert,
Helmut / Helmuth,
Gerhard,
Rolf
|-
|1930
|
Ursula,
Helga,
Gisela,
Inge,
Gerda,
Ingrid,
Ingeborg,
Ilse,
Edith,
Hildegard
|
Günter / Günther,
Hans,
Carl / Karl,
Heinz,
Werner,
Gerhard,
Horst,
Helmut / Helmuth,
Walter / Walther,
Curt / Kurt,
Rolf
|-
|1940
|
Karin,
Ingrid,
Helga,
Renate,
Elke,
Ursula,
Erika,
Christa,
Gisela,
Monika
|
Peter,
Klaus / Claus,
Hans,
Jürgen,
Dieter,
Günter / Günther,
Horst,
Manfred,
Uwe,
Wolfgang
|-
|1950
|
Brigitte,
Renate,
Karin,
Angelika,
Monika,
Ursula,
Ingrid,
Marion,
Barbara,
Gisela, Regina
|
Peter,
Hans,
Wolfgang,
Klaus / Claus,
Manfred,
Jürgen,
Michael,
Bernd,
Werner,
Günter / Günther
|-
|1960
|
Sabine,
Susanne,
Petra,
Birgit,
Gabriele,
Andrea,
Martina,
Ute,
Heike,
Angelika
|
Thomas,
Michael,
Andreas,
Peter,
Frank,
Uwe,
Klaus / Claus,
Stefan / Stephan,
Jürgen,
Jörg
|-
|1970
|
Nicole,
Anja,
Claudia,
Stefanie / Stephanie,
Andrea,
Tanja,
Katrin / Catrin / Kathrin,
Susanne,
Petra,
Sabine
|
Stefan / Stephan,
Michael,
Andreas,
Thomas,
Frank,
Markus / Marcus,
Christian,
Oliver,
Matthias,
Torsten
|-
|1980
|
Julia,
Katrin / Catrin / Kathrin,
Stefanie / Stephanie,
Melanie,
Sandra,
Anja,
Nicole,
Nadine,
Christina,
Sabrina
|
Christian,
Michael,
Sebastian,
Stefan / Stephan,
Jan,
Daniel,
Martin,
Dennis,
Alexander,
Thomas
|-
|1990
|
Julia,
Sarah / Sara,
Jennifer,
Katharina,
Lisa,
Christina,
Jessika / Jessica,
Anna,
Laura,
Melanie
|
Jan,
Tobias,
Christian,
Alexander,
Daniel,
Patrick,
Dennis,
Sebastian,
Marcel,
Philipp
|-
|2000
|
Anna,
Lea / Leah,
Sarah / Sara,
Hannah / Hanna,
Michelle,
Laura,
Lisa,
Lara,
Lena,
Julia
|
Lukas / Lucas,
Jan,
Tim,
Finn / Fynn,
Leon,
Niklas / Niclas,
Tom,
Jonas,
Jannik / Yannik / Yannick / Yannic,
Luca / Luka
|-
|2010
|
Mia,
Hannah / Hanna,
Lena,
Lea / Leah,
Emma,
Anna,
Leonie / Leoni,
Lilli / Lilly / Lili,
Emily / Emilie,
Lina
|
Leon,
Lukas / Lucas,
Ben,
Finn / Fynn,
Jonas,
Paul,
Luis / Louis,
Maximilian,
Luca / Luka,
Felix
|-
|2020
|
Mia,
Emilia,
Hannah / Hanna,
Emma, 
Sofia / Sophia,
Lina,
Ella,
Mila,
Clara,
Lea / Leah
|
Noah / Noa,
Ben,
Mateo / Matteo / Matheo / Mattheo,
Finn / Fynn,
Leon,
Elias / Elyas,
Paul,
Henry / Henri,
Luis / Louis,
Felix
|}