Имена правления монархов в Восточной Азии

Name chosen by a reigning monarch, different from their original secular name

A regnal name, regnant name, Prior to the Ming dynasty, it was common for Chinese monarchs to proclaim more than one era name during a single reign, or that a single era name was used by several rulers. Monarchs of the Ming and Qing dynasties, however, often adopted only one era name throughout their reign; thus, Chinese sovereigns of the Ming and Qing dynasties are commonly known by their respective era name with few exceptions, although era names were not effectively regnal names. The era name system had also been adopted by rulers of Korea, Vietnam and Japan, with Japan still using the system to this day. The following table provides examples from China, Japan, Korea and Vietnam to illustrate the differences between monarchical titles in the Sinosphere. Bold characters represent the most common way to refer to the monarchs. RealmDynastyPersonal nameRegnal nameEra nameTemple namePosthumous nameChinaEastern Han dynastyLiu Da劉炟NoneJianchu建初Yuanhe元和Zhanghe章和Suzong肅宗Emperor Xiaozhang孝章皇帝Tang dynastyLi Longji李隆基Emperor Kaiyuan Shengwen Shenwu開元聖文神武皇帝Xiantian先天Kaiyuan開元Tianbao天寶Xuanzong玄宗Emperor Zhidao Dasheng Daming Xiao至道大聖大明孝皇帝Liao dynastyYelü Deguang耶律德光Emperor Sisheng嗣聖皇帝Tianxian天顯Huitong會同Datong大同Taizong太宗Emperor Xiaowu Huiwen孝武惠文皇帝Qing dynastyAisin Gioro Xuanye愛新覺羅·玄燁NoneKangxi康熙Shengzu聖祖Emperor Hetian Hongyun Wenwu Ruizhe Gongjian Kuanyu Xiaojing Chengxin Zhonghe Gongde Dacheng Ren合天弘運文武睿哲恭儉寬裕孝敬誠信中和功德大成仁皇帝JapanYamato dynastyObito首NoneJinki神亀Tenpyō天平Tenpyō kanpō天平感宝NoneEmperor Shōmu聖武天皇Osahito統仁NoneKaei嘉永Ansei安政Man'en万延Bunkyū文久Genji元治Keiō慶応NoneEmperor Kōmei孝明天皇KoreaGoryeo dynastyWang Un王運왕운NoneNoneSeonjong宣宗선종King Gwanin Hyeonsun Anseong Sahyo寬仁顯順安成思孝大王관인현순안성사효대왕Joseon dynastyYi Yu李瑈이유NoneNoneSejo世祖세조King Hyejang Sungcheon Chedo Yeolmun Yeongmu Jideok Yunggong Seongsin Myeongye Heumsuk Inhyo惠莊承天體道烈文英武至德隆功聖神明睿欽肅仁孝大王혜장승천체도열문영무지덕융공성신명예흠숙인효대왕VietnamRevival Lê dynastyLê Duy KỳLê Duy KỳNoneVĩnh TộVĩnh TộĐức LongĐức LongDương HòaDương HòaKhánh ĐứcKhánh ĐứcThịnh ĐứcThịnh ĐứcVĩnh ThọVĩnh ThọVạn KhánhVạn KhánhThần TôngThần TôngEmperor UyênUyên Hoàng đếNguyễn dynastyNguyễn Phúc TuyềnNguyễn Phúc TuyềnNoneThiệu TrịThiệu TrịHiến TổHiến TổEmperor Thiệu thiên Long vận Chí thiện Thuần hiếu Khoan minh Duệ đoán Văn trị Vũ công Thánh triết ChươngThiệu thiên Long vận Chí thiện Thuần hiếu Khoan minh Duệ đoán Văn trị Vũ công Thánh triết Chương Hoàng đế

During the Medieval Age, when the House of Árpád disappeared in 1301, two of the monarchs that claimed the throne and were crowned chose a different name. Otto III, Duke of Bavaria became Bela V of Hungary, taking the name of his maternal grandfather, Béla IV of Hungary. On the other hand, Wenceslaus III of Bohemia signed his royal documents in Hungary as Ladislas, this being a very traditional name in the Kingdom. Later during the first half of the 14th century, Charles I of Hungary signed as "Carolus rex", but in fact his birth name was the Italian Caroberto. This is why he is often referred to by Hungarian historians as "Charles Robert of Hungary".

All ruling male members of the House of Orange Nassau bore the name Willem (William). The current king of the Netherlands was christened Willem Alexander. During an interview in 1997 he said he intended to rule under the name of Willem IV, but he had a change of mind. In a televised interview just before his inauguration, he announced he would continue to use the name Willem Alexander, saying "I spent 46 years of my life under the name Willem Alexander, and specifically under the nickname of Alexander. I think it would be weird to discard that because I become king of the country." Furthermore, he said he did not consider himself "a mere number", adding that regnal numbers reminded him of Dutch cattle naming conventions.

