Published on 10/23/2020 06:56 By Rajnandini Roychoudhury;Monisha Kochhar
Edited by Monisha Kochhar | Fact-checked by
It’s natural to spend time thinking long and hard about what to name your baby boy.
But while choosing a name for him, there are a lot of factors that come into play. Is the name easy to pronounce, and suitable for the personality of your child?
Germany has a long history and is rich in culture and tradition. Like every other country and language, it comes with its fair share of strong names for boys.
Be it the popular names like “Maximilian”, which means “greatest”, like “Wilhelm”, or something as simple as “Nils”, German boy names are full of surprises. Check out the following list of our top 100 German baby names, segregated into different categories to make the selection process easier for you.
Famous People With German Names
This list of German boy names is inspired by famous people, most of whom are German or have German heritage. Names in Germany are often influenced by popular figures at the time, so you may recognize a few and use them to inspire your own name choice for your little boy.
1. Anton (Latin origin), meaning “priceless” or “worthy of praise”. An apt name for the Russian-German DJ and music producer Anton Zaslavski, who usually goes by Zedd.
2. Armin (Iran, German origin), meaning “guardian” or “defender”. This name is known because of the actor Armin Mueller Stahl, or the famous DJ Armin Van Burren.
3. Arnold (English and German origin), meaning “eagle power”. You probably recognize the name from Arnold Schwarzenegger, the Austrian-born American bodybuilder-turned-actor-turned-politician.
4. Botho (German origin), meaning “commander” or “”. You may know of Botho Strauss, the German playwright. The name is sometimes spelled Bodo.
5. Christoph (Greek origin), meaning “the one who holds Christ in his heart.” This German name has its origin from the Greek name Christophorus and you may recognize it from the famous actor Christoph Waltz.
6. Friedrich (German origin), meaning “peaceful ruler”. The name is known from the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche.
7. Hans (Scandinavian origin), meaning “God is gracious”. The name is associated with famous film score composer Hans Zimmer, who composed music for Hollywood hits like Interstellar, Inception and the likes. German names are often derived from names in other languages.
8. Jens (Scandinavian origin), meaning “God is gracious”. You might know this German name from Jens Weißflog, who is a former ski jumper, and one of the most successful in the history of the sport.
9. Jonas (Hebrew origin), meaning “dove”. While not German, you probably know this name from the pop band The Jonas Brothers. In fact, it’s one of the most popular names for boys in the world.
10. Jürgen (Greek origin), meaning “earth worker”. You might have heard of this German name from the famous actors Jürgen Prochnow and Jürgen Peter Vogel.
11. Karl (German origin), meaning “strong man”. This German name is linked to the famous psychiatrist Karl Jung, and the famous philosopher, Karl Marx.
12. Kay (Greek origin), meaning “fire”, “pure” or “rejoicing”. It is a common name amongst TV personalities, namely Kay Waidelich, Kay Ramczyk and Kay Boger.
13. Klaus (German origin), meaning “people’s triumph, leader in victory”. This boy name is shared by Klaus, a character from ‘The Vampire Diaries’.
14. Leopold (German origin), meaning “brave people”, is a German boys’ name that you may know from King Leopold of Belgium.
15. Lukas (English, Portuguese and Spanish origin), meaning “shining”. You may know of the German pop star and internet personality Lukas Rieger. It’s often spelled “Lucas” in English.
16. Matthias (Greek, Dutch, and Germanic origin), meaning “gift of God”. This German boy name is associated with various sportspersons and actors, like Matthias Ginter, Matthias Steiner and Matthias Schoenaerts.
17. Michael (Hebrew origin) meaning “who is like God”. One of the more common names around the world, famously known because of actors like Michael Fassbender, who played the character of Magneto in the ‘X-Men’ series.
18. Nils (Greek origin), meaning “victory of the people”. This name is the German version of Nick. You may know this name from Nils Petersen, a striker on the German national football team. It’s a great German baby name that may help lead your baby boy to great things!
19. Ulrich (German origin), meaning “rich, prosperous and powerful”. This German baby name is perfect for any musical families, as it is associated with Lars Ulrich, the drummer of Metallica.
20. Wilhelm (German origin), meaning “resolute protector”. The name is the German version of William, and you may know the name from Wilhelm II, who was the last German Emperor and King of Prussia.
Popular German Boy Names
German boy names are often versions of names that are popular all over the world, usually with different spelling, though some are almost exclusively used in Germany or German-speaking countries. Here is a list of popular German baby names for you to choose from.
21. Alexander (Greek origin), meaning “defender of man”. Not only is this one of the most popular German boy names, it’s one of the most common boy names in the world and used in multiple languages.
22. Benjamin (Hebrew origin), meaning “son of my right hand”. This baby name comes from the Bible.
23. Daniel (Hebrew origin), meaning “God is my judge”. Another Biblical name that is popular all over the world, but particularly common for German boys.
24. Elias (Hebrew origin), meaning “the Lord is my God”. It’s a version of the name “Elijah”.
25. Felix (Latin origin), meaning “lucky” or “fortunate”. Why not make their name a self-fulfilling prophecy and ensure your baby boy has good luck throughout his life?
26. Finn (Gaelic origin), meaning “bright, fair” is one of the most popular names in Germany. Sometimes an alternative spelling of “Fynn” is used.
