Herman is a masculine

given name A given name (also known as a forename or first name) is the part of a personal name quoted in that identifies a person, potentially with a middle name as well, and differentiates that person from the other members of a group (typically a f ...

, from an ancient

Germanic name Germanic given names are traditionally dithematic; that is, they are formed from two elements ( stems), by joining a prefix and a suffix. For example, King Æþelred's name was derived from ', meaning "noble", and ', meaning "counsel". The i ...

consisting of the elements '' harja-'' "army" and '' mann-'' "man". Hermine is the feminine form of ''Herman''. It is first recorded in the 8th century, in the forms ''Hariman'', ''Heriman'', ''Hairman'', ''Herman''. It regained popularity in the English-speaking world in the 19th century, particularly in the United States amongst

German Americans German Americans (, ) are Americans who have full or partial German ancestry. According to the United States Census Bureau's figures from 2022, German Americans make up roughly 41 million people in the US, which is approximately 12% of the pop ...

.Katie Martin-Doyle, ''The Treasury of Baby Names'', Worth Press, Cambridge 2005. ''Herman'' remains widely used in Dutch and

Scandinavian language The North Germanic languages make up one of the three branches of the Germanic languages—a sub-family of the Indo-European languages—along with the West Germanic languages and the extinct East Germanic languages. The language group is also r ...

s. Variant forms include German '' Hermann''; French '' Armand''; Italian, Spanish and Portuguese '' Armando''; Italian '' Ermanno''. Herman has also been in use as a German surname since the 16th century. The name of ''

Arminius Arminius (; 18/17 BC–AD 21) was a chieftain of the Germanic peoples, Germanic Cherusci tribe who is best known for commanding an alliance of Germanic tribes at the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest in AD 9, in which three Roman legions under th ...

'', the 1st-century leader of the

Cherusci The Cherusci were a Germanic tribe that inhabited parts of the plains and forests of northwestern Germania in the area of the Weser River and present-day Hanover during the first centuries BC and AD. Roman sources reported they considered thems ...

, 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". The 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''.

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 of Salisbury), bishop of Ramsbury, Sherborne and Salisbury (d. 1078) * Hermann of Salm (d. 1088) * Herman the Archdeacon, hagiographer, d. 1090s * Herman II, Margrave of Baden (d. 1130) * Herman van Horne (d. 1156), bishop of Utrecht *

Herman of Carinthia Herman of Carinthia (1105/1110 – after 1154), also called Hermanus Dalmata or Sclavus Dalmata, Secundus, by his own words born in the "heart of Istria", was a philosopher, astronomer, astrologer, mathematician and translator of Arabic works int ...

(ca. 1100–ca. 1160), Benedictine scholar * Herman Joseph of Cologne (1150–1243) *

Hermannus Alemannus Hermannus Alemannus (Latin for Herman the German) translated Arabic philosophy, Arabic philosophical works into Latin. He worked at the Toledo School of Translators around the middle of the thirteenth century (from approximately 1240 to 1256) and ...

, 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), Belgian military commander in the Eighty Years' War * Catharina Herman (died after 1604), Dutch war heroine * Jobst Herman, Count of Lippe (1625–1678), German noble *

Herman Boerhaave Herman Boerhaave (, 31 December 1668 – 23 September 1738Underwood, E. Ashworth. "Boerhaave After Three Hundred Years." ''The British Medical Journal'' 4, no. 5634 (1968): 820–25. .) was a Dutch chemist, botanist, Christian humanist, and ph ...

(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. * Herman (Aav), (1878–1961), head of the Orthodox Church of Finland * Herman (Swaiko) (1932–2022), head of the Orthodox Church in America * Hermán Aceros (1938–2018), Colombian footballer * Herman M. Albert (1901–1947), American lawyer and politician * Herman D. Aldrich (1801–1880), American businessman * Herman Barron (1909–1978), American professional golfer * Herman Berendsen (1934–2019), Dutch chemist *

Herman Berlinski Herman Berlinski (18 August 1910 – 27 September 2001) was a German-born American composer, organist, pianist, Musicology, musicologist and choir conducting, conductor. Life Family background; early upbringing Before he was born, Herman Berlins ...

(1910–2001), German-born American composer and conductor * Herman Bouma (born 1934), Dutch vision researcher and gerontechnologist *

Herman Cain Herman Cain (December 13, 1945July 30, 2020) was an American businessman and Tea Party movement activist in the Republican Party. Cain graduated from Morehouse College with a bachelor's degree in mathematics. He then earned a master's degree ...

(1945–2020), American businessman, talk show host, and candidate for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination * Herman Carroll Sr (born 1952) American fugitive * Herman Dreer (1888–1981), American academic administrator, educational reformer and activist, author, editor, minister, and civil rights leader * Herman Edwards (born 1954), known as Herm Edwards, American football player and coach *

Herman Becker Fast Herman Becker Fast (May 19, 1887 – December 20, 1938) was an American farmer, businessman, and politician. Fast was born in a Mennonite farming family in Mountain Lake, Minnesota, Mountain Lake, Cottonwood County, Minnesota. He lived with hi ...

(1887-1938), American businessman, farmer, politician * Herman Fishman (1917–1967), American basketball player and baseball player * Herman Goldstein (1939–2020), American criminologist * Herman Goldstine (1913–2004), American mathematician and computer scientist * Herman W. Hellman (1843–1906), German-born American Jewish businessman * Herman Johannes (1912–1992), Indonesian professor, scientist and politician * Herman José (born 1954), Portuguese showman, singer and comedian * Herman Leenders (born 1960), Flemish writer and poet * Herman Li (李康敏 ''Lǐ Kāng Mǐn'', born 1976), Chinese musician * Herman Lieberman (1870–1941), Polish lawyer and politician * Herman Long (disambiguation), multiple people * Herman J. Mankiewicz (1897–1953), American screenwriter * Herman Keh (郭坤耀, born 1996), Singaporean actor and model *

Herman Francis Mark Herman Francis Mark (born Hermann Franz Mark; May 3, 1895, Vienna – April 6, 1992, Austin, Texas) was an Austrian-American chemist regarded for his contributions to the development of polymer science. Mark's X-ray diffraction work on the mole ...

