Approver, Moderator, Protector, Reviewer, Bots, editor, pagecreator, pagedeleter, Administrators (Semantic MediaWiki), Administrators
129,710
edits
Finland Naming Customs: Difference between revisions
m
no edit summary
mNo edit summary |
|||
| Line 37: | Line 37: | ||
== Legislative Changes == | == Legislative Changes == | ||
=== Language Reforms === | === Language Reforms === | ||
The Finnish writing system was established on Mikael Agricola's efforts to ensure that when Finnish was read to illiterate persons they would be able to recognize and understand it. Dissatisfied with having only Mass available in Finnish he worked diligently to create a translation of the New Testament into Finnish using the original Greek text, Martin Luther's German translation, Erasmus of Rotterdam's Latin New Testament, and the Swedish Bible of Olaus Petri. Agricola's spelling book, ''Abckira'', published in 1543, was his first effort in developing a standard form of the language. This was followed by ''Rucouskiria Bibliasta'' (Prayer Book from the Bible) in 1544; a translation of the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Se_Wsi_Testamenti New Testament (''Se Wsi Testament'')] published in 1548; and three additional litugical works in 1549.<ref> The three liturgical works are: ''Käsikirja Castesta ia muista Christikunnan Menoista'', instructions for christening, marriage and burial; ''Messu eli Herran echtolinen'' the liturgy for service of Mass; and ''Se meiden Herran Jesusen Christusen Pina, ylesnousemus ia tauiaisen Astumus, niste Neliest Euangelisterist coghottuon'', an account of the final week of Jesus Christ's mortal ministry.</ref> All of his works were based on the western dialects spoken in Finland (mainly in Turku) and are know as Old Literary Finnish. | The Finnish writing system was established on Mikael Agricola's efforts to ensure that when Finnish was read to illiterate persons they would be able to recognize and understand it. Dissatisfied with having only Mass available in Finnish he worked diligently to create a translation of the New Testament into Finnish using the original Greek text, Martin Luther's German translation, Erasmus of Rotterdam's Latin New Testament, and the Swedish Bible of Olaus Petri. Agricola's spelling book, ''Abckira'', published in 1543, was his first effort in developing a standard form of the language. This was followed by ''Rucouskiria Bibliasta'' (Prayer Book from the Bible) in 1544; a translation of the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Se_Wsi_Testamenti New Testament (''Se Wsi Testament'')] published in 1548; and three additional litugical works in 1549.<ref>The three liturgical works are: ''Käsikirja Castesta ia muista Christikunnan Menoista'', instructions for christening, marriage and burial; ''Messu eli Herran echtolinen'' the liturgy for service of Mass; and ''Se meiden Herran Jesusen Christusen Pina, ylesnousemus ia tauiaisen Astumus, niste Neliest Euangelisterist coghottuon'', an account of the final week of Jesus Christ's mortal ministry.</ref> All of his works were based on the western dialects spoken in Finland (mainly in Turku) and are know as Old Literary Finnish. | ||
Raising the status of the Finnish language as a truly national language to replace or compete with Swedish began in the 1800s with the publication of the ''[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalevala Kalevala]'' by Elias Lönnrot in 1835. Scholars mark this event as the beginning of the transition to Modern Finnish with the introduction of words from eastern dialects, giving the language a broader cultural representation. The writing system was standardized with the publication of a Finnish translation of the Bible in the 1850s. Also contributing to this transformation of Finnish into a national language were the efforts of Swedish-born Johan Vilhelm Snellman, a powerful promoter of Finnish nationalism who had served as a lecturer at the University of Helsinki and colleague of Elias Lönnrot, and later as a member of the Senate of Finland and Finance Minister. While serving as Minister he was able to propose and promote the ''[https://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kielireskripti Kielireskripti]'' (Language Decree) which was approved on 1 August 1863 by Tsar Alexander II which initiated a twenty year period in which Finnish would replace Swedish in all official records. The first novel published in Finnish was ''Seven Brothers'' by Aleksis Kivi in 1870. | Raising the status of the Finnish language as a truly national language to replace or compete with Swedish began in the 1800s with the publication of the ''[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalevala Kalevala]'' by Elias Lönnrot in 1835. Scholars mark this event as the beginning of the transition to Modern Finnish with the introduction of words from eastern dialects, giving the language a broader cultural representation. The writing system was standardized with the publication of a Finnish translation of the Bible in the 1850s. Also contributing to this transformation of Finnish into a national language were the efforts of Swedish-born Johan Vilhelm Snellman, a powerful promoter of Finnish nationalism who had served as a lecturer at the University of Helsinki and colleague of Elias Lönnrot, and later as a member of the Senate of Finland and Finance Minister. While serving as Minister he was able to propose and promote the ''[https://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kielireskripti Kielireskripti]'' (Language Decree) which was approved on 1 August 1863 by Tsar Alexander II which initiated a twenty year period in which Finnish would replace Swedish in all official records. The first novel published in Finnish was ''Seven Brothers'' by Aleksis Kivi in 1870. | ||
| Line 71: | Line 71: | ||
== Surnames == | == Surnames == | ||
[[File:Finland East-West Naming Practice.jpg|350px|thumb|Boundary showing different surname practices in Finland.]] | [[File:Finland East-West Naming Practice.jpg|350px|thumb|Boundary showing different surname practices in Finland.]] | ||
Before record keeping began, most people had only one name, such as Johan. As the population increased, it became necessary to distinguish between individuals with the same name. The problem was usually solved by adding descriptive information. Johan the smith became Johan Smed; Johan the son of Matts became Johan Mattsson, or Johan from Huuskotar farm became Johan Huuskoin. At first, such "surnames" applied only to one person and not to the whole family. After a few generations, these names sometimes became hereditary and were used from father to son. Before the twentieth century, women in Finland generally did not assume the husband’s surname at marriage. In colloquial speech Finns did not address each other using patronymics. The natural Finnish way of referring to someone's parentage is to use the genitive form, ''Matin Olli'' ("Matthew's Olaf") instead of the solemn ''Olli Matinpoika'' ("Olaf Matthew's son")<ref>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finnish_name#Patronymics</ref> | Before record keeping began, most people had only one name, such as Johan. As the population increased, it became necessary to distinguish between individuals with the same name. The problem was usually solved by adding descriptive information. Johan the smith became Johan Smed; Johan the son of Matts became Johan Mattsson, or Johan from Huuskotar farm became Johan Huuskoin. At first, such "surnames" applied only to one person and not to the whole family. After a few generations, these names sometimes became hereditary and were used from father to son. Before the twentieth century, women in Finland generally did not assume the husband’s surname at marriage. In colloquial speech Finns did not address each other using patronymics. The natural Finnish way of referring to someone's parentage is to use the genitive form, ''Matin Olli'' ("Matthew's Olaf") instead of the solemn ''Olli Matinpoika'' ("Olaf Matthew's son")<ref>Wikipedia (Finnish). [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finnish_name#Patronymics Finnish name, section:Patronymics].</ref> | ||
Finnish birth records did not generally identify the surname for newborn infants, only the given name. In creating a surname standard for the International Genealogical Index, the surnames were assigned strictly by whether a parish is classified as a patronymic parish (western) or a fixed surname parish (eastern). Without knowing which way a parish was classified, it is best to try all known possible variations, such as patronymic, farm names, and fixed surnames, when searching Historical Records collections and the International Genealogical Index. | Finnish birth records did not generally identify the surname for newborn infants, only the given name. In creating a surname standard for the International Genealogical Index, the surnames were assigned strictly by whether a parish is classified as a patronymic parish (western) or a fixed surname parish (eastern). Without knowing which way a parish was classified, it is best to try all known possible variations, such as patronymic, farm names, and fixed surnames, when searching Historical Records collections and the International Genealogical Index. | ||