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Michael is a given name
Given name

A given name is a personal name that specifies and differentiates between members of a group of individuals, especially in a family, all of whose members usually share the same family name ....
 that comes from the (Mikha'el), meaning "Who is like God?" In English
English language

English is a West Germanic language that originated in Anglo-Saxon England and has lingua franca status in many parts of the world as a result of the military, economic, scientific, political and cultural influence of the British Empire in the 18th, 19th and early 20th centuries and that of the United States from the mid 20th century onwa...
, it is sometimes shortened to Mike, Mikey, or, especially in Ireland
Ireland

Ireland is the List of islands by area in Europe, and the twentieth-largest island in the world. It lies to the north-west of continental Europe and is surrounded by hundreds of islands and islet....
, Mick.

Michael
Michael (archangel)

Saint Michael is an archangel in Christian and Islamic tradition. He is viewed as the field commander of the Army of God.He is mentioned by name in the Book of Daniel and the Book of Revelation....
 is one of the Archangel
Archangel

Archangels are members of the second choir of angels. Archangels are found in a number of religious traditions, including Christianity, Islam, Judaism, and Zoroastrianism....
s.

Female forms of Michael include Michelle
Michelle

Michelle is a given name, originally the feminine form of Michel, the French form of Michael. It is now extensively used in English-speaking as well as French-speaking countries....
, Michaela
Michaela

Michaela is a feminine given name. It is a feminine form of the Hebrew name Michael , which means "Who is like God?"It was rare in any country until it became fashionable in the German-speaking world, i.e....
, Mechelle, Micheline, and Michaelle, although there are women with the name Michael, such as Michael Learned
Michael Learned

Michael Learned is an United States actor known for her role as Olivia Walton on The Waltons....
. Another form is Mychal, which can either be a male or female name. Surnames that come from Michael include Carmichael
Carmichael

Carmichael is a Scottish clan, from the village of Carmichael, Scotland, in South Lanarkshire, Scottish Lowlands, United Kingdom. It is also the name of a family from the west coast of Scotland, from the Gaelic MacGillemichael, meaning son of the servant of Michael, these Carmichaels are part of the Stewarts of Appin....
, Dimichele, MacMichael
MacMichael (surname)

MacMichael is a surname, and may refer to:* Harold MacMichael , British colonial administrator* David MacMichael, former Central Intelligence Agency analyst...
, McMichael, Micallef
Micallef

Micallef is a Maltese people surname. It has been recorded in Malta since ancient times, and its origins probably lie in the name Micali, a variant of Michael ....
, Michaelson, Mikhaylov
Mikhaylov

Mikhaylov, Mihaylov, Mikhailov or Mihailov , or Mikhaylova is a Russian and Bulgarian last name, derived from the first name Mikhail....
 and Mitchell
Mitchell

Mitchell may refer to:* B-25 Mitchell, an American World War II-era bomber aircraft* Billy Mitchell Award, a Civil Air Patrol Cadet Program award...
.

name first appears in the Bible
Bible

The Bible is the central religious text of Judaism and Christianity. The exact Books of the Bible is dependent on the religious traditions of specific denominations....
, Numbers
Book of Numbers

The Book of Numbers, , is the fourth book of the Torah, the Tanakh, and the Old Testament. In the Greek language Septuagint it is called Arithmoi, or Numbers....
 , where Sethur the son of Michael is one of twelve spies sent into the Land of Canaan
Canaan

Canaan is an ancient term for a region encompassing modern-day Israel and Lebanon, the Palestinian Territories, plus adjoining coastal lands and parts of Jordan, Syria and northeastern Egypt....
.






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Michael is a given name
Given name

A given name is a personal name that specifies and differentiates between members of a group of individuals, especially in a family, all of whose members usually share the same family name ....
 that comes from the (Mikha'el), meaning "Who is like God?" In English
English language

English is a West Germanic language that originated in Anglo-Saxon England and has lingua franca status in many parts of the world as a result of the military, economic, scientific, political and cultural influence of the British Empire in the 18th, 19th and early 20th centuries and that of the United States from the mid 20th century onwa...
, it is sometimes shortened to Mike, Mikey, or, especially in Ireland
Ireland

Ireland is the List of islands by area in Europe, and the twentieth-largest island in the world. It lies to the north-west of continental Europe and is surrounded by hundreds of islands and islet....
, Mick.

