What was John Lennon's original middle name?

John Lennon’s original middle name was Winston, making his birth name John Winston Lennon.

Lennon was born in Liverpool on October 9, 1940. His parents chose “Winston” in honor of British prime minister Winston Churchill, who led the United Kingdom during the Second World War. The name also sat between the familiar first name John and the family surname Lennon from the beginning of his public life.

The name later changed legally in a personal and symbolic way. After marrying Yoko Ono in 1969, Lennon adopted “Ono” as an additional middle name and became John Winston Ono Lennon. “Ono” was therefore not his original middle name; it was added later.

The distractors can cause confusion because Lennon was often identified simply as John Lennon, while “James” and “Charles” are common middle names associated with other famous musicians. Official biographies and reference works generally distinguish his birth name, John Winston Lennon, from his later legal name.