FamilySearch Wiki

Czechia Naming Customs: Difference between revisions

Page Talk

Czechia Naming Customs (view source)

Revision as of 00:28, 11 February 2025

12,083 bytes added ,  11 February
Corrected subject vs. keywords lookups for FSC.
VisualWikitext
No edit summary
(Corrected subject vs. keywords lookups for FSC.)
(197 intermediate revisions by 18 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
{{CountrySidebar
|Country=Czechia
|Name=Czechia
|Type=Topic
|Topic Type=Background
|Background=Naming Customs
|Rating=Standardized
}}{{breadcrumb
| link1=[[Czechia Genealogy|Czechia]]
| link2=
| link3=
| link4=
| link5=[[Czechia Naming Customs|Naming Customs]]
}}


=== Religions ===
==Online Tools==
{| class="FCK__ShowTableBorders" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="1" border="0"
*[https://www.kdejsme.cz/ '''Kde Jsme'''] Surname Distribution Map
*[[Given Name Equivalents in the Austro-Hungarian Empire|'''Given Name Equivalents''']] This table, based on the resource [https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CS8L-TQ27-6 Słownik imion], alphabetizes names in Latin, with equivalents in other languages, including Czech.
*[http://www.20000-names.com/male_czechoslovakian_names.htm '''Male Czech Names, Slovak Names, Bohemian Names, Czechoslovakian Names''']
*[http://www.20000-names.com/female_czechoslovakian_names.htm '''Female Czech Names, Slovak Names, Bohemian Names, Czechoslovakian Names''']
*[https://www.behindthename.com/names/usage/czech '''Behind the Name: Czech Given Names''']
*[https://www.behindthename.com/names/usage/slovak '''Behind the Name: Slovak Given Names''']
*[https://surnames.behindthename.com/names/usage/czech '''Behind the Name: Czech Surnames''']
*[https://surnames.behindthename.com/names/usage/slovak '''Behind the Name: Slovak Surnames''']
*[https://www.prijmeni.cz/ '''Modern Czech surname distribution''']
*[https://www.familysearch.org/en/surname Surname experience] at FamilySearch - search by surname to learn its meaning and origin
 
==Surnames==
Czech names are composed of a given name and a family name (surname). Czechs typically get one given name – additional names may be chosen by themselves upon baptism but they generally use one. With marriage, the bride typically adopts the bridegroom's surname. <ref name="Czech">"Czech name", in Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Czech_name, accessed 25 February 2021.</ref>
====Surname Language Variation====
*Surnames may also be affected by the language in which the record was written.
*Some priests simply '''translated the surname into the language of the church register'''. For example, the Czech surname ''Černý'' could be translated to ''Schwarz''. Similarly, ''Nový, Novák, Nováček, Novotný'', and ''Novotníček'' could be translated into German as ''Neumann''.
*Usually surnames were not translated, but simply '''altered to fit the phonetic spelling and grammar of the language used in the parish register'''. It is not uncommon to see Czech surnames changed according to German spelling rules. Thus we find ''Čermák - Tschermak'', ''Šebek - Schebek'', ''Havlíček - Hawlitzek''. Likewise, German surnames often are seen with Czech spellings: ''Schultz - Šulc'', ''Schreier - Šrajer'', ''Schmidt - Šmid''.
*Grammatically, there are two types of surnames: nouns and adjectives. Surname endings will vary according to the gender of the person. Female surnames are usually feminized with the basic endings: '''-ová''' or '''-á'''.
 
