Mises vs "von Mises"

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Stephen Adkins Posted: Fri, Jul 8 2011 3:14 PM

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So this is a really unimportant issue, but I've noticed that most Austrians, when referring to Ludwig, say "Mises", while many non-Austrians refer to him as "von Mises," as in the much publicized Michelle Bachmann quote:

"I love von Mises. When I go on vacation and I lay on the beach, I bring von Mises."

It seems to be both non-Austrians who are sympathetic to him (as in Bachmann's case) as well as critics of his, as in this totally cherry-picked, but demonstrative blog post title:

"It's Difficult to be Popular When You're Wrong..." - Drinking the von Mises Kool-Aid

Now there are plenty of instances in which critics or opponents of his will refer to him as Mises; it just strikes me as a sort of a "tell" by somebody who calls him "von Mises" that they don't really know what they're talking about. Not sure why.

Has anybody else noticed this? Is it just my imagination?

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Michael J Green replied on Fri, Jul 8 2011 3:25 PM

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It may be a tell that the person does not write about Mises much and/or does not read much work of contemporary libertarians who cite or build upon Mises's writings. With the former, I imagine the person would come to find it's not worth typing the four extra characters in every instance, and with the latter the person should know that Misesians don't bother with the title either.

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mikachusetts replied on Fri, Jul 8 2011 3:29 PM

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A similar thing happens with "Misesian" vs. "Misean."  

I think it has to do with an unfamiliarity with how the name is typically used among those people who study it.  If you pick up Human Action and decide to write an article on it without ever talking to an Austrian or reading any supplementary material, there isn't any inherent reason to say Mises over von Mises.

In other words, I think its a conventional thing that outsiders are just unaware of.

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Stephen Adkins replied on Fri, Jul 8 2011 3:45 PM

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Yeah I've totally seen the "Misean" thing too, though that just strikes me as sloppy rather than a difference in convention. The name is Mises, not Mise.

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John James replied on Fri, Jul 8 2011 4:03 PM

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Stephen Adkins:

Now there are plenty of instances in which critics or opponents of his will refer to him as Mises; it just strikes me as a sort of a "tell" by somebody who calls him "von Mises" that they don't really know what they're talking about. Not sure why.  Has anybody else noticed this? Is it just my imagination?

Yes I've noticed.  Yes I agree with you.  That's why I wouldn't even say Bachmann is "sympathetic" to Mises.  She's just saying whatever she thinks her base wants to hear.  I don't think I've ever heard someone more full of shit.

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Marko replied on Fri, Jul 8 2011 7:29 PM

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Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think Wiemar Germany banned noble titles in the same way revolutionary France did. Did interwar Austria do the same? Did Mises sign himself as von Mises or simply as Mises whe he was the finance minister of Austria? That could be a useful indicator.

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Michael J Green replied on Fri, Jul 8 2011 7:40 PM

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Austria banned titles of nobility in 1919. Mises and Hayek could no longer include von in their name while in the country. I'm not sure how this could be a useful indicator, as I think all of us would find it odd to see, for instance, "Socialism by Ludwig Mises."

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Neodoxy replied on Fri, Jul 8 2011 8:12 PM

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Von Mises sounds more foreign and less friendly than merely "Mises"

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John James replied on Fri, Jul 8 2011 8:12 PM

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wikipedia:

"However, after 1919 titles of nobility were banned by law in Austria, and the "von Hayek" family became simply the Hayek family. Hence, after 1919 Hayek's legal name became "Friedrich Hayek", not "Friedrich von Hayek". Hayek's father turned his work on regional botany into a highly esteemed botanical treatise, continuing the family's scholarly traditions."

I also seem to remember reading something about him not wishing to associate with the heritage even further, and even dropping the "Friedrich", instead electing to go by "F.A."