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Home > Just for Kids
> What's In a Name? > John and Margaret:
Universal Names
Some
names are found in all languages, or are similar in
all languages. Smith, the most common name in the United
States, has equivalents in other languages too. In Germany,
Smith translates as Schmidt, and in Scandinavian the
name is Smed; Miller may have once been Muller in German
and was Americanized once the Muller ancestor came to
the U.S. Similarly, Johnson is the same as the Swedish
Johanson or the Dutch Jensen or Janson.
In The Melting Pot Book of Family Names, Connie
Lockhart Ellefson has a chart of first name equivalents
for a variety of countries. Take the name John, for
example, which she finds in these countries below:
| Bulgaria and Czechoslovakia, Russia
and the Ukraine: Ivan |
Israel: Yochanan |
| Denmark: Jens |
Italy: Giovanni |
| England and the U.S.: John |
Latvia: Janis |
| Finland: Jani |
Lithuania: Jonas |
| France: Jean |
Netherlands and Poland, Sweden:
Jan |
| Germany: Johann |
Portugal: Joao |
| Greece: Ioannikios |
Romania: Iancu |
| Hawaii: Keoni |
Scotland: Ian |
| Hungary: Janos |
Spain: Juan |
| Ireland: Sean |
And Margaret in many other languages. . .
| Armenia: Markarid |
Ireland: Margaret, Pegeen |
| Basque, Lithuania and Spain:
Margarita |
Israel: Margalit |
| Bulgaria and Czechoslovakia:
Marketa |
Italy: Margharita |
| Denmark: MargaretheGrieta |
Latvia: Margarita |
| England: Margaret, Marjory |
Netherlands: Grirtje |
| Finland: Marjatta |
Poland: Malgorzata |
| France: Marguerite, Margaux |
Portugal: Margarida, Guidinhal |
| Germany: Margarete, Gretchen |
Russia: Margarete, Margosha |
| Greece: Gryta |
Scotland: Margaret, Maireada |
| Hawaii: Makaleka |
Sweden: Margareta, Margit |
| Hungary and Norway: Margit,
Margo |
Ukraine: Margaryta |
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