Vornamenlexikon (Gra)
German First Names Lexicon
German-English Names Glossary
Also see our English-German Genealogy Glossary and German Surnames Glossary
This is Part 6 of our lexicon of German first names and their meanings.
Ab-Ant | Ara-Cha | Chl-Eri | Erk-Geo
Ger-Götz | Gra-Hans | Hansd-Heinr
More coming | Walb-Wern
| German First Names - Vornamen Gra - Hans |
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| Symbols used: f. (feminine), m. (masculine), Gr. (Greek), Lat. (Latin), OHG (Old High German), Sp. (Spanish). The gender of names is only indicated in cases where that may not be obvious. |
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| Gratia, Grazia Variations of a Latin-based fem. name that is rare today. "Grace" in English. |
Gumpert, Gumprecht m. A variation of Guntbert (below). |
Hadwig, Hedwig f. Old Germanic fem. name meaning "warrior." More under Hedwig below. |
| Greet f. Low German short form of "Margarete"; similar to Swedish Greta (Garbo). |
Gun/Gunn f. Nordic short form of fem. names beginning with Gun- (see Gunhild). |
Hagen m. An old Germanic name meaning roughly "the man from the fenced-in land." Also the name of Siegfried's murderer in the Nibelungenlied saga, which may explain why the name is so rare. |
| Gregor, Gregorius A masc. name of Greek origin meaning "watchful, attentive." A popular name for saints and popes. (The Gregorian calendar is named for its reformer, Pope Gregory XIII.) |
Gunar/Gunnar m. Nordic borrowing, equivalent to German Günter (Gunther). |
Hajo Frisian form of Hagen (above) |
| Gund- and Gunt- names. Although they are not popular given names today, German has a variety of fem. and masc. names formed with the Gun-, Gund- or Gunt- elements (OHG meaning "fight"). Some examples: Gundel f., Gundela f., Gundhilde f., Gundobald m., Gundobert m., Gundolf m., Gundula f., Gunhild/Gunthild f., Guntbert m., Guntberta f., Guntfried m., and Gunthard f. | ||
| Gretchen, Grete/Grethe, Gretel Forms of "Margarethe"; Gretchen and Gretel are diminutive forms of Grete ("little/dear Grete"). |
Gunda, Gunde f. Short forms of fem. names with Gund- or Gunt-. See above. |
Hanke, Hanko m. Low German familiar form of Johannes. |
| Gretje, Grietje A Frisian diminutive form of "Grete" (above). |
Gunter/Gunther, Günter/Günther, Old Germanic masc. name from OHG for "fight"+"army." The name appears in the Nibelungenlied saga and has long remained a popular German name. Famous people: German author Günter Grass, playwright Günther Weisenborn. |
Hanna/Hanne f. Short form of Johanna. Best known: German WWII pilot Hanna Reitsch. |
| Grimald/Grimold, Grimbert, Grimwald Old masc. name rarely used today. "Grim-" may mean "helmet" or "mask." OHG "bert" means "shining" and "wald/t" means "to rule." |
Gustaf, Gustav m. From Swedish, meaning "supporter of the Goths." The name became popular in Germany because of the Swedish king Gustav Adolf, who died in the Battle of Lützen (1632) while fighting for the Protestant side in the Thirty Years War. |
Hannah f. Biblical (Hebrew) fem. name meaning "grace, charm." Best known: German-American author/historian Hannah Arendt. |
| Griselda, Griseldis f. From Italian; a mythological character in Boccaccio's Decameron. |
Gustel, Gusti f. or m. Short forms of Gustav or August/Auguste |
Hannelore f. Double name, a combination of Hanna and Lore (Eleonora). |
| Grit/Gritt, Grita/Gritta, Gritli f. Same as Grete above. Gritli is Swiss. |
Hadburga/Hadeburga f. Old Germanic fem. name meaning "safe from the battle." |
Hannes Short form of Johannes |
| Guda, Gudrun/Gudrune, Gudula f. OHG elements mean "fight, battle"+"secret." Rare today, the name became popular in the 1800s. |
Hadelind/Hadelinde f. Old Germanic fem. name meaning "battle shield." |
Hanno Short form of Johannes |
| Guido m. Latinized German name derived from Wido ("son of the forest"). Related to French "Guy." |
Hademar/Hadamar m. Old Germanic masc. name meaning "famous fighter." |
Hans, Hanns A very common masc. name, a short form of Johann or Johannes ("John" in English). The name was used so much in German that it came to be used in vocabulary: Hanswurst (clown, buffoon), Prahlhans (show-off). |
| German First Names: Abb-Ant | Ara-Cha | Chl-Eri | Erk-Geo Ger-Götz | Gra-Hans | Hansd-Heinr More coming | Walb-Wern |
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