Beautiful Tajik surnames. Is the Russian spelling of surnames and patronymics officially prohibited in Tajikistan? Tajik names from Shahnama

Tajik names, like the Persian ones, until the beginning of the 20th century were in many ways similar to the Arabic nominal formula. The bulk of Tajik names are Persian and Arab origin. There is also a fair share of names whose origins have Zoroastrian roots. Many people name their babies after geographical features: Daryo- river, Koch- mountain, Tabriz, Kabul- names of cities, etc. Also, in most cases, Tajiks name their children by the names of their grandfathers and ancestors, while, when congratulating the family on the addition, everyone adds the phrase “Let it grow in accordance with the name,” but this type of assigning a personal name becomes increasingly rare.

Surname

Tajiks, like all Persians, generally did not use surnames, but used many different additions to the personal name, indicating geography (place of birth, residence). In addition, various titles and nicknames were common:

• Darvish(Taj. Darvesh; Pers. درويش‎) - Sufi theological title.
• Janob(Taj. Ҷanob; Pers. جناب ‎) - master, a polite title like “excellency”.
• Hoxha(Taj. Ҳоҷi; Pers. حاجى‎) - made a pilgrimage to Mecca.
• Hon(Taj. Khon; Pers. خان‎) - a noble title.
• Mashhadi(Taj. Mashhadi; Pers. مشهدى‎) - one who has made a pilgrimage to Mashhad or was born in Mashhad.
• Mirzo(Taj. Mirzo; Pers. ميرزا‎) - educated.
• Mullo(Taj. Mullo; Pers. ملا‎) - Muslim theologian.
• Ustoz(Taj. Ustoz; Pers. استاد‎) - teacher, master.

The appearance of official surnames arose at the end of the reign of the Russian Empire and the establishment of Soviet power, including in the territory of Central Asia inhabited by the Tajik population, which obliged Tajiks, like other peoples, to have surnames. After arrival Soviet power Tajik surnames have been modified (or appropriated) by most people; they replaced the endings of surnames with “-ov” (Sharipov) and “-ev” (Muhammadiev). Also during this period, some people still had surnames whose endings were not of Slavic origin. For example: “-zoda (zade)” (Makhmudzoda), “-i” (Aini).

After Tajikistan and other Soviet republics gained independence, native Tajik and Persian surnames returned and became popular among the Tajik population of these countries by changing the endings. Currently, the most popular endings for surnames are: “-zoda (zade)” (Latifzoda), “-i” (Mansuri). It is also common to change surnames by shortening endings. (for example, the former Emomali Rakhmonov, the current Emomali Rakhmon). In addition to these endings, surnames whose endings end in “-ov” (Sharipov) and “-ev” (Muhammadiev) are also used, which in Soviet time were the main endings of surnames.

The most famous Tajik names

Tajik names are mainly borrowed Persian names due to the common language, culture and history of these peoples. In addition to Persian names, there are borrowings from Arabic and Turkic names. Also popular are the names from the times of the existence of Sogdiana, Bactria and other ancient historical states that are of Zoroastrian origin. Despite almost a century of Russian rule over the territory of present-day Tajikistan and Central Asia inhabited by the Tajik population, the Russian language and Russian names did not influence the emergence of new names of Russian or Slavic origin among the local population, including Tajik.

Tajik names from Shahnama

• Orash (name from Shahnama)
• Ozad (name from Shahnama)
• Afshin (name from Shahnama)
• Ashkon (name from Shahnama)
• Anushervon (name from Shahnama)
• Ardasher (name from Shahnama)
• Bakhrom (name from Shahnama)
• Bakhor (name from Shahnama)
• Bahman (name from Shahnama)
• Bejan (name from Shahnama)
• Behrouz (name from Shahnama)
• Buzurgmehr (name from Shahnama)
• Tur (name from Shahnama)
• Takhmina (name from Shahnama)
• Parviz (name from Shahnama)
• Pari (name from Shahnama)
• Manizha (name from Shahnama)
• Navzod (name from Shahnama)
• Salm (name from Shahnama)
• Som (name from Shahnama)
• Siyovush (name from Shahnama)
• Siyomak (name from Shahnama)
• Sitora (name from Shahnama)
• Zarina (name from Shahnama)
• Eraj (name from Shahnama)
• Faridun (name from Shahnama)
• Isfandiyor (name from Shahnama)
• Shirin (name from Shahnama)
• Kayumars (name from Shahnama)
• Kavus (name from Shahnama)
• Rustam (name from Shahnama)
• Khusraw (name from Shahnama)
• Khurshed (name from Shahnama)

Mahmud (Muslim name).

