Spanish names with meaning. What do Spanish names mean: interpretation and history of origin

The formation of the Spanish national language, which belongs to the Romance group of Indo-European, dates back to the 15th century, that is, to the period of the unification of the feudal states located on the Iberian Peninsula. language family. The history of the Spaniards in previous eras explains the presence in their language of Greek, Latin, Old High German, as well as Arabic words. The above fully applies to Spanish anthroponymy.

IN XV-XVI centuries The Spanish colonization of America began. Spanish colonizers of the South, Central and Southern parts North America mixed with the aborigines - the local Indian population, as well as with blacks and gradually formed the ethnic core of virtually all modern Latin American nations - Argentines, Venezuelans, Colombians, Cubans, Chileans. During the era of colonial expansion and the rise of Spain, the Spanish language spread in Central and South America except Brazil.

Features of the anthroponymic model

In the Spanish anthroponymic model, we can conditionally highlight the following most typical cases:

1. a simple binomial model, that is, a personal name, nombre de pila, and a family name, nombre de apellido, for example Mario Saenz;

2. three-member model, that is, two personal names and one family name, for example Juan Romulo Fernandez;

3. polynomial model:

a) one or more personal names and two family names, where surname number one can be patronymic in nature, and surname number two comes from the name of the place of birth, residence, for example Carlos Sanchez Malaga;

b) one or more personal names and two or more family names, connected using the particles y, de or a combination of the article and the particle de (de la, de los, de las, del), for example: Gustavo Arboleda y Restrepo, fosefa Fernandez de Garay, Rosa Arciniega de la Torre, Maximo Farfan de las Godos,
Antonio Espinosa de los Monteros, Teresa Alvarez del Castillo;

c) one or more personal names and those added to them in various ways(a combination of particles and combinations of the article with the particle de) one (two or more) family names, for example: Oscar Quesada in de la Guerra, Teodoro Caballero in Martinez del Camp.

Roots of origin of names

Spanish male and female personal names in origin go back to Greek (Nicomedes, Medea), Roman (Romulo, Cesar), Arabic (Farida, Neguib), Germanic (Amelberga, Ricardo) and Hebrew (Uriel, Maria) sources. Most Spaniards are Catholics, and according to the canons of the Roman Catholic Church, the choice of personal names for baptism is limited to the names of saints from the church calendar. The child is given one, two, or (less common) several personal names. Long time there was a tradition of naming the first child after the paternal grandfather, and the second - after the maternal one or the name of some outstanding ancestor of the family. Some previously used in Spain and Latin America biblical (Lamec, Bezabel), mythological (Polux, Clitemnestra), historical (Neron) names have disappeared, others belonging to the same categories (Daniel, Lucas, Martin, Bartolome, Saul; Hector, Delia; Anibal, Napoleon) are still used to this day.

Since the 30s of the 20th century in Spain, and then in other countries, among people of Spanish origin, names have become widespread, the bases of which relate to the following lexical fields, using the example of female names: abstract (symbolic) names (Encarnacion “incarnation”, Concepcion “knowledge”, Libertad “freedom”), names of flowers (Rosa “rose”, Violeta “violet”, Camelia “camellia”, Flora “vegetation”), names precious stones(Diamante "diamond", Perlas "pearl"), as well as names literary heroes(Ofelia, Graciela).
The Spanish name list currently includes foreign names, which entered the Spanish language as a result of a wide variety of contacts and connections with speakers of other languages, especially Romance ones: for example, english names- Milton, Uladis, French - Josette, Yvonne, Italian - Italo, Menotti.

The formation of Spanish personal names is based on derivation and suppletivism. By means of derivation, affectionate and diminutive forms of names are formed; the most common suffixes are -ito(-ita), -ico(-ica); -illo(-illa). So, for example, from the names Juan, Ana, Ines, the pet names will be Juanito, Anita, Inesita, respectively. If the personal name ends in -s, then this ending is added to the suffix of the diminutive form: Carlos - Carlitos, Dolores - Dolor esitos. Often, when forming derivative forms of personal names, the phenomenon of suppletivism occurs, as, for example, for male names - Rappo and Re-re, Francisco and Jose, or, respectively, for female names - Pancha for the name Francisca, and Pepita for the name Josefa. Instead of the female name Dolores, the diminutive name Lola is often used, instead of Concepcion - Concha, and instead of the male name Refugio - Sisa. For the biblical name Jesus, which is widespread in Spain, the diminutive form Chucho is often found. Sometimes derivative pet names are formed by various truncations, for example Sunta from the feminine name Asuncion.

