XVI–XVII a. KILMINGŲ LIETUVOS DIDŽIOSIOS KUNIGAIKŠTYSTĖS MOTERŲ VARDYNAS
THE STRUCTURE OF RECORDING NOBLEWOMEN’S NAMES IN THE 16TH–17TH CENTURY GRAND DUCHY OF LITHUANIA

Summary/Abstract: In the 16th–17th centuries throughout the Grand Duchy of Lithuania there existed the Slavonic system of recording noblewomen’s names. This system could be characterized as a non-fixed standard. The types of naming depending on the number of proper names in them can be subdivided into monomial, binomial, trinomial, four-member, five-member, and six-member names. Each naming can include (or not include) common words or word combinations explaining proper names. These might consist of one word. The number of common words depends upon the length of the naming, i.e., the more proper names it contains, the more common words or word combinations there are explaining them. The largest number of common words found in the naming is four. According to their meaning, common words or word combinations might be divided into four lexico-semantic groups. They are as follows: 1) kinship or family status; 2) class; 3) post; 4) nationality. The choice depends on the length of the naming, i.e., in short namings words describing kinship and family status prevail, whereas in longer namings there appear more common words or combinations referring to class and post. Nationality is found only in the namings of Tartars. The name was not a frequent phenomenon in women’s namings. Only 37, 4% of the namings contain women’s names. The data of documents from different areas of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania differ as well. Further from the ethnic areas of Lithuania the namings including women’s names become rarer. The rarest are from the areas in the eastern part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Volynia. There is a link between the length of the naming and a woman’s name – the more proper names in it the greater the probability for a woman’s name in it. All the four, five and six-member namings include a woman’s name. Among the trinomial namings there are 80, 1% with a woman’s name, but among the binomial ones – only 42, 1%. Still fewer are among the monomial namings (11%). We usually find one name in women’s namings. The exception is one naming having two names. Christian women are given 49 Christian and 9 non-Christian names, i.e., out of the names recorded in documents 98, 16% are Christian and 1, 84% non-Christian. Christian names are recorded either in canonical forms or in diminutive forms, sometimes using both. Muslim women are named by 12 names. Some of the names are popular among both Christian and Muslim women (Ann, Halina, Rosaline, Joanna). The most common women’s names are Ann, Catherine, Sophia. There exists a link between the usage of a woman’s first name and other anthroponyms while naming her: if a woman’s anthroponyms include her father’s anthroponyms, her Christian name, as a rule, is also included, whereas in the namings consisting of a woman spouse’s anthroponyms her first name is very seldom found. Proper names in women’s namings are usually the spouse’s name, sometimes that of the father, rather infrequently the mother’s, son’s, brothe

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