Several protagonists who built the institutions that became the European Union have names that can cause confusion, because other famous Europeans have names that are nearly identical. There is no need to blush or deny the confusion, which actually opens doors to discuss European cultural figures.

Here’s a brief review to keep the names straight:

jeanmonnetJean Monnet (1888-1979) was a European statesman. His name is written with two “n”s.

monetClaude Monet (1840-1926) was a French impressionist painter. Take care not to confuse Monet with Manet (1832-1883), a contemporaneous French painter. Monet’s subjects are generally outdoors and clothed: Impression, soleil levant, the Rouen cathedral, and water lilies at Giverny; Manet’s subjects are often indoors and may be unclothed:  Le déjeuner sur l’herbe, l’Olympia, and Le bar aux Folies-Bergère.

Bild 183-19000-2453Robert Schuman (1886-1963) was a European statesman and French prime minister. His name is written with one “n”.


schumannRobert Schumann (1810-1856) was a German romantic composer. His name is written with two “n”s. Schuman and Schumann have the same first name, which make their case trickier than the Monnet/Monet quandary. And Schumann is sometimes confused with Franz Schubert (1797-1828), an Austrian composer. As an illustration of this confusion, the stamp pictured here features Schumann’s likeness but a score by Schubert.