Proper Names in the Light of Theoretical Onomastics

Proper Names In the Light of Theoretical Onomastics137tomary for a person to have more than one Christian name which is whythe full set is so numerous. On average, each person has two Christiannames. The relatively high frequency of Christian names in Finland canalso be attributed to the fact that, up to the 19 th century, there were twoanthroponymic systems in Finnish. In eastern Finland, the binary namingsystem was used from about the 16 th century (a + B ) but in westernFinland, the village population was identified by the father’s names whichcould be combined with a byname identifying the place where they lived(Paikkala 1988, 27 ), a naming scheme A + (b). In ordinary communication,in Finnish personal naming, the Christian name plays an important role.From the aspect of typology, a relatively similar use of anthropoformantsin Finnish and Hungarian is characteristic. In Finnish, approximately 20 %of names are surnames with different anthropoformants.Statistical analysis of an extensive set of data will undoubtedly providemore precise information; however, it can be stated that, from the aspectof typology, in the comparison of linguistic formation, e. g. surnames inthe binary naming system, a ratio between non-derived surnames (anthroponymicbases) and derived surnames (names with onymic formant)is characteristic. Research into the use of language means in systems of(mainly) personal names has potential for the future.3. 5 Lexicography of proper namesHere we briefly outline the lexicographic procedures in a given onomasticonby which knowledge of a given onomastic object is objectivised: i. e.what information is added to an entry in order to “familiarise” a communicator(or a reader) with an onymic object, the structure of its lingualnaming or motivation and the history of its naming.With regard to the type and character of an onymic object, onomasticonsare classified thematically. Onomasticons can be further distinguished bythe aim and scope of the onymy processed. Appropriate lexicographicprocedures are applied in respective dictionaries in respect of a given typeof dictionary. In older onomasticons, the explanations focused mainly onelucidation of the etymology of a name. When the proprial componentsare considered as system phenomena and onymy as an internally-structuredwhole, then the onymy processed in dictionaries is seen in a differentlight. Also, specific methodological procedures are used in which theprinciples of general onomastic theory are realised.