A history lesson in the great name of Martin

What better way to start the season of Martinmas, with a lecture from the LCM on just how grandiose the name of Martin is currently; has been historically and will continue to be forever. You will all be randomly tested on this throughout the year and will receive 30 lashes from the LCM for each wrong answer. 
Origin and History
From the Roman name Martinus, which was derived from
Martis, the genitive case of the name of the Roman god MARS (The LCM is the son of MARS). Saint Martin of Tours was a 4th-century bishop who is the patron saint of France. According to legend, he came across a cold beggar in the middle of winter so he ripped his cloak in two and gave half of it to the beggar. He was a favourite saint during the Middle Ages, and his name has become common throughout the Christian world.
An influential bearer of the name was Martin Luther (1483-1546), the theologian who began the Protestant Reformation. The name was also borne by five popes (two of them more commonly known as Marinus). Other more recent bearers include the German philosopher Martin Heidegger (1889-1976), the American civil rights leader Martin Luther King (1929-1968), and the American filmmaker Martin Scorsese (1942).
 Depiction
 of Saint Martin splitting his cloak by El Greco (1599)
Related Names
VARIANTS: Merten
(Low German), Mårten (Swedish), Morten
(Norwegian), Morten (Danish), Márton
(Hungarian), Martti (Finnish)
DIMINUTIVES: Martie,
Marty
(English), Tine, Tinek
(Slovene), Tin (Croatian)
FEMININE FORMS: Martina
(English), Martine (French), Martina
(German), Martina (Swedish), Martine
(Norwegian), Martina (Czech), Martina
(Slovak), Martina (Slovene), Martina
(Croatian)
OTHER LANGUAGES: Martinus
(Ancient Roman), Mattin, Matxin
(Basque), Martí (Catalan), Maarten,
Marten,
Martijn,
Martinus,
Tijn
(Dutch), Máirtín (Irish), Martino,
Tino
(Italian), Martynas (Lithuanian), Marcin
(Polish), Martim, Martinho
(Portuguese), Mars (Roman Mythology), Martín
(Spanish), Martyn (Ukrainian), Martyn
(Welsh)
Popularity
Using the attached link, you can do a
statistical analysis of the popularity of the name Martin and its diminutives
over the years:
http://www.behindthename.com/name/martin/top/england-wales
The attached chart for the UK is below.
Popularity for Martin in England and Wales
Key highlights are the rise of the Martin
in Spain and the sudden rise and fall in a number of countries such as the
Czech Repulic.
Martin name days
The following countries celebrate the
name of Martin by actually calling one day of the year “Martin” and these are
as follows (get them in your diary now):
Name days for Martin
Bulgaria: March 1
Czech
Republic: November 11
Germany: November 11
Estonia: November 10
France: November 11
Croatia: April 13
Croatia: November 3
Croatia: November 11
Slovakia: November 11
Sweden: November 10
Ratings for the name
Martin'''
The LCM surveyed 410 people as to the
strength and weaknesses of the name Martin, and the results are attached:
http://www.behindthename.com/name/martin/rating
Namesakes
Finally, what better way to illustrate the
strength of our name, by sharing a list of influential Martins throughout
history. Happy Martinmas everyone:
American
Presidents:1'''
president
Martin Van Buren 1837-1841 
Bishops
of Rome and the Popes:3'''
popes
Martin I 649-653 
Martin IV 1281-1285 
Martin V 1417-1431 
Canadian
Prime Ministers:1'''
prime minister
Brian Mulroney (a.k.a. Martin) 1984-1993
Fictional
Characters from Movies:2'''
characters
Martin Riggs 1987 Lethal Weapon
Martin Blank 1997 Grosse Pointe Blank 
German
Chancellors:1'''
chancellor
Bernhard von Bülow (a.k.a. Martin) 1900-1909
Hall-of-Famers:1 baseball, 1 basketball
(baseball) Martín Dihigo 1977 
(basketball) C. M. Newton (a.k.a. Martin) 2000 
Nobel
Prize Winners:3'''
chemistry, 3 medicine, 2 physics, 1 peace
(chemistry) Richard Willstätter (a.k.a.
Martin) 1915 
(peace) Martin Luther King Jr. 1964 
(physics) Martin Ryle 1974 
(medicine) Howard Martin Temin 1975 
(medicine) Martin Rodbell 1994 
(physics) Martin Lewis Perl 1995 
(medicine) Martin Evans 2007 
(chemistry) Martin Chalfie 2008 
(chemistry) Martin Karplus 2013 
Notable
Activists:1'''
activist
Martin Luther King Jr. 1929-1968 
Notable
Actors and Actresses:9'''
actors, 1 actor/comedian
Martin Balsam 1919-1996 
Martin Landau 1928- 
Martin Sheen 1940- 
Martin Mull 1943- 
Martin Shaw 1945- 
Martin Short 1950- 
Martin Turner 1950- 
Martin Lawrence 1965- 
Martin Freeman 1971- 
Martin Henderson 1974- 
Notable
Artists:1'''
conceptual artist
Martin Kippenberger 1953-1997 
Notable
Athletes:1'''
baseball, 1 soccer, 1 tennis
(baseball) Martín Dihigo 1906-1971 
(tennis) Martin Verkerk 1978- 
(soccer) Miiko Albornoz (a.k.a. Martín) 1990- 
Notable
Filmmakers:1'''
director
Martin Scorsese 1942- 
Notable
Philosophers and Thinkers:1 philosopher, 1 theologian
Martin Luther 1483-1546 
Martin Heidegger 1889-1976 
Olympic
Medalists:3'''
gold, 2 silver/bronze, 1 gold/bronze, 1 silver, 1
silver/gold
(gold/bronze) Martin Hollstein 2008;
2012 canoe sprint 
(silver/bronze) Martin Johnsrud Sundby 2010; 2014 cross-country
skiing 
(silver/bronze) Benjamin Karl (a.k.a. Martin) 2010; 2014 snowboarding
(silver/gold) Martin Fourcade 2010; 2014 biathlon 
(gold) Martin Sauer 2012 rowing 
(gold) Martin Häner 2012 field hockey 
(silver) Martin Sinković 2012 rowing 
(gold) Martin St. Louis 2014 ice hockey 
Oscar
Award Winners:2'''
actors, 1 director
(actor) Martin Balsam 1965 A
Thousand Clowns 
(actor) Martin Landau 1994 Ed Wood 
(director) Martin Scorsese 2006 The Departed 
Other
Leaders:2'''
prime ministers
Prime Minister Trygve Bratteli (a.k.a.
Martin) 1971-1972; 1973-1976 Norway 
Prime Minister Martin Raguž 2000-2001 Bosnia and Herzegovina 
Pulitzer
Award Winners:1'''
winner
Martin Flavin 1944 Journey in
the Dark 
Saints:4 saints, 2 blessed
Saint Martin of Tours 316-397 
Saint Martin I ?-655 
Saint Martín de Porres 1579-1639 
Saint Martín Loynaz of the Ascension ?-1597 
Blessed Martín Gómez ?-1627 
Blessed Martin Lumbreras ?-1632 
Spanish
Kings and Queens:1'''
king
King Martín the Kind (Aragon) 1396-1410
Title
Characters:3'''
songs, 1 book, 1 musical
(book) Martin Chuzzlewit 1844 Martin
Chuzzlewit 
(song) Martin 1968 Abraham, Martin and John 
(musical) Martin Guerre 1997 Martin Guerre 
(song) Martin Eden 2003 Martin Eden 
(song) Martin 2010 Martin