History OverlyLongName / RealLife

* Creator/LesterDelRey used to claim that his real name was Ramon Felipe San Juan Mario Silvio Enrico Smith Heartcourt-Brace Sierra y Alvarez del Rey y de los Uerdes. Posthumous evidence [[https://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/del_rey_lester strongly suggests it wasn't]].

*** The "Charles Philip Arthur George" bit is fairly important: when he (almost) inevitably takes the throne, Prince Charles will be faced with a tough choice: whether to use his name as his regnal name. This has little to do with his personal reputation; rather, it has to do with the historical associations of the phrase "[[UsefulNotes/TheHouseOfStuart King Charles]]". Knowing what Charles I and II were like, do we really want King Charles III? As for his other names, the last time Britain had a King Philip was the Spanish husband of the rather notorious [[UsefulNotes/TheHouseOfTudor Queen]] UsefulNotes/{{Mary|Tudor}}, and calling himself Myth/KingArthur would likely be seen as rather presumptuous. The man himself has stated an inclination to be known as "George VII" should he take the throne (as the last couple of Georges[[note]]Charles' grandfather and great-grandfather[[/note]] have been [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarI well]]-[[UsefulNotes/WorldWarII liked]] and generally respected).

** Lao names tend to be very long in general, and the regnal names of Lao kings took this UpToEleven.

* This trope was taken UpToEleven with the children of [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ralph_Tollemache Ralph Tollemache-Tollmache]] and Dora Cleopatra Maria Lorenza de Orellana (both of whom are also examples in their own right). Their ten children were named the following:

* The [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanford_Band band of Stanford University]], (in)famous for its extremely varied repertoire, sometimes deliberately offensive antics, and for being involved in [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Play_(American_football) one of the most famous plays]] in [[UsefulNotes/CollegiateAmericanFootball college football]] history[[note]]as in running onto the field ''while said play was live''[[/note]], is officially known as the ''Leland Stanford Junior University Marching Band''.[[note]]The first four words are the university's full legal name.[[/note]] The band itself takes this trope UpToEleven when it takes the field at home games; it's introduced as "The One, The Only, The Truly Incomparable Leland Stanford Junior University Marching Band".

* Actor Herbert Lom (most famous for playing Inspector Clouseau's long-suffering superior, Inspector Dreyfus, in ''Franchise/ThePinkPanther'') was born in Prague to noble parents and christened Herbert Charles Angelo Kuchačevič ze Schluderpacheru. He chose "Lom" as his stage name because it was the shortest surname he could find in the local telephone dictionary (it means "quarry" in Czech).

* French President "Nicolas Paul Stéphane Sarközy de Nagy-Bocsa"? (He has Hungarian ancestors.)

** Germany offers their [[UsefulNotes/PoliticalSystemOfGermany former Secretary of the Economy and Secretary of Defense]]: his full name is ''Karl-Theodor Maria Nikolaus Johann Jacob Philipp Franz Joseph Sylvester Freiherr von und zu Guttenberg'', where ''Freiherr von und zu Guttenberg'' is his last name and everything else his first names; he goes by ''Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg''. As you might expect, he's the descendant of an old noble Bavarian family.

*** It evidently runs in the family, since the full name of his son, ''[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enoch_zu_Guttenberg Enoch zu Guttenberg]]'' is ''Georg Enoch Robert Prosper Philipp Franz Karl Theodor Maria Heinrich Johannes Luitpold Hartmann Gundeloh Freiherr von und zu Guttenberg''.

* Michael John Cleote Crawford Rutherford, or Mike Rutherford of Music/{{Genesis}}.

* All this was actually averted by one of the more famous British monarchs, UsefulNotes/QueenVictoria. She was threatened with the name Victoria Georgina Alexandrina Charlotte Augusta at her christening, but her uncle, the soon-to-be King George IV, vetoed them because he didn't want her to have any traditional royal names. After a short argument where her mother burst into tears, she was christened Alexandrina Victoria ("Alexandrina" after her godfather [[UsefulNotes/TsaristRussia Alexander I of Russia]], to piss off her anti-Russian uncle, and "Victoria" after her mother). Luckily, when she took the throne she decided to use the name Victoria, otherwise, her reign would've been called the Alexandrinan Age. (That said, she did allow certain people who knew her in childhood--particularly her mother and half-siblings--to call her "Drina". On the other hand, her husband Prince Albert called her Victoria.)

