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===Call Name===
Call name is a transliteration of the German word ''Rufname'' or the Swedish ''tilltalsnamn''. It is therefore sometimes a source of confusion. It is not a nickname, or necessarily the ''name'' someone is ''called''.
Among the formal forenames given at birth some cultures pick out a particular one to use for official and normal public use: the Call Name. (Think of it as analogous to the ancient idea that a person's public name is not his 'real' secret name, knowledge of which would give power over him to others). One of the formal given birth forenames is taken (typically *not* the first) as the Call Name: it is an official name frequently underlined in official documents. The concept is common in Northern Europe; the call name is often a saint's name or that of an honoured relative; or the first name may be the 'spiritual' name, while the call name is a secular one. There are contrasting views on whether a shortened form of a person's name can also be a call name; some consider that to be a nickname; as an additional complication, for example in Sweden, the (official) call name may be a name that is different from any of the forenames given at birth.