 
===Inflection===
*In English some words have different endings depending upon how they are used in a sentence. A few examples of this are they-their-them, he-his-him, and who-whose-whom. This changing of words according to grammatical usage is called inflection. '''Czech is a Slavic language and as such is extremely inflective'''.
*All nouns and adjectives, including names of people and places, are subject to changes that can be a source of confusion to anyone not familiar with this language and their complicated grammar. Here are some examples:
 
*manželství mezi '''Janem Mikuleckým''' a '''Anežkou roz. Krplovou''' = marriage between '''Jan Mikulecký''' and '''Anežka Krplová''' <span style="color:red">Notice the name endings alter when placed in the grammar of the marriage.</span>
*Josef, syn '''Ludvíka Ryby''' a '''Františky roz. Sýkorové''' = Josef, son of '''Ludvík Ryba''' and '''Františka Sýkorová'''<span style="color:red">Again, notice the inflection change in the name endings. </span>
*'''z Prahy''' = from Praha (Prague); '''v Praze''' = in Praha; '''do Prahy''' = to Praha <span style="color:red">This demonstrates how extremely inflective the language is. </span>
 
===Inflection Differences in Male and Female Surnames===
 
Czech surnames are affected by gender. For example, a woman's surname must have a feminine ending. Although all surnames are nouns, they come from various parts of speech; adjectives and nouns. Surname endings vary according to the type of surname, i.e. whether from a noun or adjective, and the gender of the person.
 
'''Names from Adjectives'''
 
1.  Most adjective surnames end in '''-ý''' for males and '''-á''' for females.
 
{| class="FCK__ShowTableBorders" border="0" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="1"
|-
|-
|style="padding-right: 100px"|
'''''Male'''''
|
|
Roman Catholic<br> Greek Catholic<br> Orthodox<br> Protestant<br> Jewish<br> Moslem<br>
'''''Female'''''
|-
|Černý
|Černá
|-
|Novotný
|Novotná
|-
|Veselý
|Veselá
|-
|Palacký
|Palacká
|}
 
2.  Other types of adjective surnames end in '''-í''' and in '''-ů'''. These surnames are the same for females as for males.
 
{| class="FCK__ShowTableBorders" border="0" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="1"
|-
|style="padding-right: 100px"|
'''''Male'''''
|
|
''rimo-katolička''<br>
'''''Female'''''
''grčko-katolička''<br>
|-
''pravoslavna''<br>
|Krejčí
''protestantska''<br>
|Krejčí
''židovska''<br>
|-
''muslimanska''<br>
|Jirků
|Jirků
|}
|}


== Surnames ==
'''Names from Nouns'''


=== Historical Background ===
1.  Noun surnames end with a consonant or a short vowel (a vowel that doesn't have an accent mark). Noun surnames are feminized by adding the ending '''-ová'''.


In earlier centuries throughout Europe, one name was usually sufficient.  But as populations increased it became necessary to distinguish between individuals with the same name.  The problem was usually solved by adding descriptive information.  Thus we find John the tailor, John the son of Nicholas, John the short, John the newcomer, or John from Moravia.  When these "surnames" first came into being they were applied only to one person and not to the whole family.  In time, these names became hereditary so that they passed from generation to generation.
{| class="FCK__ShowTableBorders" border="0" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="1"
|-
|style="padding-right: 100px"|
'''''Male'''''
|
'''''Female'''''
|-
|Novák
|Nováková
|-
|Haneš
|Hanešová
|-
|Bartoš
|Bartošová
|-
|Havlík
|Havlíková
|-
|Krk
|Krková
|-
|Šlytr
|Šlytrová
|}


It is not possible to determine the exact year or even the century when hereditary family names were taken.  In most countries, the process took two or three centuries to become universally established in the society.  Hereditary names were first used by the nobility and wealthy land owners.  Later the custom was followed by merchants and townspeople and eventually by the common village folk.
2.  Surnames that end with an '''-a''', '''-e''', or '''-o''' drop the final letter before adding the '''-ová'''.  


Surnames in the modern sense were first used among Byzantine and Venetian nobility about the ninth century.  From Venice the practice spread to much of Western Europe. By the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries the custom was widely practiced in Britain and France. In Central Europe; Germany, Hungary, and Austria; including the area now in Czechoslovakia, the practice was well established by the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries.
{| class="FCK__ShowTableBorders" border="0" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="1"
|-
|style="padding-right: 100px"|
'''''Male'''''
|
'''''Female'''''
|-
|Kučera
|Kučerová
|-
|Homolka
|Homolková
|-
|Housle
|Houslová
|-
|Mičko
|Mičková
|-
|Štýblo
|Štýblová
|}
 
3.  Surnames ending with '''-ě''' are quite uncommon. These usually simply drop the '''-ě''' before adding the '''-ová'''. Some however keep the '''-ě''' and add a '''-t-''' before adding the '''-ová'''.  
 