* There's an award called the Knights Grand Companion of the Order of the Gallant Prince Syed Putra Jamalullai (Malaysia), which may be the longest name for a category on Wiki/TheOtherWiki.

** The last king of Laos was named Samdach Brhat Chao Mavattaha Sri Vitha Lan Xang Hom Khao Phra Rajanachakra Lao Parama Sidha Khattiya Suriya Varman Brhat Maha Sri Savangsa Vadhana.

*** The founder of Lan Xang was called Somdetch Brhat-Anya Fa Ladhuraniya Sri Sadhana Kanayudha Maharaja Brhat Rajadharana Sri Chudhana Negara. He's better known as Fa Ngum. His son Oun Huan/Samsenethai had the regnal name Samdach Brhat-Anya Samu Sena Daya Daya Buvana Natha Adipati Sri Sadhana Kanayudha.

** And then, of course, there is Edson Arantes do Nascimento, better known as Pelé, arguably the greatest footballer who has ever lived.

* The official full name of Libya under UsefulNotes/MuammarGaddafi was [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libya Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya]]. Interestingly, at five words, it was only the second-longest country name on Earth; the longest is the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdom United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland]], at six (eight if you include prepositions and conjunctions). On the other hand, the UK actually ''needs'' all of those words (because it was ''United'' out of the ''Kingdom''s of ''Great Britain'' and ''Ireland'', and when the Irish Free State was formed, it really wasn't accurate to say just "Ireland," so they added ''Northern'' in the middle), while Libya could have shortened its name to just "Libya" without doing any harm--which is exactly what the National Transitional Council did when they kicked Gaddafi out (although they used "Libyan Republic", as well, before officially changing it to "State of Libya").

** University of Maryland, Baltimore County. The "County" is important since there's a completely separate school called University of Maryland, Baltimore. And also because [[NonIndicativeName Baltimore County]] is separate from Baltimore, which is an independent city. Thankfully for the school, the initials UMBC are now a household term thanks to the basketball team's historic March Madness upset over the University of Virginia.

** And then there's ''Gorsafawddacha'idraigodanheddogleddollônpenrhynareurdraethceredigion'', a railway station named so in order to outdo the above-mentioned town. Better known as ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Golf_Halt_Station.jpg Golf Halt]]''.
* [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brfxxccxxmnpcccclllmmnprxvclmnckssqlbb11116 Brfxxccxxmnpcccclllmmnprxvclmnckssqlbb11116.]] Pronounced Albin.

* [[http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/I_Am_The_Beast_etc._v._Michigan_State_Police I AM THE BEAST SIX SIX SIX OF THE LORD OF HOSTS IN EDMOND FRANK MACGILLIVRAY JR NOW. I AM THE BEAST SIX SIX SIX OF THE LORD OF HOSTS IEFMJN. I AM THE BEAST SIX SIX SIX OF THE LORD OF HOSTS. I AM THE BEAST SIX SIX SIX OTLOHIEFMJN. I AM THE BEAST SSSOTLOHIEFMJN. I AM THE BEAST SIX SIX SIX. BEAST SIX SIX SIX LORD.]]

*** The "Charles Philip Arthur George" bit is fairly important: when he (almost) inevitably takes the throne, Prince Charles will be faced with a tough choice: whether to use his name as his regnal name. This has little to do with his personal reputation; rather, it has to do with the historical associations of the phrase "[[UsefulNotes/TheHouseOfStuart King Charles]]". Knowing what Charles I and II were like, do we really want King Charles III? As for his other names, the last time Britain had a King Philip was the Spanish husband of the rather notorious [[UsefulNotes/TheHouseOfTudor Queen]] [[UsefulNotes/MaryTudor Mary]], and calling himself Myth/KingArthur would likely be seen as rather presumptuous. The man himself has stated an inclination to be known as "George VII" should he take the throne (as the last couple of Georges[[note]]Charles' grandfather and great-grandfather[[/note]] have been [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarI well]]-[[UsefulNotes/WorldWarII liked]] and generally respected).

