Scientists claim Jesus 'wasn't called Jesus' and that the Son of God actually went by something else
Joe Yates
Featured Image Credit: Getty Stock Image/Justin Setterfield/Getty Images
Throughout our entire lives we've 'understood' that Jesus is called Jesus... I mean, if we're told someone is called something, you don't really question it.
But according to scientists Jesus 'wasn't called Jesus' and in fact, the Son of God went by a different name.
Jesus was born around 2,030 years ago - if we're to believe the historians.
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"The narrowest date one can confidently arrive at for Jesus’s birth seems to be the month of March, during the years 6, 5, or 4 BC," explained Professor Lawrence Mykytiuk of Purdue University in Indiana, to the MailOnline.
Anyway, scholars believe 'Jesus Christ' might not be the lord's name at all, with historians citing that the Son of God's name would have been in his native language of Aramaic, which doesn't sound anything like it does now.
Then there's the fact that the name 'Jesus' didn't actually exist when he was alive, and there's even letters that wouldn't have appeared in written language until around 1,500 years after Jesus' death.
Then, as the story of Jesus was shared, the name transitioned from his native language to Hebrew, then Greek, followed by Latin and in the 16th century... English. So, his name went through a lengthy period of translation, it would appear.
So, what is Jesus' real name?
Professor Dineke Houtman of the Protestant Theological University, in the Netherlands, has claimed it would have most likely been Yeshua or possibly its shorter name, Yeshu.
Professor Houtman told the MailOnline: "His name would probably have been in Aramaic: Yeshua.
"It is likely that this is also how he introduced himself. Another possibility is the shorter form Yeshu which is the form used in later rabbinic literature."
It makes sense as Jesus wasn't English and being in the Middle East, it's safe to say he wouldn't have spoken our tongue either - also names beginning with a hard 'J' as we'd pronounce it, didn't exist either.
While an expert on early Christianity from the University of Birmingham, Professor Candida Moss, backed up Houtman's belief.
She told the publication: "Most scholars agree that his name was Yeshua or possibly Yeshu, which was one of the most common names in first-century Galilee."
So, is Jesus' real name Yeshua Christ?
Well, no. Christ derives from the Greek word 'Christos' which means 'anointed one'.
His surname would have likely been related to his hometown of Nazareth, with his name likely to have been Yeshu Nazareen.