How would someone most likely abbreviate Michael as a German speaker? I am trying to translate something and am curious what Germans use as the short version of Michael. I'm guessing it is the same as in English and the answer is Mike but I could also see it going the other way.
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9"I'm guessing it is the same as in English" - especially with names, that is not usually a reasonable assumption. Note that especially the consonant shift sometimes seen in English nicknames (Robert -> Bob, William -> Bill, ...) does not usually occur in German, unless the English pronunciation is intentionally mimicked because "English sounds cool" (which is how I think "Mike" became somewhat used in German).– O. R. MapperJun 10, 2015 at 9:22
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8Just to make sure: “Michael” is pronounced very differently in English and German. But Germans are familiar with the English “Michael” and use (an approximation of) the English pronunciation for Michaels from the English speaking world. The answers so far assume (sensibly, as this is the German SE), a German Michael.– Carsten SJun 10, 2015 at 9:48
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4@falkb Unless a person regularly goes by the short name. If Michael introduces himself as 'Micha' instead of 'Michael' because he finds his full name too cumbersome or is just used to the short form, his boss would call him 'Micha' (provided it is customary at that office to go by first name, else he would be 'Herr Schneider', of course). Shortening 'Michael' to 'Micha' would only done either by the person himself or close friends or friend-like coworkers.– StephieJun 10, 2015 at 9:49
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2There's also a girl's name Maike, which isn't cognate with Michael but sounds like the English pronunciation of "Mike" with a schwa on the end.– Steve JessopJun 10, 2015 at 15:54
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3@SteveJessop to make it even more complicated, I also know a male Maik or two (roughly homophonous to the English Mike)– rumtschoJun 10, 2015 at 15:55
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2 Answers
I'm from the decade where Michael was one of the most frequent names for boys, so I met my fair share of them. Personally, I found that this is one of the names that often remain unaltered, but with an abundance of "Michaels" in a class or group, abbreviations/nicknames were a simple way of distinguishing between them.
As it stands, abbreviations and nicknames follow no "standard", and many are regional or dialect versions of the name, but my first thoughts were:
Michi
That's what most of my peers are called.Micha
Which avoids the diminuitive-like '-i' at the end.Michl
Which is a variant mostly from the southern parts of Germany. Not necessarily an abbreviation, simply the dialect version. Often people are officially named in standard German but addressed in the dialect variant. Note that there is also the symbolic figure Deutscher Michel, representing "the German".
Some may choose the English versions
Mike
Mick
But when meeting someone with this name I would (instinctively) assume this to be the given name, not an abbreviation.
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2I knew a guy called "Micha". Maybe you'd like to add this to your answer, because besides the diminuitive "Michi" it's one of the more obvious ways to form an abbreviation.– dirktJun 10, 2015 at 6:14
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3Michl gibt es auch in Österreich, auch wenn der deutsche Michl natürlich eine typische deutsche Figur ist. Ebenfalls in Österreich gebräuchlich: Michi und Mike. Jemanden Micha zu nennen fällt kaum einem Österreicher ein. Das trifft auch auf Mick zu. Nach Häufigkeit der Verwendung geordnet (für Ö): Sehr häufig: Michael und Michi. Selten: Mike und Michl. Noch nie gehört: Micha und Mick Jun 10, 2015 at 7:20
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@Bernd Used to here in Swabia, too, being equated with "dumb country pumpkin", but seems have started a "comeback". I hear "Michl" more and more, with pride.– StephieJun 10, 2015 at 11:08
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1
Micha is the most common one in my experience.
answered Jun 10, 2015 at 7:11
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5Please don’t just give one line answers, especially when there is a long, almost comprehensive answer above.– JanJun 10, 2015 at 20:27