27. Jan (Hebrew origin), meaning “God is gracious”. It comes from the name “Johannes”.
28. Jakob (Hebrew origin), meaning “supplanter”. In English-speaking countries this is also one of the more popular names, but it’s usually spelled “Jacob”.
29. Jannis (Hebrew origin), meaning “God is gracious”. In Germany it surpasses “Johannes”, the name it is derived from.
30. Leo (Latin origin), meaning “lion”. It’s considered as a short form for other German names like “Leopold”.
31. Ludwig (Latin origin), meaning “famous warrior”. This is one of the most famous German boys’ names – you may know it from composer Ludwig van Beethoven. The name is the German version of “Louis” or “Lewis”.
32. Luis (Spanish origin), meaning “famous warrior”. While this is one of the most common boys’ names in Spain, it’s also more popular than you may expect in Germany.
33. Luka (Latin origin), meaning “light”.
34. Maximilian (Latin origin), meaning “the greatest”. It’s often shortened to “Max”, which is another popular German baby name.
35. Nikolaus (Greek origin), meaning “victor of the people”. This German baby name is a variant of the name Nicholas, which is one of the most popular names worldwide.
36. Oskar (Gaelic origin), meaning “friend, dear”. It is a German variation of the Gaelic name Oscar.
37. Paul (Latin origin), meaning “humble”. It’s one of the most common German boys’ names, and in fact, one of the most popular boys’ names in the world.
38. Philipp (Greek origin), meaning “friend of horses”.
39. Theo (Greek origin), meaning “gift of God”. This German baby name is often short for Theodore.
40. Tobias (Hebrew origin), meaning “is good”. This is consistently one of the most popular names in Germany.
German Boys’ Names From Past And Present
Some German baby names sound fresh and modern, while others have a touch of antique specialty to them. In fact, some are so old they’re now coming back into style, so to refresh your pool of names, here’s a list of German baby names and their meanings for your little boy.
41. Adalbert, meaning “noble and bright”.
42. Alaric, meaning “all-powerful ruler” This boy name comes from Old High German.
43. Albrecht, meaning “noble and bright”.
44. Axel, meaning “father is peace”.
45. Brecht, meaning “bright”.
46. Carl, meaning “free man”.
47. Clemens, meaning “good-natured, merciful and gentle”. It’s used as a German name, though it has roots in the French language.
48. David, meaning “beloved”.
49. Diedrich, meaning “king of nations”. It’s a modern variation of the old high German baby name Dietrich.
50. Dieter, meaning “army of the people”.
51. Eckhart, meaning “brave”.
52. Egon, meaning “strong with a sword.” Definitely one of the cooler boy names.
53. Eugen, meaning “well-born”.
54. Gerhard, meaning “brave with the spear”. German names can be powerful.
55. Gottfried, meaning “peace”.
56. Egan, meaning “little fire”.
57. Florian, meaning “blooming flower”.
58. Franz, meaning “free man”. Ironically, this German baby name can also mean “French man”.
59. Fritz, meaning “peaceful and powerful”.
60. Günter, meaning “battle warrior”.
61. Gustav, meaning “staff of the gods”.
62. Heinrich, meaning “land ruler”.
63. Heino, meaning “land ruler”.
64. Hermann, meaning “soldier”.
65. Hubert, meaning “bright heart”. Not so common anymore, this used to be one of the most popular names.
66. Jannik, meaning “God is gracious”.
67. Johann, meaning “God is gracious”.
68. Jörg, meaning “farmer”.
69. Kaspar, meaning “treasurer”.
70. Konrad, meaning “brave counsel”.
71. Lars, meaning “crowned with laurel”.
72. Jonah, meaning “dove” or “peace”.
73. Otto, meaning “wealth, prosperity”.
74. Oswald, meaning “to rule”.
75. Reinhold, meaning “ruler”.
76. Robert, meaning “bright fame”.
77. Rolf, meaning “famous wolf”.
78. Rüdiger, meaning “famous spear”.
79. Sepp, meaning “he will add”.
80. Siegfried, meaning “peaceful victory”.
81. Stefan, meaning “crown”.
82. Timo, meaning “honor”.
83. Uwe, meaning “inheritance” or “ruler”. It’s a particularly rare name.
84. Valentin, meaning “healthy, strong”. This boy name is a German variation of the Latin Valentinus.
85. Volker, meaning “people’s army”.
86. Wagner, meaning “wagonmaker”.
87. Waldemar, meaning “famous ruler”.
88. Waldheri, meaning “ruler of the army”.
89. Walter, meaning “strong fighter”.
90. Werner, meaning “army defender”.
91. Wilfried, meaning “he who wants peace”.
92. Wim, meaning “protector”. German names are often strong.
93. Wolfgang, meaning “the path of the wolf”. This used to be one of the more popular names.
Gender-Neutral German Baby Names
While there are plenty of German boy names to discover, there are also some that are unisex. The following list of gender-neutral names will help you choose a good name for your baby.
94. Edel, meaning “noble”.
95. Karsten, meaning “Christian”.
96. Lutz, meaning “famous battle”, a diminutive name for “son of Ludwig”.
97. Rudolf, meaning “famous wolf”.
98. Schneider, meaning “tailor”.
99. Ulf, meaning “wolf”.
100. Zindel, meaning “defender of man”. One of the coolest names.
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