{| class="FCK__ShowTableBorders" border="0" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="1"
|-
|style="padding-right: 100px"|
'''''Male'''''
|
'''''Female'''''
|-
|Bechyně
|Bechyňová
|-
|Vlčiště
|Vlčišťová
|-
|'''''but'''''
|
|-
|Ditě
|Ditětová
|-
|Hrabě
|Hrabětová
|}


=== Masculine and Feminine Surnames ===
4.  Surnames that end in '''-ec''' or '''-ek''' (or rarely '''-ev''' or '''-el''') drop the '''-e-''' before adding the '''-ová'''.


Czech and Slovak surnames are affected by gender.  A woman's surname must have a feminine ending.  Grammatically there are two types of surnames:  adjectives and nouns.  Surname endings vary according to the type of surname and the sex of the person.
{| class="FCK__ShowTableBorders" border="0" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="1"
|-
|style="padding-right: 100px"|
'''''Male'''''
|
'''''Female'''''
|-
|Moravec
|Moravcová
|-
|Šálek
|Šálková
|-
|Horáček
|Horáčková
|-
|Broškev
|Broškvová
|-
|Mandel
|Mandlová or Mandelová
|}


Adjectives
5.  Uncommon surnames ending with '''-ĕk''' or '''-ĕc''' may or may not drop the '''-ĕ-'''.


Most adjective surnames end in  ý for males and  á for females.
{| class="FCK__ShowTableBorders" border="0" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="1"
|-
|style="padding-right: 100px"|
'''''Male'''''
|
'''''Female'''''
|-
|Danĕk
|Daňková or Danĕková
|-
|Bartonĕc
|Bartoňcová or Bartonĕcová
|}


Examples: Male Female
6.  In many cases, even German and Hungarian names are subjected to the '''-ová''' ending.
erný erná
Novotný Novotná
Veselý Veselá
Palacký Palacká


Other types of adjective surnames end in  í and in  . These surnames are the same for females as for males.
{| class="FCK__ShowTableBorders" border="0" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="1"
|-
|style="padding-right: 100px"|
'''''Male'''''


|
'''''Female'''''
|-
|Wagner
|Wagnerová
|-
|Nagy
|Nagyová
|}
===Surnames Historical Development===
*Before record keeping began, most people had only one name, such as John.
*As the population increased, it became necessary to distinguish between individuals with the same name. The problem was usually solved by adding descriptive information. John became John the smith, John the son of Matthew, John the short, or John from Prague.
*At first surnames applied only to one person, not to the whole family. After a few generations, these names became hereditary and were passed on from generation to generation.
*Surnames developed from several sources. For example:
**'''Occupational'''
**'''Geographical'''
**'''Patronymic'''
**'''Descriptive''' or '''nickname'''
*The '''nobility and wealthy land owners''' were the first to begin using surnames.
*'''Merchants and townspeople''' then adopted the custom, as did the '''rural population'''. This process took two or three centuries.
<br>
While Czechs share relatively few given names — roughly 260 names have a frequency above 500 in Czechia — there are tens of thousands of Czech surnames (singular and plural: ''příjmení''). These are similar in origin to English ones and may reflect:
* a personal characteristic of someone's ancestor (such as ''Malý'' – "small", ''Veselý'' – "cheerful", ''Železný'' – "iron")
* occupation (''Kovář'' – "blacksmith", ''Kolář'' – "wheeler", ''Sedlák'' – "landowning farmer", ''Kočí'' – "coachman")
* the first name of a relative (''Marek'' – "Mark", ''David'', ''Eliáš'' – "Elias")
* animals (''Liška'' – "fox", ''Zajíc'' – "hare", ''Jelínek'' – "little deer", ''Ježek'' – "hedgehog", ''Kocourek'' – "little tomcat")
* especially birds (''Sokol'' – "falcon", ''Čermák'' – "black redstart", ''Kalous'' – "asio", ''Sýkora'' – "titmouse", ''Holub'' – "pigeon", ''Čáp'' – "stork")
* plants (''Konvalinka'' – "lily of the valley", ''Růžička'' – "little rose", ''Fiala'' – "violet", ''Javor'' – "maple")
* especially fruits and vegetables (''Jahoda'' – "strawberry", ''Hruška'' – "pear", ''Cibulka'' – "little onion")
* food (''Oliva'' – "olive", ''Makovec'' – "poppy cake", ''Slanina'' – "bacon")
* places of origin (''Slezák'' – "Silesian", ''Moravec'' – "Moravian", ''Němec'' – "German")
** also in a form of adjectives (''Rosický'' – "of Rosice", ''Nepomucký'' – "of Nepomuk")
* actions, usually in past simple (''Musil'' – "(he) had to", ''Pospíšil'' – "(he) hurried up", ''Zdražil'' – "(he) raised the price", ''Hrabal'' – "(he) raked")
* things (''Procházka'' – "stroll", ''Chalupa'' – "cottage", ''Svačina'' – "snack", ''Kučera'' – "a curl of hair")
* and many others<ref name="Czech"/>
====Alias Surnames====
Some families, especially in Southern Bohemia and Moravian Wallachia, used alias surnames. You may find these families listed under both surnames in the parish registers or one or the other. Sometimes some children are listed under one surname, and others under the original. Aliases were used to differentiate between branches of a family that are all living in the same village, or to differentiate between unrelated families with common surnames, such as Novák (which simply means new person in the village). Sometimes a man would take the surname of his wife as an alias surname, or the name of the builder of their house. For a more in-depth discussion of alias surnames, see [http://czechgenealogy.nase-koreny.cz/2012/11/surnames-after-roof.html this article].
If you see one of these terms in between two surnames, it is indicating the use of an alias surname:
   
   
Examples: Male Female
Krejí Krejí
Jirk Jirk


Nouns
'''aliter''' ''(Latin) ='' or/else
 
'''jinak''' ''(Czech) ='' otherwise
 
'''neb''' ''(Czech) ='' or
 
'''recte''' ''(Latin)='' correctly
 
'''správně''' ''(Czech) ='' correctly
 
'''subdita''' ''(Latin) ='' substitute
 
'''vel''' ''(Latin) ='' also
 
'''vulgo''' ''(Latin) ='' called
 
==Given Names==
 
===Historical Background===
 
In the Czech lands, the major source of given names was the names of Roman Catholic saints. Many of these were borrowed from foreign sources including names of Greek, Latin, Hebrew and German origin.
 
=== Słownik imion (Dictionary of names) ===
 
In many Czech records, given names are translated into Latin or German. One of the best resources to identify the Czech (or other language) version of a Latin name is the  [https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CS8L-TQ27-6 '''Słownik imion'''], or dictionary of names. This information has been indexed into a searchable [[Given Name Equivalents in the Austro-Hungarian Empire|'''online table''']]. A digital copy of the book is available [https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CS8L-TQ27-6 online]. An [https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CS8L-TQKT-S index] to all variant names is located at the [https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CS8L-TQKT-S back of the book].
 
===Prefix Roots===
 
For names that are of purely Slavic origin, the most popular were compound names which consist of two Slavic roots joined together. The following list gives the meanings of most of the various Slavic prefixes and suffixes.
 