(1895–1992), Austrian-American chemist *

Herman Melville Herman Melville (Name change, born Melvill; August 1, 1819 – September 28, 1891) was an American novelist, short story writer, and poet of the American Renaissance (literature), American Renaissance period. Among his best-known works ar ...

(1819–1891), American novelist * Herman A. Metz (1867–1934), German-born -American U.S. Representative from New York and New York City Comptroller and businessman * Herman Miller (Wisconsin politician) (1833–1922), American politician * Herman Miller (writer) (1919–1999), American screenwriter and film producer * Herman Redemeijer (1930–2020), Dutch politician * Herman Salmon (1913–1980), American barnstormer, air racer, and test pilot * Herman Leonard de Silva (1928–2009), Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the United Nations * Herman Slater (1938–1992), an American Wiccan high priest * Herman Smetanin (born 1992), Ukrainian defense industry management executive * Herman Stump (1837–1917), American politician * Herman Suselbeek (born 1943), Dutch rower * Herman Terrado (born 1989), Guam-born American mixed martial artist * Herman van Bekkum (1932–2020), Dutch chemist * Herman Van der Wee (born 1928), Belgian economic historian * Herman van Praag (born 1929), Dutch psychiatrist * Herman Claudius van Riemsdijk (born 1948), Brazilian chess player * Herman Van Rompuy (born 1947), Belgian politician, first President of the European Council * Herman Van Springel (1943–2022), Belgian cyclist * Herman van Veen (born 1945), Dutch stage performer, actor, musician, singer/songwriter and author * Herman Vedel (1875–1948), Danish painter * Herman Wirth (1885–1981), Dutch-German lay historian and scholar *

Herman Wouk Herman Wouk ( ; May 27, 1915 – May 17, 2019) was an American author. He published fifteen novels, many of them historical fiction such as ''The Caine Mutiny'' (1951), for which he won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, Pulitzer Prize in fiction. ...

(1915–2019), American author * Herman Zetterberg (1904–1963), Swedish jurist and politician ; Stage name * Peter Noone (born 1947), English singer-songwriter and actor, stage name Herman as leader of the pop group Herman's Hermits

Fictional characters

* Herman, a bug in the Disney segment ''

Mickey and the Beanstalk ''Fun and Fancy Free'' is a 1947 American animated musical film, musical fantasy film, fantasy anthology film produced by Walt Disney and Ben Sharpsteen and released on September 27, 1947, by RKO Radio Pictures. The film is a compilation of two ...

'' * Herman Hermann, a one-armed character from the American television sitcom ''The Simpsons'' * Hermine, a character from the novel '' Steppenwolf'' * 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 Castillo, from '' Violetta'' * Herman Toothrot, from LucasArts' ''Monkey Island'' * Herman Brooks, the titular character of the American television sitcom '' Herman's Head'' * Herman the mouse, created by American animation studio Famous Studios (a.k.a. Paramount Cartoon Studios) * Herman Schultz aka Shocker, from Marvel Comics *Herman Carter/The Doctor, from the horror game ''Dead by Daylight''

As a surname

Variants include ''Herrmann, Herrman, Herman, Hermann, Hermanns''

Disambiguation lists

* Edward Herman (disambiguation) * Robert Herman (disambiguation) * Tom Herman (disambiguation)

Early modern

* Augustine Herman (1621–1686), Bohemian explorer of North America * Jakob Hermann (1678–1733), Swiss mathematician * Nikolaus Herman (c.1500–1561), German cantor and hymn writer

Modern

* Alexis Herman (1947–2025), American political figure * Arthur L. Herman (born 1956), American historian * Babe Herman (1903–1987), Major League Baseball right fielder * Billy Herman (1909–1992), Major League Baseball second baseman *

Cila Herman Cila V. Herman is an American thermal engineering, thermal engineer from the former Yugoslavia. Her research has concerned heat transfer, the use of thermal imaging to diagnose skin cancer, refrigeration using thermoacoustic heat engines, and th ...

, Yugoslav-American thermal engineer * David Herman (born 1967), American actor * Faithe Herman, American actress * Hanna Herman (born 1959), Ukrainian state and political activist * Henry Herman, pen name of Henry Heydrac D'Arco (1832–1894), English dramatist and novelist * Jerry Herman (1931–2019), American composer * Josef Herman (1911–2000), Polish-British painter * Josephine Herman, Cook Islander physician * Louis Herman (1930–2016), American marine biologist * M. Justin Herman (1909–1971), American public administrator; Executive Director of the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency * Oskar Herman (1886–1974), Croatian painter * Ottó Herman (1835–1914), Hungarian zoologist, ethnographer, archaeologist, and politician * Robin Herman (1951-2022), American sports journalist * Róża Herman (1902–1995), Polish chess master * Vilim Herman (born 1949), Croatian university professor, politician and former representative in the Croatian Parliament * Woody Herman (1913–1987), American jazz clarinetist and big band leader * Yaron Herman (born 1981), Israeli jazz pianist

Fictional characters

* Pee-wee Herman, played by Paul Reubens * Gunther Hermann, from the computer game '' Deus Ex''

References

Middle Ages

Early Modern

Modern

Fictional characters

As a surname

Disambiguation lists

Early modern

Modern

Fictional characters

See also

References