How children were given names in Russia, and which were forbidden for commoners

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

Today, parents do not know the problems when choosing a name for their child - you can name the child the way mom and dad like it. But before, everything was not so simple, and strict rules had to be followed when naming. How names were chosen in pagan Russia, what changed after Christianization, why Razin was called Stenka - read our material.

Choosing a name for a child is the embodiment of parents' emotions

In ancient Russia, parents showed great imagination when they thought about how to name their child. Before Christianization, this could be done independently, because the name could reflect anything, depending on the mood of the parents.

They waited a long time for a child, and when, at last, an heir appeared, they called him Zhdan. The second child in the family was born, and he was naturally called Vtorak. If the kid was cheerful, noisy, playful - why not call him Fun or Noisy. At the time of the birth of the baby, frost crackled on the street - that was the name, Frost. The names of the months were often used, for example Traven, and this is nothing more than May in Old Slavic.

Anything could be encrypted in the name, for example, the parents really wanted their child to be rich, strong, famous, so they named him Yaroslav, which can be translated as bright, strong, energetic. It happened that the child was called an ugly name, for example, Nelyub or Unsettled, and not because they did not expect him or did not want him, but in order to drive away evil spirits who would not be interested in a child with such a dissonant name.

Nicknames

Nicknames arose in Russia a very long time ago, even when the country was not Christian. The imagination of the people was inexhaustible, there were a lot of nicknames, but the most common ones were used most often. You could get them for anything, for a profession, for a strange appearance, for some kind of habits.

For example, if a person was called Blacksmith, it immediately became clear who he was working for. Having met a peasant named Silent, one could not think about his character. A person named Malyuta would probably like to be taller.

It is interesting that a person could have several nicknames during his life.

There were also defensive nicknames. In ancient times, people believed in damage and evil eye, and an uninteresting and offensive name by today's standards helped protect against this. For example, Malice is an example of a defensive nickname.

After Russia became Christian, nicknames were added to the main name of a person. Do not think that only commoners were fond of this, no, it is enough to remember Ivan Kalita or Alexander Nevsky. In the future, nicknames became the basis for surnames that are familiar to modern people. By the way, Peter I was an ardent opponent of nicknames, who banned them on the territory of Russia.

Names in honor of the saints

After the arrival of Christianity, the inhabitants of Russia began to receive new names: children were named after Christian saints. The usual names, such as Zhdan or Brave, were replaced by new ones - Cyril, Fedor, Varvara. Today they are familiar to the ear, and during the reform of Vladimir the Great, people hardly got used to their new names.

In the XIV-XVI centuries, at birth, a child was given not only a public Christian name, but also a direct one, in honor of the saint whose day was celebrated. Historical examples: Basil III, whose direct name was Gabriel. His son, Ivan the Terrible, had the direct name Titus. More examples of double names, that is, a combination of a pagan and a Christian name at the same time: Vladimir-Vasily Monomakh and Yaroslav-Georgy the Wise.

Christian names

With the development and strengthening of Christianity, ancient Slavic names were used less and less. Even a special list was compiled, including the forbidden pagan names. When book printing appeared in Russia, great importance was attached to the spelling of the name.

And Rurikovich had to go through the Christianization of names. The first Christian name in Russia is considered Vasily, he was received at baptism in Constantinople by the Kiev prince Vladimir the Great in 988. The canonized names Boris and Gleb had the sons of Vladimir, but at baptism the children were not called that at all, but Roman and David.

During the time of Vladimir Svyatoslavovich, the onomasticon also appeared. This is a list of the names given to a newborn when he is baptized. The name was chosen according to the calendar, and the priest himself did it. Today such names are called calendars because church calendars are used to select them. The lists contained only the names of the saints, therefore, having been born, the child, along with the name, received the patron saint of heaven.

If we continue the theme of the Rurik dynasty, I must say that there were two categories of names in it, two-basic Slavic - Ostromir, Svyatoslav, Yaropolk, and Scandinavian - Igor, Gleb, Olga. In those days, a special status was attached to each name, for example, the abovementioned could only be worn by persons with a grand-ducal title. Now it seems strange, but only in the XIV century this restriction was lifted. If the names borrowed from Scandinavia were extremely popular among the princely families, then among the commoners they were quite rare.

The name was passed from the older generation to the younger, if the grandfather died, then his name should not have been lost, he was assigned to the newborn grandson.

Ivan, Vanyushka

The most common name in Russia is Ivan, it is believed that before the October Revolution, this was the name of every fourth peasant. If you ask any foreigner what Russian names he knows, the answer will be unambiguous - Ivan. This name is associated with the history of the emergence of the expression "Ivan, not remembering kinship." When the police caught tramps who did not have passports, they were most often called Ivans.

The sovereigns began to be called Ivans from the time of Ivan Kalita, the name was used until 1764. This year, Ivan VI died and it was forbidden to call the tsar's babies so in order to avoid trouble.

Diminutive names were common in Russia in the 16th-17th centuries. Usually they were pronounced in a derogatory tone, therefore they were assigned to state criminals. Suffice it to recall Emelka Pugachev or Stenka Razin. If a person applied to a higher authority, then he had to call himself by a diminutive name, for example, "I am addressing you, Vaska, the tsar's slave."

Today, diminutive names can express completely different emotions, such as love or affection. Although, some concepts of antiquity are still preserved. It is unlikely that a respected and respectable person will be called Petka, most likely his name will be pronounced as Peter or, in extreme cases, Petya.

Do you have a middle name?

The patronymic in Russia confirms the connection between a person and his father. Initially, it did not sound like it does today, but, for example, "Vladimir, Petrov's son." Only high-born people were allowed to add the ending "ich" to their patronymic names. It was naturally permissible for the Rurikovichs, because Svyatopolk was called Svyatopolk Izyaslavich.

The rulers of Russia were very sensitive to the patronymic, the endings of "ov" and "ovich" were strictly fixed in special documents, for example, under Peter I it was a table of ranks, under Catherine II - bureaucratic list. The end of the patronymic denoted a person's social affiliation. Patronymics began to be used most actively from the 19th century, and for peasants permission for a patronymic was obtained after the abolition of serfdom. Today it is very difficult to imagine a person who does not have a middle name, this tradition has become so firmly embedded in our lives. In addition, the presence of the same first and last names makes the use of a middle name necessary.

If before the October Revolution a person was given a name by the church, then after the coup everyone could do it. A massive invasion of Vladlenov, Vilenov and Vilov (abbreviated from Vladimir Ilyich Lenin), Kimov (abbreviated from the Communist International of Youth), Trudomirov (labor + peace) and other wonderful names began. The florid female name Dazdraperma, which means "Long live the First of May", can be considered the peak of fantasy.

Today, the fashion for familiar names, Ivan, Maria, Lyubov, Vladimir, is returning to Russia. But some people are still sophisticated when choosing a name for a baby. Only now it is not Industrialization, International or Energy, but obscure invented constructions, or the names of idols, actors and singers, as well as names you like from films, books, comics.

Everyone who is interested in history is of great interest, a story about who they were screams, spitters, forges so popular in Russia.