We all love to catch up with the gossip celebrities and we think we know everything about our own personal favorites. We may know what care they drive, the love of their life but do we actually know their name?
Many celebrities have changed their names well before they became famous. It might be a nickname, a shortened first name or a middle name. Let’s find out what your favorite celebrities REAL name is.
Rihanna
Rihanna/ Instagram
Born Robyn Rihanna Fenty – Rihanna’s middle name means “Sweet Basic” in Arabic. An amazing choice for an unforgettable stage name.
Robyn at heart
Rihanna/ Instagram
Although we all know her as Rihanna she says that when it comes to close family and friends she only every pays attention when they call her Robyn. She says that she hears people calling out Rihanna all the time, but Robyn will always be her family name.
Don't say my name yet, there's more...
Portia De Rossi
Instagram/ Portia De Rossi
Known for her role in Arrested Development, this Australian actress changed her name at the tender age of 15, from her birth name, the very different, Amanda Lee Rogers. Portia is now married to Ellen DeGeneres.
Helped Her Struggles
Instagram/ Portia De Rossi
Portia says that she picked the name Portia because she was a huge fan of Shakespeare. As a girl growing up in Australia she found Europe very stylish and cultured and was fascinated by it. De Rossi, an Italian name, seemed a good choice, with an air of mystery and sophistication. She says that changing her named helped her with her inner struggles about being gay.
Meg Ryan
Meg Ryan was an iconic rom-com actress who was seemingly everywhere in the 90s. Her sweet, blond image makes it hard to imagine she had any other name. Her birth name was rather different, and certainly a lot longer!
Not so short and sweet
Meg Ryan/ Instagram
Meg was born Margaret Emily Ann Hyra. Meg is often used as a short form of Margaret but when she joined the Screen Actors Guild she chose Ryan, which was her Grandmother’s maiden name.
Gigi Hadid
Gigi Hadid/ Indtagram
Gigi is one of the iconic supermodels of the generation. Tall and stunning, this blond American beauty was not born with such a catchy name. In fact her birth name was Jelena Noura Hadid.
Mother’s Choice
Yolanda Hadid/ Instagram
Gigi in fact comes from a pet name that her mother would use when she was just a child. When Gigi decided to become a model she chose the name, it has certainly stuck. It just goes to show how much influence a mom can have!
Meghan Markle
Meghan Markle is probably better known now as the wife of Prince Harry and the Duchess of Sussex. Not many people know that Meghan was not originally her first name.
Suit’s Her
Meghan’s original first name was Rachel, but she chose to use her middle name for her acting career. Strangely her original first name was the same as her character on Suits.
Lady Gaga
Lady Gaga/ Instagram
It’s fair to say that most of us would guess that Lady Gaga is not this singer’s birth name! Born Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta she chose her stage name in 2006 with the help of her music producer. It is certainly a lot more catchy!
Radio Ga Ga
Instagram/ Lady Gaga
Apparently music producer Rob Fusari would often compare her voice to the late Freddie Mercury and would serenade her with Radio Ga Ga every time she came to the office. One day, during a text, he suggested that she change her name and autocorrect stepped in, changing ‘Radio’ to ‘Lady’ and bingo! Lady Gaga was born.
Lorde
Lorde still uses her birth name – Ella Marija Lani Yelich-O’Connor – but only when she’s not performing. Once she hits the stage it’s bye bye Ella and hello Lorde!
Royalty
Lorde had a fascination with royalty since she was a small child growing up in New Zealand. Although she really like the name Lord she wanted to make it a bit more feminine. She added the ‘e’ and that was that. Although some people think it is a religious statement, it’s not, it’s all about that royal vibe.
Ralph Lauren
When you own a clothing empire you really need a catchy name that people remember. Ralph Lauren has certainly achieved that and has become a household name. But that was not the name he was born with.
Rolling off the tong
Originally known as Ralph Lifschiz he changed his name, launched his fashion empire and the rest is history
Audrey Hepburn
Audrey Hepburn Fanpage/ Instagram
Belgian born Audrey Hepburn is one of the classic fashion and beauty icons of our time. Her real birth name has been a well kept secret and there is no real agreement among biographers about her exact name.
Mysterious Birthname
Audrey Hepburn Fanpage/ Instagram
One thing the sources can agree on is the name of her mother – Baroness Ella van Heemstra, and that the surname of her father was Ruston.
Edda is the name that is found most frequently in the numerous biographies written about her life. Other contenders include, Audre and Andry. The New York Times printed her real name as Edda Van Heemstra Hepburn-Ruston but who really knows the truth behind this mystery?
Bruno Mars
Bruno Mars/ Instagram
We all love Bruno Mars, the Hawaiian born American singer renowned for such feel good tunes as Marry You and Uptown Funk. Bruno is in fact a nickname, his father was the fan of a famous wrestler called Bruno and the name just stuck. Bruno’s birth name was Peter Gene Hernandez.
Out of this world
Bruno Mars/ Instagram
So we know how he got Bruno – what about Mars? Apparently he used to get told a lot by the ladies that he was ‘out of this world’. Mars was a good choice.
Cardi B
Cardi B / Instagram
Rapper Cardi B, just like everyone else on this list, did not choose to enter the music industry using her birth name. Originally Belcalis Almanzar, Cardi B is one of the biggest names on the rap scene right now.
Part with Cardi
Cardi B / Instagram
Cardi B’s name is actually a mix around with a nickname she got from family and friend – Bacardi. It’s definitely a lot more catchy than Belcalis.
Nina Dobrev
Nina Dobrev/ Instagram
This Bulgarian actress shot to fame as a leading lady in the TV show The Vampire Diaries. Her real name is actually Nikolina Konstantinoa Dobrev.
Americanised
Nina Dobrev/ Instagram
Nina wanted to make it big in Hollywood so Nikolina Konstantinoa Dobrev was shortened to make her name more user friendly to the American audience. It seems that it paid off!
Vin Diesel
Vin Diesel/ Instagram
It would be so cool to be born with a name like Vin Diesel. However Vin actaully started life as Mark Sinclair.
The rise of Vin Diesel
Vin Diesel/ Instagram
Back in New York City Mark Sinclair became a bouncer and thanks to that he got his new name. How is going to mess with a guy called Vin? The new name paid off and he reached fame in movies like The Fast and The Furious and the Riddick movies
Nicki Minaj
Nicki Minaj/ Instagram
Rap star Nicki Minaj has changed her name not once, but twice. The first change came from her original name – Onika Tanya Maraj – when which became Nicki Maraj, and later changing her last name again to become the Nicki Minaj we know today.
Accepting her title
Nicki Minaj/ Instagram
Apparently Nicki initially rejected the name Manaj because it has a ‘sexual connotation’ however she later accepted it and uses it to this day.
Emma Stone
Emma Stone changes her hair more often than most of us change our shoes but she has only changed her name once. Her original name was Emily Stone, and how she chose to become Emma is a bit of a ‘spicy’ tale.
As Nice as Spice
Emma Stone Fanpage/ Instagram
When Emma went to the Screen Actors Guild it turned out that the name Emily Stone had already been bagged! It turns out Emma was a huge Spice Girls fan as a young girl and loved ‘Baby Spice’ Emma Bunton. So she became Emma Stone.
Kevin Jonas
Kevin Jonas/ Instagram
Kevin Jonas was actually named after his father Paul Kevin Jonas II. So as one third of the Jonas Brothers he became known instead by his middle name.
Nick, Joe, and Paul
Kevin Jonas/ Instagram
Sounds weird right? Especially after knowing him as Kevin the whole time. However, everyone including his family and his friends all know him as Kevin, so it seems the name change well and truly stuck.
John Legend
John Legend/ Instagram
Another name that stuck from a childhood nickname. John may indeed be a legendary singer, but he was born John Roger Stephens. Let’s face it, award winning singer or not, it is not that likely that he would have had the last name Legend from birth!
Grew on Him
John Legend/ Instagram
John told MTV in 2008 that he got the name after his friends starting calling him John Legend. He later adopted it as a stage name. Eventually it turned out that everyone knew him by that name and not his real one.
Troye Sivan
Troye Sivan/ Instagram
As well as bring Ariana Grande’s BFF and a great singer, this guy joins the ranks of those who use their middle name. His real name is Troye Sivan Mellet.
No more Mr. anonymous
Troye Sivan/ Instagram
When Troye started his YouTube channel he left of his last name. Originally he just wanted to remain anonymous but as he grew more and more popular he kept the name. Today we only know him by his chosen stage name.
Olivia Wilde
Olivia’s birth name was Olivia Cockburn – she changed it to Olivia Wilde and now we wouldn’t know her by any other name.
Oscar Wilde inspired
Olivia was acting even back in school playing the part of Gwendoline in ‘The Importance of Being Ernest’. As an homage to the writer of the play, Oscar Wilde, Olivia chose his last name when she took to the screen.
