ORONOMASTIKA DUVANJSKOGA KRAJA
ORONOMASTICS OF THE DUVNO REGION

Summary/Abstract: Paper discusses the theoretical definition of oronyms, oronymy and oronomastics while also interpreting oronyms in the Duvno region. Oronyms are used to name mountains, hills, high grounds, from a mound to a mountain. Constantine VII Porphyrogennetos in his famous work De administrando imperio in the year 949 used term oronym to denote “a high hill” which, in the 10th century was pronounced Hļm, (Hum). Constantine VII Porphyrogennetos’ opinion that hill is an eminence up to 500 meters above the sea level and everything higher than that is classifies as a mountain has endured to our days. Unlike other toponyms, oronyms have not changed their names through history. Numerous oronyms were formed in the pre-Roman period, some are of unknown origin, while Croatian oronyms are of a newer origin. The origin of oronyms is Indo-European, old Slavic – old European, Slavic and of regional source. Oronyms in the Duvno region are monolexemic. Tales about queen Tuga, who along her sister Buga and their five brothers led the arrival of Croats to their current lands, is connected to the oronym Tušnica. Many tales about hajduks are related to the mythic Vran mountain because they used to reside on it.

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