Papal name

A papal name is a special name (regnal name) which is chosen by the pope when he is elected.MSNBC.com,  "What’s in a pope’s name?" April 19, 2005; retrieved 2012-8-28.  

History
In the early church, popes were known by their ordinary names, such as Pope Adeodatus, Pope Formosus and Pope Hyginus.

The practice of choosing a papal name started in the sixth century.  At birth, Pope John II was named after the Roman god Mercury.  When he was elected pope, he chose to be called by a Christian name.

Papal names became customary in the 10th century. In 996, the first German pope was chosen; and he changed his name from Bruno to Gregory. He is known as Pope Gregory V.

Every pope since the 16th century is known by a different name than the one he was given at birth. "List of Popes,"  Catholic Encyclopedia (2009); retrieved 2013-3-16.

Frequency of names
The papal names have included John (23 times), Gregory (16), Clement (14), Innocent (14), Leo (14) and Pius (12). "How Pope gets named," Sydney Morning Herald (Australia). April 4, 2005; retrieved 2012-8-28. 

The first papal name to be repeated was Pope Sixtus. There have been four others.

As with kings and emperors, a Roman numeral is added if the Pope chooses a name that another pope has used before -- for example, Pope John Paul II decided to be known by the same name as the pope who came before him.

Name#PopesNotes1.John21I II III IV V VI VII VIII IX X XI XII XIII XIV XV XVI XVII XVIII XIX XX XXI XXII XXIII* John XVI = antipope* There was no John XX 2.Gregory16I II III IV V VI VII VIII IX X XI XII XIII XIV XV XVI3.Benedict15I II III IV V VI VII VIII IX X XI XII XIII XIV XV XVI* Benedict X = antipope4.Clement14I II III IV V VI VII VIII IX X XI XII XIII XIV5.Leo14I II III IV V VI VII VIII IX X XI XII XIII XIV6.Innocent13I II III IV V VI VII VIII IX X XI XII XIII7.Pius12I II III IV V VI VII VIII IX X XI XII8.Stephen9I II III IV V VI VII VIII IX Pope Stephen II died in 752 after election but before being consecrated.  The next pope took the same name in 752; and he is known as either Stephen II or III.9.Boniface8I II III IV V VI VII VIII IX* Boniface VII = antipope.10.Urban8I II III IV V VI VII VIII 11.Alexander7I II III IV V VI VII VIII* Alexander V = antipope 12.Adrian6I II III IV V VI13.Paul6I II III IV V VI14.Celestine5I II III IV V15.Nicholas5I II III IV V16.Sixtus5I II III IV V17.Anastasius4I II III IV18.Eugene4I II III IV19.Honorius4I II III IV20.Sergius4I II III IV21.Callixtus3I II III22.Felix3I II III IV V* Felix II  and Felix V = antipope23.Julius3I II III24.Lucius3I II III25.Martin3I II III IV V*There was no Martin II or Martin III 26.Sylvester3I II III27.Victor3I II III28.Adeodatus2I II29.Agapetus2I II30.Damasus2I II31.Gelasius2I II32.John Paul2I II33.Marcellus2I II34.Marinus2I II* Marinus I is not  "Martin[us] II"* Marinus II is not "Martin[us] III"35.Paschal2I II36.Pelagius2I II37.Theodore2I II38.Agatho139.Anacletus140.Anicetus141.Anterus142.Caius143.Conon144.Constantine145.Cornelius146.Dionysius147.Donus148.Eleuterus149.Eusebius150.Eutychian151.Evaristus152.Fabian153.Formosus154.Francis155.Hilarius156.Hormisdas157.Hyginus158.Lando159.Liberius160.Linus161.Marcellinus162.Mark163.Miltiades164.Peter165.Pontian166.Romanus167.Sabinian168.Severinus169.Silverius170.Simplicius171.Siricius172.Sisinnius173.Soter174.Symmachus175.Telesphorus176.Valentine177.Vigilius178.Vitalian179.Zachary180.Zephyrinus181.Zosimus1

Related pages
 Habemus Papam

 References 

Other websites
 Pope tells why he chose the name of "Benedict XVI"