Pitbull
Pitbull/ Instagram
Some parents can choose strange names for their child but Pitball/Mr Worldwide is not one of those names. His parents named this famous rapper Armando Christian Perez. Later he changed it and named himself after this breed of dog.
Admiring the breed
Pitbull/ Instagram
So why did he change it? Simply because he admires the breed. He identifies with the breeds as an outlawed dog. Rightly or wrongly the dog has a reputation as a known as a fighter and Pitbull has had a constant fight to get where he is today.
Calvin Harris
Calvin Harris/ Instagram
Who is Adam? That was the question on everyone’s lips when Taylor Swift thanked her (then) boyfriend during an awards ceremony back in 2016. The fact is that when he’s not being a DJ Calvin’s real name is Adam Richard Wiles.
Racially Ambiguous
Calvin Harris/ Instagram
Hailing from Scotland, the musician told Esquire magazine that he originally chose the name so people wouldn’t be sure if he was black or not. He wanted to be racially ambiguous. After the change he got famous and the name stuck.
Diane Keaton
Truth is often stranger than fiction and so it is with Diane Keaton’s real name. Movie mogul Woody Allen once dated Keaton and she played the title role in his hit movie Annie Hall. She even won an Oscar for her role. Hall is her birth surname and was used by Allen along with her nickname, Annie. So the film was not only starring her, it was named after her too!
Maiden Name
When Diane Hall arrived at the Actors Equity Association it turned out that another actress had already bagged the name. So she chose her mother’s maiden name and became Diane Keaton.
Miley Cyrus
Apart from maybe Hannah Montana it is hard to imagine that Miley Cyrus ever had another name. When her mom Trish and Dad, Billy Ray Cyrus welcomed her to the world, they named her Destiny Hope Cyrus.
Smiley Miley
Miley was always smiling as a child and that’s how she got the nickname Smiley. The name changed over time to become Miley. In 2008 Destiny Hope officially changed her name to legally become Miley Cyrus.
Judy Garland
Before she shot to fame in The Wizard of Oz, Judy was a star on vaudeville as part of a trio of singers called the Gumm Sisters. Realizing that no one was taking them seriously with a name like Gumm, they change it to the Garland sisters.
How did they get there?
No one is really sure how they settled on the name of Garland: Some claim it was based on a character in a movie, some claim actor George Jessel remarked that they looked, ‘prettier than a garland of flowers’.
Judy’s original first name was Frances, she became Judy because of the famous song by Hoagy Charmichael.
Lana Del Rey
Lana Del Ray/ Instagram
Lana Del Rey’s exotic name sits well with the quality of her voice, but like many other stars she was not born with it.
Seaside Glamor
Born Elizabeth Woolridge Grant Lana was looking for a name that would epitomize the glamor of the season, one that would flow off the tongue and would lend itself perfectly to her musical style. She certainly succeeded!
Oprah Winfrey
Talk show host, actress, producer, philanthropist – there is not end to Oprah Winfrey's achievements. It is hard to imagine that Oprah is not her real name, in fact originally she was called Orpah after a Biblical character from the Book of Ruth.
“Here we are”
Oprah/ Instagram
On her birth certificate, the name is there as Orpah but people just got really confused on how to spell it, how to pronounce is and more often than not they called her Oprah, or it got written down as Oprah. Eventually, the name stuck and as Oprah, herself says, ‘here we are'.
Woody Allen
Woody Allen decided to change his name from Allan Stewart Konigsberg to something that was a little more catchy
Hey Woody
Woody originally changed his name to Heywood Allen at the tender age of 17 when he first arrived in Hollywood. As time went on it evolved to Woody Allen and has stuck with it ever since.
Whoopi Goldberg
No one is going to forget a name like Whoopi in a hurry but this actress was originally called Caryn Elaine Johnson. The origin of her new name is pretty earthy…
Whoopi Cushion
Apparent Whoopi got herself a nickname because she gets a little gassy. Having let rip one time too many on stage people would say she sounded like a Whoopee cushion. She went with it and she’s been known as Whoopi ever since.
Nicholas Cage
Nicholas Cage has a secret – and that is that his uncle is the legendary film director/producer/screenwriter, Francis Ford Coppola. He kept it on the down low and changed his name before he went to Hollywood.
His own merit
Determined to risk getting better treatment because of his relationship to his uncle, he changed his name from Coppola to Cage, it was the only way to be sure he succeeded on his own merits.
Marilyn Monroe
