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Sociological, cultural and psychological aspects of the names given to children by Polish Americans

Authors

Nella Kulikowska Uniwersytet Warszawski

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18778/0208-6077.58.1.06

Keywords:

anthroponymy, onomastics, names, sociolinguistic analysis, Polish Americans

Abstract

The article attempts to present the sociological, cultural and psychological aspects of the names currently given to children by the American-Polish community. For this purpose, a survey was conducted with 285 participants. The research material includes 923 uses of names, which were divided in terms of the country of origin of the parents on the one hand, and classified into the group of Polish, international or foreign names on the other. Modern Polish Americans primarily choose native names or those associated with the Polish naming system. The most popular proper names in the study group were Adam and Julia. Names emphasizing a family’s ethnic, cultural or religious background were more likely to be given as second names. This is due to fears of displeasing the child with a name that is atypical for Americans and difficult to pronounce, the desire for assimilation and the parents’ personal experiences. Most children expressed satisfaction with having a Polish name, while negative feelings were caused by the American pronunciation distorting the original sound and form, and the translation of names into English. A sort of compromise to facilitate communication with peers is the use of a shortened form of the name or a nickname.

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Published

2024-05-29

Versions

2024-07-10 (2)
2024-05-29 (1)

How to Cite

Kulikowska, N. (2024). Sociological, cultural and psychological aspects of the names given to children by Polish Americans. Acta Universitatis Lodziensis. Folia Linguistica, 58(1), 89–103. https://doi.org/10.18778/0208-6077.58.1.06