Check the declension of masculine surnames. Declension of male surnames. Exception to the rule
Ivanov, Ozhegov, Krysin, Lopatin, Bunin, Fonvizin, Green, Tseitlin, Darwin. Male surnames -ov, -in(Russian and borrowed) are inclined: Ozhegov’s dictionary, the story belongs to Bunin, I’m waiting for Ivanov, talking with Krysin about Green.
Borrowed surnames -ov, -in which belong foreigners, in the form of the instrumental case they have an ending -ohm(as nouns of the second school declension, for example table, table): the theory was proposed by Darwin, the film was directed by Chaplin, the book was written by Cronin.(Interestingly, the pseudonym is also inclined Green, owned by a Russian writer: the book has been written Green.) Homonymous Russian surnames have the ending - th in the instrumental case: with Chaplin(from the dialect word Chaplya"heron"), with Kronin(from crown).
Shukshina, Ilyina, Petrova, Fedorova, Graudina. Women's surnames -ina, -ova bow down. Surnames like Currant, Pearl Declined in two ways, depending on the declination of the male surname (Irina Zhemchuzhina and Irina Zhemchuzhina, Zoya Smorodina and Zoya Smorodina). If the man's surname is Zhemchuzhin, then correct: arrival of Irina Zhemchuzhina. If the man's surname is Pearl, then correct: arrival of Irina Zhemchuzhina(surname is declined as a common noun pearl).
Okudzhava, Globa, Shcherba, Vayda -a, -i unstressed, usually inflected (songs by Bulat Okudzhava, forecasts by Pavel Globa, films by Andrzej Wajda).
Gamsakhurdia, Beria, Danelia, Pihoya. Surnames starting with - ia do not bow: books by Konstantin Gamsakhurdia. In contrast, Georgian surnames start with - and I inflected: Beria's crimes, Danelia's films. Surnames starting with - oh inflected according to the noun pattern needles: about Rudolf Pihoy.
Mitta, Frying pan, Kvasha. Male and female surnames of Slavic origin in -A percussion bow (about Alexander Mitte, with Grigory Skovoroda, with Igor Kvasha).
Dumas, Zola, Gavalda. Male and female surnames of French origin in -a, -i drums don't bow (books by Alexandre Dumas, Emile Zola, Anna Gavalda).
Korolenko, Dovzhenko, Shevchenko, Lukashenko, Petrenko. Male and female surnames -ko don't bow down.
Falcone, Gastello, Zhivago, Durnovo, Lando, Dante, Koni. Male and female surnames -o, -e, -i, -u, -yu don't bow down.
Blok, Gaft, Brockhaus, Hasek, Mickiewicz, Stirlitz, Dahl, Rosenthal, Gudziy, Macbeth. Male surnames ending in a consonant, whether soft or hard, are declined (Brockhaus encyclopedia, poetry by Mickiewicz, dictionary written by Dahl). Female surnames ending in a consonant are not declined (to Lyubov Dmitrievna Blok, memoirs of Nadezhda Mandelstam).
Black, Red, Twisted. Male and female surnames -y, -them don't bow down.
Kalakutskaya, Kalakutsky, White, White, Tolstaya, Tolstoy. Male and female surnames, which are adjectives in form, are declined according to the adjective model:
I. p.: Andrey Bely, Tatyana Tolstaya
R. p.: Andrey Bely, Tatyana Tolstoy
D. p.: Andrey Bely, Tatyana Tolstoy
V. p.: Andrey Bely, Tatyana Tolstoy
T.p.: with Andrei Bely, with Tatyana Tolstaya
P. p.: about Andrei Bely, about Tatyana Tolstoy
See more...
