Within the Church, there is no strict doctrine or catechism that requires a newly elected Supreme Pontiff to take on a new name after their inauguration ceremony. In fact, for hundreds of years a new pope would simply continue to use their given birth name. Today, after the counting of ballots produces a consensus candidate, a papal conclave will ask of the new pope “By which name will you be known?” However, if taking on a papal name is not a requirement, why do they change their names?

The tradition first started in the year 533 with Pope John II taking on a new moniker. His birth name was Mercurius, his parents having named him after Mercury in the Roman mythology. Upon his election, he thought it would be inappropriate of the Holy See to have a supreme pontiff in office with the name of a pagan god. He took his papal name after Pope John I, who was martyred just seven years earlier.

For over four hundred years, his successors once again returned to using their birth names. However, in December of 983 Pietro Canepanova was elected pope. Not wanting to disrespect or liken himself to Saint Peter, the first Pope, he took on the papal name of Pope John XIV. John XIV’s successor, Giovanni di Gallina Alba, retained his birth name and became John XV.

Following the papacy of John XV, newly elected pontiffs began to use papal names somewhat regularly. Generally, a regnal name was taken when their birth name was distinctly non-Roman, such as a Germanic name. Other times, a new pope would choose a name to honor a predecessor. For example, Pope Saint John Paul II chose his name in honor of John Paul I, whose papacy lasted only 33 days.

The last pope to retain their birth name was Pope Marcellus II, born Marcello Cervini degli Spannochi, in 1555. After his papacy, all of his successors took on a new papal name. However, until the election of Pope Francis, there were no new papal names since the year 918. Names were simply reused, with the most popular being John, used over 21 times. Pope Francis is one of the 44 popes to have a unique papal name.

Photo credit: Gorodenkoff / Shutterstock.com
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12 COMMENTS

    • They have had in the past Johns and Pauls’ and what Pope JP did was put the two
      names together but they have never had a Pope Francis before. So in some ways the article is correct because all JP1 did was put 2 previous Pope’s names together.

    • Both John and Paul had been used by other popes. So it was not really new as we know of Pope Paul VI as well as Pope John VIX. Hence the author is right because no one had used Francis before Pope Francis

  1. Very important information indeed. Being the Catechist, I really need this information.
    Will you please send me your weekly/monthly newsletters.
    God bless your good work.

  2. I would humbly add… Taking a new name is still done in many monasteries and convents worldwide. It is often a symbolic gesture of the new direction of the person’s life in dedication to the Church and Christ.

    • Because “John XX” was an ANTIpope.

      John XXIII compounded the confusion by choosing that regnal number. He chose not to call himself John XXII because that would mean renumbering as XX and XXI those who were known to their medieval contemporaries and to historians as XXI and XXII respectively.

      Yes John Paul I (the first to choose a double name) didn’t break the fact that there were no completely new names since 918 AD.

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