Michael (given name)

For a list of people with the given name, see List of people with given name Michael. For other uses, see Michael (disambiguation).

Michael
Archangel Michael
Pronunciation/ˈmaɪkəl/
German: [ˈmɪçaːʔeːl, -ʔɛl]
GenderMale
Origin
Word/nameHebrew: מִיכָאֵל / מיכאל‎ (Mikha'el)
Meaning"Who is like God?", "there is none like God", or "there is none as famous and powerful as God"[1]
Other names
Nickname(s)Mic, Mich, Micha, Mick, Mickey, Micki, Mickie, Mike, Mikey, Miki, Mikki, Mico, Miko, Mikha, Misha, Mischa, Mitch, Mitt, Micci
Related namesMachiel, Maicon or Maycon, Michaela, Michelangelo, Michal, Michał, Micheal, Mícheál, Michel, Michele, Michelle, Michiel, Miguel, Miguelita, Mihael, Miha, Mihai, Mihailo, Mykhailo, Mykhaylo , Mihajlo, Mihalis, Mikhalis, Mihály, Mihangel, Mihkel, Mihovil, Miika, Mikael, Mikail, Mikal, Mikel, Miķelis, Mikhail or Mihail (Михаил), Mihails, Maikls, Mikkel, Mikko, Mihály Mishael, Misho, Mitchell, Mykael, Michol, Michole

Michael is a usually masculine given name derived from the Hebrew phrase מי כאל‎ mī kāʼēl, 'Who [is] like-El', in Aramaic: ܡܝܟܐܝܠ (Mīkhāʼēl [miχaˈʔel]). The theophoric name is often read as a rhetorical question – "Who [is] like [the Hebrew God] El?",[1] whose answer is "there is none like El", or "there is none as famous and powerful as God." This question is known in Latin as Quis ut Deus? Paradoxically, the name is also sometimes interpreted as, "One who is like God."[2]

Although sometimes considered erroneous, an alternative spelling of the name is Micheal. While Michael is most often a masculine name, it is also given to women, such as the actresses Michael Michele and Michael Learned, and Michael Steele, the former bassist for the Bangles.

Patronymic surnames that come from Michael include Carmichael, DiMichele, MacMichael, McMichael, Michaels, Micallef, Michaelson, Michiels, Michalka, Michels, Miguélez, Mihály, Mikeladze, Mikhaylov, Mikkelsen, Mitchell, Michalski, Mykhaylenko and Mikaelyan.

  1. ^ a b Campbell, Michael Behind the Name: The Etymology and History of First Names
  2. ^ Omnium Sanctorum Hiberniae, "Michael - one who is like unto God" (This interpretation would be seen as heretical in some religions, but it is fairly common nonetheless.)