Hitler [commonness as a name]

I remember reading about a bus driver named Adolf Hittler, with two T’s. He was born before the war, and he felt didn’t want to insult his parents by changing his name.

Here’s a reference

A friend of mine insisted that there was a barrister once in Hong Kong who gloried in the name Adolf Hitler Wong. Apparently he was born during that narrow window in the 30s when it was possible for his parents to still think that der Fuhrer was a cool enough dude to name a kid after.

Beats being named Adolf Hitler Wight.

Apparently the claim that “immigration” changed people’s names is a myth (I assume we’re talking about the US). Many people changed their own names.

Once, about 20 years ago, I bet a friend 20 bucks that wasn’t anyone with the last name Hitler listed in the Manhattan phone book. I won.

They still sell Adolph’s meat tenderizer.

Okay, since the error came up again even after it was pointed out, I’d like to repeat that the name is Adolf. :slight_smile:

And I just did a search on the german white pages, but there was only one hit, in eastern Germany.

Adolf is of course quite rare nowadays, but the father of a friend of mine was named that around 1955. He, too, is often called Adi (just like in Adidas, which stands for Adolf Dassler). I’m not aware of any lingering sympathies of his parents.

Not to mention Ron Mael of Sparks:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Introducing_Sparks

My grandfather’s name was Adolf. He was Jewish, BTW.

ETA: And born in Hungary decades before WWII.

My UPS delivery guy at work is named Adol(f/ph). He’s probably in his 40s or 50s–definitely not old enough to have been born pre-WWII.

Or Harpo.

Really? He’s zombified now?

Yes, but Harpo Marx changed his name from Adolph to Arthur in 1911, simply because he disliked the name, not from any anti-German sentiment. This was 3 years before WWI broke out.

Cite.

Except that it is St. Petersburg.

Very nice. :cool: