Ukrainian female names: composition and origin

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:40

The names that the inhabitants of Ukraine bear are generally close to Russians and Belarusians. However, they have their own specifics, which we will discuss below, analyzing Ukrainian female names in detail.

Proximity of Ukrainian names to Russian and Belarusian

There is nothing surprising in the fact that the onomasticon of Ukraine is similar to Russian and Belarusian. All three states are heirs of the common East Slavic pagan culture. In addition, they were equally influenced by Christianization with the prevailing importance of Eastern Orthodoxy. Together they made up the USSR, whose cultural traditions were also reflected in the names of all three countries.

Slavic pagan names

The first category of names is associated with the ancient national culture. These are the original Slavic variants that were in use before Prince Vladimir initiated the policy of Christianization in Russia. These Ukrainian female names consist of familiar roots and almost never require translation. They are distinguished by a special melody and national color, and therefore are easily recognizable from the general mass. Unfortunately, after Christianity was established in Russia, andpaganism fell into decline, many Slavic names went out of wide use. Some of them are very rare, while others have been completely lost.

Eastern Christian names

The political orientation of the principalities, on whose territory modern Ukraine is located, led to the fact that it was the Eastern Christian tradition that was established on their lands, that is, Orthodoxy, which does not consist in communion with Rome. With regard to the nomenclature, this was reflected in the fact that the inhabitants began to be baptized with names characteristic mainly of the Greeks. So, many Ukrainian female names are adaptations of original Greek names. Among them, however, there are also Latin and Semitic variants.

Western Christian names

But the religious life of Ukraine is not limited to Orthodoxy alone. The geographical position and proximity to other states have made it a meeting place for a wide variety of cultural and religious traditions. Being throughout the history of its existence the arena of political games between Russia and neighboring Western European states, Ukraine has absorbed a considerable layer of Western European culture. Despite the dominant Orthodoxy, the influence of Catholicism in these lands was and remains quite significant, and therefore, unlike Russia, Ukrainian female names include quite a few European ones - Latin, Germanic and other options.

History of names in Ukraine

Originallymany inhabitants of Ukraine bore two names - Slavic pagan and Christian. This was especially popular during the period of dual faith, when people, still adhering to paternal traditions, were already involved in the orbit of Christianity. The Christian name in the minds of people provided them with the protection and patronage of the saint of the same name - a kind of heavenly patron and patron. The pagan name in a similar way made it possible to count on the mercy and help of the gods. In addition, it served as a kind of amulet given by the parents, the essence of which was revealed in its meaning. Over time, the names from the church calendar became familiar and began to be perceived as native. Gradually, they almost completely replaced the original forms.

Specific pronunciation

Assuming foreign names, however, Ukrainians often changed their sound, so that they actually became Ukrainianized. Ukrainian female names were especially subject to this process.

For example, the church and Jewish Anna began to be pronounced as Hannah. Similar processes occurred whenever the name began with "a". This is due to the fact that the Ukrainian language retains an ancient rule that does not allow a word to begin with this sound. Therefore, they began to either precede it with an aspirated "g", or change it to "o". So Alexandra became Oleksandra. Although there are exceptions. For example, Antonina is most often used with "a", although the option with "o" also exists, but is extremely rare.

Another interesting point isthe fact that in ancient times there was no “f” sound in the Slavic language. Because of this, the names that have it in their composition began to sound in a new way.

Some Ukrainian female names and their meanings correlate with other names from which they come, but are still independent forms. This became possible with the help of, for example, a diminutive suffix added to the original form. Thus, for example, the name Varka appeared, which has the name Varvara as its source. But officially they are two different names.

Ukrainian female names. List

Now let's give a small list of female names as an example. Of course, this list cannot claim to be complete. It contains mainly the rarest Ukrainian female names, as well as the most beautiful ones, in our opinion.

- Chakluna. This is an old name that can be translated as "charming".

- Chernava. So they called the girls, distinguished by dark hair. It actually means "dark-haired".

- Svetoyara. This is a Slavic name that literally means "light of the sun". It can also be translated simply as "sunny".

- Lyubava. Means "beloved"

- Beautiful. Does not require translation, because its meaning is already obvious - "beautiful".

- Radmila. Translated as "very cute".

- Lubomila. Again, does not require clarification in meaning.

- Luchezara. Translated as "radiant".

- Ladomila. The name of the goddess Lada includes many ancient Ukrainian femalenames. Beautiful in sound, they differ in the depth of meaning, and therefore it is difficult to express them in one word. You can translate this name as "merciful", and as "kind and sweet", and as "sweet and harmonious".

- Dobrogora. Means "bearer of good".

- Oksana. This is a very popular name not only in Ukraine, but also in all CIS countries. It is a Ukrainianized form of the Greek name "Xenia", which translates as "hospitable".