Researchers discover: Our first name reveals what we will look like

Hand on heart: Has it ever happened to you that someone introduced themselves by name and you thought: “Yes, he really looks like a Stephan!”

This phenomenon is not entirely unfounded. Previous studies have already shown that our face provides an indication of our first name. It was unclear whether names are given based on innate facial features or whether the face changes over time to match the name.

An analysis by researchers at the Hebrew University and Reichmann University in Jerusalem shows that over time our faces adapt to the stereotypes associated with our first names. This means that adults who have the same first name also look similar.

No assignment possible for children

The researchers showed 120 adults and 76 Children photos of an adult and asked them to choose from four possible first names. “The results showed that both adults and children correctly assigned the faces of adults to the corresponding names, significantly above chance level,” the researchers state in their publication.

The study participants were able to identify the names of adults, but not of children. When test subjects were asked whether they could name the children, they failed. Even children's faces, which could be identified by a AI has aged, did not correspond to the name expectations of the respondents.

Adults with the same name resemble each other

To strengthen the results of this evaluation, the researchers conducted further experiments and artificial intelligence They used this to evaluate the faces of adults with the same first name and found that they looked similar. In children, the similarity is not yet pronounced.

This supported their theory that our faces adapt to our names over the course of our lives due to social factors. The first name therefore plays a major role in social development.