Mozart was baptized January 28, 1756, the day after his birth, at St. Rupert’s Cathedral in Salzburg as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart. The baptismal register of the cathedral parish contains the entry shown below, written down in Latin by city chaplain Leopold Lamprecht. The parallel five-column format of the original document is rendered here as five consecutive paragraphs. Material in brackets represents editorial additions by Otto Erich Deutsch (see below), intended for clarification.

Januarius. 28. med[ia hora] 11. merid[iana] baptizatus est : natus pridie h[ora] 8. vesp[ertina]

Joannes Chrysost[omus] Wolfgangus Theophilus fil[ius] leg[itimus]

Nob[ilis] D[ominus] Leopoldus Mozart Aulae Musicus, et Maria Anna Pertlin coniuges

Nob[ilis] D[ominus] Joannes Theophilus Pergmayr Senator et Mercator Civicus p[ro] t[empore] sponsus

Idem [Leopoldus Lamprecht Capellanus Civicus]]

Mozart’s first two baptismal names, “Joannes Chrysostomus,” represent his saint’s name, following the custom of the Roman Catholic Church. They result from the fact that his birthday, 27 January, was the feast day of St. John Chrysostom. The document also records that Mozart was of legitimate birth and gives the names of his parents and his father Leopold’s occupation as court musician. The first paragraph indicates that the baptism took place at 10:30 in the morning, and that Mozart had been born at 8:00 the night before.

Here are the details of the various names given on the register:

• “Wolfgangus” is “Wolfgang”, adapted to the Latin used in the parish register. The composer used “Wolfgang” in German-speaking contexts. “Wolfgang” was the name of the composer’s maternal grandfather.

• “Theophilus” comes from Greek and is variously rendered as “lover of God” or “loved by God”. The familiar form “Amadeus” is the Latin version of this name. “Theophilus” was a name of Mozart’s godfather, the merchant Joannes Theophilus Pergmayr, whose presence is recorded in the fourth paragraph.

• The baptismal name “Joannes Chrysostomus” was in conformance to Catholic custom and was not used by Mozart in everyday life.