This is a list of nicknames of German politicians. Only a few have widely known nicknames (in German: Spitzname). Most notable politicians who have had popular nicknames were chancellors or high-ranking party leaders in Germany's major political parties of the past (CDU, SPD, etc.).
Distortions or mocking variations of a person's name, such as ‘What-a-fool’ or ‘Pistolius’ were not taken into account.
The nicknames are given in the German original with a rough English translation:
„der Alte“ (the Old One), Konrad Adenauer (1876–1967) (CDU), the first Chancellor (1949–1963) of the Federal Republic of Germany.
„Birne“ (the Pear) – Helmut Kohl (CDU) – a well-known mocking nickname, popularized by cartoons,[1] referring to Kohl's head shape.
„Flinten-Uschi”[3] (Shotgun Uschi), a nickname for Ursula von der Leyen (CDU), originated during her time as Germany's Federal Minister of Defense (2013–2019), refers to her position at the head of the Bundeswehr.
„Gas-Gerd“ (Gas Gerd) – Gerhard Schröder (SPD) – often in reference to energy policy or the economy (connected with Russia).
„Mutti“ (Mom) – Angela Merkel (CDU) – referring to her hairstyle or her down-to-earth, pragmatic style.
„Muttis Klügster“ (Mom's Smartest) – Norbert Röttgen (CDU) – due to his know-it-all secondary role alongside Chancellor Angela Merkel.
„Panzer-Toni” (Tank Toni)[4] - Anton Hofreiter (Alliance 90/The Greens), because of his strong public advocacy for supplying weapons to Ukraine, especially heavy weapons such as battle tanks.