Literature

• Gafurov A. G. “Lion and Cypress (about eastern names)", Publishing house Nauka, M., 1971
• Nikonov V. A. “Central Asian materials for a dictionary of personal names”, Onomastics of Central Asia, Publishing House Nauka, M., 1978
• The system of personal names among the peoples of the world, Publishing house Nauka, M., 1986

History of Tajik surnames.

The Tajik people, who have inhabited the south-eastern part of Central Asia for a long time, were periodically influenced different cultures. Complex political, historical and economic processes left their mark on the Tajik name model. The conquest of territories inhabited by Tajiks by the Arabs and the adoption of Islam led to the fact that the Tajiks used the Arabic nominal formula until the twentieth century. They did without surnames, and added the father's name to the personal name. Later, various nicknames and titles, names of places of birth or residence, and pseudonyms appeared. History of Tajik surnames V modern understanding begins at the end of existence Russian Empire and continues with the establishment of Soviet power in Tajikistan. In the Soviet republic there should have been no divisions into classes, so titles and honorary nicknames were abolished. Instead, surnames appeared according to the Russian model, formed using the endings -ov, -ev. The ending -a was added to the surnames of women (Sharipov-Sharipova, Muhammadiev-Muhammadieva). Declension such Tajik surnames occurs according to the rules of declension of Russian surnames.

At the same time, hereditary names with traditional Tajik endings -i, -zoda began to spread among the intelligentsia. Meaning these Tajik surnames associated with the concepts of “son, offspring” (Kahkhori, Osimi, Rahimzoda, Tursunzoda). However, in official documents they were written down according to the generally accepted model (Kakhkhorov, Osimov, Rakhimov, Tursunov). Now in dictionary of Tajik surnames traditional hereditary naming exists on completely legal grounds.

Return to national origins.

Interpretation of Tajik surnames very different. For example, the surname Latifi means “gentle”, “graceful”, and Mansurov means “winner”, since the name Mansur is a tracing paper Latin name Victor (winner).

In 2007, Tajik President Emomali Rakhmonov initiated the introduction of national Tajik surnames, officially becoming Emomali Rakhmon. Many residents of Tajikistan supported his initiative. But many decided to leave the previous endings for their surnames, since the changes created difficulties when traveling to Russia. However, since April 2016, the law obliges all citizens of Tajik nationality to change the Russian endings of their surnames to Tajik -far, -i, -zoda, -yon. Now in list of Tajik surnames in alphabetical order you can find the surname not Karimov, but Karimzoda or Karimfar.

Top Tajik surnames shows which of them received given time widespread and especially popular in Tajikistan.

DUSHANBE, July 23 – Sputnik, Azamat Shokirov. Citizens of Tajikistan, having visited labor migration turn to specialized structures with applications for the return of the Russified endings of their surnames and patronymics.

This study was conducted by employees of the Committee on Terminology and Language under the Government of Tajikistan.

According to the results, people make the decision to partially change their surnames and patronymics upon returning from labor migration to Russia.

This trend is most pronounced in the northern regions of Tajikistan, whose residents for the most part prefer to earn a living in Russia.

Sputnik Tajikistan talked with some of them to find out about the reasons that prompted migrants to take this step.

Last name makes life easier or more difficult in Russia

“My last name is Yusupov, I work as a minibus driver in Yekaterinburg. When a Russian traffic cop stops me for a check, he simply looks at my license and allows me to drive on if I have not violated the traffic rules. It turns out that in Russia such a surname has existed for a long time. And “My replacement, named Makhmadzoda, has to talk to the traffic police for half a shift, present a patent, registration and other documents,” said a resident of the regional center of Aini, who came to Tajikistan on leave.

“Tajiks have a proverb: “If you find yourself in a city of one-eyed people, close one eye.” Since we are making a living in Russia, we must comply with their rules and traditions. If this requires changing our surname, well, so be it,” - the migrant laughs.

Many Tajik citizens who have worked in the Russian Federation have experienced difficulties due to the fact that their last and patronymic names correspond to the national style, which begins at the very first stages: from passport control upon arrival, to registration and a patent for work activity.

“If your surname is written in Soviet style, ending in “ov” or “ev,” then you go through all the procedures almost without delay. But our Tajik surnames, all these “zoda”, “ien” and the like, cause long delays, figuring out how to spell it. Officials begin to get irritated, make mistakes in filling out documents - in general, it’s a lot of trouble,” explains a woman named Zamira, a resident of Istaravshan.

She has already submitted an application to return to her previous surname and patronymic, collected everything Required documents, but have not yet received a new passport. However, according to her, the whole hitch is that she has not yet entered the required baksheesh into the registry office.

When changing surnames, a migrant worker will have to change not only his passport, but also all other documents: birth certificate, certificate, diploma, marriage certificate, birth certificate of children, and so on. Most often, people take such measures when they want to obtain Russian citizenship.

“It was not easy for my wife, I am a citizen of Russia and, accordingly, my last name ends in “ev,” but my wife is a citizen of Tajikistan. At one time, she changed her last name to a national one, and the children received my “Russian” last name. When applying for Russian citizenship, my wife was recommended change my last name from Karimzoda to Karimov, since the birth certificate and diploma do not match the passport,” says Alisher from Moscow.

According to him, in most cases, Tajiks are denied citizenship if they have national endings in their surnames.

“We don’t keep exact statistics, but I can say with confidence that every week we receive 30-40 applications to return to old surnames. And the number of newborns with surnames in the “Soviet” style has increased,” said one of the registry office employees on condition of anonymity Istaravshana.

Migration to Russia affects the choice of a child’s first and last name

The legislation of Tajikistan “recommends” naming babies strictly in the national style, an exception is made only for citizens not titular nation. However, if you have the appropriate “lamb in a piece of paper”, this limitation can be circumvented.

“My eldest son was born at the very beginning of the 90s, and I registered him under my last name, but with the ending “zod”. Then this was not at all common. They also issued a passport for her (last name - ed.) when he grew up Now my son is struggling with this surname in Russia, he recently called and said that he would come for a couple of weeks to change it,” said a teacher from the village of Matcha.

An important factor is the level of Russian language proficiency. For those who speak Russian confidently, good career prospects open up, especially in the regions of Russia.

“My wife and I went to Ryazan as part of the resettlement program for compatriots. Both Tajiks, with higher education, Ph.D. While looking for work, we noticed how the expression in Russians’ eyes changes as soon as we start talking. We got a job within a week, with a good salary, and there were no problems communicating with colleagues. The only thing that gets me is everyday rudeness: in transport and shops. But even here, it’s worth answering in Russian, and all complaints, as a rule, disappear,” says one of the former teachers of the capital’s university.

A similar trend towards changing surnames was observed four years ago in neighboring Kyrgyzstan, whose residents also make up a significant share of labor migration to Russia. There, this method was used to bypass the blacklist of persons deported from the Russian Federation for any offenses.

“This was possible before, but Russian migration services closed this loophole a long time ago. Nowadays, labor migrants in the Russian Federation are fingerprinted, so no replacement of a passport with new data will allow them to pass control,” explains Manzura Ibragimova, an employee of the international organization for labor migration.

A campaign to de-Russify surnames and transfer them to a national manner arose immediately after the collapse of Soviet Union. With varying degrees of activity, it swept across the Baltic republics, Central Asia, and some regions of Russia itself.

In Tajikistan, the initiator of the process was the head of state, who changed his surname Rakhmonov to Rakhmon and called for people to follow his example. Most government officials and many ordinary citizens did just that. But now those of them who are forced to go to Russia to work have decided, following the proverb, to “close one eye.”

The black list included not only Russian names and surnames, but also the names of things, goods, animals and birds.

The Tajik authorities have officially banned the registration of patronymics and surnames in the Russian manner. The document was signed in March by the country's President Emomali Rahmon. This was reported by the Izvestia publication, with reference to the deputy head of the civil registration department under the Ministry of Justice, Jaloliddin Rakhimov.

