Tuesday, February 4, 2020

Christian onomastic heritage reflected in surnames of people living in Bielsk Podlaski, Hajnówka and Siemiatycze



This monograph focuses on contemporary surnames of people from Podlasie region formed from forenames of Christian motivation. Anthroponyms identifying people living in three towns: Bielsk Podlaski, Hajnówka and Siemiatycze were analysed.

The aim of this study is to emphasize the pronounced effect of Christian forenames in the creation of contemporary surnames, and thus to pinpoint the influence of Christian heritage on the anthroponymy of today’s Podlasie.

Forenames associated with the Christian religion constitute a fundamental part of the local anthroponymic system in the Polish-Ruthenian borderland. The large diversity of forename variants is also remarkable. The reasons for this go beyond the aim of achieving nominative and differentiative functions. Their diversity is primarily the result of ethno-onomastic processes that have taken place in Podlasie over the centuries. Local systems for the formation of forenames and surnames have been established on the foundation of coexisting and interacting cultures and languages. Nevertheless, Polish and East Slavic components were dominant and they stemmed from two traditions – that of the Latin West and the Byzantine East, both influenced by Christianity.



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