In the list of the hundred most common Russian surnames, the name Zhukov takes an honorable 61st place. Studies by scientists working in the field of anthroponymy as a science that studies the evolution of names, patronymics and surnames have shown the true origin of the Zhukov surname.
The tradition of forming surnames in Russia
Historical reference testifies to the late appearance of the surname in Russia. In anthroponymy, the 13th century is considered to be the moment when the custom of hereditary transmission of the name was born in the Slavic medieval society. The surname was based on patronymics or the names of fathers and grandfathers, since the patriarchal system required respect for the heroes and defenders of the clan, brave fighters who fell in battles.
However, there was another form of the appearance of surnames - a derivative of the nickname, which was endowed with the progenitor for the qualities of appearance or character, profession. The descendants of a person who received a common nickname took the father's name in a possessive form as a surname: they took the ancestor's hysterical name as a basis and, answering the question “whose?”, “Whose?” or “whose?”, added suffixes -ov / -ev / -in to it, and forformation of the female version of the surname - inflection -a. So, a man with the nickname Zhuk laid the foundation for the development of the Zhukov family.
Zhukov: the origin of the surname
The origins of the origin of the surname we are interested in originate in medieval Russia. In the XVI-XVII centuries, there was a tradition to form worldly names from the names of representatives of the animal and plant world.
Nicknames were given on the basis of the “similarity” of a person with an animal or plant in their appearance or behavior. In other words, the names served as a mythological code, storing information about the nature of the individual. So, at the moment there are several theories of the origin of the surname Zhukov, as well as other derivatives of the nickname Zhuk - Zhukevich, Zhukovsky.
One name, three theories
The first position of scientists studying anthroponymy regarding the surname Zhukov is that the nickname Beetle was most often given to people on the basis of an expressive external sign - black hair. Another concept of the origin of the surname says that the beetle was called dexterous, cunning and nosy personalities.
Researchers' assumptions about how the Zhukov surname came about also include geographic location theory. So, people from the village of Zhukovka could take a similar name.
About representatives of the Zhukov family from historical information
Despite the fact that the second theory about where the surname "Zhukov" came from has a negative connotation, representatives of the genusZhukovs are enterprising and dodgy people. For example, the Zhukovs, the oldest noble family of Russia, inherited such a nickname from their progenitor, the Greek John Smolvin. There is a legend that, having arrived from Byzantium in the Russian lands, he received the nickname Zhuk from the Grand Duke Vladimir for his swarthy skin and characteristic cunning. Generations of descendants proudly bore the name of Zhukov, being in the royal service as Moscow archers, stewards and solicitors. Historical documents contain evidence of the presence in the 16th century of several noble families with a name derived from the nickname Zhuk.
On the pages of the glorious history of the Zhukov family, landowners Vasyuk and Levshin, peasants Ivashko, Prikhozhiy and Prokop were noted. The contribution to the development of the Russian Empire of the Zhukov family, who lived in the Caucasian territories in the 18th century, is noteworthy. Kolesnikov devoted his life to the study of this family branch. Based on his investigations, it was under the leadership of the Zhukovs in 1707-1709. Bulavinsky Cossack uprising was raised. Marshal Georgy Zhukov also glorified his family, whose name is inscribed in golden letters in the history of the modern Russian state.
What is he - the bearer of the glorious name Zhukov? The origin of the surname indicates that the representatives of the family have always been distinguished by a rebellious spirit, love of freedom, and a tough civic position. They possessed a powerful creative potential and were the driving force of the country. Is it possible to give a general answer to the question of what is hidden behind the name Zhukov? Origin of the surnamea particular family is determined only through the restoration of the history of the genus. Knowing the true secret of the formation of one's own surname requires information about previous generations, as well as information about the residence and activities of the first bearer of the nickname.