The article gives recommendations on the declension of Russian and borrowed surnames, provides the basic rules and exceptions to them. The vast majority of standard Russian surnames with the suffixes –ov/-ev, -in, do not cause problems when used in indirect cases, since they have their own declension paradigm, in which there can be endings of both an adjective and a noun. Compare in the masculine gender: I.p. Pushkin Serov red wolf R.p. Pushkin Serov red wolf D.p. Pushkin Serov's red wolf V.p. Pushkin Serov red wolf etc. Pushkin Gray wolf red P.p. (o) Pushkin (o) Serov (o) wolf (o) red Compare in the feminine gender: I.p. Pushkin Serov's red crow R.p. Pushkina's gray crow red D.p. Pushkin's gray crow red V.p. Pushkin Serov's red crow Etc. Pushkina Serova red crow P.p. (o) Pushkina (o) Serova (o) crow (o) red Note. As can be seen from the declension paradigm, Russian surnames in the masculine gender in the instrumental case have the ending -ym, like an adjective. They should not be confused with foreign surnames ending in -in, which have the ending -om in the instrumental case, like a noun. Compare: with Alexander Pushkin, but with Charles Darwin. It should be taken into account that Russian and borrowed surnames may have the same sound and spelling, for example: Pyotr Chaplin and Charlie Chaplin, which should be taken into account when used in the instrumental case: with Pyotr Chaplin, but with Charlie Chaplin. Next, rules are formulated and recommendations are given for the use of non-standard Russian and borrowed surnames. SURNAME WITH A CONSONANT The declension of foreign and Slavic surnames ending with a consonant (in writing they end with a consonant, soft sign or й) depends on the gender of the person named. If the surname refers to a man, then it is declined as a masculine second declension noun. Women's surnames of this type are not declined. This rule easily fits into the scheme: Foreign and Slavic surnames with a consonant sound (in writing they end in a consonant, ь or й) For example: I.p. Anna Shmidt Peter Shmidt Roman Zyuz Ivan Gaidai R.p. Anna Schmidt Petra Shmidt Roman Zyuzya Ivan Gaidai D.p. Anna Schmidt Pyotr Schmidt Roman Zyuz Ivan Gaidai V.p Anna Schmidt Pyotr Shmidt Roman Zyuz Ivan Gaidai Etc. Anna Schmidt Peter Schmidt Roman Zyuz Ivan Gaidai P.p. (about) Anna Schmidt (about) Peter Schmidt (about) Roman Zyuz (about) Ivan Gaidai Note
- As can be seen from the diagram, applying the rule requires knowledge of the gender of the person being called. The text or title page of a publication does not always allow a native speaker to convey such information, therefore, in writing and in oral speech, difficulties may arise when using surnames with a consonant. For example, the title page indicates the author A. Shtol, but the annotation does not contain information about the full name. The reader, without having reliable data, cannot correctly formulate his speech: “I read the novels of A. Shtol (female surname) or A. Shtol (male surname).
- “Outlandish” surnames like Greben and Astrakhan, homonymous with common nouns, geographical names, names of animals and insects, often cause difficulties in declension. Surnames of this type can be divided into two groups:
- Let us pay special attention to surnames with a fluent vowel such as Malchinok, Kobets. There is no clear answer in the scientific and reference literature. There are two options:
- It is necessary to distinguish between homonymous Russian (as well as Russified) surnames and those borrowed into -ov and -in. For example: Peter Chaplin / Vera Chaplin and Charlie Chaplin / Helen Chaplin, Ivan Flotov / Marina Flotova and Hans Flotov / Helga Flotov. Such surnames are distinguished by the ending of the instrumental case. Russian surnames (as well as Russified ones) in the instrumental case of the masculine gender have the ending -ym: Peter Chaplin. The “non-Russian” surname in the instrumental case of the masculine gender has the ending -om: Charlie Chaplin. Women's names are not inclined at all: approach Helen Chaplin, meet Helga Flotov. Compare: approach Vera Chaplina, meet Marina Flotova.
- Surnames with a vowel (except -а/-я).
- Surnames starting with the vowel -a.
- Surnames starting with the vowel -ya.
- Surnames starting with a vowel (except -а/-я)
- Surnames starting with the vowel -a
- Surnames with a preceding consonant:
- Surnames with unaccented -a.
- Surnames with accent -a.
- Surnames preceded by a vowel i or u.
- If the final unstressed vowel -a is preceded by a consonant (mainly Slavic and Romanesque surnames), then the surname changes according to the first type of declension (like sister):
- If the final unstressed vowel -a is preceded by a vowel (usually the vowels y or i), then the surname is not declined: Badzagua, Benois, Valois, Galois, Guatua, Gerua, Gulia, Delacroix, Dondua, Dubois, Luria, Matua, Moravia, Morua, Rurua, Sturua, Todua, Huchua, Eria, Heredia.
- Surnames of French origin are not inclined: the novels of Alexandre Dumas, Fermat's theorem, the production of choreographer Petipa, student Anton Koles.
- Slavic surnames from eastern languages change according to the first type of declension:
- Surnames starting with the vowel -я
- Surnames of French origin with an accent on the end are not declined: the novels of Emile Zola, the ancestors of Henri Troyat.
- All other surnames begin with -ya:
Male surnames ending with stressed and unstressed sounds - o, - e, - e, - c, - u, - yu, as well as ending with a sound - a, with a vowel in front - do not decline, for example: the work of Daniel Defoe , literature review S.S. Kurnogo, Gastello street.
Russian male surnames that end in syllables - them, - yh, for example: under the leadership of Sedykh, practiced with Kovchikh, said P.P. Novoslobodskikh, are not inclined. In the Russian language and fiction, it is permissible to declension of male surnames ending in syllables - them, - ы, for example: in the work of Repnykh, the lecture of Zelemnykh. The majority, one might even say the overwhelming majority of Russian male surnames have the suffixes - ev - (- ov -), - sk -, - in -: Zolotov, Kulenev, Mushkin, Zalessky, Primorsky, Kostolevsky, Kramskoy, Volonskoy. Absolutely all such male surnames are inclined.
There are very few Russian male surnames that decline according to the principle of adjectives and do not have an indicator; these include such surnames as: Stolbovoy, Tolstoy, Beregovoy, Lanovoy, Tenevoy, Sladky, Zarechny, Poperechny, Kolomny, Bely, Grozny, etc...
Declension of male surnames (based on the principle of adjectives)
I. p.: Andrey Bely, Sergey Sladky, Ivan Lanovoy, Alexey Zarechny.
R. p.: Andrey Bely, Sergei Sladky, Ivan Lanovoy, Alexey Zarechny.
D.p.: Andrey Bely, Sergei Sladky, Ivan Lanovoy, Alexey Zarechny.
V. p.: Andrey Bely, Sergei Sladky, Ivan Lanovoy, Alexey Zarechny.
T.p.: with Andrey Bely, with Sergei Sladky, with Ivan Lanov, with Alexey Zarechny.
P. p.: about Andrei Bely, about Sergei Sladky, about Ivan Lanov, about Alexei Zarechny.
Male surnames with the endings - in - and - ov - have a special declension that is not found among common nouns and among personal names. Here we see a combination of the endings of adjectives and nouns of the second declension of the masculine gender and divisions such as fathers, forefathers. The declension of male surnames differs from the declension of similar nouns mainly in the ending of the instrumental case, for example: Sizov-ym, Akunin-ym - Borov-ym, Ston-om, Kalugin - ym, Suvorov - ym from the declension based on the principle of possessive adjectives, the ending of the prepositional is different case, for example: about Sazonov, about Kulibin - about forefathers, about mother's. The same applies to the declension of male surnames ending in - ov and - in in the plural (Sizovs, Akunins are declined as forefathers, mothers). To declension of such male surnames, it is advisable to refer to the directory of declension of first and last names.
Russian male surnames with endings in the syllables: - ovo, - ago, - yago, having their origin in the image of frozen forms of the genitive case in the singular: (Burnovo, Slukhovo, Zhivago, Sharbinago, Deryago, Khitrovo), and with endings in syllables: - them, - х - plural (Kruchenykh, Kostrovsky, Dolsky, Dovgikh, Chernykh), where some of them are declined in common parlance (Durnovo - Durnovovo).
It is imperative to decline male surnames ending in a soft sign and a consonant by gender and case. (Institute named after S. Ya. Zhuk, poetry of Adam Mickiewicz, conduct Igor Koval).
If at the end of the surname there is a consonant before the sound - a, then the endings of the surnames in the form of cases will be: sounds - a, - ы, - e, - y, - oy, - e.
If at the end of a man's surname there is one of the letters (g, k, x) or a soft hissing letter (ch, sch) or z before the sound - a, then the ending of the surname in the genitive case form will be the sound - i.
