Yakut language comes from Turkic. But it became widespread among Russians, Evenks and Evens living in Yakutia and related republics. A peculiar dialect is also on the territory of the Krasnoyarsk Territory. Yakut culture is a mixture of shamanism and Orthodoxy.
A bit of history
An interesting fact is that many Yakut names were still borrowed from the Russian language. But this is easily explained. The Yakuts have long since converted to Orthodoxy. Therefore, most of their names are Russian. In the old days they were given at baptism. Ancient names have changed a lot and now sound in a modern way. Although the Yakuts call each other in their own language, in communication with the Russians they prefer officially accepted options that are more familiar to outsiders.
Model of Yakut names
In modern times, the Yakut model of names is trinomial. It consists of first name, middle name and last name. And most often it sounds in Russian (Egor Zakharovich Sokolov). But often the names of Yakut origin (for example, Mogus). Sometimes there is also a personal name in the Yakut language. Among the most common surnames are Ivanov, Vasiliev, Petrov. There is also a “church” origin (for example, Dyachkovsky).
In the Yakut language, simple folk forms of names were mainly entrenched. There are diminutive forms or undergone transformations. Earlier, affectionate affixes were widely used (“kaan”, “chik”, “ka”, etc.).
They are used to this day. But the most popular affixes are “chaan” and “laan”. Moreover, they are used for people of any age category. Diminutive Yakut names can be found not only in conversations, but also in fiction.
Name Meaning
The meaning of the Yakut names can be quite interesting. For example, before the adoption of Orthodoxy, some names were given to children directly at birth, while others were acquired by them a little later. Initial formed from the Yakut appellatives. And the choice had various motives: physical disabilities, circumstances at birth, "protective" from diseases and adversities.
For example, to deceive “evil spirits, ” the name given at birth was considered forbidden. Instead, the child was given a nickname. It was used as a name. For nicknames, animals, names of objects, traits of character or appearance, etc. were chosen. In modern times, such "underground" names have lost their etymological significance. But many Yakut names survived. And most often belong to older people.
The semantics of nicknames are now extremely clear. It goes back to common nouns (Kuobakh - “hare”, Atyrdyah - “pitchfork”, etc.). The largest group of nicknames consists of underlining or bad traits of a person’s character, his appearance, manners or physical disabilities. For example, Boltorkhoi (chubby), Sergeh (sensitive), etc. Often, the nickname was given by the name of the area or its characteristic features.
Nicknames are sometimes given in modern times. You can meet a Yakut, having a nickname, a second and Russian name. But nevertheless, in modern times, newborns receive the Yakut name, which is chosen from the folk epos, popular works, and large rivers. But quite often completely new Yakut names are created. For example, after the revolution, Kommunar, Karl, and Klara appeared.
National nicknames among the Yakuts before did not have an explicit division into male and female. In modern times, everything has changed somewhat. Some nicknames began to be considered names, divided into male and female or refers to both sexes.
Female and male names
The Yakut names of girls, like boys, came from the name of strong animals and birds. They seemed to “share” their qualities with newborns (for example, Hotoy - “eagle”). Over time, when the aunts got older, the original names or nicknames did not quite correspond to the carriers. In this case, the child was given an additional name, already “adult” (for example, Taragay “bald”).
Girls are often called by the names of rivers (for example, Lena, Yana), and boys - Vilyuy, Aldan. The legendary Yakut ancestors: Ellei, Manchaara, were very popular among male names. Or favorite heroes of legends: Tuyaarim, Nyurgun. Among female names, the names of famous Yakut writers or their heroines are still popular. Very relevant were and remain poetic neoplasms. Of these, new male and female names of Yakuts often appear.
