"Whatever you call a ship, so it will sail…". You can, of course, laugh and think at the same time over the notorious words of Captain Vrungel Christopher Bonifatievich. The name is, undoubtedly, the destiny of a person. It determines his character, connects him not only with close relatives, but also with the place of birth, with the people living in the area, with culture, way of life, history. What about Hungarian names, what are their characteristics?
Hungary
When does a person get a name? First of all, it is given to him at birth. And here the main actors are the parents, and it is on their choice that the future fate of the child depends. Unfortunately, parents do not always act freely and independently. History, fashion, idols, heroes of novels and films, as well as special respect for great-grandparents - all this makes its own adjustments. How is it in Hungary?
All children in Hungary have several personalnames. The first is the main name and it is necessarily fixed in all official documents. The second is assigned to the baby at baptism. And, finally, the third - during the sacrament of chrismation or confirmation. As a rule, the last two are not used in everyday life.
Other Features
Hungarian names not only stand out against the motley background of other European names. Firstly, they are inherent in the eastern order, that is, the surname precedes the name. And, secondly, by law, citizens of Hungary must give names to children only from the official list. It is rather big, so no one is left without their unique name. Non-indigenous people are allowed to choose a name of their own liking. What are the Hungarian names on this list?
Hungarian nomenclature
Any state, in the name of not only prosperity, but also its very existence, is obliged to protect its so-called national gene. What does it consist of? From language, culture, history, religion, and including from the name. Hungary is no exception and supports this policy.
Therefore, in the official name book, the main part is primordially national names, many of which were created on the basis of common nouns or adjectives: Ambrus - immortal, Ferenk - free, Oszkar - deer lover and others. This is followed by a considerable list of names of Turkic origin: Balaban - "a kind of falcon", Zoltan, Attila, Geza, Gyula and others.
In third place - names of biblical origin or borrowedfrom the Catholic calendar. It is interesting to note that many of them were not just borrowed, not transplanted from one soil to another, but adapted, rooted and acquired their own unique look. For example, Gabriel turned into Gabor, there was Alexander - Shandor became, Ludovik - Lajos, Vlasiy - Balazh, Aaron - Aron, Susanna - Zhuzanna, Agnia - Agnes, George - Gyorgy, Ludovic - Lajos, and so on.
And, finally, the Hungarian names of the fourth group are relatively recent borrowings from other European languages: Bjnka (Italian), Georgette (French), Blanca (Italian), Bernadette (French) and others.
Amazing Facts
This article has repeatedly spoken about the features of the Hungarian nomenclature. There is another one: Hungarian female names and their varieties. A girl who marries has the right to choose one of several naming options. Which? First of all, and this is the most traditional option, in marriage, she can bear not only her surname, as is customary in our country, but also her husband's name, adding only the suffix -né. For example, Anna Nemeth (Németh Anna) marries Mate Szabó (Szabó Máté), and henceforth she is called Szabó Máténé. Also, along with the surname and name of her husband with the suffix -né, she can keep both her first and last name: Szabó Máténé Németh Anna.
But that's not all. There are other options. First: leave your first and last name and add to them the husband's surname with the same affix: Szabóné Németh Anna. Second: personal name plus husband's surname without any changes: Szabó Anna. And the last one: to be marriedon her last name and with her own name: Németh Anna.
By the way, the name Mate is the second most popular name in the Hungarian male names category.
Meaning
And yet everything in the world is not just. Not just like that, certain names and surnames arose. Each of them has its own meaning, its own source. What or who are the popular Hungarian names associated with? We will not disclose the entire list. We give only examples of the most famous. Among men, the most common are the following:
- Bence (Vince) - from Latin "to win".
- Mate - from the Hebrew "gift of Yahweh".
- Levente - Old Hungarian for "live".
- David (Dako, Doge) – Hebrew for “beloved”.
- Balags - Latin for "lisping".
Among women, the following can be noted:
- Yazmin – Hungarian for jasmine flower.
- Anna or Hannah - Hebrew for “grace, mercy.”
- Eleanor - from the Greek "mercy, compassion, sympathy."
- Boglarka - from the Hungarian buttercup flower.
As for Hungarian surnames, the most common are:
- Nagy - “big, great.
- Kovach - "blacksmith".
- Thoth is a Slovak.
- Clog - "tailor".
- Croat - "Croat".
Thus, it becomes clear that both native Hungarian names and those that came from other peoples are popular, and they mean mainly character traits, spiritual qualities or are associated with external data, profession.