The most common male names are Alfonso, Andres, Benito, Carlos, Diego, Enrique, Felipe, Fernando, Francisco, Geronimo, Joaquin, Jose, Juan, Manuel, Miguel, Pedro, Ramon, Vicente; and female ones Ana, Catalina, Elena, Enriqueta, Francisca, Ines, Isabel, Josefa, Juana, Manuela, Maria. But along with them there are also arbitrarily created ones that do not have a clear etymology. rare names, such as Anilu, Chamito, Maruchi, Coquis.

Traditions in the use of names

Under the influence of the French language, the particle de appeared in the Spanish anthroponymic model, attaching a personal name to geographical name, from which the surname was subsequently derived. But in French, as is known, the presence of this particle in a surname was a sign of noble origin, high social status; in Spanish surnames it has a purely official meaning, for example: Ferdinandez de Cordoba, that is, Ferdinand from Cordoba.

When addressing close friends, relatives and children in Spanish, the 2nd person personal pronoun tu “you” is used. The usual form of polite address Vuestra merced "Your Grace", most often abbreviated in oral form - Usted (plural - Ustedes), and in writing expressed even more briefly - V, Vd for the singular and Vs, Vv, Vds for the plural.

Forms of polite address to to strangers are Don (in writing - Dn, D), Senor (abbreviation - Sr) and Excelencia (in writing - Exca) - in relation to men and Dona (in writing - Dn, Da), Senora (in writing - Sra) -in relation to to women. A young girl is addressed using the word senorita (in writing - Srita, Sta), and to young man- senorito. Each of these words has the meaning of “lord” or “madam” respectively.

The most ancient of all the given words used for polite address is Don, the etymology of which goes back to the Latin dominus “lord”, “master”. Initially, this word was used in the sense of a royal title, and then began to indicate aristocratic origin. Currently, such an address is used to express respect and politeness, and in combination only with a personal, and not with a family name (Don Pedro); this also applies to the corresponding feminine form. The word senor comes from the Latin word senior (from the Latin senex "old man"). The addresses senor, senora can be combined with both the full name and only the surname, but are never used with only the personal name. The meaning of “sir” also includes the word caballero, which originally meant “horseman”, “knight”. When using forms of polite address, it matters whether the address is direct (Senor Varas) or indirect, since in the latter case The definite article is required - El Senor Varas.
If the surname follows the title, then the title is preceded by the definite article - El General Weyler.

Change social order Cuba influenced the forms of address of Cubans to each other: the words Senor, Don are no longer used. In Cuba, such forms of polite address as Sotrapego “comrade” are widely used, in relation to a woman - Sotrapega. These appeals stand in preposition to individual name or to the surname, or even before the title.

The Spanish language contains many Latin, Greek, and Arabic words. Consequently, this is reflected in Spanish names.

Thus, most male and female Spanish names were borrowed from Latin, Greek, Germanic, Arabic and Hebrew sources. The Roman Catholic Church also played an important role, because According to Catholic canons, the choice of name is made from the names of saints from the church calendar.

Since the 30s of the 20th century, the practice of naming names associated with symbolic images(feminine names: Concepcion “knowledge”, Libertad “freedom”), with the names of precious stones (Diamante “diamond”, Perlas “pearl”), flowers (Rosa “rose”, Flora “vegetation”), names of literary heroes.

Currently, the list of Spanish names includes primarily names of Romance languages: English (Milton, Gladis), French (Josette, Yvonne), Italian (Italo, Menotti), etc.

The most common male names are: Alfonso, Andres, Benito, Carlos, Diego, Enrique, Felipe, Fernando, Francisco, Geronimo, Joaquin, Jose, Juan, Manuel, Miguel, Pedro, Ramon, Vicente; and among female names, such names as Ana, Catalina, Elena, Enriqueta, Francisca, Ines, Isabel, Josefa, Juana, Manuela, Maria. But there are also rare names, such as Anilu, Chamito, Maruchi, Coquis, etc.