** The full name of Pedro II of Brazil was Pedro de Alcântara João Carlos Leopoldo Salvador Bibiano Francisco Xavier de Paula Leocádio Miguel Gabriel Rafael Gonzaga.

** The last crown prince of Austria [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otto_von_Habsburg Otto von Habsburg's]] birth name was ''Franz Josef Otto Robert Maria Anton Karl Max Heinrich Sixtus Xaver Felix Renatus Ludwig Gaetan Pius Ignatius von Habsburg''. Later in life, he was forced by Austria to drop the ''von'' from his name, and his legal name was just ''Otto Habsburg-Lothringen''.

** AncientEgypt's pharaohs, particularly later ones (specifically, around 1500 B.C. onwards), tended to have quite long names by the sole virtue of [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Egyptian_royal_titulary their full name being made of five separate names]], but UsefulNotes/{{Tutankhamun}} takes the cake by being an extreme demonstration of the fact that each name can technically be made of more than one "name"; [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tutankhamun#Names his full name]] is "Kanakht Tutmesut Neferhepusegerehtawy Werahamun Nebrdjer Wetjeskhausehetepnetjeru Heqamaatsehetepnetjeru Wetjeskhauitefre Wetjeskhautjestawyim Nebkheperure Tutankhamun Hekaiunushema". Oh, and before he was crowned (and was pressured to suppress his father UsefulNotes/{{Akhenaten}}'s Atenism cult) he used to be known as "Tutankh'''aten'''".

** On the topic of long Spanish full names, the singer and actress Charo has a full name that goes as follows: [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charo María Rosario Pilar Martínez Molina Moquiere de les Esperades Santa Ana Romanguera y de la Najosa Rasten]]. Yeah, "Charo" is perfectly fine.

* Sports example: NHL star Jarome Iginla's full name is [[http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B00E4DA1F3CF93BA25755C0A9649C8B63 Jarome Arthur-Leigh Adekunle Tig Junior Elvis Iginla]]. Calgary Flames fans just call him Iggy.
* A Major League Baseball example: [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russell_Martin Russell Nathan Jeanson Coltrane Martin Jr.]] Despite primarily going by Russell, he wore "J. Martin" on the back of his jersey as of 2009.

* In the NBA, [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dikembe_Mutombo Dikembe Mutombo Mpolondo Mukamba Jean-Jacques Wamutombo]], normally known by only his first two names.

* Mobutu Sese Seko Nkuku Ngbendu wa Za Banga, the former president of Zaire. (Which, according to Wiki/TheOtherWiki, translates as "[[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast The all-powerful warrior who, because of his endurance and inflexible will to win, goes from conquest to conquest, leaving fire in his wake]]").

* Meanwhile, neighboring Malaysia's first Prime Minister was Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj ibni Almarhum Sultan Abdul Hamid Halim Shah, or "Tunku."
* There was a little girl named "[[WhoNamesTheirKidDude Talula Does The Hula in Hawaii]]". The parents got away with it for most of her childhood, but a judge later ruled that she be made a ward of court so she could change her embarassing name.

* This trope was taken UpToEleven with the children of [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ralph_Tollemache Ralph Tollemache-Tollmache]] and Dora Cleopatra Maria Lorenza de Orellana (both of whom are also examples in their own right). Their ten children were named the following:

* The same pehnomenon found in Spanish is common in Brazil, hence why most famous people are known by a nickname or on a FirstNameBasis. Former president Lula was born "Luiz Inácio da Silva", and later added his nickname to the legal name: "Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva".

* Creator/RudolphValentino 's full name was Rodolfo Alfonso Raffaello Pierre Filibert Guglielmi di Valentina d'Antonguolla.

* [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicholas_Barbon Nicholas If-Jesus-Christ-Had-Not-Died-For-Thee-Thou-Hadst-Been-Damned Barebone]], better known as Nicholas Barbon, pioneer of fire insurance.

** UsefulNotes/{{Laos}}, which speaks language related to Thai, is much the same. "[[WesternAnimation/KingOfTheHill Souphanousinphone]]" is a made-up name, but it's actually a perfect representative of how long real-life Lao names are.

