How to determine the ending of surnames by nationality: features and interesting facts. Secrets of the origin of Georgian, Armenian and Azerbaijani surnames Who has a surname ending in yang

Each nation in our world has a specific kind of surnames that are typical of that nation and reflect the culture and heritage of ancient civilizations. Likewise, Armenian surnames have many unique characteristics and are worth discussing.

Armenian surnames end with the suffix -yan or -ian. In Armenian, it will be - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - For example, Petrosyan, Manukyan, Avakyan. Most of the surnames contain the meaning "" son ""; son of Petros, son of Manuk. Moreover, this function can also be found in English. Namely Johnson (son of John), Stevenson (son of Stefan), Stevenson, Richardson, Williamson, etc. But the ending -yan does not always refer to the Armenian nation. At the same time, the suffixes -yan and -ian can also be found in Chinese, Indian, English, or Persian surnames.

They were in 1915 and, therefore, in these conditions, the Armenians were spread all over the world. Indeed, there are many Armenians with different unique surnames in many countries. The Armenian communities of the Diaspora used surnames for this purpose. They looked for an Armenian and contacted them. However, many people living outside of Armenia have changed their surnames, they changed the ending or just dropped it. As an illustration, the famous singer, who is Armenian, living in France, changed his last name; he shortened it from Aznavourian to Aznavour. As a rule, Armenians living in Russia change the endings to "OV"; this includes Sergei Parajanov, Ayrapet.

In fact, Armenian surnames have many amazing and unique features. One of them is the fact that surnames have 5 meanings; this includes subsections, Trait, Occupation, Aristocracy, and Geography.

5 characteristics of Armenian surnames

Parent

Most of the Armenian names are taken from the first names of their ancestor; for example Hovhannisyan, "son of Hovhannes" Gevorkyan "son of Gevorg." Until the 19th century names were of religious origin, so now many surnames are religious too.

Trait

Many surnames come from some trait of an ancestor. These surnames include Chapooryan (eg smallpox), Topalian meaning "son of a cripple", Sirekanyan "son of a lover", Karagozyan (a man with black eyes), Titizyan, etc. In fact, Armenian surnames are too long. In this case, people shorten the ending of the surname, because for other countries it is very difficult to pronounce Armenian surnames, and sometimes even names too, for example, Haykanush, Tagui, Vazgansuh, Yughaber, Nrane.

An occupation

Some names refer to the profession of the ancestor. Those. Darbinyan is the son of a blacksmith, Nazaryan is the son of a coward, Najaryan is the son of a carpenter, Julhakyan is the son of a tailor, Kardashian is the son of a man who works stone, etc.

Aristocracy

Some Armenian surnames contain the meaning of rank, class of descendants; it includes Mirzoyan, Nakhararyan, Pashinyan, Beknazaryan, Rshtuni.

geography

At the same time, there are many surnames that relate to the place. You can find these genera surnames to this day.

When people migrated from Armenia, they missed out on their hometown, and for this reason, they tended to take the name of the place they lived.

Namely: Urfalian is a person who is from Urfa, Marashlian is a person who is from Marash, and Vanetzian is a person who is from Van, Shirakiy (a person from Shirak).

shortening

As noted above, nowadays many Armenians shorten or change their surnames. In particular, they are making changes to help non-Armenians pronounce their surname. Examples include:

Aznavuryan - Aznavour
Musaelyan - Musa
Vardanyan Vardan-
Samourkashian - Samur.

In other words, you cannot guess the nationality of these people and their recognizable as Armenians.

/ Ter

Der / Ter is a social rank in religion, and this indicates that one of the man's ancestors was "a married parish priest". It is important to understand that Der was used by the Western and Ter in the East by the Armenian people; Der Hovhannes I.G., Ter-Hakobyan, der-Makhdas Mkhitaryan, Ter Zargaryan and Ter Zakaria.

20 most common Armenian surnames

• Harutyunyan

• Mkrtchyan

• Hovhannisyan

• Hakobyan

• Avagyan

• Avetisyan

• Grigoryan

• Hayrapetyan

• Margaryan

• Vardanyan

• Stepanyan

• Sargsyan

• Zakaryan

• Minasyan

• Gasparyan

• Karapetyan

• Nersisyan

• Gevorkyan

• Poghosyan

• Petrosyan

30 Interesting Armenian Surnames

1. Kardashian is the man who works with stone
2. Zmbayan is the person who works with the iron tool
3. Ajemena is a foreigner who speaks another language
4. Donabedian - chapter from events / vacation
5. Sarafyan - banker
6. Kasabian - the butcher
7. Moushian - one who lived in the city of Mush
8. Bozoyan is the son of a married man who lives with an immoral life
9. Brnadatvatsian - Son of a man who was imprisoned
10. Sasuni - a special rank given to a noble man
11. Khanzadyan - the son of the khan
12. Ghulyan - Servant
13. Shageldyan- means the king is coming
14. Gyozquchakyan- a person with small eyes
15. Gyodakyan- short man
16. Gharibyan is a foreigner
17. Baghmanyan - gardener
18. Dallaqyan - witch doctor
19. No - the centurion
20. Chobanyan - Shepherd
21. Boyajyan - dyer
22. Dalalyan - Mediator
23. Gezalyana - beautiful
24. Alaverdyan - a child is given by God
25. Korkhmazyan - brave
26. Terlemezian is a man who is dying to get sweat soon
27. Aghlamazyan is a person who does not cry
28. Altunyan - gold
29. Elimasyan - diamond
30. Berberyan

Some of these surnames are funny, but on the other hand, they are unique surnames in the Armenian language. For this reason, they are close.

Many children use the latter names to refer to adults, and this is also practical in a formal environment. In SPECIFICALLY, people use surnames as their surnames. Armenian surnames usually consist of 2 to 5 syllables and contain different meanings. Armenia is usually called someone by their last name to indicate and distinguish a particular person from other people who have the same name.

The first thing to remember is that someone should not be proud of their last name, regardless of whether it is like its meaning or not. The surnames contain the ancient stories of our ancestors. These stories must never be forgotten and their history lost.

How to find out the nationality of a person if there is no way to ask him about it himself? There are several ways: you can listen to the speech and take a closer look at the appearance, trying to identify the characteristic features. Another simple but effective method is to analyze the last name. If it ends with "yang", "an", "enz", it is likely that the person you are interested in is Armenian.

Armenian names and surnames

Initially, the inhabitants of this land did not have full names because there was no need for them. Armenians lived in small groups and knew each other very well. If in the village there were several people whose names were the same, those around them found distinctive characteristics and added them to the generic names: according to a similar principle, surnames appeared among many peoples, including Russians.

The origin of Armenian surnames can be traced back to the Middle Ages, when active trade began, skill was separated from agriculture. In this era, people only lacked a nickname. To understand who they are talking about, people, talking about each other, added to the name the place where the person comes from, or his type of activity, or a special feature.

If the craft in the family was passed down from generation to generation, then the young man must also inherit the name of his predecessors. Often the name of the authoritative founder of the clan was taken as a basis, the suffix of belonging was added to it, for example, "uni", "yang", "enz", "onz", "unz" and others. So the generic names of Armenians constantly developed and gradually turned into modern, familiar to the ear, but each has its own meaning.

Why do Armenians have a surname in yang

For ordinary people, full names (in the format we are used to today) began to appear at the beginning of the 19th century. In the same era, one can find an answer to the question, why do Armenians have a surname in yang? This ending is very common for this nationality, although it is borrowed from the Iranian language. This suffix was used to indicate belonging to a genus, expressing a kinship. In "yan" end: Aramyan, Margaryan, Kartyashan, Mirzoyan, Baghdasyran, Arshadyan, Ormanyan and other derivatives from proper names.

Ter prefix in Armenian surnames

This ancient prefix was used until the early 19th century. It was added to the full name of noble Armenians, clergymen or nobles (and the former a priori belonged to a separate class and were chosen from noble princely families). The prefix ter is not found in the Armenian surnames of modern representatives, however, you can find it among historical characters: for example, Ter-Yasayants, Ter-Asaturovs, Ter-Ovakimyans, Ter-Guksayans.

Do Armenian surnames decline

As linguists note, a flurry of questions about whether the declension of Armenian surnames is possible comes to them in the summer or at the beginning of autumn, when children begin to enroll in schools, and students - to enter educational institutions. The exact answer to the question can be found on the Gramota.ru portal or in the proven reliable Rosenthal reference book.

The rule states that any word obeys the laws of grammar and must be declined if the final element lends itself to inflection. That is, you can understand whether the Armenian male surname is inclined by the letter of the ending. If it ends in a consonant, it declines, in a vowel it does not. Armenian female surnames (like any non-declining names) do not change under any circumstances. That is, it should be written like this: “Armen Muradyan”, but “Anna Muradyan”.