Russian endings “ov”, “ova”, “ovich”, “ovna” will replace national endings, for example, such as “zod”, “zoda”, “pur”, “ien”, “far”, etc. reports the website of the Tajik radio “Ozodi”, in an interview with which Rakhimov commented on the innovation.

From now on, the assignment of names and their correct spelling in Tajikistan will be strictly controlled for compliance with culture and national traditions, said Rakhimov. The list of acceptable names is contained in the government-approved Register of Tajik National Names. They, like patronymics and surnames, according to the official, must be clearly justified in the Republic of Tajikistan by “historical values ​​and Tajik national culture.”

Rakhimov complained that there are still residents of Tajikistan who, contrary to state regulations, want to keep the endings “ov”, “ova”, “ovich”, “ovna” in the surnames and patronymics of their children. You have to talk to them and explain the highest state task - the Tajikization of surnames. “We must have national and patriotic feelings,” Rakhimov explained the meaning of the law. This information somewhat contradicts reports that the ban allegedly applies exclusively to persons of Tajik nationality, and national minorities, which include Russians living in Tajikistan, will be able to name their children in their traditions.

From now on, officials directly explain, it is prohibited to call a child by a name that is alien to the Tajik national culture. But that's not all. The list of prohibitions includes the names of animals and birds, as well as the names of things and goods. In addition, the same list includes offensive names and phrases that humiliate the honor and dignity of a person, as well as dividing people into castes. It's about about the so-called pseudonyms: mullo, khalifa, tura, hoja, huja, sheikh, wali, okhun, amir, sufi, etc.

Let us recall that in 2007, the President of Tajikistan changed his name from Emomali Sharifovich Rakhmonov to Emomali Rakhmon, after which many officials followed his example.

Already in 2009, Tajik deputies adopted a new law “On the State Language”. It obliges all citizens of the republic to know Tajik and completely excludes the provision on “language interethnic communication”, which the Russian admitted. The initiative of the bill was made by the President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon himself.

Similar trends are taking place in other countries of the former USSR.

In 2009, Lithuanian authorities announced that they were preparing legal grounds to allow residents of the country to change their surnames, abandoning Russian suffixes and thus making them “more Lithuanian.”

In 2013, a scandal occurred in Latvia when the court of the port city of Liepaja accepted a statement from local resident Sergei Antonov, who complained about the local registry office, which denied him the right to register a newborn child under a Russian name.

Sergei Antonov wanted to name his baby Miron, but he was refused, citing local law. According to him, everything male names must have the Latvian ending “s”, because these are the rules state language. If he had agreed, his child's name, according to documents, would have been Mirons. Given name would be consonant with the Latvian word mironis, meaning “dead”. But Sergei Antonov did not agree.

Estonia has a law on names, adopted by parliament back in 2005. It limits the possibility of getting too common surnames. There are many popular Russian surnames in it - Ivanov, Petrov, Sidorov, Orlov, Golubev, etc.

Also recently, a petition appeared on the official website of Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko with a proposal to change the Russian surnames of the country’s citizens to Ukrainian ones.

“In order to further decommunize our state, I propose to remake Russian surnames and names in the Ukrainian way. Ivanov - Ivanenko, Kuznetsov - Kuzmenko, etc.,” wrote the author of the appeal.

WHY DID THE PRESIDENT OF TAJIKISTAN CHANGE HIS LAST NAME BY REMOVING THE ENDING “OV”?

The explanation from President Emomali Rahmon himself was laconic: “We need to return to our cultural roots.” He also added that he would like to be called Emomali Rahmon, by name late father, Asia-Plus reports. The change in the name of the president in Tajikistan was received ambiguously. Someone received this news with a bang. They were especially pleased that this initiative came from the very top. And we take this very seriously. There are those who consider this discussion inappropriate. Like, there is economic stagnation in the country, and then you remembered the names.

Of course, Tajikistan is among the “poorest countries in the world.” But he has a natural right to rebirth national values. Like the right of a poor man who does not have a penny in his pocket to honor and dignity. I remember De Gaulle, who was also reproached for being too proud after losing a state occupied by the Nazis. The general didn’t think long: “It’s easy to be proud when you have strength and wealth. And try to be him when this is not the case!”

