Two Surnames

Surnames consisting of two or more parts are used worldwide, and their nature and origin generally arise from similar reasons; however, Russian and other Slavic naming conventions differ from those of other cultures, and so it is worthwhile to be aware of their specific features. Note also, that the most common form of multi-component surname found in Russia and Eastern Europe is a double surname, usually connected by a hyphen. There are also some rare cases of triple surnames used in the past.

This chapter provides some historical information on the origins of compound surnames in medieval Russia, Belarus and Ukraine and gives examples of the modern onomastic practice of adding a second surname, along with cataloging guidance.

1. History of compound surnames

The first double surnames in Russia and Eastern Europe were known and used in medieval times. Having a double surname was a privilege and an indication of a higher social class. The practice of adding a second surname arose because of the need to distinguish between members of the same family. This need became apparent with the proliferation of noblemen with the same name and problems with inheritance rights and the assignment of state service based on the hierarchical place of noble families in society.

Most medieval Russian and East European double names were formed from geographic place names and the names of lands and estates owned by Russian noblemen. For example, to distinguish between several branches of the Seleznev (Селезнев) family, a second surname based on the Eletsk region, with which the members of this part of the family were associated, was added, thus the name “Seleznev-Elet︠s︡kiĭ” (Селезнев-Елецкий). Sometimes names of geographic origin were added as an honorific title in recognition of a person’s contributions to the military or diplomatic history of the region, for example: Dibich-Zabalkanskiĭ, Potemkin-Tavricheskiĭ, Suvorov-Rymnikskiĭ (Дибич-Забалканский, Потемкин-Таврический, Суворов-Рымникский), etc.

Often double names were the result of genealogical mergers, transfers of genealogical titles, or splits, aiming either to preserve the name of a dying aristocratic family, or to create a new genealogical identity in the case of a growing number of namesakes within the same family. For example, to distinguish between several branches of the Rostov family (Ростовские) descending from the family of princes from the Rostov region, the nicknames of the families’ progenitors -- Буйнос, Касатка and Лобан -- were added to the existing name “Ростовский”, creating three new but related families of Буйносовы-Ростовские, Касаткины-Ростовские and Лобановы-Ростовские.

In some very rare cases triple surnames came to existence. Sometimes a third surname was added as an honorary title, or as a result of a genealogical merger of three families. The most famous example for the first case is probably Mikhail Golenishchev-Kutuzov-Smolenskiĭ (Михаил Голенищев-Кутузов-Смоленский). The third name “Smolenskiĭ”, sometimes treated as a title of nobility, was added to his surname “Golenishchev-Kutuzov” to commemorate Kutuzov’s victorious campaign near the town of Smolensk during the war with Napoleonic France in 1812. However, the famous Russian field marshal is better known as simply Mikhail Kutuzov.

One of the rare examples of the triple genealogical merger was the name of the Russian prince Mikhail Valentinovich Shakhovskoĭ-Glebov-Streshnev (Князь Михаил Валентинович Шаховской-Глебов-Стрешнев), who inherited the double name of his wife’s family (because of the absence of male heirs), Glebov-Streshnev, in addition to his surname “Shakhovskoĭ”.

In Eastern European multilingual territories, personal names sometimes would alternate depending on the person’s current country of residence. For example, if a person of Ukrainian descent with the name Potapchuk (Потапчук) lived in Poland, he could start using a Polonized form of name - Potapskiĭ (Потапский) - and so create a new name: Potapchuk-Potapskiĭ (Потапчук-Потапский).

2. Modern compound surnames

Modern times brought some changes to the nature of double surnames. The number of double names in Russia, for example, was significantly reduced after the 1917 Revolution due to the expulsion of the noble class and stricter naming conventions. In modern Russia some regional governments went as far as denying double surnames when changing or issuing new passports for their residents. Nonetheless, double surnames are still a popular onomastic phenomenon in Russia and other Eastern European countries.

Some examples of modern double surnames are:

• • a woman wants to keep her maiden name in addition to a spouse’s name after the marriage, for example: Čorbić-Vukićević, Dragana, 1967-, a Serbian literary critic, who chose to retain her maiden name - Čorbić, in addition to her husband’s name - Vukićević.

  • a man adds his mother’s name to his surname, for example: Krokha-Derkach, Dmitriĭ, 1939-, a Ukrainian farmer and writer, who added his mother’s maiden name “Derkach” to his paternal surname “Krokha”.

  • the second surname is a pseudonym, or a stage name: for example, Novikov-Priboĭ, A. S. (Alekseĭ Silych), 1877-1944, a Russian writer, who added a pseudonym “Priboĭ” (which means “Surf”) to his real name “Novikov” to emphasize a predominant naval theme in his works.

3. Cataloging guidelines

RDA 9.2.2.10 Compound Surnames instructs catalogers to treat a name as a compound surname if it consists of two or more proper names separated by either a space or a hyphen, or has the appearance of compound surnames. Regardless of the nature of the name, the choice of preferred name should depend on established usage.

Record as the first element the part of the compound surname by which the person prefers to be listed. Record the second part of the name as a variant name, using that as the first element.

Examples (in MARC format):

100 1 Krokha-Derkach, D. ǂq (Dmitriĭ), ǂd 1939- [name based on usage, both

components included]

400 1 Krokha-Derkach, Dmitriĭ, ǂd 1939-

400 1 Derkach, D. Krokha- , ǂd 1939- [variant name]

670 Tri prezidentskie polosy, 2002-: ǂb title page (Д. Кроха-Деркач = D. Krokha-Derkach)

cover (Дмитрий Кроха-Деркач = Dmitriĭ Krokha-Derkach) page 3 (Дмитрий

Андреевич Кроха (Деркач) = Dmitriĭ Andreevich Krokha (Derkach [mother's

maiden name]), born 1939, Chernihivsʹka oblastʹ (Ukraine))

In cases where a person uses surnames intermittently, a cataloger must make every effort to determine the preferred form of the name.

Please note that some names that have the appearance of a compound surname are NOT, in fact, compound names. For example, a second name appears on a resource together with the real name, but enclosed in parentheses. In such a case it is necessary to determine the nature of the 2nd name and established usage.

For example: