Names in Russia have always played an important status role. Introducing himself - whether in writing, in a personal conversation - the person immediately made it clear which class he belongs to, which means how he should be addressed and what respect must be shown. It was for this reason that there were a number of names that were never given to children in an aristocratic environment.
"Princely" names of the Slavs
The ancient history of our country holds a lot of amazing customs. So, in Kievan, and after medieval Russia, all the names were clearly divided into common and noble. The latter were easily distinguished by the presence of two semantic roots: Yaroslav, Vsevolod, Milolik, Lyudmila, etc. These are the ones we now remember best. Many have the impression that the Slavs did not have other names at all. But in fact, everything is simpler: historical chronicles tell of princes and boyars, and there is no place for ordinary warriors and artisans in them.
Yu. Nikitin, Stonehenge:
It seemed to Thomas that he had already heard somewhere about this principality. It seems that the father of Yaroslav is really a big relative. And a bunch of sisters. Both relatives and cousins.
He turned reproachfully to Oleg.
“Sir Kalika, you knew that she was a princely family!”
The sorcerer shrugged calmly.
“And you knew.”
Thomas was taken aback.
- I AM?
- Remember, once you talked about names? Her name is, if you still remember, Yara, and this is a diminutive of Yaroslav. Yes, she herself said this! And you, they say, we have King John, and Yeomen John, and pig John …
There was a huge stratum of names showing belonging to the lower classes:
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- “Pervak”, “Tretyak”, “Quarter” and others, indicating the order of birth.
- Names related to appearance or character and reminiscent of modern criminal nicknames: "Ryabusha", "Ryzhak", "Brave", "Fornication", etc.
- Indications of the circumstance of birth: “Zhdan”, “Chayana” (that is, “desired”, from the word “tea” - “wish”), Khoten, etc.
Not a single aristocrat, even under pain of death, would ever give his child a similar name. In princely families, there was a tradition of naming children in honor of the deceased ancestors. That is why the endless Vladimirs, Svyatoslavs and Vsevolods wander from the chronicle to the chronicle.
"Damned" names
It’s known that as you call a boat, it’ll sail. With people, according to the ancient Slavs, everything is exactly the same. What association most often arises among the average Russian when he hears the name "Svyatopolk"? Most likely, the first to remember the nickname - Cursed. This is largely due to the fact that the name of the adopted son of Prince Vladimir became a household name and gradually began to be identified with the most evil human qualities. Since the end of XII, when the legend of the murder of Boris and Gleb was firmly rooted in the minds of the people, and the real culprit of the tragedy (which, according to research, was Yaroslav the Wise himself) was recognized as a saint, the name Svyatopolk almost completely disappeared from use.
A similar story befell Oleg. Despite the fact that this name has retained its “noble” status, since the end of the XIV century it has hardly been found in the aristocratic milieu. The reason for this was the transition of Ryazan Prince Oleg to the side of Mamai before the Battle of Kulikovo. No one wanted to name their children after a traitor.
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Christian Russia: Taboo on Pagan Names
From about the 15th century, when Muscovy declared itself the “Third Rome, ” Slavic names gradually disappeared from the noble household. Now people from the noble estate called their children according to the holy calendar: Alexei, Fedor, Anna, Elena, Anastasia, Nikolai … The only exception was the names of princes who canonized or became famous as good Christians: for example, Vladimir, Olga or Vsevolod.
Echoes of the Mongol-Tatar yoke
Among the Russian nobles, many were descendants of khans and Baskaks. However, even those of them whose appearance unambiguously indicated their origin avoided Turkic-speaking names. Russian pre-revolutionary literature is very indicative in this sense. Many famous writers such as Gogol, Dostoevsky, Karamzin had Tatar roots. However, in none of these clans is it possible to meet the names Azamat, Genghis, Guljan, etc. Exclusively Nikolai, Ivana, Vasily and Catherine.
Noble descendants of noble ancestors
In medieval Russia, children were named in honor of one of the saints - usually the one whose memory was dedicated to the day on which the baby was born. However, here there was a division into classes. Only those names that belonged to the illustrious commanders, kings, Roman and Byzantine emperors and especially revered saints were befallen the nobles. Among them:
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- Constantine - the Roman emperor who made Christianity the state religion;
- Michael is the archangel;
- Peter, Andrew, Paul - the apostles of Christ;
- Anna - the Byzantine princess, wife of Prince Vladimir, the baptist of Russia;
- Alexander is the great commander of ancient Greece;
- Dmitry - Prince of Moscow, nicknamed Donskoy;
- Maria - comments are completely redundant here.
In almost every noble family there were especially popular names repeated over a generation, and sometimes even more often. Sons were often named after their grandfather or great-grandfather, thus ensuring continuity. Daughters often bore the names of pious Christian saints - Sofia, Mary, Evdokia, etc.
The rest of the clergy (much more than half) was considered the inheritance of the lower classes. In an aristocratic family it was impossible to meet such names as:
- Frol;
- Fedor;
- Martha
- Paphnutius;
- Anfisa;
- Euphrosyne;
- Antip;
- Timothy;
- Fedul, etc.
Narrow contractions
Some of the "noble" names were still common among the peasant community. Among them - George, Daniel, Gabriel, Mary. However, this does not mean that a simple plowman, named Ivan, could safely bear this name. He could be hailed by Vanka, Ivashka or a dozen more nicknames, depending on the characteristics of the dialect. But the full form of the name - John or Ivan - was the inheritance of exclusively noblemen. Gabriel in the peasant milieu turned into Gabriel, Mary - into Marya or Masha, and George was completely reduced to Yegor.
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This is another difference in the names of aristocrats. Diminutive contraction formed from the full form: Maryushka, Ivanushka, Nikolenka and the like. Remember the famous Soviet film "Midshipmen, Forward"? Alexei Korsak, the son of a small nobleman, whose estate status was only slightly higher than the peasant, was called Alyoshka, but never - Leshka or Lenka.
Bad signs
The name in Russia until the revolution was considered a kind of amulet, personifying the connection of a person with his guardian angel. This gave rise to many superstitions. For example, it was impossible to call a child the name of any of the living family members. It was believed that his heavenly patron could not protect both.
An even more bad omen was to name a baby in honor of an ancestor who died not by his death. For this reason, from the middle of the 18th century, the name Peter was almost completely used in the Romanov dynasty. A little later, Ivan and Pavel added to this list. The fate of the last emperors bearing these names was tragic. Peter died in early youth due to a cold, Ivan and Paul were killed during the palace coups. But Nikolai, Konstantin and Alexandra were famous for their good health and a rather happy fate, that is why the whole XIX century among the representatives of the dynasty, these names alternate mainly.