Michael
Michael (archangel)

Saint Michael is an archangel in Christian and Islamic tradition. He is viewed as the field commander of the Army of God.He is mentioned by name in the Book of Daniel and the Book of Revelation....
 is one of the Archangel
Archangel

Archangels are members of the second choir of angels. Archangels are found in a number of religious traditions, including Christianity, Islam, Judaism, and Zoroastrianism....
s.

Female forms of Michael include Michelle
Michelle

Michelle is a given name, originally the feminine form of Michel, the French form of Michael. It is now extensively used in English-speaking as well as French-speaking countries....
, Michaela
Michaela

Michaela is a feminine given name. It is a feminine form of the Hebrew name Michael , which means "Who is like God?"It was rare in any country until it became fashionable in the German-speaking world, i.e....
, Mechelle, Micheline, and Michaelle, although there are women with the name Michael, such as Michael Learned
Michael Learned

Michael Learned is an United States actor known for her role as Olivia Walton on The Waltons....
. Another form is Mychal, which can either be a male or female name. Surnames that come from Michael include Carmichael
Carmichael

Carmichael is a Scottish clan, from the village of Carmichael, Scotland, in South Lanarkshire, Scottish Lowlands, United Kingdom. It is also the name of a family from the west coast of Scotland, from the Gaelic MacGillemichael, meaning son of the servant of Michael, these Carmichaels are part of the Stewarts of Appin....
, Dimichele, MacMichael
MacMichael (surname)

MacMichael is a surname, and may refer to:* Harold MacMichael , British colonial administrator* David MacMichael, former Central Intelligence Agency analyst...
, McMichael, Micallef
Micallef

Micallef is a Maltese people surname. It has been recorded in Malta since ancient times, and its origins probably lie in the name Micali, a variant of Michael ....
, Michaelson, Mikhaylov
Mikhaylov

Mikhaylov, Mihaylov, Mikhailov or Mihailov , or Mikhaylova is a Russian and Bulgarian last name, derived from the first name Mikhail....
 and Mitchell
Mitchell

Mitchell may refer to:* B-25 Mitchell, an American World War II-era bomber aircraft* Billy Mitchell Award, a Civil Air Patrol Cadet Program award...
.

Origins

The name first appears in the Bible
Bible

The Bible is the central religious text of Judaism and Christianity. The exact Books of the Bible is dependent on the religious traditions of specific denominations....
, Numbers
Book of Numbers

The Book of Numbers, , is the fourth book of the Torah, the Tanakh, and the Old Testament. In the Greek language Septuagint it is called Arithmoi, or Numbers....
 , where Sethur the son of Michael is one of twelve spies sent into the Land of Canaan
Canaan

Canaan is an ancient term for a region encompassing modern-day Israel and Lebanon, the Palestinian Territories, plus adjoining coastal lands and parts of Jordan, Syria and northeastern Egypt....
. The Archangel
Archangel

Archangels are members of the second choir of angels. Archangels are found in a number of religious traditions, including Christianity, Islam, Judaism, and Zoroastrianism....
 Michael
Michael (archangel)

Saint Michael is an archangel in Christian and Islamic tradition. He is viewed as the field commander of the Army of God.He is mentioned by name in the Book of Daniel and the Book of Revelation....
, referred to later in the Bible (Daniel
Book of Daniel

The Book of Daniel is a book in both the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament. Originally written in Hebrew language and Aramaic language, it is set during the Babylonian Captivity, a period when Jews were deported and exiled to Babylon following the Siege of Jerusalem of 597 BC....
 ), is considered a saint
Saint

A saint in Christianity is a human being who has been called to holiness. The term is used differently by various denominations, with some, such as the Anglicans, Methodists, and Lutherans distinguishing between Saints and saints....
 by the Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church

The Roman Catholic Church, officially known as the Catholic Church is the world's largest Christianity Ecclesia , representing over half of all Christians and one-sixth of the world population....
 and Eastern Orthodox Church
Eastern Orthodox Church

The Eastern Orthodox Church is the second largest single Christian communion in the world with an estimated 225 million members worldwide. It is considered by its adherents to be the Four Marks of the Church established by Jesus Christ and his Apostles nearly 2000 years ago....
. 29 September is the feast day
Calendar of saints

The calendar of saints is a traditional Christianity method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as that saint's feast day....
 of the three archangels, Michael, Gabriel and Raphael.