{| class="FCK__ShowTableBorders" border="0" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="1"
|-
|'''Czech Prefix'''
|'''Meaning'''
|'''Czech Prefix'''
|'''Meaning'''
|-
|style="padding-right: 100px"|
Blaho-<br>Bohu-<br>Bole-<br>Bor-<br>Boži-<br>Brani-<br>Breti-<br>Broni-<br>Dali-<br>Dobro-<br>Draho-<br>Hori-<br>Hosti-<br>Hvězdo-<br>Jaro-<br>Krasno-<br>Kraso-<br>Křeso-<br>Květo-<br>Ladi-<br>Libo-<br>Lido-<br>Lubo-<br>Ludo-
|style="padding-right:150px"|
blessed<br>God's<br>more<br>warrior<br>see Bohu-<br>defense<br>ring out<br>see Brani-<br>further, more<br>good<br>dear, valued<br>mountains<br>guest<br>star<br>strong, fierce<br>beautiful<br>see Krasno-<br>strong<br>flower<br>see Vladi-<br>beloved<br>see Ludo-<br>see Libo-<br>the people<br>
 
|style="padding-right: 100px"|
Luti-<br>Milo-<br>Miro-<br>Msti-<br>Radi-<br>Rati-<br>Rosti-<br>Slavo-<br>Sobě<br>Stani-<br>Svato-<br>Sveto-<br>Světlo-<br>Vac-<br>Vit-<br>Vladi-<br>Vlasti-<br>Voj-<br>Vrati-<br>Zby-<br>Zde-<br>Zeli-<br>Zito-<br>
|
fierce<br>love<br>peace<br>revenge<br>joy<br>soldier<br>increase<br>glory<br>self<br>everlasting<br>strong (or Holy)<br>see Svato-<br>light<br>more<br>live<br>rule<br>homeland<br>warrior<br>return<br>remain<br>here (or do)<br>desire<br>life<br>
|}


Noun surnames end with a consonant or a short vowel (a vowel that doesn't have an accent mark  ). Noun surnames are feminized by adding the ending  ová
===Suffix Roots===
{| class="FCK__ShowTableBorders" border="0" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="1"
|-
|
-bor...<br>-chval...<br>-dan...<br>-dar...<br>-mil...<br>-mír...<br>-mysl...<br>-pluk...<br>-rad...<br>-slav...<br>-těch...<br>-voj...<br>-van...<br>-vit...<br>


Examples: Male Female
|
Novák Nováková
fight, warrior<br>praise<br>given<br>gift<br>love<br>peace<br>think<br>defense of people<br>joy<br>glory<br>haste<br>warrior<br>individual<br>life<br>
Haneš Hanešová
|}
Bartoš Bartošová
Havlík Havlíková
Krk Krková
Šlytr Šlytrová


Surnames that end with an  a,  e, or  o  drop the final letter before adding the  ová.
Thus Vladimir means "rule of peace" and Dalibor means "continue fighting." Of course, not all suffixes are found with all prefixes.  


Examples: Male Female
In many cases male names had a female version created by adding -a.
Kuera Kuerová
Homolka Homolková
Housle Houslová
Miko Miková
Štýblo Štýblová


Surnames ending with   are quite uncommon.  These usually simply drop the before adding the  ová.  Some however keep the  and add a t before adding the  ová.
{| class="FCK__ShowTableBorders" border="0" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="1"
|-
|style="padding-right:100px"|
'''''Male'''''
|
'''''Female'''''
|-
|Jaroslav
|Jaroslava
|-
|Bohumil
|Bohumila
|-
|Vladimír
|Vladimira
|-
|František
|Františka
|}


Examples: Male Female
Most Czech names (of all origins) end in a consonant (František, Jan, etc.) and female names usually end with '''-a''' (Kateřina) or '''-e''' (Marie). Most names have nicknames or diminutive forms which end in '''-a''', '''-ek''', or '''-ik'''. For example: Franta from František; Maňa or Mařka from Marie; Jarda or Jarek from Jaroslav, Pavlik from Pavel.
Bechyn Bechyová
Vlišt Vlišová
but Dit Dittová
Hrab Hrabtová


===Given Name Language Variation===
Surnames that end in ec or ek (or rarely  ev or  el) drop the e  before adding the ová.
Many old documents and certificates that surface when searching through family papers will be written in '''German or Latin.''' Because of the many languages encountered in Czech records, it is not unusual to see '''several variations of an ancestor's name depending on the language of the record'''. An ancestor may appear as ''Wenceslaus'' in his Latin birth record, as ''Wenzel'' in his German marriage record, and as ''Václav'' in the Czech birth records of his children.  


