Magnus

This article is about the given name and surname. For other uses, see Magnus (disambiguation).

Magnus, meaning "great" in Latin, was sometimes used as a first name among Romans but was not particularly common among them. The best-known Roman bearing the name was the third-century usurper. The name gained wider popularity in the Middle Ages, various European peoples, and their royal houses, being introduced to it upon being converted to the Latin-speaking Catholic Christianity. This was especially the case with Scandinavian royalty and nobility.

As a Scandinavian forename, it was extracted from the Frankish ruler Charlemagne's Latin name "Carolus Magnus" and re-analyzed as Old Norse magn-hús = "power house".

Magnus may refer to:

People

People with the sole name Magnus

Kings of Norway

• Magnus I of Norway (1024–1047)
• Magnus II of Norway (1048–1069)
• Magnus III of Norway (1073–1103)
• Magnus IV of Norway (c. 1115–1139)
• Magnus V of Norway (1156–1184)
• Magnus VI of Norway (1238–1280)
• Magnus VII of Norway (1316–1374)

Kings of Denmark

• Magnus the good of Denmark (1042-1047)

Kings of Sweden

• Magnus I of Sweden (c. 1106–1134)
• Magnus II of Sweden (died 1161)
• Magnus III of Sweden (1240–1290)
• Magnus IV of Sweden (1316–1374), also Magnus VII of Norway

King of Livonia

• Magnus of Livonia (1540–1583), also Duke of Holstein

Dukes

• Magnus, Duke of Saxony (c. 1045–1106)
• Magnus the Pious, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg (before 1318–1369)
• Magnus II, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg (1324–1373), also known as Magnus with the Necklace
• Magnus I, Duke of Saxe-Lauenburg (1488–1543)

Other

• Magnus (Roman usurper) (died 235)
• Magnus (consul 460) (c. 390 or 405 – 475)
• Magnus (bishop), Roman Catholic Bishop of Turku between 1291 and 1308
• Magnus, Prince of Anhalt-Köthen (1455-1524)

Saints

• Magnus of Anagni (died 2nd century)
• Magnus of Cuneo (died 3rd century)
• Magnus of Milan, bishop of Milan from 518 to c. 530
• Magnus of Avignon (died 660), bishop and governor of Avignon
• Magnus of Füssen, missionary saint of southern Germany, seventh or eighth century

People with the family name Magnus

• Albertus Magnus (born 1193-1206, died 1280), German theologian and philosopher
• Désiré Magnus, Belgian pianist
• Elisabeth von Magnus, Austrian singer
• Heinrich Gustav Magnus, professor of chemistry
• Heinrich Magnus, German physicist who discovered the Magnus effect
• Ludwig Immanuel Magnus, German mathematician
• Paul Wilhelm Magnus, German botanist
• Siobhan Magnus, American singer
• Wilhelm Magnus, German mathematician

In fiction

• Leon Magnus, a character from Tales of Destiny
• Will Magnus, a scientist character in the DC Comics universe
• Dr. Helen Magnus, Ashley Magnus, characters in the Canadian fantasy TV series Sanctuary
• Magnus Bane, a character from the Immortal Instruments series

People with the given name Magnus

• Magnus W. Alexander, German engineer
• Magnus Arvedson, Swedish ice hockey player
• Magnus Bahne, Finnish footballer
• Magnus Beronius, Swedish IT worker
• Magnus Bäckstedt, a Swedish road cyclist
• Magnus Betnér, a Swedish comedian
• Magnus Carlsen, Norwegian chess grandmaster, world chess champion and No. 1 ranked player in the world
• Magnus Erlendsson, Earl of Orkney
• Magnus Hirschfeld, German physician and sexologist
• Magnus Larsson, former professional tennis player from Sweden
• Magnus Magnusson, Icelandic-born BBC personality and Mastermind quiz-master
• Magnus Malan, South African soldier and politician
• Magnus Manske, German biochemist and developer, developed first version of MediaWiki software
• Magnus Norman, former professional Swedish tennis player
• Max Magnus Norman, contemporary artist
• Magnús Ver Magnússon of Iceland, four-time World’s Strongest Man champion
• Magnus Samuelsson, a Swedish strongman and former World's Strongest Man
• Magnús Scheving, creator and co-star of the children's television show LazyTown
• Magnus Büchel, Liechtenstein judoka
• Magnus Pääjärvi-Svensson, Swedish hockey player
• Magnus Rosén, ex-HammerFall bassist
• Prince Sverre Magnus of Norway, Prince of Norway
• Magnus Pyke, (1908—1992), a British scientist and media figure

In fiction

• Magnus Bane, a character in The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare
• Magnus Chase
• Magnus Eisengrim, a character in the Deptford Trilogy
• Magnus Gallant, a main character in Ogre Battle 64
• Magnus Greel, a villain in the 1977 Doctor Who serial The Talons of Weng-Chiang
• Magnus (Marvel Comics), two characters in the Marvel universe
• Magnus Pym, the central character of A Perfect Spy
• Magnus, Robot Fighter, a comic book character published by Gold Key and Valiant comics
• Magnus the Red, a character in the Warhammer 40,000 universe
• Magnus, the official mascot of Cleveland State Vikings
• Magnus (The Vampire Chronicles), a character in The Vampire Chronicles by Anne Rice
• Magnus is revealed to be the real name of the Doctor Who character the Master
• Ultra Magnus, several characters in the Transformers universe
• Magnus, a significant character from Kid Icarus: Uprising
• Magnus Hammersmith, an antagonist in Metalocalypse
• Magnus, a god featured in the lore of the Bethesda video game series The Elder Scrolls
• Magnus von Grapple, a boss in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door
• Magnus Chase, the main protagonist in the fantasy series Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard

Pseudonyms

• Magnus, pseudonym of American magician Jeff McBride
• Magnus, pen name of Italian comic book artist Roberto Raviola
• Magnus (formerly Brutus Magnus), ring name of English professional wrestler Nick Aldis (born 1986)
• Magnus, pseudonym of rap Mexican singer Alejandro Santiago

Other

• Pompey Magnus, Roman consul and general who was given the honorific "Magnus"
• Magnus Maximus, Roman usurper and Western Roman Emperor (died 388)
• Montius Magnus, 4th-century Roman Quaestor

See also

• All pages with titles containing Magnus
• Manus (disambiguation)
• Magnes (disambiguation)
• Magnusson (disambiguation)
• List of people known as The Great