Popularity

Michael is a popular name in the United States
United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
, and has been the first or second most popular name given to male babies in the U.S. for each year since 1954. It is in the top 50 most popular boys' names in England and Wales
England and Wales

England and Wales is a legal unit within the United Kingdom. It consists of England and Wales, two of the four countries of the United Kingdom....
. The name has been popular in Orthodox Christian
Eastern Orthodox Church

The Eastern Orthodox Church is the second largest single Christian communion in the world with an estimated 225 million members worldwide. It is considered by its adherents to be the Four Marks of the Church established by Jesus Christ and his Apostles nearly 2000 years ago....
 countries, and was borne by several rulers of the Byzantine
Byzantine Empire

Byzantine Empire and Eastern Roman Empire are conventional names used to describe the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages, centered on its capital of Constantinople....
 and Russian Empire
Russian Empire

File:Russian Emperor Flag.jpgFile:Romanov Flag.svgThe Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917....
s. In recent years, Michael has been the most popular name in the Philippines
Philippines

The Philippines, officially known as the Republic of the Philippines, is a country in Southeast Asia with Manila as its capital city. It comprises 7,107 islands in the western Pacific Ocean....
, the second most popular name in Finland
Finland

Finland , officially the Republic of Finland , is a Nordic countries situated in the Fennoscandian region of northern Europe. It borders Sweden on the west, Russia on the east, and Norway on the north, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland....
 (Mikael) and ranks among the top ten names in Denmark
Denmark

Denmark is a Scandinavian country in northern Europe and the senior member of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries....
 (Mikkel) and Ireland
Ireland

Ireland is the List of islands by area in Europe, and the twentieth-largest island in the world. It lies to the north-west of continental Europe and is surrounded by hundreds of islands and islet....
. It is the 23rd most popular name in Canada
Canada

Canada is a country occupying most of northern North America, extending from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west and northward into the Arctic Ocean....
, and the 37th most popular in Mexico (Miguel).

Short form and other versions

"Mike", "Mick", "Mikiel", "Mikey", "Mikael", "Mic", "Mishka" (common in Russia) and "Mickey" are short forms of, or nick-names for, Michael as a given name. "Mick" is commonly associated with Irish people.

Meik and Maik are German short forms of Michael. The German pronunciation of both variants is identical to the English pronunciation of "Mike", since both are directly derived from their English counterparts. Similarly, the Welsh versions "Meical" and "Meic" are pronounced in the same way as their corresponding English analogues. Michiel (mee-KHEEL) is Dutch and the Dutch given name "Chiel" is a variation of Michiel. Mikael, Mikell, Mikkel are Scandinavian. In Swedish, "Micke" is a nick-name for "Mikael"
Swedish name day list of 2001

This is the current Swedish name day calendar, adopted in 2001 by a work group led by the Swedish Academy. The new list has no official status, but is nevertheless used by most publishers....
 (also spelt "Michael").

In Greek "???????" ("Michalis" or "Mihalis") is an everyday common form of the "???a??" ("Michail" or "Mihail"). In Russian, "????" ("Mischa" or "Misha") is a shortened form of "??????" (Mikhail). "?????" (Mishka) is a common diminutive form, "????" (Mikha) is an informal shortened form, and "??????????" (Mikhaylovich) is a patronymic
Patronymic

A patronym or patronymic, is a component of a personal name based on the name of one's father, grandfather or an even earlier male ancestor....
 form that can be shortened to more informal "???????" (Mikhalych). Michal is Czech. Michal is Polish; Miko is Slavic. Mëhill or Mhill is the Albanian for Michael. The first belongs to the southern (Tosk) dialect, the second to the northern (Gheg) dialect. In Hebrew, "????" (Mikha) is a common shortened form of "?????" (Mikha'el).

Miguel is a Spanish and Portuguese form; Michel is French and popular in the Netherlands.