Armenian Jews - surnames

Jews have lived on the territory of Armenia for over 2000 years: once they made up a significant part of the urban population, they were engaged in trade and crafts. If we talk about Armenian Jews, their surnames are very peculiar, often derived from the names of biblical characters. For example, Petrosyan, Matevosyan, Tadevosyan, Ghukasyan, Ananyan ... The list of Armenian surnames of this variety can be continued indefinitely; in addition, it must be borne in mind that previously the names could sound differently, but change over time.

Armenian male surnames

For those who are not familiar with the language, alphabet and culture of the country, the names of the Armenians do not mean anything. However, almost all of them have a specific meaning. If you turn to onomastics, you can learn a lot of interesting things. For example, here are some Armenian male surnames that mean something specific:

• Asadyan "(the happiest");
• Kocharyan ("nomad");
• Arvandyan ("fast", "impetuous");
• Bashhiyan ("mentor", "teacher");
• Davudyan (“loving”);
• Gevorgyan ("farmer");
• Zavaryan ("sky").

The surname, in Armenian "azganun", means the name of the clan. In the Middle Ages, generic names practically did not exist. If there was a need for a name, then it happened like this: if several Arams or several Anahits lived in one settlement, then the inhabitants defined them in different ways: for example, Aram, the grandson of Garnik, or Aram, the grandson of Hayk. Sometimes, for nicknames, they used worldly nicknames that characterize a recognizable trait of a person, for example, the lame Hmayak or, Anahit, who has twelve children.

The need for the formation of surnames arose due to the development of society and the increase in population migration. People began to move from one locality to another more often, so it became necessary to give people “stable” nicknames, which eventually evolved into Armenian surnames. In those days, a tradition arose along with the name to indicate the place where the person came from, for example: Grigor Tatevatsi, Anania Shirakatsi, etc. Or, to name a person, they used his profession - Mkrtich Nakhash, Nikokhayos Tsakhkarar, David Kertokh, Grigor Magistros and etc.

Over time, already in the Middle Ages, surnames began to appear in aristocratic Armenian families - Mamikonyans, Artsruni, Amatuni, Rshtuni. When noble families were mentioned, the words "azg" ("clan") or "tun" ("house", "smoke") were added to the surnames. For example, "Rod Mamikonyans", "Rod Rshtuni", or "House of Artsruni", etc. Over time, family nicknames appeared among peasants and artisans. For example, Khatstukhyan (baker), Voskerchyan (jeweler), Kartashyan (bricklayer), etc.

In Armenian surnames, they also found reflections of a person's nickname, characterizing his appearance or character traits (Chahatyan is a fox, Karchikyan is a dwarf) and others. In most cases, Armenian surnames originated from the name of the founder of the clan, to which a prefix or suffix was added, expressing family ties or affiliation - "yang", "yants", "enz", "unz", "onts", "uni". The most common surnames ending in "yang" (Chakhalyan, Aramyan, Zhamkochyan), etc. "Yan" was formed from the form "yants" and also means that "enz" (Margaryan - Margaryants - Margarents, that is, belonging to the family of Margara). Armenian surnames with the “uni” suffix were inherent in the Nakharar clans (Bagratuni, Amatuni, Rshtuni) as a feature of belonging to a noble Armenian family. Armenian surnames with the suffixes "enz", "ounts", "onts" are common in Zangezur, for example, Adonts, Bakunts, Mamunts, Kalvarents and also means belonging to a noble family.

During the census and certification of the population, the surnames of some Armenians living in Russia were “Russified”, the ending “ts” was sometimes dropped. This happened for two reasons: either as a result of a scribal error, or as a result of a deliberate choice. The history of each Armenian surname is interesting and original. The surnames did not appear just like that. Each surname is based on an interesting history of its formation with its own principles, stages of evolution, each Armenian surname has a certain meaning, which is being solved by modern philological science - onomastics.

Where do the surnames Dzhugashvili and Tsereteli come from? What connects the Armenian surnames with the Turkish language? Why do Azerbaijanis cancel "Russian" endings in their surnames? We answer these and other questions.

Georgian surnames

Ethnographers attribute the origins of Georgian surnames to the 7th-8th centuries. They most often came from the area of ​​residence, a little less often - from professions, names, patronymics or family title (for example, Amilakhvari or Eristavi).
The structure of Georgian surnames is the same as that of most others: root + suffix. By the suffix of the surname, in many cases it is possible to understand from which region it comes and to which ethnic group its carrier belongs. For example, among Mingrelians, surnames often end in “-ua” (Todua, Gogua) or “-ya” (Gamsakhurdia, Beria), and among the Lazes - in “-shi” (Khalvashi, Tugushi).
Linguists distinguish 13 main types of suffixes. In many regions of Georgia, mostly in Imereti, Guria, Adjara, Lechkhumi, surnames with the suffix "-dze" are common, which translates as "son" (Gongadze, Shevardnadze, Dumbadze). As of 1997, 1,649,222 people had surnames with this ending.