Examples: Male Female
Another example is the Czech name ''Vojtěch''; in German it is ''Albrecht''; in Latin, ''Adalbertus''. Fortunately, not all names differ so markedly. The Latin ''Josephus'' is easily recognized as Czech ''Josef''. A listing of given names with translations in English, Czech, Latin and German is found on the Wiki.
Moravec Moravcová
The following '''online''' source contains given names translated into 23 different European languages, including English:  
Šálek Šálková
Horáek Horáková
Broškev Broškvová
Mandel Mandlová or Mandelová


Uncommon surnames ending with  k or  c may or may not drop the .
*Janowowa, Wanda, et al. ''{{FSC|103656|item|disp='''Słownik imion'''}} (Dictionary of names).'' Wrocław, Germany: Zakład Narodowy im Ossolińskich, 1975. (FS Library book Ref 940 D4si; film 1181578 item 2; fiche 6,000,839.) Names are listed alphabetically by the Polish name, as the author is Polish. An index at the back gives the Polish form of each name. Use that name to find the 23 translations in the main list.


Example: Male Female
==Americanization of Names==
Dank Danková or Daková
Bartnonc Bartocová or Bartoncová


In many cases, even German and Hungarian names are subjected to the  ová ending.
A serious problem for some researchers is to determine the actual name of their immigrant ancestor. Some ancestors in their eagerness to be assimilated into American culture, traded their difficult foreign names for American names. This occurred often with given names and to a lesser extent with surnames.  


Example: Male Female
===Given Names===
Wagner Wagnerová
Nagy Nagyová


Given names usually were simply translated to their American counterparts:


GIVEN NAMES
{| class="FCK__ShowTableBorders" border="0" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="1"
|-
|style="padding-right:100px"|
''Jan''
|John


HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
|-
|''František''
|Frank or Francis
|-
|''Kateřina''
|Catherine
|-
|''Alžbĕta''
|Elizabeth
|}


In the Czech lands and Slovakia, the major source of given names was the names of Roman Catholic saints.  Many of these were borrowed from foreign sources including names of Greek, Latin, Hebrew and German origin.
Because some given names have no English translation, they were frequently changed to almost any similar sounding American name:


Other names are of purely Slavic origin.  Among these the most popular were compound names which consist of two Slavic roots joined together.  The following list gives the meanings of most of the various Slavic prefixes and suffixes.
''Václav'' = Wenzel, Venceslaus, Wenceslaus, William, Wesley, Wendel, James


PREFIX ROOTS
===Surnames===


Blaho blessed
Sometimes the name change was simply a translation:
Bohu God's
Bole more
Bor warrior
Boi see Bohu
Brani defense
Breti ring out
Broni see Brani
Dali further, more
Dobro good
Draho dear, valued
Hori mountains
Hosti guest
Hvzdo star
Jaro strong, fierce
Krasno beautiful
Kraso see Krasno
Keso strong
Kvto flower
Ladi see Vladi
Libo beloved
Lido see Ludo
Lubo see Libo
Ludo the people
Luti fierce
Milo love
Miro peace
Msti revenge
Radi joy
Rati soldier
Rosti increase
Slavo glory
Sob self
Stani everlasting
Svato strong (or Holy)
Sveto see Svato
Svtlo light
Vac more
Vit live
Vladi rule
Vlasti homeland
Voj warrior
Vrati return
Zby remain
Zde here (or do)
Zeli desire
Zito life