Rulers named "Michael"


Byzantine emperors

  • Michael I
    Michael I Rangabe

    Michael I Rangabe , was Byzantine Emperor .Michael was the son of the patrician Theophylaktos Rangabe, the admiral of the Aegean Sea fleet. He married Prokopia, the daughter of the future Emperor Nikephoros I, and received the high court dignity of Byzantine aristocracy and bureaucracy after his father-in-law's accession in 802....
     (811–813)
  • Michael II
    Michael II

    Michael II the Amorian , also called Traulos or Psellos , meaning "the Stammerer", reigned as Byzantine emperor from 820 to his death....
     (820–829)
  • Michael III
    Michael III

    Michael III the Drunkard , , Byzantine Emperor from 842 to 867. Michael III was the third and traditionally last member of the Phrygian Dynasty....
     (842–867)
  • Michael IV the Paphlagonian
    Michael IV the Paphlagonian

    Michael IV the Paphlagonian , , was Byzantine emperor from April 11, 1034 to December 10, 1041. He owed his elevation to Empress Zoe of Byzantium, daughter of Emperor Constantine VIII and wife of Romanos III Argyros....
     (1034–1041)
  • Michael V
    Michael V

    Michael V "the Caulker" or Kalaphates , , was Byzantine emperor for 4 months in 1041–1042, as the nephew and successor of Michael IV the Paphlagonian and the adoptive son of his wife, the Zoe ....
     (1041–1042)
  • Michael VI
    Michael VI

    Michael VI Bringas , called Stratiotikos or Stratioticus or Gerontas , was Byzantine emperor from 1056 to 1057.Apparently a relative of the powerful courtier Joseph Bringas , Michael Bringas was an elderly patrician and a member of the court bureaucracy who had served as military minister ....
     (1056–1057)
  • Michael VII
    Michael VII

    Michael VII Doukas or Ducas , nicknamed Parapinakes, Byzantine emperor from 1071 to 1078....
     (1067–1078)
  • Michael VIII Palaeologus (1259–1282)
  • Michael IX Palaiologos
    Michael IX Palaiologos

    Michael IX Palaiologos or Palaeologus , , reigned as Byzantine co-emperor with full imperial style 1294/1295–1320. Michael IX was the eldest son of Andronikos II Palaiologos and Anna of Hungary, a daughter of King Stephen V of Hungary....
     (1277–1320)


Russian rulers

  • Mikhail of Vladimir
    Mikhail of Vladimir

    Mikhalko Yuryevich , Prince of Torchesk , Vladimir and Suzdal and Grand Prince of Kiev .Yuri Dolgoruky's eldest son by his second marriage, Mikhalko Yuryevich was removed from the Suzdal lands by his half-brother Andrei Bogolyubsky, who apparently disliked his mother....
     (1174–1176)
  • Mikhail Yaroslavich
    Mikhail Yaroslavich

    Mikhail Yaroslavich , also known as Michael of Tver, was a Prince of Tver who ruled as Grand Prince of Vladimir from 1304 until 1314 and again from 1315-1318....
     (1304–1318)
  • Michael I
    Michael I of Russia

    Mikhail I Fyodorovich Romanov was the first Russian tsar of the house of Romanov, being the son of Feodor Nikitich Romanov, afterwards the Patriarch Filaret , and Xenia Shestova , afterwards the great nun Martha....
     (1613–1645)
  • Michael II
    Grand Duke Michael Alexandrovich of Russia

    Grand Duke Michael of Russia, Mikhail Aleksandrovich Romanov was the younger brother of Tsar Nicholas II of Russia. Nicholas abdicated in favour of Michael on , but the next day Michael deferred acceptance of the throne....
     (1917)


King of Poland

  • Michael of Poland (Michal Korybut Wisniowiecki)


King & Princes of Portugal

  • Miguel of Portugal
    Miguel of Portugal

    Miguel I was the 30th Kings of Portugal of Portugal and the Algarves between 1828 and 1834, during the Portuguese civil war....
     (Michael I) King of Portugal (1828–1834). During exile he used the title of Duke of Braganza
    House of Braganza

    The Most Serene House of Braganza was the dynasty which ruled Portugal from 1640 to 1853 and the Empire of Brazil from 1822 to 1889. It is a collateral line of the House of Aviz, which ruled Portugal from 1385 until 1580....
  • Miguel II, Duke of Braganza
    Miguel II, Duke of Braganza

    Miguel II of Braganza , was the Miguelist claimant to the throne of Portugal from 1866 to 1920. He used the title Duke of Braganza....
     (Michael II), legitimist pretender to the throne of Portugal
    Portugal

    Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic , is a country on the Iberian Peninsula. Located in southwestern Europe, Portugal is the westernmost country of mainland Europe and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and south and by Spain to the north and east....
    . As his father (Michael I) he also used the title of Duke of Braganza
  • Prince Miguel of Braganza
    Prince Miguel of Braganza

