John Lennon's middle name?
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| Copy of birth certificate |
Contrary to Aunt Mimi’s later recollection, John Lennon was not born during an air-raid. The shadow of the Second World War was, however, very apparent at his birth.
Liverpool was experiencing intense night bombing around the time of his birth. This began in August 1940 and would continue until January, causing 4,000 deaths, the highest number of casualties outside London. Perhaps Mimi was remembering the ever-present expectation of an imminent raid during those months. |
| Liverpool was heavily bombed in 1940 |
On October 9, 1940, however, Liverpool had a rare night of respite from the Luftwaffe. Julia Lennon (née Stanley) gave birth to her first child, John Winston Lennon at Liverpool Maternity Hospital.
Name origins
The Lennon surname was the only tangible legacy of his biological father, Alfred/Fred/Freddie Lennon.
The name John came from his maternal grandfather. Winston was a patriotic tribute to Winston Churchill, who had become Britain’s Prime Minister earlier in the year.
Ono
After his second marriage, Lennon Ono officially added "Ono" as his middle name in 1969, The ceremony took place on the roof of the Apple Corps building in London.
He never officially changed his surname to Ono-Lennon.
