Herman (name)
Look up Herman in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. |
Herman | |
---|---|
Pronunciation | /ˈhɜːrmən/ |
Gender | Male |
Origin | |
Word/name | Germanic languages |
Meaning | army's man |
Region of origin | Northern Europe |
Other names | |
Related names | Hermann, Armand, Armando, Ermanno |
Popularity | see popular names |
Herman is masculine given name, from an ancient Germanic name consisting of the elements harja- "army" and mann- "man". Hermine is the feminine form of Herman.[1] It is first recorded in the 8th century, in the forms Hariman, Heriman, Hairman, Herman.[2]
The given name was taken to England by the Normans, but it became obsolescent as an English given name in the later Middle Ages (while remaining common in Germanic languages). It regained popularity in the English-speaking world in the 19th century, particularly in the United States.[3]
Herman remains widely used in Dutch. Variant forms include German Hermann, French Armand, Italian and Iberian Armando, Italian Ermanno.[3]
Herman has also been in use as a German surname since the 16th century.
The name of Arminius, the 1st-century leader of the Cherusci, became identified with the name Hermann in German historiography in the early modern period; thus, Arminius is traditionally known as Hermann der Cheruskerfürst in German. The name of Arminius is in fact from a stem ermen- "strong". Conflation of this element with the name Herman may indeed date to the medieval period, via variant forms such as Ermin, Ermen, Erman, Ermanno, feminine Ermina, Ermana, Hirmina, Hermena.[4]
Middle Ages
- Herman I (archbishop of Cologne) (d. 924)
- Herman I, Duke of Swabia (d. 949)
- Hermann Billung Duke of Saxony (d. 973)
- Herman II, Duke of Swabia (d. 1003)
- Herman III, Duke of Swabia (d. 1012)
- Herman IV, Duke of Swabia (d. 1038)
- Herman II (archbishop of Cologne) (d. 1056)
- Hermann of Reichenau (1013–1064)
- Herman (bishop), bishop of Ramsbury, Sherborne and Salisbury (d. 1078)
- Herman of Salm (d. 1088)
- Herman II, Margrave of Baden (d. 1130)
- Herman van Horne, bishop of Utrecht (d. 1156)
- Herman of Carinthia (ca. 1100–ca. 1160), Benedictine scholar
- Herman Joseph of Cologne (1150–1243)
- Hermannus Alemannus, Herman the German, 13th century translator
- Hermann von Münster (d. 1392), master glassmaker
- Hermann II, Count of Celje (1365–1435)
- Herman of Valaam, saint of the Russian Orthodox Church and founder of the Valaam Monastery in Karelia (date unknown, 10th to 15th centuries)
Early Modern
- Hermann of Wied, archbishop of Cologne (1477–1552)
- Herman de Lynden (1547–1603), military commander in the Eighty Years' War
- Catharina Herman (died after 1604), Dutch war heroine
- Jobst Herman, Count of Lippe (1625–1678)
- Herman Boerhaave (1668–1738), Dutch botanist
- Herman of Alaska (1756?–1837), Russian missionary to Alaska
Modern
The name Herman was popular in the United States during the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, consistently ranking between 55 and 44 throughout the 1880–1914 period. Beginning with World War I, the name's popularity entered a steady decline for the remainder of the twentieth century, falling below rank 1,000 in the year 2000.[5]
- Herman D. Aldrich (1801–1880), American businessman.
- Herman Melville (1819–1891), American novelist
- Herman Stump (1837–1917), American politician
- Herman W. Hellman (1843-1906) German-born American Jewish businessman
- Herman Lieberman (1870-1941), Polish lawyer and politician.
- Herman Vedel (1875–1948), Danish painter
- Herman Wirth (1885–1981), lay historian and scholar
- Herman Barron (1909–1978), American professional golfer
- Herman R. Salmon (1913–1980), American barnstormer, air racer, and test pilot
- Herman Heine Goldstine (1913–2004), American mathematician and computer scientist
- Herman Wouk (born 1915), American author
- Herman Goldner (1916–2010), American politician
- Herman van Bekkum (born 1932), Dutch chemist
- Herman (Swaiko) (born 1931), former head of the Orthodox Church in America
- Herman Berendsen (born 1934), Dutch chemist
- Herman Bouma (born 1934), Dutch vision researcher and gerontechnologist
- Herman Suselbeek (born 1943), Dutch rower
- Herman Van Springel (born 1943), Belgian cyclist
- Herman van Veen (born 1945) Dutch stage performer, actor, musician, singer/songwriter and author
- Herman Cain (b. 1945), African-American Tea Party activist
- Herman Van Rompuy (born 1947), Belgian politician, first President of the European Council
- Herman (1947-), of Herman's Hermits, also known as Peter Noone
- Herman Claudius van Riemsdijk (born 1948)
- Herman Edwards (born 1954)
- Herman José (born 1954), Portuguese showman, singer and comedian
- Herman Li (李康敏 Lǐ Kāng Mǐn, b. 1976), Chinese musician
- Herman Terrado (b. 1989), Guam-born American mixed martial artist
Fictional characters
- Herman Hermann, a one-armed character from the American television sitcom The Simpsons
- Herman Munster from American television sitcom The Munsters
- Herman Melleville, a monster from Doug's 1st Movie
- Herman I Vermin, a character created by American cartoonist Marc Hempel
- Herman Toothrot, character from LucasArts' Monkey Island
- Herman Brooks, the titular character of the American television sitcom Herman's Head
- Colonel Herman Dietrich, a character from Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark
- Herman the mouse, a character created by American animation studio Famous Studios (a.k.a. Paramount Cartoon Studios)
As a surname
Variants Herrmann, Herrman, Herman, Hermann, Hermanns
Early modern
- Nikolaus Herman (c.1500–1561), German cantor and hymn writer
- Augustine Herman (1621–1686), Bohemian explorer of North America
- Jakob Hermann (1678–1733), Swiss mathematician
Modern
- Henry Herman, pen name of Henry Heydrac D'Arco (1832-1894), English dramatist and novelist
- Oskar Herman (1886–1974), Croatian painter
- Róża Herman (1902–1995), Polish chess master
- Jerry Herman (born 1931), American composer
- Vilim Herman (born 1949), Croatian university professor, politician and former representative in the Croatian Parliament
- Arthur L. Herman (born 1956), American historian
- Hanna Herman (b. 1959), Ukrainian state and political activist
- Babe Herman, Major League Baseball right fielder
- Billy Herman, Major League Baseball second baseman
- David Herman, American actor
- Elisabeth Hermans, Belgian soprano
- Woody Herman, American jazz clarinetist and big band leader
- Yaron Herman, Israeli jazz pianist
see also:
Fictional characters
- Pee-wee Herman, a character played by actor Paul Reubens
- Gunther Hermann, a character from the computer game Deus Ex
- Herman Carter/The Doctor, a character from the horror game Dead by Daylight