    Prince Miguel of Braganza, Duke of Viseu was an Infante of Portugal and member of the House of Braganza....
     Michael (II) older son, married the American citizen Anita Stewart
  • Miguel da Paz (Michael of Peace) older son of King Manuel I of Portugal
    Manuel I of Portugal

    Manuel I ; Portuguese language: Manoel I, English language: Emmanuel I), the Fortunate , 14th List of Portuguese monarchs was the son of Infante Fernando, Duke of Viseu, by his wife, Beatriz of Portugal ....
     and heir of all the Iberian Kingdoms (Portugal
    Portugal

    Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic , is a country on the Iberian Peninsula. Located in southwestern Europe, Portugal is the westernmost country of mainland Europe and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and south and by Spain to the north and east....
    , Castille and Aragon
    Aragon

    Aragon is an autonomous communities of Spain of Spain. Located in northeastern Spain, the region comprises three provinces of Spain from north to south: Huesca , Zaragoza , and Teruel ....
    )
  • Miguel de Bragança
    Miguel de Bragança

    Dom Michael of Braganza was a Portuguese nobleman, illegitimate son of King Pedro II of Portugal and Ana Armanda Pastre de Verger . He was born in Lisbon on 15 October, 1699 and died drowned in Tagus River on 13 January, 1724, having married Lu?sa Casimira de Sousa Nassau e Ligne, Princess of Ligne, the 30th Lady of the House of Sousa, 6th...
    , illegitimate son of King Pedro II of Portugal, he was the ancestor of the House of Lafões
    Duke of Lafões

    Duke of Laf?es was a Portuguese title of nobility created under the decree of February 17, 1718, of King John V of Portugal and granted to his nephew, Pedro Henrique de Bragan?a, 1st Duke of Laf?es, son of the Infante Miguel de Bragan?a, an illegitimate son of King Peter II of Portugal with a France lady, named Anne Armande Pastre de Verge...


Rulers of Romania

  • Michael the Brave
    Michael the Brave

    Michael the Brave was the Prince of Wallachia , of Transylvania , and of Moldavia , the three Romanian principalities that he united under his rule....
     (Romanian: Mihai Viteazul, Hungarian: Vitéz Mihály); Prince of Wallachia
    Wallachia

    Wallachia or Walachia is a Historical regions of Romania and geographical region of Romania. It is situated north of the Danube and south of the Southern Carpathians....
     (1593–1601), of Transylvania
    Transylvania

    Transylvania is a historical region in the central part of Romania. Bounded on the east and south by the Carpathian mountains, historical Transylvania extended in the west to the Apuseni Mountains; however, the term frequently encompasses not only Transylvania proper, but also the historical regions of Crisana, Maramures, and Banat....
     (1599–1600), and of Moldavia
    Moldavia

    Moldavia is a geographic and historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester river....
     (1600)
  • Michael I of Romania
    Michael I of Romania

    Michael reigned as King of Romania from July 20, 1927 to June 8, 1930, and again from September 6, 1940, until forced to abdicate by the Communist Party of Romania backed up by orders of Stalin to the Soviet armies of occupation on December 30, 1947....
     (Romanian: Mihai I de România)


Tsar of Bulgaria

  • Boris I Michael (852–889)
  • Michael Asen I of Bulgaria
    Michael Asen I of Bulgaria

    Michael Asen I of Bulgaria , ruled as emperor of Bulgaria from 1246 to 1256. He was the son of Ivan Asen II and his third wife Irene Komnene of Epirus , daughter of Theodore Komnenos Doukas of the Despotate of Epirus....
     (1246–1256)
  • Michael Shishman of Bulgaria
    Michael Shishman of Bulgaria

    Michael Asen III , ruled as emperor of Bulgaria from 1323 to 1330. The date of his birth is unknown. ...
     (1323–1330)


British Royal Family

  • Prince Michael of Kent
    Prince Michael of Kent

    Prince Michael of Kent is a member of the British Royal Family, a grandchild of George V of the United Kingdom and Mary of Teck.Prince Michael of Kent does not officially carry out royal duties on behalf of his cousin, Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, although he has represented the Queen in some functions abroad....


See also

  • List of most popular given names
  • Theophory in the Bible
    Theophory in the Bible

    The word "theophory" refers to the practice of embedding the name of a god or a deity in, usually, a proper name. Much Hebrew language theophory occurs in the Bible, particularly in the Old Testament....