Individual Nicknames in Kostroma Dialects: A General Motivational Overview
Individual nicknames, as a distinct class of onyms, serve not only a nominative function but also a descriptive one. This article explores the motivational principles underlying the attribution of such nicknames, based on data collected by the Ural University Toponymic Expedition in the Kostroma reg...
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| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | Russian |
| Published: |
Izdatelstvo Uralskogo Universiteta
2025-07-01
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| Series: | Вопросы ономастики |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://onomastics.ru/en/content/2025-volume-22-issue-2-10 |
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| Summary: | Individual nicknames, as a distinct class of onyms, serve not only a nominative function but also a descriptive one. This article explores the motivational principles underlying the attribution of such nicknames, based on data collected by the Ural University Toponymic Expedition in the Kostroma region. Many of the nicknames presented here are introduced into scholarly discourse for the first time. The proposed motivational classification draws on contextual information recorded during fieldwork — specifically, informants’ explanations regarding the origins of each nickname. Since formally identical nicknames may arise from different motivations (cf. Kot “Vasya Kot — many cats are called Vas’kas, so he’s aVasya Kot, too” vs. Kot “We had a cat — he had whiskers like a cat”), this context captures the workings of naive linguistic consciousness in the interpretation of onymic motivation. The study identifies eleven key motivational categories relevant to nickname formation: family ties, place of residence or origin, biographical facts, occupation, appearance, physical disabilities, character and behaviour, intellectual abilities, habits and pastimes, speech, and financial status. The most productive categories include nicknames derived from personal names or kinship terms, as well as those referencing physical appearance. Nicknames based on distinctive speech patterns are also relatively common. A large, though heterogeneous, group includes nicknames that reflect societal behavior or attitudes towards others, life, and material possessions. |
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| ISSN: | 1994-2400 1994-2451 |