I want to know the history of my family name. The full cost of a family pedigree

In a conversation, you can come across the following statement: “Here, his last name ends in -in, which means he is a Jew.” Are Susanin, Repin and even Pushkin Jewish surnames? Some strange idea among the people, where did it come from? After all, the suffix -in- is often found in possessive adjectives formed from nouns of the first declension: koshkin, mother. While adjectives from words of the second declension are formed using the suffix -ov-: grandfathers, crocodiles. Did the words of the first declension as the basis for the surname were chosen only by Jews? It would be very strange. But probably, everything that is spinning on the tongue of people has some basis, even if it has been distorted over time. Let's figure out how to determine nationality by last name.

Ending or suffix?

It is not entirely correct to call the familiar -ov / -ev endings. The ending in Russian is a variable part of a word. Let's see what is inclined in the surnames: Ivanov - Ivanova - Ivanov. It can be concluded that -ov is a suffix followed by a null ending, as in most masculine nouns. And only in cases or when changing gender and number (Ivanova, Ivanovy) do endings sound. But there is also a folk, and not a linguistic concept of "ending" - that which ends. In that case, this word is applicable here. And then we can safely determine the ending of surnames by nationality!

Russian surnames

The range of Russian surnames is much wider than those ending in -ov. They are characterized by suffixes -in, -yn, -ov, -ev, -skoy, -tskoy, -ih, -yh (Lapin, Ptitsyn, Sokolov, Solovyov, Donskoy, Trubetskoy, Moscow, Sedykh).

Russian surnames with -ov, -ev are really as much as 60-70%, and with -in, -yn - only about 30%, which is also quite a lot. What is the reason for this ratio? As already mentioned, the suffixes -ov, -ev are attached to second declension nouns, most of which are masculine. And since in Russian surnames often originated from the name or occupation of the father (Ivanov, Bondarev), such a suffix is very logical. But there are also male names ending in -a, -я, and it was from them that the surnames Ilyin, Nikitin arose, of whose Russianness we have no doubt.

What about Ukrainians?

Ukrainian ones are usually formed with the help of suffixes -enko, -ko, -uk, -yuk. And also without suffixes from words denoting professions (Korolenko, Spirko, Govoruk, Prizhnyuk, Bondar).

More about Jews

Jewish surnames are very diverse, because Jews have been scattered throughout the world for centuries. The suffixes -ich, -man and -er can be their true sign. But here, too, confusion is possible. Family endings-ich, -ovich, -evich are typical for Poles and Slavic peoples who lived in the territory East Germany. For example, one of famous poets in Poland - Mickiewicz.

But the basis of the surname can sometimes immediately suggest Jewish origin its carrier. If the basis is Levi or Cohen/Kogan, the clan originates from the high priests - kohens or his assistants - Levites. So everything is clear with Levi, Levitans, Kaganovichs.

What do surnames in -sky and -sky say?

It is wrong to assume that surnames ending in -sky or -sky are necessarily Jewish. This stereotype has developed because they were common in Poland and Ukraine. In these places there were many family estates, the names of the owners-nobles were formed from the name of the estate. For example, the ancestors of the famous revolutionary Dzerzhinsky owned the Dzerzhinovo estate on the territory modern Belarus and then Poland.

Many Jews lived in these areas, so many took local surnames. But Russian nobles also have such surnames, for example, noble family Dubrovsky from Pushkin's work is quite real. There is another interesting fact. Seminaries often gave a surname derived from church holidays- Preobrazhensky, Rozhdestvensky. In this case, the definition of nationality at the end of surnames can lead to errors. Seminaries also served as the birthplace of surnames with an unusual root for the Russian ear, because they were formed from Latin words: Formozov, Kastorov. By the way, under Ivan the Terrible, the deacon Ivan Bicycles served. But the bicycle had not yet been invented! How is it that there is no object, but there is a surname? The answer was this: it turned out to be a tracing paper from the Latin “swift-footed”, only with a native Russian suffix.

Surname ending in -in: we reveal the secret!

So what about the last name ending in -in? Nationality on this basis is difficult to determine. Indeed, some Jewish surnames end in this way. It turns out that in some of them this is just an external coincidence with the Russian suffix. For example, Khazin is descended from the modified surname Khazan - this is how one of the types of servants in the temple was called in Hebrew. Literally, this translates as "overseer", since the chazan followed the order of worship and the accuracy of the text. You can guess where the name Khazanov comes from. But she has the “most Russian” suffix -ov!

But there are also matronyms, that is, those that are formed on behalf of the mother. Moreover, the female names from which they were formed were not Russian. For example, the Jewish surname Belkin is a homonym of a Russian surname. It was formed not from a fluffy animal, but from female name Bale.

German or Jewish?

Another interesting pattern was noticed. As soon as we hear names like Rosenfeld, Morgenstern, we immediately confidently determine the nationality of its bearer. Definitely a Jew! But not everything is so simple! After all, these are words German descent. For example, Rosenfeld is a "field of roses". How did it happen? It turns out that in the territory German Empire, as well as in Russian and Austrian, there was a decree on the assignment of surnames to Jews. Of course, they were formed in the language of the country in which the Jew lived. Since they were not transmitted from distant ancestors from time immemorial, people themselves chose them. Sometimes this choice could be made by the registrar. So many artificial fancy surnames which could not have arisen naturally.

How, then, to distinguish a Jew from a German, if both German surnames? It's hard to do this. Therefore, here you should not be guided only by the origin of the word, you need to know the genealogy of a particular person. Here, at the end of the surname, nationality simply cannot be determined!

Georgian surnames

It is not difficult for Georgians to guess the ending of surnames by nationality. If Georgians are likely to be -shvili, -dze, -uri, -ava, -a, -ua, -ia, -ni, -li, -si (Basilashvili, Svanidze, Pirtskhalava, Adamia, Gelovani, Tsereteli). There are also Georgian surnames, which end in -tska. This is consonant with Russian (Trubetskaya), but this is not a suffix, and they not only do not change by gender (Diana Gurtskaya - Robert Gurtskaya), but also do not decline by case (with Diana Gurtskaya).

Ossetian surnames

Ossetian surnames are characterized by the ending -ty / -ty (Kokoyty). Characteristic for this nationality is the ending of the surname in -ev (Abaev, Eziev), usually it is preceded by a vowel. Often the stem of a word is incomprehensible to us. But sometimes it can turn out to be homonymous or almost homonymous to the Russian word, which is confusing. There are among them those that end in -ov: Botov, Bekurov. In fact, these are the real Russian suffixes, and they are attached to the Ossetian root according to tradition in this way to convey surnames in writing. These are the fruits of Russification Ossetian surnames. At the same time, it is foolish to assume that all surnames ending in -ev are Ossetian. The ending of the surname in -ev does not yet determine nationality. Surnames such as Grigoriev, Polev, Gostev are Russian and they differ from similar ones ending in -ov only in that the last consonant in the noun was soft.

A few words about Armenians

Armenian surnames often end in -yan or -yants (Hakopyan, Grigoryants). Actually, -yan - this is the truncated -yants, which meant belonging to the genus.

Now you know how to find out the nationality at the end of the last name. Yes, it is not always easy to do this with guaranteed accuracy, even with a developed language sense. But as they say, the main thing is that a person be good!

With each year of his life, a person expands the choice of communication more and more, getting to know new people. In order for a new acquaintance to make contact with you, you need to make a pleasant impression on him. To avoid uncomfortable situations, it is important to know what nationality the person in front of you is in order to behave in accordance with the moral and ethical standards of his country. By most surnames, you can accurately determine the nationality of your friends, neighbors, business partners, etc.

Russians- use surnames with suffixes -an, -yn, -in, -skikh, -ov, -ev, -skoi, -tskoi, -ih, -ih (Snegirev, Ivanov, Voronin, Sinitsyn, Donskoy, Moskovskikh, Sedykh);

Belarusians- typical Belarusian surnames end in -ich, -chik, -ka, -ko, -onak, -yonak, -uk, -ik, -ski. (Radkevich, Dubrova, Parshonok, Kukharchik, Kastsyushka); many surnames in Soviet years were Russified and Polished (Dubrovsky, Kosciuszko);

Poles- most of the surnames have the suffix -sk, -tsk, and the ending -ij (-th), indicating masculine and feminine gender (Sushitsky, Kovalskaya, Khodetsky, Volnitskaya); also exist double surnames- if a woman, when getting married, wants to leave her last name (Mazur-Komorovskaya); in addition to these surnames, surnames with an unchanged form are also common among the Poles (Nowak, Sienkiewicz, Wuytsik, Wozniak). Ukrainians with surname endings in -y are not Ukrainians, but Ukrainian Poles.;

Ukrainians- the first classification of surnames of a given nationality is formed with the help of suffixes -enko, -ko, -uk, -yuk (Kreschenko, Grishko, Vasilyuk, Kovalchuk); the second series denotes the kind of any craft or occupation (Potter, Koval); the third group of surnames are individual Ukrainian words(Gorobets, Ukrainian, Parubok), as well as a merger of words (Vernigora, Nepiyvoda, Bilous).

Latvians- a feature to the masculine gender is indicated by a surname ending in -s, -is, and to the feminine - in -a, -e (Verbitskis - Verbitska, Shurins - Shurin)

Lithuanians - male surnames end in -onis, -unas, -utis, -aytis, -enas (Pyatrenas, Norvydaitis), female surnames are formed from the husband's surname using the suffixes -en, -yuven, -uven and the endings -е (Grinius - Grinyuvene), surnames unmarried girls contain the basis of the father's surname with the addition of suffixes -ut, -polut, -ait and endings -e (Orbakas - Orbakaite);

Estonians- male and female sex with the help of surnames does not differ, all foreign surnames(mostly Germanic) were once Estonianized (Rozenberg - Roozimäe), this process is still in effect until today. for example, in order to be able to play for the Estonian national team, football players Sergei Khokhlov and Konstantin Kolbasenko had to change their names to Simson and Nahk;

French people- many surnames are prefixed with Le or De (Le Pen, Mol Pompadour); mostly dissimilar nicknames and personal names were used to form surnames (Robert, Jolie, Cauchon - a pig);

Romanians: -sku, -u(l), -an.

Serbs:-ich.

English- common the following surnames: formed from the names of the place of residence (Scott, Wales); designating a profession (Hoggart - a shepherd, Smith - a blacksmith); pointing to appearance character and appearance (Armstrong - strong, Sweet - sweet, Bragg - bragging);

Germans- surnames formed from personal names (Werner, Peters); surnames that characterize a person (Krause - wavy, Klein - small); surnames indicating the type of activity (Müller - miller, Lehmann - geomor);

swedes- most surnames end in -sson, -berg, -steady, -strom (Andersson, Olsson, Forsberg, Bostrom);

Norse- are formed from personal names with the help of the suffix -en (Larsen, Hansen), surnames can occur without suffixes and endings (Per, Morten); Norwegian surnames can repeat the names of animals, trees and natural phenomena(Blizzard - blizzard, Svane - swan, Furu - pine);

Italians- surnames are characterized by suffixes -ini, -ino, -ello, -illo, -etti, -etto, -ito (Benedetto, Moretti, Esposito), may end in -o, -a, -i (Conti, Giordano, Costa); the prefixes di- and- denote, respectively, the person's belonging to his genus and geographical structure (Di Moretti is the son of Moretti, Da Vinci is from Vinci);

Spaniards and Portuguese - have surnames ending in -ez, -az, -iz, -oz (Gomez, Lopez), surnames that indicate the character of a person are also common (Alegre - joyful, Bravo - brave, Malo - horseless);

Turks- most often surnames have the ending -oglu, -ji, -zade (Mustafaoglu, Ekindzhi, Kuindzhi, Mammadzade), when forming surnames they often used Turkish names or everyday words (Ali, Abaza - a fool, Kolpakchi - a hat);

Bulgarians - almost all Bulgarian surnames formed from personal names and suffixes -ov, -ev (Konstantinov, Georgiev);

Gagauz: -oglo.

Tatars: -in, -ishin.

Greeks- the surnames of the Greeks cannot be confused with any other surnames, only they have the endings -idis, -kos, -pulos (Angelopoulos, Nikolaidis);

Czechs- the main difference from other surnames is the obligatory ending -ova in female surnames, even if where it would seem inappropriate (Valdrova, Ivanovova, Andersonova).

Georgians- Surnames ending in -shvili, -dze, -uri, -ava, -a, -ua, -ia, -ni, -li, -si are common (Baratashvili, Mikadze, Adamia, Karchava, Gvishiani, Tsereteli);

Armenians- a significant part of the surnames of the inhabitants of Armenia has the suffix -yan (Hakopyan, Galustyan); Also, -yants, -uni.

Moldovans: -sku, -u(l), -an.

Azerbaijanis- formed surnames, taking as a basis Azerbaijani names and attaching to them the Russian suffixes -ov, -ev (Mamedov, Aliyev, Gasanov, Abdullayev). Also, -zade, -li, ly, -oglu, -kyzy.

Jews- the main group consists of surnames with roots Levi and Cohen (Levin, Levitan Kagan, Koganovich, Katz); the second group originated from male and female Jewish names with the addition various suffixes(Yakobson, Yakubovich, Davidson, Godelson, Tsivyan, Beilis, Abramovich, Rubinchik, Vigdorchik, Mandelstam); the third classification of surnames reflects the character of a person, the features of his appearance or belonging to a profession (Kaplan is a chaplain, Rabinovich is a rabbi, Melamed is a pestun, Schwarzbard is black-bearded, Stiller is quiet, Shtarkman is strong).

Ossetians: -ti.

Mordva: -yn, -in.

Chinese and Koreans- for the most part, these are surnames consisting of one, less often of two syllables (Tang, Liu, Duan, Qiao, Choi, Kogai);

Japanese- modern Japanese surnames are formed by the merger of two full-valued words (Wada - sweetness and rice field, Igarashi - 50 storms, Katayama - hill, Kitamura - north and village); The most common Japanese surnames are: Takahashi, Kobayashi, Kato, Suzuki, Yamamoto.

As you can see, in order to determine the nationality of a person, it is enough to accurately analyze his last name, highlighting the suffix and ending.

WHAT DO THE SURNAME ON "-IN" MEAN? SURNAMES ENDING IN -IN HAVE RUSSIAN ROOT OR JEWISH?

In the collection of the famous Slavist linguist B. O Unbegaun “Russian Surnames”, one can read that surnames with “in” are mainly the Russian type of surnames.

Why the ending "-in"? Basically, all surnames ending in "in" come from words with the ending -а / -я and from nouns female ending in a soft consonant.

There are not a few examples of the erroneous addition of -in to the bases with a final solid consonant: Orekhin, Karpin, Markin, where -ov should have been. And in another case -ov turned out to be in place -in: Shishimorov from the basis of shishimora. It is possible to mix formants. After all, among Russians -in and -ov have been semantically indistinguishable for more than a thousand years. The meaning of the difference was lost even in the common Slavic language, the choice of -ov or -in depends only survivingly on the phonetic feature of the stem (Nikonov "Geography of Surnames").

Do you know how the name of the famous leader came about militia 1611-1612 years of Minin? Minin had a personal nickname Sukhoruk, he did not have a last name. And Minin meant "son of Mina". Orthodox name"Mina" was widespread in Rus'.

Another old Russian surname- Semin, also a surname on "-in". According to the main version, the surname Semin goes back to the baptismal male name Semyon. The name Semyon is the Russian form of the ancient Jewish name Simeon, meaning "hearing", "heard by God." On behalf of Semyon in Rus', many derivative forms were formed, one of which - Syoma - formed the basis of this surname.

The well-known Slavic linguist B. O. Unbegaun in the collection “Russian Surnames” believes that the surname Semin was formed from the baptismal Russian name after following scheme: "Semyon - Syoma - Semin."

Let us give another example of a surname, which we studied in detail in the family diploma. Rogozhin is an old Russian surname. According to the main version, the surname keeps the memory of the profession of distant ancestors. One of the first representatives of the Rogozhins could be engaged in the manufacture of matting, or trade in fabric.

Rogozhey was called a coarse woven fabric from bast tapes. A bast hut (bast mat, bast mat) in Rus' was called a workshop where bast mats were woven, and a bast mat was called a bast weaver or a bast mat merchant.

In their close circle, Rogozhnik's household was known as "Rogozhin's wife", "Rogozhin's son", "Rogozhin's grandchildren". Over time, the terms denoting the degree of kinship disappeared, and the hereditary surname - Rogozhins - was assigned to the descendants of Rogozhin.

Such Russian surnames ending in "-in" include: Pushkin (Pushka), Gagarin (Gagara), Borodin (Beard), Ilyin (Ilya), Ptitsyn (Bird); Fomin (from the personal name of Thomas); Belkin (from the nickname "squirrel"), Borozdin (Furrow), Korovin (Cow), Travin (Grass), Zamin and Zimin (winter) and many others

Please note that the words from which surnames are formed on "in" mostly end in "-a" or "-ya". We will not be able to say “Borodov” or “Ilyinov”, it would be more logical and sonorous to pronounce “Ilyin” or “Borodin”.

Why do some people think that last names ending in "-in" have Jewish roots? Is it really? No, this is not true, one cannot judge the origin of a surname by one ending. sound Jewish surnames coincides with Russian endings just by pure chance.

It is always necessary to research the surname itself. The ending "ov", for some reason, does not cause us doubts. We believe that surnames ending in "-ov" are definitely Russian. But there are exceptions. For example, we recently prepared a beautiful family diploma for a wonderful family named Maksyutov.

The surname Maksyutov has the ending "ov", common among Russian surnames. But, if you explore the surname deeper, it turns out that the surname Maksyutov is formed from the Tatar male name“Maqsoud”, which in Arabic means “desire, premeditated intention, aspiration, goal”, “long-awaited, desired”. The name Maksud had several dialect variants: Maksut, Mahsud, Mahsut, Maksut. This name is still widespread among the Tatars and Bashkirs to this day.

“The surname Maksyutov is an old princely surname Tatar origin. ABOUT ancient origin surnames Maksyutov say historical sources. The surname was first documented in the 16th century: the Maksyutovs (Maksutovs, obsolete Maksyutovs, Tat. Maksutovlar) - the Volga-Bulgarian princely Murzin family, descended from the Kasimov prince Maksut (1554), in the genealogical legend, Prince Maksut was called a lancer and a descendant of Tsarevich Kasim. Now there is almost no doubt about the origin of the surname.

How to find out if the surname on -in is of Jewish origin or is it a native Russian surname? Always analyze the word that underlies your last name.

Here are examples of Jewish surnames ending in “-in” or “-ov”: Edmin (derived from the name of the German city of Emden), Kotin (derived from the Hebrew קטן- in the Ashkenazi pronunciation “kotn”, meaning “small”), Eventov (derived from the Hebrew “even tov” - “precious stone”), Khazin (derived from the Hebrew “chazan”, in a the Shkenazi pronunciation "khazn", meaning "a person leading a divine service in a synagogue"), Superfin (in translation means "very beautiful") and many others.

The ending "-in" is just an ending by which one cannot judge the nationality of a surname. You always need to research the surname, analyze the word that underlies it and try to search in various books and archival documents for the first mention of your surname. Only when all the information is collected, you will be able to establish with certainty the origin of your surname and find answers to your questions.

SURNAMES ENDING IN SKIY/-SKAYA, -TSKIY/-TSKAYA

Many Russians have a firm and unfounded conviction that surnames in -sky are necessarily Polish. From history textbooks, the names of several Polish magnates are known, formed from the names of their possessions: Pototsky and Zapototsky, Zablotsky, Krasinsky. But from the same textbooks, the names of many Russians with the same suffixes are known: Konstantin Grigoryevich Zabolotsky, roundabout of Tsar John III, late 15th - early 16th centuries; clerk Semyon Zaborovsky, early 16th century; boyars Shuisky and Belsky, close associates of Ivan the Terrible. Famous Russian artists Levitsky, Borovikovsky, Makovsky, Kramskoy.

An analysis of modern Russian surnames shows that forms in -sky (-tsky) exist in parallel with variants in -ov (-ev, -in), but there are fewer of them. For example, in Moscow in the 70s of the twentieth century, for 330 people with the surname Krasnov / Krasnova, there were only 30 with the surname Krasnovsky / Krasnovskaya. But enough rare surnames Kuchkov and Kuchkovsky, Makov and Makovsky are represented almost equally.

A significant part of the surnames ending in -sky / -skaya, -tsky / -tskaya are formed from geographical and ethnic names. In the letters of our readers who want to know about the origin of their surnames, the following surnames are mentioned in -sky / -sky.

Brynsky. The author of this letter, Evgeny Sergeevich Brynsky, himself sent the story of his last name. We give only a small piece of the letter, since it is not possible to publish it in its entirety. Bryn - river Kaluga region, flows into the tributary of the Oka Zhizdra. In the old days, large dense Bryn forests stretched along it, in which the Old Believers took refuge. According to the epic about Ilya Muromets, it was in the Bryn forests that the Nightingale the Robber lived. We add that there are several settlements Bryn in the Kaluga and Ivano-Frankivsk regions. The surname Brynski / Brynska found in Poland is formed from the name of two settlements Brynsk in different parts country and also, apparently, goes back to the names of the rivers Bryn, Brynica. There is no uniform interpretation of the names of these rivers in science. If the suffix -ets is added to the name of an inhabited place, then such a word denotes a native of this place. In the Crimea in the 60s - 70s of the XX century, the winegrower Maria Bryntseva was well known. Her surname is derived from the word brynets, that is, a native of the city or village of Bryn.

Garbavitsky. This Belarusian surname corresponds to the Russian Gorbovitsky (in Belarusian language the letter a is written in place of the unstressed o). The surname is formed from the name of some settlement of Gorbovitsa. In the materials we have, there are only Gorbov, Gorbovo and Gorbovtsy. All these names come from the designations of the terrain: humpback - hillock, sloping hill.

Dubovskaya. The surname is formed from the name of one of the numerous settlements: Dubovka, Dubovo, Dubovoe, Dubovskaya, Dubovsky, Dubovskoye, Dubovtsy, located in all parts of the country. To find out from which one, it is possible only according to the information preserved in the family, where the ancestors who received this surname lived, or where they came from to their place of further residence. Emphasis in the surname on "o": Dubovsky / Dubovskaya.

Steblivsky. Ukrainian surname corresponding to Russian - Steblevsky; formed from the names of settlements Steblivka in the Transcarpathian region or Steblev-Cherkasy. In Ukrainian orthography, i is written in place of the second e.

Tersky. The surname comes from the name of the Terek River and indicates that someone from distant ancestors this person lived there. There were the Terek region and the Terek Cossacks. So the bearers of the surname Tersky may also be descendants of the Cossacks.

Uryansky. The surname, apparently, is formed from the name of the settlement Urya. In our materials, such a name is recorded in the Krasnoyarsk Territory. Perhaps there are similar names in other places, since the name of the settlement is associated with the name of the river and with the designation ethnic group ur, as well as with the name of the medieval Turkic people Uryanka. Similar names could occur in different places, since medieval peoples led nomadic image life and assigned the name of their ethnic group to those places where they lingered for a long time.

Chiglinsky. The surname comes from the name of the settlement Chigla Voronezh region, which, apparently, is associated with the designation of the union of medieval Turkic tribes Chigili.

Shabansky. The surname is formed from the names of the settlements Shabanovo, Shabanovskoye, Shabanskoye, located in different parts of the country. These names come from the Turkic name Shaban Arabic origin. In Arabic, Shaban is the name of the eighth month. lunar calendar. The name Shaban is also attested in Russian peasant families in the 15th-17th centuries. In parallel with this, the spelling variant Shiban was noted in the Russian language - obviously, by analogy with the Russian shibat, zashibat. In the records of 1570-1578, Prince Ivan Andreevich Shiban Dolgoruky is mentioned; in 1584, the stirrup grooms of Tsar Theodore Ioannovich Osip Shiban and Danilo Shikhman Ermolaevich Kasatkins. The servant of Prince Kurbsky was called Vasily Shibanov - he was executed by Ivan the Terrible in 1564.

In addition, the name of the ethnic group is known Siberian Tatars shibans and family name Crimean Tatars shiban murzas. The Perm Region has locality Shibanovo, and in Ivanovskaya - Shibanikha.

So closely related different types proper names: personal, geographical and ethnic names as well as last names.

What does the surname mean in general?
Here we present famous definitions according to two interpretations of this concept.

Option one. Last name is "Clan name".

An inherited family name added to a personal name and passed from father to children. (Dictionary of foreign words); Genus, tribe, generation, tribe, blood, ancestors and offspring. Nickname, name, generic name. (Dictionary Dahl).

Surname (lat. familia - family) - a hereditary generic name, indicating that a person belongs to one genus, leading from common ancestor, or more narrow sense- to one family. Surnames were widely used in Ancient Rome, especially among the nobility. According to the research of V. A. Nikonov, surnames arose late; measured on a historical scale, apparently, in northern Italy in the X-XI centuries, the most economically developed regions of Europe.

From Lombardy through Piedmont, the surname "came" to neighboring Provence (southeast of France), in 1066 the Normans, having conquered England, transferred it from Normandy (north of France) there. In Europe, in the Middle Ages, they were practically not used; they began to revive from the 15th century, primarily among the upper classes. At the turn of the XV-XVI centuries. Surnames reached Denmark. In 1526, the king ordered all nobles to acquire surnames. From Denmark and Germany, the surnames passed to the Swedes. In Russia, surnames were introduced by law in the 16th century, first for princes and boyars, then for nobles and eminent merchants. Among the peasantry, surnames began to be used only after the abolition of serfdom. At the same time, quite often the peasants were recorded under the name of their former owners.

FAMILY GENUS - A kindred community that has a founder - a person who gave his family his own nickname as a surname. All namesakes are related to each other. Each family clan is a branch of an older clan clan.

Option two. Surname - a set of the same genera.

As with the NAMES of people, there are namesakes among the births. There are common generic names, for example Ivanovs, Petrovs, Smirnovs. Each such The surname unites several family genera.

HOWEVER, MOST OF THE 15,000 RUSSIAN SURNAMES ARE UNIQUE AND BELONG TO NO MORE THAN ONE GENUS.

Russian non-noble surnames have short story. Our ancestors, especially peasants, did not have fixed surnames. In the census books, a person was determined by his first name and patronymic, sometimes a yard nickname was indicated, which was not inherited. The total "surname" occurred only in the 19th century, at the same time, Russian clans are documented from the 17th century.

In fact, Russian family clans are just named branches of more ancient clans. (I took everything stated in this part of the section from serious sources without changing anything).

At the end of this section of the page, I would like to give an interesting thought on the topic of family genera, kinship, etc., coming from young researchers. I found this note in 2004 on the page http://news.battery.ru/theme/science/?news...64&from_m=smail . So, read the revelation of the century:

“The Krasnoyarsk school pedigree society, after studying genealogical trees, came to the conclusion that all the inhabitants of the planet are 14 cousins to each other. All research has led to the fact that by tracking the pedigree of any person, you can find a relationship with another person, the degree of remoteness of which is a maximum of 14 genera. ..... and further: "It turned out that almost every student is a descendant of a famous historical figure. One is closer to Leo Tolstoy, the other is closer to Alexander Pushkin, the third has roots in the family of Roman emperors," said Margarita Karnaukhova. Chairman of the Regional Historical and Genealogical Society Sergei Mesyats, who has been studying genealogy for more than 10 years, noted that schoolchildren's research has a full-fledged scientific justification and is "not only interesting, but practically important."

Like this!!! So, maybe there is no need for us to clarify something at all about our family and about our ancestors - all the same, one of us will “come” to the Roman emperor, the other to Pharaoh Tutankhamun. Choose!

Such a scientific conclusion did not convince me of the truth of what was stated and did not diminish my interest in my ancestors and in everything that was connected with them. Probably, I didn’t convince because by that time I had already managed to see something related to the history of mankind: as a schoolboy in my homeland in Primorye, I participated in the excavations of the medieval settlement of the Jurgens, a state that once conquered China and later plundered by the Tatar-Mongols; visited the obelisk installed in Kabul at the place where, according to legend, the war horse of Alexander the Great was buried; climbed Mount Emei in the Sichuan province of China in the foothills of the Himalayas, where the Buddha was supposedly born; bathed in a hot spring in the city of the Romans, built by them in the 1st century on the territory of modern Turkey; looked at the bends of the Danube from the height of the monastery in Vyshgorod - the old capital of the Hungarians, who had wandered for hundreds of years from the Urals to Transcarpathia; shuddered from what he saw and learned in the "Museum of War" in Saigon in Vietnam, etc. and so on. These observations and impressions convinced me more that “one must search and everything will be found!” than the “scientific conclusions” of young scientists from genealogy and others like them.