Spanish law states that every citizen has the right to officially own no more than two given names and surnames. At baptism, they can give the child several names, it all depends on the wishes of the parents. Typically, the eldest daughter is named after her mother, and the second daughter is given the name of her maternal grandmother. The main and main source of names in Spain are the Catholic Saints. There are very few unusual names among these people, since Spanish registration legislation very strictly controls this process. Those with unusual names have zero chance of obtaining citizenship in Spain. In the Spanish-language hit parade of names, the first places are almost annually headed by such classic names as Carmen, Camila, Maria...

Simple name Maria

The name Maria is considered a fairly common name in Spain. It is given not only to girls, but also to boys, as a makeweight: Jose Maria, for example. At the same time, most Spanish and Latin American Marias are listed in documents in a completely different way, for example, as Maria de los Mercedes, Maria de los Dolores, but in everyday life girls are called Dolores, Mercedes. Such names come from various titles of Our Lady, for example, Maria de los Mercedes means "Mary of Mercies" and Maria de los Dolores "Mary of Sorrows".

Short list names formed from the titles of the Mother of God:

Maria del Amparo - Mary the Patroness, Mary the Protector

Maria de la Anunciación - Mary of the Blessed

Maria de la Luz - Bright Maria

Maria de los Milagros - Mary the Miraculous

Maria de la Piedad - Mary the Honored

Maria del Socorro - Mary the Helper

Maria de la Cruz - Mary of the Cross

Maria del Consuelo - Mary the Comforter

Maria de la Salud - Maria of Health

Maria del Pilar - Pillar Maria

IN real life girls with such pious names are called Amparo, Luz, Anunciación, Milagros, Socorro, Piedad, Consuelo, Cruz, Salud and Pilar.

A short list of Spanish girl names:

Spanish names(male and female) today many of our compatriots can easily name. We owe this primarily to the spread of television and soap operas. Names popular in Spanish-speaking countries flooded into our lives with the advent of Mexican TV series. It is not clear what motivated people then - a passion for soap operas, or perhaps they were simply attracted by the sound of the name (beautiful Spanish names, male and female, are very popular), or our compatriots sought to claim originality...

This resulted in cases where girls began to be registered under names like Marisabel, and boys under names like Luis Alberto. Now this trend is already on the decline, as is the popularity of Mexican TV series. Nevertheless, Spanish names continue to attract increased interest today.

After reading this article, you will learn that traditions in Spanish-speaking countries in this area are somewhat different from Russian ones. Therefore they are quite interesting. We will present you the most popular Spanish names (male and female) and tell you about their features.

How many names are allowed to give to one child, according to Spanish law?

According to Spanish law, a person can have two names and two surnames recorded in his documents. At baptism, in fact, you can give as many names as you like. It depends on the wishes of the parents. The eldest son is usually given his first name after his father and his second name after his paternal grandfather. Eldest daughter, respectively, the names of the mother and maternal grandmother.

Main source of names

In Spain, the main source of names is the Catholic calendar. There are few unusual options for nicknames in this country, since registration legislation in Spain is quite strict. For example, the authorities recently refused to grant citizenship to a Colombian woman on the grounds that her name (Darling Velez) was too unusual and it was impossible to determine the gender of the bearer from it.

Unusual cases

There are no such restrictions in Latin America, where parents’ imagination can work unhindered. Sometimes it produces marvelous combinations, for example, Hitler Eufemio Mayor and Taj Mahal Sanchez. And the terrorist from Venezuela, Ilyich Ramirez Sanchez, also known by his nickname Carlos the Jackal, had two brothers. Their names were Lenin and Vladimir Ramirez Sanchez. This is not surprising - their father was a convinced communist. He decided to perpetuate the name of the idol in this way. Another Venezuelan was nicknamed Mao Brezner Pino Delgado. The word "Brezner" is an attempt to reproduce the name of another famous person, Brezhnev.

However, such names are still rare exceptions. The “Hit Parade” in the Spanish-speaking world has been headed by classic familiar nicknames for many years in a row: Diego, Juan, Daniel, Alejandro (Spanish male names), Carmen, Camila and Maria (female).

Name Maria

This name, for obvious reasons, is one of the most common in Spain. Moreover, it is given not only to girls, but also to boys as a makeweight. Fernando Maria, Jose Maria, etc. are quite popular Spanish male names. However, many Latin American and Spanish Marys are not just Marys. They may have the following in their documents: Maria de los Angeles, Maria de los Mercedes, Maria de los Dolores. Usually in everyday life they are called Dolores, Mercedes, Angeles, which sounds rather strange in literal translation to our ears: “sorrows” (precisely in the plural), “mercies”, “angels”. These names actually come from the Catholic titles for Our Lady. The three options we have indicated are far from full list. This also includes Marys, who in everyday life are simply called Ananciación, Amparo, Piedad, Milagros, Luz, Cruz, Socorro, Salud, Consuelo, Pilar.