* The Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, one of the original thirteen British colonies in America. It was so named because it was a merger of three breakaway settlements from Massachusetts--Rhode Island (located on the actual island of that name, also called Aquidneck Island), and the mainland-based Providence Plantation and Warwick Plantation. After American independence, it became The State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations until the last three words were dropped in 2020. It had commonly been known as Rhode Island from the start anyway. (In the 17th century, "plantation" just meant "large agricultural property" and didn't have anything specifically to do with slavery, hence why a free state had the word in its name.)

** The names of the Roman emperors became progressively longer from the only-slightly-longer-than-the-average-Roman UsefulNotes/GaiusJuliusCaesar Augustus as time went on, reaching its peak during the Crisis of the Third Century with Gordian II, whose full name was Caesar Marcus Antoninus Gordianus Sempronianus Romanus Africanus Augustus. "Ceasar" and "Augustus" were obligatory for any Roman emperor (echoing [[UsefulNotes/{{Augustus}} the first emperor]] and honoring [[UsefulNotes/JuliusCaesar his adopted father]])[[note]]When it came about that both the reigning emperor and his heir were considered co-emperors, the name "Caesar" was to one's name after becoming the junior emperor and "Augustus" after becoming the senior emperor.[[/note]], but for most, four to five names total were sufficient to both honor tradition and include their own personal identifier.

** The official name of the University of Florida's football stadium is almost as long: Steve Spurrier-Florida Field at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.[[note]]The original name was Florida Field. The stadium was renamed in 1989 to honor major donor Griffin, though the playing surface remained "Florida Field". Spurrier's name was added to the name of the playing surface in 2016; he was a Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback for the Gators who later coached the team during its most successful period in the 1990s.[[/note]] Fans, however, just call it "[[FanNickname The Swamp]]".[[note]]Spurrier is also responsible for that nickname, having coined it early in his head coaching tenure at Florida.[[/note]]

* Meanwhile, Neighbor Malaysia's first Prime Minister was Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj ibni Almarhum Sultan Abdul Hamid Halim Shah, or "Tunku."

% What does this mean? All Jews are Semitic.

* A Major League Baseball example: [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russell_Martin Russell Nathan Jeanson Coltrane Martin, Jr.]]

* In the NBA, [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dikembe_Mutombo Dikembe Mutombo Mpolondo Mukamba Jean-Jacques Wamutombo]], normally known by only his first two names. (His wife's name? [[spoiler: Rose.]])

* [[http://youtu.be/fHxO0UdpoxM?t=7s Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch]], Wales. The name means 'St. Mary's Church in the hollow of the white hazel near the rapid whirlpool and the church of St Tysilio with a red cave'. It incidentally comprises of a visitor center with a souvenir shop and cafe, a railway station with a very long nameplate, some houses, a church featuring a statue of Lord Nelson near the water, pubs, a football team and things you'd normally find in the UK. Despite being fairly normal underneath the name, The alternative (and funny) tourist guide ''[[http://www.penguin.co.uk/static/cs/uk/0/articles/bollockstoaltontowers/ Bollocks To Alton Towers]]'' marvels at how Llanfair PG (the town's condensed name) has made a tourist attraction out of nothing more than a funny name. The town was deliberately renamed to attract tourism when the railroad came through; before that, it was just plain Llanfairpwllgwyngyll, which is still its name on official road signs and maps and is still used when you don't want to spend the next month or so writing it out.

** Creator/PabloPicasso's real name was ''Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno Marí­a de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santí­sima Trinidad Martyr Patricio Clito Ruiz y Picasso''. The only surnames in there are "Ruiz" and "Picasso" at the end, used in standard Spanish fashion (the first is his father's surname and the second his mother's, joined by an "y" as per a now outdated convention)[[note]]In most circumstances, this would technically make Ruiz his "official" surname; most Hispanophones use their paternal surname as their primary one. However, in most Spanish-speaking countries, the maternal and paternal surnames are equally valid, and if someone wants to use their maternal surname (e.g. because of closer connections to their mother or because their mother's family is richer or more powerful), society generally respects the choice. Besides Picasso, another famous Spaniard to go by his maternal surname is José Rodriguez Zapatero, the former Prime Minister of Spain, whose decision to use "Zapatero" rather than "Rodriguez" (apparently because his father walked out on his family when he was a child) was considered completely unremarkable.[[/note]] The rest are given names his parents piled on him to honour various saints and relatives - naming children after those is common in Spanish, but it seems to have got out of control here.

