↑ Spelled with two m in Turkmen language (Berdimuhammedow) and in Russian language (Бердымухаммедов) until ngày 25 tháng 6 năm 2007 (see here an election sign dated February 2007 on the web site of Radio Free Europe). Since this date his last name is spelled with a single m in every official text or newspaper. This dispatch from Eurasianet.org tells about the Russian form of his name, but the same thing can been observed about its Tukmen form on every texts published on internet after this date, for example on the website of Turkmen Press agency.
↑ Evidently the names consist of a series of compounds. - The given name can be analysed as "gurban" 'sacrifice' (cf. Arab.-Pers. قربان) and "guly" (from Pers. غلی [ghulī], an abbreviated form of Arab.-Pers. غلام [ghulām] 'servant'). - The patronym consists of "mälik" (Arab.-Pers. ملک [malik] 'king, sovereign', Pers. غلی [ghulī], and finally, the Russian patronymic suffix -евич). - The surname contains three elements: "berdi" 'servant, slave' (from Pers. برده [bardah]), the name of the prophet Muhammad, and Russian -ов (the common Slavic suffix of origin/family).
↑ Although Gurbanguly Mälikgulyýewiç Berdimuhamedow is the only Turkmen form, and Turkmen, written with Latin alphabet, is the only official language of Turkmenistan, western sources generally use the Russian form Гурбангулы or Курбанкулы Мяликгулыевич Бердымухам(м)едов, using various transcriptions:
RFE/RL: Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov.
BBC: Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov., then Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov
