What was Robert Maxwell's birth name?

1. Birth name: multiple recorded forms and why they differ

Contemporary biographies and reference works record slightly different versions of Maxwell’s birth name. Wikipedia and some summaries list the extended form "Ján Ludvík Hyman Binyamin Hoch" ^{[1] [5]}, while Jewish Virtual Library and other encyclopedias use shorter variants such as "Jan Ludvik Hoch" or "Ján Ludvík Hoch" ^{[3] [2]}. The variation reflects transliteration from Czech/Slovak/Yiddish, the presence of religious/honorific names (e.g., Hyman/Binyamin), and inconsistent use of diacritics in English-language sources ^{[2] [3]}.

2. Geographical and cultural context matters

Maxwell’s birthplace—variously called Slatinské Doly, Slatina-Selo, Solotvino or Slatinske—sat in Carpathian Ruthenia, a border region whose national affiliation shifted across Austria-Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Hungary and later the Soviet Union/Ukraine. That fluidity helps explain variant spellings and why sources transliterate names differently from Czech, Slovak, Hungarian or Yiddish traditions ^{[1] [4] [2]}.

3. Why he changed names: wartime service and Anglicisation

After fleeing to Western Europe and then serving with Allied forces in WWII, Maxwell Anglicised his identity. He naturalised as a British subject on 19 June 1946 and officially changed his name to Ian Robert Maxwell by deed poll on 30 June 1948 ^{[1] [4]}. Some contemporary accounts say he adopted the name "Robert Maxwell" during military service and later formalised the change ^[6].

4. How reference works treat the original name

Authoritative references vary in detail: Encyclopædia Britannica and several biographies simply state he was born Jan/Ján Ludvík Hoch (or Ján Ludvík Hyman Binyamin Hoch in longer forms) and note his later change to Ian Robert Maxwell ^{[4] [1] [5]}. Local history pages and biographies aimed at general readers repeat the full, sometimes hyphenated or multi-part birth name ^{[2] [7]}.

5. What sources agree on—and where they disagree

All provided sources agree Maxwell was born in 1923 in what was then Czechoslovakia and that his family was Jewish and Yiddish-speaking; all agree he later became Ian/Robert Maxwell in Britain ^{[1] [2] [3]}. They disagree chiefly on the exact wording and number of given names at birth—some include Hyman/Binyamin as middle names, others present a shorter "Ludvik Hoch" form ^{[1] [3] [7]}.

6. Why the full multi-name appears in some entries

Longer name forms that include Hyman/Binyamin likely reflect Jewish naming practices—Hebrew or Yiddish names rendered alongside Slavic given names—and the desire of some compilers to be exhaustive about baptismal or community names. Shorter entries favor a pragmatic, simplified "Jan/Ján/Judvik Hoch" suitable for encyclopedias ^{[2] [3]}.

7. How to cite his birth name accurately

If you need a concise, widely accepted version for citation: most mainstream references use Jan/Ján Ludvík Hoch (often anglicised as Jan Ludvik Hoch) as the birth name and then note he later became Ian Robert Maxwell ^{[3] [4]}. If you require the fullest version shown in some sources, cite "Ján Ludvík Hyman Binyamin Hoch" with attribution to the sources that use that form ^{[1] [5]}.

8. Limitations and where reporting is silent

Available sources do not mention a single, universally agreed-upon canonical spelling; instead they show multiple transliterations and degrees of completeness for his birth names ^{[1] [3] [5]}. If you need the original civil-record spelling from local archives in what is now Solotvyno, Ukraine, current reporting here does not provide that primary-document transcription (not found in current reporting).

Sources cited: Wikipedia (Robert Maxwell) ^[1]; Encyclopædia Britannica ^[4]; Headington/biography local history ^[2]; Jewish Virtual Library ^[3]; Wikiwand/Wikidata cross-references ^{[5] [8]}.