The initiative to return to traditional anthroponymy from the “first persons” has been expected for a long time. Back in Soviet times, any Tajik, Uzbek, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, or Azerbaijani could ask the question: why were Armenians and Georgians allowed to preserve anthroponymy and even writing?

Why was an exception made for Muslim republics?

At that time, purely Tajik surnames existed semi-legally among us. Many poets, journalists, scientists became famous as Tursunzoda, Osimi, Bukhorizoda, Latifi, etc. With surnames in the spirit of Lermontov, Goncharov, Sholokhov, it is difficult to join the ranks of the successors of Rudaki, Rumi and Beruni.

However, for the mentioned intellectuals these were just pseudonyms. Their documents could not do without -ov and -ev.

At the popular everyday level, pre-Soviet traditions have also been preserved. For example, Mirali Makhmadaliev was known as Mirali Makhmadali, Karim Ismoilov as Karim Ismoil, etc.

This begs the question, why did this initiative take so long to mature? After all, more than one year has passed since the adoption of the Language Law in 1989 and since the declaration of independence in 1991. Why did top officials, including the current president, refrain from doing this until March 20, 2007?

Several conditions contributed to this. Firstly, they avoided criticizing their own, still largely Soviet, bureaucracy, which in the first years of sovereignty presented everything national as purely “Islamist.” Secondly, the leadership did not want to offend Russia - after all, the endings are Russian. And to refuse them was understood as “disrespect” for the Russian partner. After all, influence is not only about military bases, but also about culture.

And even now they say that in Russia, and in Europe too, Tajik surnames are accepted without enthusiasm. Especially those who have the authority to verify documents. They associate owners of such surnames with Iranians, Afghans, or even potential terrorists.

The transition to Tajik anthroponymy is already underway. For several years now, newborns in Tajikistan have been called without -s and -s. I would like to hope that when changing the name, those wishing to do so will not encounter bureaucratic obstacles, and this will not become a feeding trough for someone.

And further. Will members of the government and parliament support the president's initiative? What will the Tajik government and parliament look like after this? After all, we are all sons of our fathers.

Also interesting is the reaction of Emomali Rahmon’s colleagues - Nazarbayev, Bakiyev, Karimov, Aliyev, etc. Will they support the initiative of the Tajik leader? Or they will continue the traditions that developed during the times of Stalin, Khrushchev, Brezhnev and Andropov. Will wait.

SURVEY

Are you going to change your last name? AP asked this question:

Shodi SHABDOLOV, deputy of the Majlisi Namoyandagon:

The President has the right to such initiatives. But it must be implemented on a voluntary basis. We must not forget that even during the times of the Union we had such names as Mirzo Tursunzoda, Rahim Jalil, Muhammad Osimi, etc. Then everyone had the opportunity to choose. The current legislation of democratic Tajikistan also guarantees us such rights. I don't mind others renaming it, but I personally won't do it. I was given this last name, and I am not going to change it.

It is imperative to take into account all aspects of this issue. For example, some of our labor migrants work in their specialty in Russia and other countries. They have documents from universities. Let’s say we change our passports, but it’s impossible to replace all the documents! So they will become fake? How correct is this?

Irina KARIMOVA, Deputy Minister of Education of the Republic of Tatarstan:

A year ago, when our grandson was born under the name Romish, I suggested calling him Romishi Kholik, but his father did not agree. What could I do? But, if necessary, I myself am ready to become Irina Karim. Since my father is Tajik, and I respect Tajik customs.

Muso Dinorshoev, academician, director of the Institute of Philosophy of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Tajikistan:

I support our president's initiative. Of course, our surnames should be traditional. But this is a very difficult process. We need to be very careful not to go from one extreme to the other.

There is another very important point. Surnames and names must be given correctly, with knowledge of the matter. For example, in Soviet times the name Abdujabbor (servant of God) became Jabbor, which is incorrect. After all, Jabbor is one of the names of God.

To be honest, until now I haven’t thought about changing my last name, but now I’ll probably do it.

