List Of Terms Referring To An Average Person

Here is a list of terms referring to an average person. Many are used as placeholder names.

Unsorted

* Everyman
* T.C. Mits
*Man on the Clapham omnibus
*Average Joe
* Reasonable person
* Standard person
*Joe Blow

By culture

Arab World

Fulan (male: فلان) Fulana (female: فلانة)

Australia

* Old mate
* Man on the Bondi tram (in legal context in New South Wales)

Austria

* Hans Meier / Maier / Mayer
* Herr und Frau Österreicher (Mr and Mrs Austrian)

Brazil

* João or Joãozinho, Maria ou Mariazinha
* "Zé Ninguém" ( "Joe Nobody" ) and similars ("Zé Arruela" meaning "Joe Washer" as an offense).
* "Fulano" or "Fulano de tal"

Denmark

* Hr. og Fru Danmark (Mr. and Mrs. Denmark)

Finland

Matti Meikäläinen (male, literally "our Matti"), Maija Meikäläinen (female, literally "our Maija")

France

* Very popular names (similar to John/Jane Doe): Jean Dupont, Paul Martin, M./Mme Durand, M./Mme Martin, etc.;
* Usable as a common word: Pierre-Paul-Jacques (with the meaning of "Someone");
* Random people (similar to Average John/Jane): Monsieur/Madame Tout-le-monde, (M./Mme) Untel/Unetelle (Mr/Mrs NoName), Madame Michu (only female), (M./Mme) Tartempion (familiar and little satirical);
* Other:
** (M./Mme) Machin/Machine (familiar terms, used when one does not take the pain to find another term);
** (Un) Gazier originally, a man who worked in gas transport; nowadays, it is a familiar term to tell "Someone" (mostly for a man, this term is rare for women, and in such a case, the correct orthography is "Gazière").
See also :fr:wikt:Tartempion#Synonymes

Germany

* Max Mustermann (Erika for female)
* Otto Normalverbraucher
* Hein Blöd
* Lieschen Müller

Hungary

* Gipsz Jakab

Israel

* Israel Israeli
* Ploni and Almoni

Italy

* Mario Rossi
* Pinco Pallino
* Tal dei Tali
* Signor Nessuno
* Uomo medio
* Cittadino qualunque
* "Tizio, Caio e Sempronio" equivalent to "Tom, Dick and Harry"

Japan

* (male)
* (female)
* (anonymous)

Malaysia

* Cik Kiah (uncle Kiah), a derivative of the name Makcik Kiah (auntie Kiah), a name made up by PM Tan Sri Muhyiddin to illustrate an average Malaysian: a Pisang goreng seller earning the median rural income.

The Netherlands

* Jan Modaal

Norway

* wikt:Ola/Kari Normann

Philippines

*Juan dela Cruz (male), María dela Cruz or Juana dela Cruz (female)

Poland

*Jan Kowalski (male), Anna Kowalska (female), the second most common Polish surname.
*For a broader representation of average Poles "Kowalski" may be grouped with some other common surnames, such as Nowak (the most common Polish surname), Malinowski, or Wiśniewski: "Imagine our neighbors, the Kowalskis or Nowaks, who earn PLN 100 less per month than we do"., "PRZECIĘTNY KOWALSKI. UWAGI O KONOTACJACH I MEDIALNYCH WYSTĄPIENIACH JEDNOSTKI ONIMICZNEJ", ''Zeszyty Naukowe KUL'', vol 58, no. 3 (231), 2015, pp. 3-9.

Portuguese

* Fulano (from Arabic), Sicrano (unknown etymology), Beltrano (from given name Beltrão) "Fulano, Sicrano e Beltrano" equivalent to "Tom, Dick and Harry"

Russia

Common placeholder first names in Russia are Ivan and Peter, due to their commonality. Their placeholder function may be seen in old Russian textbooks: in arithmetical problems or sentences to illustrate grammar.

For a group of average persons or to stress the randomness of a selection, a triple common Russian surnames are used together in the same context: "Ivanov, Petrov, or Sidorov". This a relatively new phenomenon, unknown in early 20th century. Ivanov, being derived from the most common first name, is a placeholder either for s sine arbitrary person. In its plural form, "Ivanovs", it may be used as a placeholder for a group of people."Иванов, Петров, Сидоров..."
, In: "Чужое имя", ''Kanun'' Almanac �льманах Канун issue 6, St.Petersburg, 2001, pp.273-293. There is a military joke: The sergeant asks the rookies: "Your surnames!" - "Ivanov!", "Petrov!", "Sidorov!" - "Are you brothers?" - "No, we are namesakes, sir!"

In informal, humorous or ironic contexts, the placeholder is sometimes used. The surname, derived from the word "pup", meaning "navel", is funny-sounding for a Russian.

In Russian jokes, a placeholder name for an archetypal Jew is Rabinovich.

Spanish

* Fulano, from Arabic, Mengano, Zutano. "Fulano, Mengano y Zutano" equivalent to "Tom, Dick and Harry"

Sweden

* Svensson, medelsvensson describing an average Swede. Svensson being one of the most common surnames in Sweden.

Thailand

* Somchai (common name for male – literally meaning "appropriate for a man"), Somsri (common, if somewhat dated, name for female), Sommai (common names of either gender), ''nai-gor'' ( นาย ก equivalent to 'Mr. A')

United Kingdom

* Girl next door
* Fred Bloggs or Joe Bloggs
* Joe Public or Jane Public
* John Smith
* Joe Soap
* Mrs Miggins
* the great unwashed
* the man in the street
* the man on the Clapham omnibus
* the middle class
* Tom, Dick and Harry
* Disgusted of Tunbridge Wells or Outraged of Tunbridge Wells

United States

* John Smith
*John Doe and Jane Doe
*John Q. Public
*John Q. Citizen
*John Q. Taxpayer
*Joe Blow
*Joe Sixpack
*Tom, Dick and Harry
*Average Joe
* Joe Shmoe

See also

*Commoner
* Plebs
*Everyman's right

References

{{reflist

Figures of speech
Terms related to an average person
Placeholder names