Fortunately, most people on the planet do not believe that all people on Earth are relatives, in any case, this has not been proven in the last 15 generations. That is why, probably, the science of onomastics was created by the labors of many researchers of the origin and spread of the surname. What is onomastics? Does it stand alone or is it part of some kind of science?

ONOMASTICS - the science of proper names, consisting of two parts - anthroponymy (names, surnames, nicknames of people) and place names (place names). …..Formally, it is believed that onomastics is a branch of linguistics, and in fact the main problems in it are of a linguistic nature. In addition, onomastics is at the junction of two more humanitarian disciplines:

Stories, since the names and surnames were assigned to representatives different peoples living in different historical time in different places on the planet. Over time, in connection with migration, wars, regroupings of nations, the names and surnames also changed.
Epistemology- a branch of philosophy that studies the methodology of the search for scientific truth.

A fairly large number of books on onomastics can be cited, not counting the dictionaries of surnames, but for our study, a few, affecting the surnames of the Slavic peoples and some European ones, are enough. Of particular note are the works on the onomastics of Jewish surnames, which we will also need to investigate, probably since we are invading territories where, along with Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian surnames common in in large numbers and Jewish. On the "Bookshelf" of our site there are several articles by famous scientists in the field of onomastics, whose works we will use to study the place and time of origin of our surname "Tsuprik".

But - the study of the origin of the surname is only part of our big task!

Maybe no less but more important part - building your family tree from the living carriers of our family back centuries! After all, this is perhaps a more reliable way of knowing not only the time and place of the appearance of our surname, but also its meaning! And this is the science of genealogy.

GENEALOGY, or genealogy (other Greek γενεαλογία - genealogy, from γενεά (genea) - "family" and λόγος (logos) - "word, knowledge") - a systematic collection of information about the origin, succession and relationship of surnames and genera; in more broad sense- the science of family ties in general [Wikipedia].

Genealogy is an auxiliary historical discipline (applied historical discipline) and is engaged in the study of family relationships of people, the history of childbirth, the origin of individuals, the establishment of family ties, the compilation of generational paintings and family trees. Genealogy is linked to heraldry, diplomacy and many other historical disciplines. Below are the most common variants of the image of the "family tree" of the surname (family), but there are many differences in the options! We also have our options.

Below in the figure, taken, as well as the previous ones, from the site on genealogy, you can clearly see how this relative is distributed “around the person”. In the center is the person for whom the genealogy is being compiled, then the circle is divided in half, in one half of the paternal ancestors, in the other - on the maternal side. Such an image of the genealogy is called a circular (circular) table. Round tables are only ascending, they were used in English and French genealogy.

Some constructions of genealogies of separate branches of the genus Tsuprikov you can look at our website on the page "Genealogy". We are waiting and hoping that you will be able to build a genealogy of your branch of the family, we are even sure that your branch will definitely find that place on the common family tree Tsuprikov where it originally grew from - we just haven't found out about it yet.

Friends, remember that Genealogy - this is not a hobby, this is a common sense of history, and origin of the surname- this is part of our past, this is the history of the surname, and, therefore, the history of our ancestors, the history of our family. And we believe that getting in touch with the history and origin of a surname is taking a step towards knowing one's family, to preserving the genealogy of one's family. Therefore, our site is for those who have ancestors, and it is not at all necessary that they be the Tsupriks!

Not every person knows the history of his last name, but anyone for whom family values and ties of kinship matter, seeks to find relatives and establish contact with them. Website " family tree I am glad to help you in this good undertaking. Finding ancestors is not an easy task, for this you need to dig family archive and make all sorts of inquiries, but finding relatives on the Internet is much easier. Family sites operating within the framework of our portal are named after their founder. After reviewing the list, you can find relatives by last name, unless, of course, the history of the last name of the people you are interested in matches yours. "Who were my ancestors?" - you can search for those who will help with the answer for free on the Family Tree, filtering family sites by last name.

With us, the search for ancestors by last name becomes easy and fast, and most importantly, it is always free and available. “I want to find relatives,” new users often write to us. Well, we will definitely help you do it!

Even if the search engine is unable to help you find your ancestors by last name, then the "Family Tree" is at your service! The history of the surname can no longer remain a secret for you! To find the ancestors, it is enough to join us. As you know, whoever seeks will find, and in your case, he will also find it quickly and for free. Communicate, interact, and very soon you will receive an answer to the question: "Who were my ancestors?".