SUFFIX ROOTS
{| class="FCK__ShowTableBorders" border="0" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="1"
|-
|style="padding-right:100px"|
''Jablečík''
|Appleton
|
|-
|''Krejčí''
|Taylor
|-
|''Procházka''
|Walker
|}


bor fight, warrior
In many cases the immigrant would choose an American name that sounded similar to foreign name:
chval praise
dan given
dar gift
mil love
mír peace
mysl think
pluk defense of people
rad joy
slav glory
tch haste
voj warrior
van individual
vit life


Thus Vladimir means "rule of peace" and Dalibor means "continue fighting." Of course, not all suffixes are found with all prefixes.
{| class="FCK__ShowTableBorders" border="0" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="1"
|-
|style="padding-right:100px"|
''Kořista''
|Corrister
|-
|''Nožíř''
|Norris
|-
|''Hudec''
|Hudson
|-
|''Maršálek''
|Marshall
|-
|''Šimáček''
|Smack
|-
|''Lapáček''
|LaPache
|-
|''Vančura''
|Van Cura


In many cases male names had a female version created by adding  a
|}


Male Female
Some immigrants who were sensitive about the pronunciation of their names changed the spelling so that Americans could pronounce their names correctly:


Jaroslav Jaroslava
{| class="FCK__ShowTableBorders" border="0" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="1"
Bohumil Bohumila
|-
Vladimír Vladimíra
|style="padding-right:100px"|
František Františka
''Kokoška''
|Kokoshka
|-
|''Kučera''
|Kuchera/Kuczera
|-
|''Jelínek''
|Yellineck
|-
|''Chudec''<br>
|Hudetz


Most Czech and Slovak names (of all origins) end in a consonant (František, Jan, etc.) and female names usually end with  a (Kateina) or  e (Marie).  Most names have nicknames or diminutive forms which end in  a,  ek, or ik.  For example:  Franta from František; Maa or Maka from Marie; Jarda or Jarek from Jaroslav, Pavlik from Pavel.
|}


The records in Czechoslovakia were kept in several different languages. The birth record of an individual may have been written in Latin and the marriage record may have been in German or in Hungarian. Usually the given names were translated into the language of the document. In most genealogical reports from Czechoslovakia, names are recorded as they appear in the original documents. This can cause confusion since an ancestor may appear as Vojtch in one record and Adalbertus in another. The name list given here includes most of the common names found in Czechoslovakia and gives versions in Czech, Slovak, Hungarian, Latin, German and English.
==For Further Reading==
*[https://www.fbiic.gov/public/2008/nov/Naming_practice_guide_UK_2006.pdf '''A GUIDE TO NAMES AND NAMING PRACTICES, UK Names Guide''']
*[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Czech_name '''"Czech name"'''], in Wikipedia
*Other sources are listed in the '''FamilySearch Catalog:'''
**{{FSC|Czech Republic - Names, Personal|subject|subject-id=251955732|disp= Czech Republic - Names, Personal}}
**{{FSC|Czech Republic - Names, Personal - Dictionaries|subject|subject-id=1709384589|disp= Czech Republic - Names, Personal - Dictionaries}}


Although this list includes many names; it should be noted that certain names are enormously more common then others.  The directory for the city of Prague in l896 shows that 7O% of the male population bore the five most popular names:  Josef 22%, František l5%, Václav l2%, Antonín ll%, Jan lO%.  Other very popular male names were Karel, Vojtch, Matj, Jií, Alojzy (Alois), Martin and Jakub.  The same source indicates that among females 6O% bore the five most common names: Marie 22%, Anna 2l%, Josefa, 7%, Kateina 6%, Antonie 4%.  Other very popular female names were Františka, Barbora, Terezie and Dorota.
==References==
<references/>
[[Category:Czechia|Names]]
  [[Category:Naming Customs]]
Tegnosis
Approver, Batcheditor, Moderator, Patroller, Protector, Reviewer, Bots, Bureaucrats, editor, Interface administrators, pagecreator, pagedeleter, Page Ownership admin, Push subscription managers, Suppressors, Administrators, Upload Wizard campaign editors, Widget editors
321,763

edits

Retrieved from "https://integration-ru.familysearch.org/en/wiki/Special:MobileDiff/53485...6118316"