Placeholder name
A placeholder name is a more or less established name for a fictional person that represents any person in a context. It is often used as a name in patterns for personalized documents (e.g. ID, bank card, driver's license, train card), but also in texts. There are also placeholder names for places and items.
Use in Germany
The most common placeholder names in Germany are Max and Erika Mustermann , occasionally with other first names or with the last name Musterfrau. While these names are usually used as placeholders representing an individual, the names Otto Normalverbrauch and Lieschen Müller stand for the average German person, not for an individual.
Kleinkleckersdorf , Hintertupfing or Posemuckel stand for any (smaller) place . Objects are referred to as Dings or Dingsbums . What is meant is usually a specific object whose name is currently not available to the speaker. If any object is meant, the word any is usually put in front.
Placeholder names in other languages
| Country / part of the country | designation |
|---|---|
 Egypt
|
Folan ( Arabic : فلان) (female: Folana, فلانة), Elan (علان) as a partner. |
 Argentina
|
Juan Pérez, Fulano de Tal, Fulano, Mengano, Menganito |
 Australia
|
Fred Nurk, Joe Farnarkle, John (also: Jane) Citizen, Joe (also: Jane) Bloggs, Joe Blow |
 Basque Country
|
Iñaki, Patxi |
 Belgium ( Flanders )
|
Jan Janssen, Piet Pietersen, Jos Joskens, Jan Modaal, Jef Klak |
 Bosnia and Herzegovina
|
Marko Marković, Petar Petrović, Sima Simić |
 Brazil
|
Fulano (de Tal), Sicrano, Beltrano, João da Silva, Zé da Silva, Zé Ninguém |
 Bulgaria
|
Иван Иванов (Ivan Ivanov), лицето Х (Person X) |
 Chile
|
Juan Pérez, Fulano de Tal, Perico de los Palotes, NN ('Ningún Nombre' or 'No Name', a nobody). |
 People's Republic of China
|
陈小 名 , chénxiǎomíng , Cantonese Chan Siu Ming , 某某 (人) , Mǒumǒu (rén) , translated: 'Someone', sometimes used with a person's last name, 老百姓 , lǎobǎixìng - " the old hundred names " |
 Costa Rica
|
Juan Pérez, Fulano de Tal (probably from the Arabic 'Fulan'), Fulanito, Sutano, Mengano, Perencejo |
 Denmark
|
Mr. og fru Jensen ('Mr and Mrs Jensen'), Morten Menigmand (Morten 'simple man') |
 Ecuador
|
Juan Perez, Fulano, Sultano, Mengano, Juan Piguabe |
 Estonia
|
Jaan Tamm (male), Tädi Maali (an old woman, literally 'Aunt Amalie') |
 Faroe Islands
|
Miðalhampamaður |
 Finland
|
Matti Meikäläinen (for a man, literally 'our Matti'), Maija Meikäläinen (for a woman, literally 'our Maija') |
 France
|
Jean Dupont, Paul Martin, Monsieur Durand, Monsieur Tout-le-monde |
 Greece
|
Γιάννης / Γιώργος / Μαρία Τάδε (Giannis / Giorgos / Maria Tade), o / η Δείνα (his partner), Γιάννης / Γιώργος Καραμήτρος (Giannis / Giorgos Kargos). Β. Κάτοχος (A. B. Katohos, used on credit card templates) |
 Guatemala
|
Juan Pérez, Fulano, Sutano (or Zutano), Mengano, Perencejo |
 Hong Kong Macau
|
陳大文 (male), 陳小明 (boy) |
 India
|
Ashok Kumar |
 Indonesia
|
Si Polan |
 Iran
|
Folani ( Persian فُلانی), Felani ( Persian فلانی), Yaroo ( Persian يارو) |
 Ireland
|
Seán and Síle Citizen; Irish : Seán Ó Rudaí, from rud = thing [s]), Tadhg an mhargaidh (literally "Tim from the market place", translated "the man on the street" |
 Iceland
|
Meðal-Jón, Meðal-Jóna, Jón Jónsson, Jóna Jónsdóttir: literally "middle" or "average" Jón or Jóna; the name Jón, which also exists in numerous variations, is extremely popular in Iceland and is considered a "common name". |
 Israel
|
Israel Israeli (ישראל ישראלי) as a counterpart to ordinary Otto and Moshe Cohen (משה כהן) as a counterpart to Lieschen Müller . The terms Ploni (פלוני) or Almoni (אלמוני) or Ploni Almon (פלוני אלמוני), however, correspond to the Erika Mustermann. The name Ploni Almoni comes from the book of Ruth 4: 1. There it is used instead of the real name of a relative of Boaz ' who is not mentioned because he has not fulfilled his obligation under the Leviric Law out of necessity and should not be embarrassed by mentioning his real name in the Bible. |
