Image by Telstar2000 via Flickr
Good King Wenceslas lives at the holidays in the English-speaking world, but in plenty of places, variants remain viable – even popular – names for a child.
Thanks to Rea for suggesting her son’s middle name as Baby Name of the Day: Wenzel.
Dig a little deeper, and instead of a Christmas carol, Wenzel conjures up a Bohemian rhapsody.
The original Good King was said to be off giving alms on Saint Stephen’s Day, December 26.
Oh, I hadn’t checked AppM for a couple of weeks, and what did I find today but Wenzel. Thanks so much for featuring him; such a nice article as well. (Little J. Wenzel, soon 9 months, says hi!)
You’re welcome!
I like the song at the holidays…. but Wenzel doesn’t quite feel right to me… I’m not sure if it is because it makes me think of weasels, but there’s something that just doesn’t quite hit the mark for me.
There’s a large and prominent family in my city with the surname Wenzel. As someone not related to them, it would feel rather odd to use the name. Despite my hesitation, I love the story of St. Wenceslas and Wenzel is decidedly a usable name in the U.S.
I love Wenceslaus. I would definitely use it, perhaps as a middle name, to honour Slavonic heritage. Wenzel is pretty spiffy as well.