The second most common is the suffix "-shvili". Its translation is very close to the previous suffix - "child", "child", but sometimes it is just "descendant". By 1997, there were 1,303,723 surnames with the suffix "-shvili". Such an ending is very common in Kakheti and Kartli (Peikrishvili, Kululashvili, Elerdashvili).

The suffix "-iani" is also popular in Georgian surnames. This is the "Svan" ending, which is more typical for the western regions of Georgia. Often such a suffix indicates the noble origin of the ancestor. For example, Dadeshkeliani, Dadiani and Gelovani are princely surnames.
The formation of Georgian surnames has various sources. Some of them come from the baptismal names - Nikoladze, Georgadze, Davitashvili. Some surnames are derived from Muslim names. For example, the surname Jalagoniya is derived from the Muslim male name Jalal ("greatness", "supremacy") and the Georgian noun "goni" ("mind", "reasoning"). There are surnames associated with animals - Lominadze ("lomi" - "lion"), Dzhugashvili ("dzug" - "flock", "flock").
Quite often, Georgian surnames are tied to some locality. Its first bearer often became at the origins of the princely family. This is exactly the surname Tsereteli, which comes from the name of the fortress and the village of the same name, located in the north of the Zemo region - "Tsereti".

Armenian surnames

Armenian surnames are a relatively new phenomenon. At least, they began to be registered officially only from the 19th century, when the population census began and the need for documents arose. However, in aristocratic families, surnames appeared in the Middle Ages - Mamikonyans, Artsruni, Amatuni, Rshtuni. Traditionally, the words "azg" ("clan") or "tun" ("house") were placed before noble surnames. It sounded like "Rod of Mamikoyans" or "House of Artsruni".
Before the appearance of surnames in the common people, in order to distinguish two people bearing the same name, they could say, for example, like this: "Hayk is the grandson of Arno" and "Hayk is the grandson of Garnik". Sometimes a person was given a characteristic nickname - "lame Hmayak", or "Anahit, having twelve children." The need for the formation of surnames arose with the development of society and the increase in population migration.
For the most part, Armenian surnames come from a family ancestor, to whose name an ending was added, indicating belonging. This ending underwent a noticeable evolution: in ancient Armenian it was the suffix "-eants", which was transformed into "-ents". In modern Armenian it took the phonetic form "-yants", which later lost "ts", turning into "-yan".
If earlier, to show belonging to any genus, they said, for example, Davidenz, now it sounds like Davidyan. However, the last "c" did not disappear in all surnames. So some Armenians who moved to Russia in the 19th century retained this ending. But in Armenia itself, in particular, in the Zangezur region, such surnames are still found - Adonts, Bakunts, Kalvarents.
The most common form of the formation of Armenian surnames from names, but often they come from the names of professions and crafts - Atstukhyan ("baker"), Voskerchyan ("jeweler"), Hekimyan ("doctor"), Kartashyan ("bricklayer") or are based on a characteristic human traits - Chakhatyan ("fox"), Karchikyan ("dwarf").
The surnames of the inhabitants of western Armenia have their own peculiarity. The entry of this part of the country into the Ottoman Empire affected the fact that the roots of many Armenian surnames are of Turkish origin. So, the surname Demirchyan comes from the Turkish word "demirchi" - "blacksmith". Ethnographer Levon Abrahamyan notes that the letter "h" in Armenian surnames usually indicates a craft, because in Turkish the names of crafts end in "chi", for example, "bardakchi" ("potter"). The Armenian surname derived from this word is Bardakchyan.
A curious feature of some Armenian surnames is the prefix "melik", indicating a noble origin (Melik-Hakobyan), as well as "ter", which was used by clergy and meant "father", "lord" (Ter-Petrosyan).