When the House of Piast disappeared and the Lithuanian House of Jagiellon was elected in the figure of the High Duke Jogaila, this monarch took the name of Władysław II, in honour of the previous Polish king (Władysław I the Elbow high) with this traditional name. Similarly, when the Elector of Saxony, Frederick Augustus I, was elected king in 1697, he took the name of Augustus II. His son Frederick Augustus II crowned in 1734, also took the name of Augustus, becoming Augustus III.

The monarchs of Portugal have traditionally used their first baptismal name as their regnal name upon their accession. The only notable exception was Sancho I, who was born Martin of Burgundy (Martinho de Borgonha, in Portuguese). As he was a younger son, Martin was expected to join the clergy, and was named after Saint Martin of Tours, on whose feast day he had been born. When the heir apparent, Henry, died, the prince's name was changed to Sancho, one with a more established royal tradition in the other Iberian monarchies (Navarre, Castile and Aragon).

Though most monarchs of the United Kingdom have used their first baptismal name as their regnal name, on three occasions monarchs have chosen a different name. First, Queen Victoria had been christened Alexandrina Victoria, but took the throne under the name Victoria. When Victoria's son, Prince Albert Edward, became king in 1901, he took the regnal name Edward VII, against the wish of his late mother. The new king declared that he chose the name Edward as an honoured name borne by six of his English predecessors, and that he preferred that the name Albert be only associated in royal history with his father. In 1936, after the abdication crisis, Prince Albert, Duke of York, assumed the throne. His full name was Albert Frederick Arthur George, but he became King George VI rather than "King Albert". Before his 2022 accession, there was occasional speculation that the then Prince Charles might use a different name, to avoid association with Charles I (executed after the English Civil War), or Charles II (known as the Merry Monarch for his womanising), and to avoid conflict or confusion with the "Young Pretender" Charles Edward Stuart (who styled himself as "Charles III"). For example, one 2005 report suggested that he might instead use his fourth given name and be known as "George VII" in honour of his grandfather.

When John, Earl of Carrick ascended the throne in 1390, it was deemed imprudent for him to take the regnal name of "John II", due to the turbulent reigns of recent kings named John (John Balliol, John of England, and John II of France). Furthermore, royal propaganda of the time held that John Balliol had not been a legitimate king of Scots, making the new king's regnal number also a difficult issue. To avoid these problems, John took the regnal name of Robert III, honouring his father and great grandfather. Upon the 1952 accession of Elizabeth II, the title Elizabeth II caused controversy in Scotland as there had never been a Scottish Elizabeth I. Winston Churchill suggested that British sovereigns would use either the Scottish or the English number, whichever was higher; this convention fit the pattern of prior reigns since the Acts of Union 1707, all subsequent monarchs either having higher regnal numbers in England (namely William IV, Edward VII, and Edward VIII) or had names not used before the Union (George and Victoria). New Royal Mail post boxes in Scotland bearing the cypher EIIR, were vandalised, after which, to avoid further problems, post boxes and Royal Mail vehicles in Scotland bore only the Crown of Scotland. A legal case, MacCormick v. Lord Advocate (1953 SC 396), contested the right of the Queen to title herself Elizabeth II in Scotland, arguing that to do so would be a breach of the Act of Union. The case, however, was dismissed on the grounds that the pursuers had no title to sue the Crown, and also that the numbering of monarchs was part of the royal prerogative, and thus not governed by the Act of Union.

The Roman Emperors usually had the titles of "Imperator Caesar Augustus" in their names (which made these regnal names). Caesar came from the cognomen of Gaius Julius Caesar, Imperator meant Commander and Augustus meant venerable or majestic. The name usually went in two ways, Imperator (Praenomen, Nomen and Cognomen) Caesar Augustus or Imperator Caesar (Praenomen, Nomen and Cognomen) Augustus. Also, Imperator became a Praenomen of Roman Emperors, Augustus and Caesar became a cognomen of theirs.

Coptic popes also choose regnal names distinct from their given names.

The use of regnal names was uncommon in the Medieval Islamic era until the Abbasid Caliphate, when the first Abbasid caliph, Abu al Abbas Abdullah ibn Muhammad, who overthrew the Umayyad dynasty, used the as Saffah ("the Blood Shedder"). This name carried a messianic association, a theme that would be continued by as Saffah's successors. The use of regnal names among the caliphs lasted throughout the reign of the Abbasid Caliphate, until the institution was deposed after the defeat of the Mamluk Sultanate and the capture of Caliph al Mutawakkil III by the Ottoman Army in 1517. The Fatimid caliphs adopted the Abbasid use of the to assert their claims of authority.