*** The "Charles Philip Arthur George" bit is fairly important: when he (almost) inevitably takes the throne, Prince Charles will be faced with a tough choice: whether to use his name as his regnal name. This has little to do with his personal reputation; rather, it has to do with the historical associations of the phrase "[[UsefulNotes/TheHouseOfStuart King Charles]]". Knowing what Charles I and II were like, do we really want King Charles III? As for his other names, the last time Britain had a King Philip was the Spanish husband of the rather notorious [[UsefulNotes/TheHouseOfTudor Queen]] [[UsefulNotes/MaryTudor Mary]], and calling himself KingArthur would likely be seen as rather presumptuous. The man himself has stated an inclination to be known as "George VII" should he take the throne (as the last couple of Georges[[note]]Charles' grandfather and great-grandfather[[/note]] have been [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarI well]]-[[UsefulNotes/WorldWarII liked]] and generally respected).

* [[http://youtu.be/fHxO0UdpoxM?t=7s Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch]], Wales. The name means 'St. Mary's Church in the hollow of the white hazel near the rapid whirlpool and the church of St Tysilio with a red cave'. It incidentally comprises a visitor centre telling you how great the place is and selling souvenirs, a railway station with a very long nameplate, and some houses. Talk about not living up to the hype. The alternative (and funny) tourist guide ''[[http://www.penguin.co.uk/static/cs/uk/0/articles/bollockstoaltontowers/ Bollocks To Alton Towers]]'' marvels at how Llanfair PG (the town's condensed name) has made a tourist attraction out of nothing more than a funny name. You might think it's unfair picking on the town because it can't help what it's named... you'd be wrong. The town was deliberately renamed as a tourism gimmick when the railroad came through; before that, it was just plain Llanfairpwllgwyngyll, which is still its name on official road signs and maps.

** Spanish royals tended to name their children after saints and in one case, the parents went way overboard, naming their son Alfonso Maria Isabel Francisco Eugenio Gabriel Pedro Sebastian Pelayo Fernando Francisco de Paula Pio Miguel Rafael Juan José Joaquin Ana Zacarias Elisabeth Simeón Tereso Pedro Pablo Tadeo Santiago Simon Lucas Juan Mateo Andrès Bartolomé Ambrosio Geronimo Agustin Bernardo Candido Gerardo Luis-Gonzaga Filomeno Camilo Cayetano Andrès-Avelino Bruno Joaquin-Picolimini Felipe Luis-Rey-de-Francia Ricardo Esteban-Protomartir Genaro Nicolas Estanislao-de-Koska Lorenzo Vicente Crisostomo Cristano Dario Ignacio Francisco-Javier Francisco-de Borja Higona Clemente Esteban-de-Hungria Ladislado Enrique Ildefonso Hermenegildo Carlos-Borromoeo Eduardo Francisco-Régis Vicente-Ferrer Pascual Miguel-de-los-Santos Adriano Venancio Valentin Benito José-Oriol Domingo Florencio Alfacio Benére Domingo-de-Silos Ramon Isidro Manuel Antonio de Todos los Santos de Borbón. The "de Todos los Santos" is actually a phrase that means "all saints" so they named him after a ton of saints and then threw the rest in there for good measure. You might also notice that there are a few repetitions. For example, "Francisco" (including a pair of hyphenated names) is used five times, in honor of five different saints named Francisco. It was and to an extent still is a popular name, after all.

Registry: Do you, Charles Arthur da-dee-da-dah whatever take Camilla WesternAnimation/MagillaGorilla Film/DrillerKiller Bootzilla Cilla Britney Chardonnay Parker Knoll Recliner Bowles...[[note]]Camilla's middle name is in fact the generally aristocratic but fairly short 'Rosemary'.[[/note]]