Azerbaijani surnames

The appearance of surnames among Azerbaijanis occurs at the beginning of the 20th century - mainly, these are the first years of the establishment of Soviet power in Azerbaijan. Back in the 19th century, the anthroponymic model of Azerbaijanis consisted of the main name and the name of the father. For men, the words "oglu" or "zadeh" were added to them (both mean "son"), for example, Ibrahim Sattar oglu, and for women - "kyzy" ("daughter") - for example, Reikhan Kurban kyzy.
However, such names were typical for representatives of the privileged classes, they were the first to receive surnames from the moment of the formation of Soviet Azerbaijan. For some time, ordinary people retained a two-part anthroponymic model - a discriminating nickname and a name attached to it: for example, Kechal Mamed ("bald Mamed"), Cholag Abdulla ("lame Abdullah") or Uzun Hasan ("long Hasan").
The first Azerbaijani surnames were often based on the name of the father or grandfather. Such a name was added without changes, but the word denoting a son or daughter, for example, Aliaga Selimzade, merged with it. Similar surnames are found now - Jafaroglu, Safaroglu, Ramazanzade. However, already in the first years of Soviet power, Azerbaijanis began to take Russified versions of surnames - Aliyev, Samedov, Vezirova, Mansurov.
Despite the fact that the overwhelming majority of Azerbaijani surnames are patronymics, sometimes there are surnames associated with the occupation, for example, the surname Vekilov comes from the word "vekil" ("lawyer", "defender").
Surnames that contain the word "khan" - Talishkhanov, Gubakhanov, Shekikhanov, imply belonging to a noble family. For example, the surname Bakikhanov originates from the “Baku khans”.
Azerbaijani surnames are widely circulated outside the country. According to the Civil Registry Agency of the Ministry of Justice of Georgia, in 2011 two Azerbaijani surnames were among the five most common surnames in Georgia - Mamedov (25,968 people) and Aliyev (17,605 people).
In March 2013, the Azerbaijani Ministry of Justice decided to return Azerbaijani surnames to their original sound. From now on, as before, they will end with "-zade", "-oglu" and "-kyzy". The Ministry explained this decision by the fact that the Turkic, Iranian and Arabic roots of Azerbaijani surnames are not combined with the Russian suffixes "-ov" and "-ev".

Why do Armenians end in surnames with "yang" ?? and got the best answer

Answer from Grigory Davidyan [guru]
That is why many Russian surnames end in "-in".
The Armenian ending "-yan" (in the original "-yan") indicates possessiveness. This is a common ending in Indo-European languages ​​(-ian, ien, -an, -en, -in, etc.), its analogue in Russian is the ending "-in" in possessive adjectives (eg mother's, father's, ets) ...
That is, the meaning is the same as in Russian surnames for "-in" - indicates belonging, connection.
Historically, the surnames of Armenians were formed by the name (profession, nickname, any personal quality, the name of the place of birth / residence, etc.) of the grandfather. That is, an ordinary Armenian surname is a derivative of a male name, less often of a profession, name of the area, personal qualities, etc. Of course, in practice, there are numerous exceptions and distortions.

Answer from Lilia Mustafina[guru]
Because the Armenians. Slovenian surnames with "ov", Belarusians have "ich" so as not to be confused.

Answer from From the Cat[guru]
armenian

Answer from Irina[guru]
Because -DZE and -SHVILI are already occupied by Georgians!

Answer from Hamburger[guru]
Armenians have blue bloods on yants.

Answer from "AnZoRRo"[guru]
oh Borya !! first learn to write in Russian! and then remember the Armenians !!

Answer from Asya Hovhannisyan[guru]
Here we are.)))
But there are also rare Armenian surnames that end with "UNI" - the royal surnames.
For example Artsruni.

Answer from Bil Bilalov[newbie]
Armenian

Answer from Karen Hayrapetyan[newbie]
Attention Correct answer!
The ending is Yang or Yantz.
In the Armenian language, there is the concept of the founder of the clan! He is counted from Father to grandson and above.
How?
In Armenian, it is customary to name one or another person from a given clan in honor of the Founder of the family.
Example Rod Hayrapetyan. (My last name) I belong to the family of Hayrapet. And in a literal translation, my surname is translated as follows. He is from the clan of Ayrapet. Thus, YAN is known as< он ИЗ рода>And the word Hayrapet itself in Armanskiy Hayrapet is translated as Father Glova. (about my kind is written in Wikipedia!) He is my direct ancestor!
here's a link
link

Answer from HARUT AMIRYAN[newbie]
So, -ants (-yants) is the ending of the genitive plural (compare "nrants" - them). In modern Armenian, the suffix -yan is used to form adjectives, for example, "Moskovyan" - Moscow, "Kievyan" - Kiev. So, the surname "Sargsyan" means belonging to the Sarkis family.