In addition, children are often given names in honor of statues of the Mother of God or revered icons. For example, Montserrat Caballe, the famous opera singer(who is actually Catalan and not Spanish) is called Maria de Montserrat ( full name even longer) in honor of Mary of Montserrat - a miraculous statue revered in Catalonia, located on Mount Montserrat in one of the monasteries. A photo of this Spanish celebrity is presented below.

Chucho, Pancho and Conchita

The Spaniards are great masters of forming diminutive analogues from names. The easiest way is to add diminutive suffixes to the name: Juana - Juanita, Fidel - Fidelito. If it is too long, the main part is “torn off”, after which the same suffix is ​​used: Concepcion - Conchita, or, for example, Guadalupe - Lupilla or Lupita. Sometimes truncated forms of names are used: Teresa - Tere, Gabriel - Gabri or Gabi.

Data from the Institute for National Statistics

The Institute for National Statistics has created a special section that lists the 100 most common baby names in Spain by year, starting in 2002. The list includes both popular male and female names. In 2010, for example, Daniel was the leader of the male name, and the female name was Lucia.

If we take strictly passport records into account, then in Spain as of 01/01/2010 the most popular male name was Antonio. Then there are such Spanish male names as Jose, Manuel, Francisco, Juan, David, Jose Antonio, Jose Luis. For women, the most common is Maria Carmen. Then - Maria, Carmen, Anna Maria, Maria Dolores, Maria Pilar and others.

Misleading names

Many Spanish male first and last names are misleading. So, for example, the name Chucho, which is not entirely euphonious for us, has full form Jesus (or otherwise Jesus). Pancho is a diminutive of Francisco. Lalo - from Eduardo. You say it doesn't look like it? But even a Spaniard would never guess that Alexander, Shura and Sasha are the same name. Sometimes it is completely impossible to recognize by ear the connection between complete and diminutive name. For example, Francisco may be called Pancho, Curro or Paco at home.

Different countries have different characteristics.

Names that can be either feminine or masculine

There are names that can be both feminine and masculine. But not like our Sasha, Vali, Zhenya and even Olga and Oleg, who stand apart. If they name a girl Chelo, she could be either Angeles or Consuelo. But if you call a boy that, there will be the following two options: Celio and Marcelo.

Rosario

There is a very funny situation with the name Rosario. It is a word masculine from the position Spanish. However, representatives of both sexes are called by this name. It denotes a rosary for praying to the Queen of the Rosary, that is, the Virgin Mary. It turns out that in this case the boy is simply called Rosary, and the girl is called Maria del Rosario.

Spanish surnames

Let's talk a little about spanish surnames. Residents of Spain have two of them: maternal and paternal. The last name is placed first. Only she, without the maternal one, is used in official address. For example, Federico Garcia Lorca, a famous Spanish poet, was called Señor Garcia by his contemporaries. His photo is presented below.

Usually only the father's main surname is inherited. However, in some cases (mainly in noble and Basque families) the maternal surnames of the parents can also be passed on. There is a tradition in some regions of the country to add the name of the locality in which the bearer of a particular surname or his ancestors was born. However, it exists only as a local feature.

Spanish women do not change their last name when they get married. They just add the husband's last name.

Is originality encouraged?

So, we looked at what names the Spaniards give their children. At the same time, they very rarely deviate from the calendar, which contains Spanish male names. The list also includes female names that can be used to name a child. Only a small number of names are present in the Catholic calendar that could be considered unusual. The Spanish authorities are very disapproving of efforts towards originality. Until quite recently, the law prohibited the inclusion of diminutive forms of names in official documents. However, there is no such restriction now. The main thing is that the name clearly indicates the gender of the person to whom it refers, and at the same time sounds decent. This practice, however, has not yet become widespread.

Spanish male names sound slightly different in English or Russian. The same applies to female names. For example, Rosario sounds unusual to us as female name. I would like to say Rosaria. Now that you know about some of the peculiarities of Spanish names, you can avoid such mistakes.