Savfat BURKHONOV, journalist:

Those who wanted to get rid of the “-s” and “-evs” have long returned to traditional surnames. Personally, I am known as “S. Burkhonov." And I think that I have the right to my own choice. Although, at one time I named my children without “-ova” and without “-ich”. But I don’t think that these kinds of actions indicate an increase in the degree of self-awareness of society. I’m also not sure that this initiative will receive mass support in society. The people have their own problems.

Prepared by Daler GUFRONOV

Information Agency PRESS-UZ.INFO

Our comment:

TAJIK SURNAMS.

Let's be honest, Tajik problems with self-determination in onomastic issues are of little concern to Russians. Be it a peasant, a worker, an employee or an entrepreneur of any scale. Perhaps the problem of how Tajik surnames will be written from now on is more relevant to politicians. But, in general, our politicians are worried about too many things these days. Sometimes you don't even need to worry about things.

Perhaps only two points can be considered annoying in the published article: the mention of “national values” and the traditional set - “Stalin, Khrushchev, Brezhnev, Andropov”, which unexpectedly arose against the backdrop of a comparison of Emomali Rakhmonov with Charles de Gaulle and (apparently the analogy should be continued) politics of the Russian Empire with the fascist regime.

Let's make a reservation, however, that there was no reason to start Charles de Gaulle's surname with a capital letter "D". These are precisely the “national traditions” of the French, for whom this family element is just an excuse and does not deserve to be written with capital letters. Those who know their traditions also respect foreign customs.

And this, by the way, is already a good reason to find out real story origin of his surname.

And most Tajiks did not have classical surnames, that is, hereditary names passed on over several generations, even at the dawn of Soviet times (although a considerable part of Tajik families received official surnames during the existence of the Russian Empire). In each generation, the clarification of who his father was simply added to the person’s name. Or a nickname, which, by the way, are many of the names of famous Tajiks under which they went down in history. Exactly the same tradition previously existed among the Slavs, Germans, Arabs, Romance peoples and others.
BUT THESE WERE NOT SURNAMES.

And what's surprising here? In almost the entire Asian world at that time, the bulk of the population did not yet have surnames. And on a global scale the surname has not yet become mandatory attribute each person. In Iceland, for example, there are still no surnames. Therefore, strictly speaking, when full return According to national traditions in Tajikistan, surnames should simply be abolished. But is it worth doing?

The significance of a surname is not how ancient it is. For the vast majority of peoples in the world, surnames are a very late phenomenon. The Germans and Danes also received them not so long ago (the process of forming their surnames did not end in the 18th century). But Georgians and Armenians, for the most part, by the time laws were adopted in the Russian Empire on the obligatory presence of a surname for every citizen, already had OFFICIAL surnames, which by this time had finally taken shape as a legal concept. It is for this reason that their surnames were recognized by the laws of the Russian Empire. And not because, as the respected author wrote, “an exception was made for Muslim republics.” Moreover, not all Georgians and Armenians had surnames. It is for this reason that today there are Georgians with the names Plotnikovs and Sapozhnikovs, and Armenians with the names Avanesovs and Ivanovs. And, by the way, such surnames are especially common among Armenians who migrated in the 19th - early 20th centuries from Ottoman Empire. And again, only because there surnames as a legal concept have not yet been formed. Moreover, not only among the Turks, but also among Ottoman subjects of other nationalities, for example, Armenians and Greeks. This gap was filled in their new homeland according to the rules that existed in it at that very period.

Any surname - Tajik or English, Tatar or Russian, Italian or Yakut - is a most interesting monument history and culture of one family and an entire people, a village, an aul, a kishlak and an entire state. She can also tell about ancient traditions, and about naming customs that were popular during the period when the surname arose. About the similarity of these customs among neighboring peoples and about the differences that existed among each ethnographic group of an individual people.

For this reason, every surname deserves to have its origin and history known to its descendants. Because it was worn by the father and grandfather, who may have already entered the history of the Tajik or other people under this surname. And, of course, it is important that this story is not made up to suit the political moment, but is told by real experts. At the Information and Research Center “History of the Surname,” we adhere to this principle regardless of what kind of surname we are talking about - Tajik, Russian, Azerbaijani, Ukrainian, Latvian or Korean. This is easy to verify.

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