Finnic anthroponymy in the Middle Ages : Perspectives on pre-Christian and early Christian personal names

• Main Author: Raunamaa, Jaakko
• Other Authors: University of Helsinki, Faculty of Arts, Doctoral Programme in Language Studies, Helsingin yliopisto, humanistinen tiedekunta, Kielentutkimuksen tohtoriohjelma, Helsingfors universitet, humanistiska fakulteten, Doktorandprogrammet i språkforskning, Leino, Unni, Ainiala, Terhi, Haggrén, Georg, Pitkänen, Ritva Liisa
• Format: Doctoral or Postdoctoral Thesis
• Language: English
• Published: Helsingin yliopisto 2021
• Subjects: nimistöntutkimus; Northwest Russia
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10138/335626

This dissertation investigates personal names attested among Baltic-Finns during the Middle Ages (c. 1200¬−1550 AD). The focus is on pre-Christian anthroponymy, but foreign names, mainly Christian ones, are addressed as well. The names studied are analysed from perspectives of morphology and semantics. The analysis also includes name origins, expansion, decline and distribution in the northern Baltic Sea region. Multidisciplinary approach together with multiple methods and sources are used not only to study the features of Finnic names, but also to shed light on the past of Finnic languages and tribes. Much of the sources used in the study derive from editions of medieval documents that vary in their purpose from taxation censuses to personal letters. They cover areas of contemporary Estonia, Finland and Northwest Russia and are written in multiple languages. The study is conducted mainly by searching personal names with Finnic elements in the source materials and placing them on a map. Furthermore, modern digital methods are used as tools for gathering and analysing the data. The present study demonstrates that names used among Finnic populace during the Middle Ages consisted of various kinds of name elements and forms. Although regional and temporal differences are significant, the general trend in the Finnic naming conventions is obvious: pre-Christian names being superseded by the Christian ones. This applies especially to pre-Christian female names, which are almost completely absent from the sources. Structurally, medieval Finnic personal names may have been composed in many ways. They could consist of one name lexeme (e.g. Lempi), one lexeme together with personal name suffix (Lempoi) or of two name lexemes (Kaukolempi). The most common lexical elements attested within pre-Christian Finnic personal names are Iha, Lempi, Toivo and Vilja. Finnic personal name suffixes attested in pre-Christian names like -oi, -kkV and -nen continued to be used with Christian names as well. Many of the pre-Christian Finnic ...