Maria Soboleva

What does a surname mean? How to find out

What does a surname mean - everyone is interested in learning about its origin, about the history of a kind. Is it possible to find such information on your own or is it better to turn to specialists?

Surname mystery

What does a surname mean - this question can be answered by a special science called anthroponymy.

And the surname itself, what it is - the personal name of each of us, which passes from generation to generation, our family name. Even your distant ancestors were Smirnovs or Kovalenko, and now you proudly bear this name.

Specialists in the field of anthroponymy are akin to archaeologists, they are trying to get to the bottom of the origins of generic names, to find out the history of their origin. Answering the question of what a surname means, scientists learn a lot interesting facts from history, ethnography, geography.

Origin of the surname

There are simple and understandable surnames that do not require special explanations - it’s already clear to everyone that the generic name Kuznetsov comes from the blacksmith’s craft that was once in demand (and in Ukraine there are variations of surnames that occurred due to the profession: Koval, Kovalchuk, Kovalko).

But if you are the owner of a surname that is not entirely clear to the ear and mind, then, of course, quite reasonable questions arise: what does the surname mean and how to find out?

Today on the Internet there are many sites that offer surname dictionaries, opened, read and ordered. But how true is such information and what to do if your generic name is not there?

You can go two ways: self search truth and setting such a task for specialists.

What the surname means, your older relatives can tell you. In some families, they carefully keep the history of their kind, they know about their ancestors up to the fifth or seventh generation.

You can look through books on anthroponymy, various reference books and dictionaries. Information is also sought from the archives.

But this path is not for everyone - you need to be very meticulous, scrupulous and persistent.

There are sites on the Internet that help you create annals of your family, look for relatives, find out what a surname means and what its origin is.

Enthusiasts collect information about generic names, perhaps in this way you will find out what interests you. For example, the GenWAY resource, whose motto is “More than a family”, or the Internet project “All-Russian family tree».

Creating a chronicle of your kind is a great way to unite the family.

It is easier, of course, to seek help from specialists who will help you find out what the surname means. Firms that conduct such research have access to an extensive database - they use information from registry offices, parish archives, historical documents: military lists, merchant books, judicial records of tsarist times.

The only question is whether you have the means to pay for such services, because finding out what a surname means is sometimes not easy, and the search for the truth takes a lot of time.

But on the other hand, you will not only learn about the origin of the surname, but you will also be able to order a family tree, draw up your family tree, and receive a family diploma.

Surname Meaning

At first, representatives acquired surnames noble families starting at the end of the 14th century. Following the nobles, princes and boyars, artisans, merchants, and service people began to receive generic names. They entered into transactions, took on various obligations, and the document had to bear a signature confirming ownership.

But the people of the lower social status didn't have a last name. Even the head of the people's militia in 1611-1612, Minin, does not have a surname, but a designation that he is the son of Mina. It is already the descendants who inherited the name of the hero.

During their lives, people of a low class could be renamed at will by boyars, governors, clerks. He was Fedotov (after his father), became Krivoshein (according to his appearance).

Even the reforms of Peter I, who introduced the word "surname" into the Russian language and ordered to conduct "revisions" - population censuses, did not make the surname simple peasant permanent and inherited.

Only with the introduction of passports in Soviet time hereditary surnames were finally established. But old surnames many have come down to us. For example, Streltsov - from the name "Sagittarius" (a soldier of the Streltsy army).

More examples: what does the surname Ordyntsev mean - this is how people were called by belonging to the Golden Horde, Tolmachev - from the word "interpreter" (translator).

Some surnames are derived from borrowed names. If Ivanov, Lukin and Fomin are familiar to our ears, then hardly anyone can guess the origin of the heroically glorified surname Susanin from the Western European name Susanna.

But the frequent surname Laktionov comes from Galaktion (just for the convenience of pronunciation, the first syllable was cut off).

What the surname means, in some cases it is easy to guess for yourself:

from the names of animals - Zaitsev, Sokolov, Shchukin;

from geographical names- Muromov, Dneprov, Shuisky;

in honor of religious holidays - Assumption, Vozdvizhensky;

according to external signs: Sukhorukov, Krivtsov, Shcherbak (devoid of front teeth);

from family nicknames - Malyshev (from baby), Menshikov (from Menshik - the youngest in the family);

in accordance with character traits - Molchanov, Shustrikov, Zlenko;

by occupation - Melnikov, Rybakov, Kravchenko (from "kravets" - cutter);

derivatives from craft objects - Shapkin, Shilov;

from the nicknames of immigrants from other places - Nemchinov, Karelin, Tatarenko;

"household" surnames - Kuleshov, Pirogov, Ovsyannikov, Kochergin.

What the surname means is not only interesting, but also useful to know, because the history of your family is encrypted in it.

Find out the meaning of your last name, make a genealogical tree of your family (a great birthday present for mom), so that the memory of your ancestors is passed on to the next generation. Everyone should know their roots.

Take it, tell your friends!