Günther m
German: from an old Germanic personal name composed of the elements gund strife + heri, hari army, warrior. According to Germanic legend, as recounted in the Nibelungenlied, Günther was the name of a king of Burgundy, brother-in-law of the warrior hero Siegfried. Siegfried obtains the beautiful Brunhild as wife for Günther, but the outcome is tragedy and destruction: Brunhild contrives Siegfried's death; Siegfried's widow Kriemhild, Günther's sister, takes her revenge by destroying Günther, Brunhild, and all their house. This grisly story was taken up by Richard Wagner and adapted for his opera Götterdämmerung (1876), and the revival of popularity of the name probably owes something to Wagner. The name has long been popular in German-speaking countries, in spite of the tragic story with which it is associated. On a more historical level, its currency in the Middle Ages probably owed something to the Blessed Günther (955–1045), a Bavarian monk, who was a cousin of St Stephen of Hungary.
Variants: Gunt(h)er, Günter.
First names dictionary. 2012.