Heraldická reprezentace obce a nevědecká etymologie toponym
Heraldic representation of a municipality and folk etymology of place names

Summary/Abstract: The study deals with the non-scientific (folk, popular) etymology of toponyms, specifically settlement place names, and its reflection in contemporary municipal heraldry. The aim is to incorporate the situation when the interpretation of a place name mo¬tivates the image of a municipal emblem into the general principles of the process labelled as “exteriorization” of the place name. It is the process in which the etymology of a proper name motivates the emergence of an object, most often a two-dimen¬sional, pictorial, or three-dimensional one. The process is illustrated with the analysis of justifications of new municipal emblems of 159 selected communities in the total of 12 Czech districts that were created and approved in the period of 1990−2021. The research showed that 72 % of the examined emblems regarded as canting arms are based on the scientific etymology of place names, while 26 % are based on the respective folk etymologies.

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