 Italy
|
Mario Rossi - Tizio, Caio, Sempronio - Pinco Pallino - Casalinga di Voghera - Italiano medio |
 Japan
|
山田 太郎 (Yamada Tarō), 山田 花子 (Yamada Hanako), 名 無 し の 権 兵衛 (Nanashi no Gombei), 何 野 某 (Nanno Nanigashi) |
 Canada
|
Jos Bleau, G. Raymond |
 Kenya
|
Wanjiku (female only) |
 Colombia
|
Fulano de Tal, Pepito Pérez |
 North Korea South Korea
|
홍길동 (Hong Gil-dong) |
 Croatia
|
Ivan Horvat, Pero Perić |
 Cuba
|
Fulano, Mengano, Ciclano, Esperancejo (female equivalents: Fulana, Mengana, Ciclana, Esperanceja.) Optional surname: de Tal ('from such') |
 Latvia
|
Jānis Bērziņš |
 Lebanon
|
Majhoul ( Arabic مجهول), Folan ( Arabic فلان) (female equivalent: Folana, Arabic فلانة), Elan ( Arabic علان) as a partner. |
 Lithuania
|
Vardenis Pavardenis, Jonas Jonaitis, Petras Petraitis |
 Luxembourg
|
Jenni a Menni |
 Malaysia
|
Si Anu, Si Polan, Si Polan Bin Si Polan |
 Malta
|
Joe Borg |
 Mauritius
|
Sa Nation la, Sa boug la (for men), Safame la, Sapitin la (for women) |
 Macedonia
|
Петар Петровски (Petar Petrovski) |
 Mexico
|
Juan Pérez, Fulano de Tal, Mangano, Perengano, Zutano |
 Nepal
|
Ram, Shyam, Hari and other colloquial names such as Khamar, Ram Kumar Deshar, Sigdel and Jyapu |
 New Zealand
|
Joe Bloggs, John Doe, Bob Smith |
 Netherlands
|
Jan Modaal, Harry Holland, Doorsnee family |
 Nigeria
|
Lagbaja |
 Norway
|
Ola og Kari Nordmann (literally 'Ola and Kari [n] Norwegians ') |
 Pakistan
|
Falana (male), Falani (female). A derivative of the Persian equivalent |
 Panama
|
Juan Pérez, Fulano de Tal, Sultano, Mengano |
 Paraguay
|
Juan Pérez, Fulano de Tal, Sultano, Mengano, NN |
 Peru
|
Juan Pérez, Fulano de Tal, Zutano, Mengano |
 Philippines
|
Juan dela Cruz |
 Poland
|
Jan Kowalski, przeciętny Kowalski, Jan Nowak |
 Portugal
|
Manuel Dos Santos, Zé Ninguém (Josef Nobody), o Outro (the other), Fulano de Tal |
 Puerto Rico
|
Fulano de Tal, Juan Perez, Juan del Pueblo |
 Romania
|
Escu, Gheorghe, Necunoscut, Xulescu, Cutare Cutărică |
 Russia
|
Иванов (Ivanov), Петров (Petrov), Сидоров (Sidorov), Вася Пупкин (Vasya Pupkin) |
 Sweden
|
Kalle Svensson, Medelsvensson, Svensson , Svenne, Erik Johansson, Mannen på gatan (the man on the street), Gemene mann ('normal man'), Nisse i Hökarängen |
 Serbia Montenegro
|
Petar Petrović, Pera Perić, Marko Marković, Janko Janković |
 Singapore
|
Tan Ah Kao, Tan Ah Beng |
 Slovakia
|
Jožko Mrkvička |
 Slovenia
|
Janez Novak, Janez Pouprečnik |
 Spain
|
male: Fulano (de Tal), Fulanito (de Tal), Pepe Pérez, Mengano, Menganito, Perico de los Palotes, Menganito de Cual, Zutano, Zutanito, Sultano, Sultanito, Don Nadie, Juan Nadie, Perengano; female: Fulanita (de Tal), Mengana, Menganita (de Tal) |
 South Africa
|
Koos van der Merwe, Piet Pompies |
 Thailand
|
Somchai, Sommai, Nai-Gor |
 Czech Republic
|
Jan Novák, Karel Vomáčka, Tomáš Martiník, Jan Skočdopole, Josef Lazar |
 Turkey
|
Sade Vatandaş; Ahmet / Mehmet, Ali / Veli, Hasan / Hüseyin (male); Ayşe / Fatma (female); Falan (kişi) / Filan (kişi, 'anyone', female also: Filane) |
 Hungary
|
Gipsz Jakab, Kovács János, Jóska Pista |
 Uruguay
|
Fulano, Mengano; Juan Perez |
 United Kingdom
|
Fred Bloggs or Joe Bloggs, Joe (also: Jane) Public, John Smith, the man in the street, the man on the Clapham omnibus, 'Tom, Dick and Harry' |
 United States
|
male: John Doe , Precious Doe, Baby Doe, John Q. Public, J Random User, Joe Blow, Joe Sixpack (also: Joe Six-pack), Joe Shmoe, Richard Roe, Joe Ordinary, Average Joe (also: Joe Average ), John Q. Citizen, John Q. Taxpayer female: Jane Doe , Jane Q. Public, Jane Q. Citizen, Jane Q. Taxpayer, Mary Major, Sally Sixpack, family equivalent: Mr. & Mrs. John Q. Public, Mr. & Mrs. John Q. Citizen, Mr. & Mrs. John Q. Taxpayer |
 Venezuela
|
Fulano, Fulano de Tal, Sutano, Mengano, Perencejo, Pedro Perez, Juan de los Palotes, Juan Bimba |
 Vietnam
|
Nguoi La, Người dấu tên |