If at the end of a man’s surname there is one of the hissing words (ch, sch, ts, sh) or zh before the sound -a, then the ending of the surname in the form of the instrumental case when stressing the end of the word will be - oh, and - her.
The surname as a family name assumes the presence of a plural form: Ivanovs, Pashkins, Vedenskys. If people getting married take a common surname, it is written in the plural: Vasilyev, Vronsky, Usatiye, Gorbatye, Lyubimye. Non-standard male surnames, except for surnames formed in the form of adjectives, do not have plural forms when written in official documents. Therefore they write: Maria Petrovna and Nikolai Semenovich Cherry, spouses Parus, husband and wife Syzran, brother and sister Astrakhan.
Despite the difficulties that arise when declension of Russian and foreign male surnames that exist in the Russian language, it is still advisable to correctly declension a person’s first name and surname if they can be declinated. The system of rules for case endings in the Russian language operating in the rules of the Russian language quite strictly suggests accepting the inflected word left without declension as being in the wrong case or not belonging to the gender to which it actually belongs in this case. For example, Ivan Petrovich Zima, in the genitive case there should be Ivan Petrovich Zima. If it is written: for Ivan Petrovich Zima, this means that in the nominative case this surname will look like Zim, not Zima. Left without declination, male surnames like Veter, Nemeshay will be mistaken for women’s names, because similar surnames for men are indeclined: with Vasily Sergeevich Nemeshay, from Viktor Pavlovich Veter. To declension of such male surnames, it is advisable to refer to the directory of declension of first and last names.
Below are some examples of declensions of male surnames existing in the Russian language:
Declension of male surnames (standard)
Singular
I. Smirnov, Kramskoy, Kostikov, Eliseev, Ivanov,
R. Smirnov, Kramskoy, Kostikov, Eliseev, Ivanov,
D. Smirnov, Kramskoy, Kostikov, Eliseev, Ivanov,
V. Smirnov, Kramskoy, Kostikov, Eliseev, Ivanov,
T. Smirnov, Kramskoy, Kostikov, Eliseev, Ivanov,
P. about Smirnov, about Kramskoy, about Kostikov, about Eliseev, about Ivanov.
Plural
I. Smirnovs, Kramskoys, Kostikovs, Eliseevs, Ivanovs,
R. Smirnovs, Kramskoys, Kostikovs, Eliseevs, Ivanovs,
D. Smirnov, Kramskoy, Kostikov, Eliseev, Ivanov,
V. Smirnovs, Kramskoys, Kostikovs, Eliseevs, Ivanovs,
T. Smirnov, Kramskoy, Kostikovs, Eliseevs, Ivanovs,
P. about the Smirnovs, about the Kramskoys, about the Kostikovs, about the Eliseevs, about the Ivanovs.
In Russian male surnames of two words, its first part is always declined if it is used as a surname (the poetry of Lebedev-Kumach, the work of Nemirovich-Danchenko, the exhibition of Sokolov-Skal)
With the exception of those surnames where the first part does not mean the surname, such male surnames are never declined, for example: stories by Mamin-Sibiryak, painting by Sokolov, sculpture by Demut-Malinovsky, research by Grem-Brzhimailo, in the role of Pozdnik-Trukhanovsky
It is recommended to use non-standard male surnames ending in sounds - a (-z), such as Zima, Loza, Zoya, Dora, in the plural exclusively for all cases of the form that coincides with the original type of the surname. For example: Ivan Petrovich Zima, Vasily Ivanovich Loza, with Semyon Semenovich Zoya, and for the plural - the forms Zima, Loza, Zoya in all cases. To declension of such male surnames, it is advisable to refer to the directory of declension of first and last names.
It is difficult to decline the plural of male surnames Zima and Zoya.
There is a problem of dividing into “Russian” and “non-Russian” surnames ending in the syllables - ov and - in; Such male surnames include, for example: Gutskov (German writer), Flotov (German composer), Cronin (English writer), Franklin, Goodwin, Darwin, etc. From the point of view of morphology, the “non-Russianness” or “Russianness” of a male surname is determined whether the ending with (-ov - or - in -) is expressed or not expressed in the surname. If such an indicator is expressed, then the surname in the instrumental case will have the ending - й
Non-Russian male surnames, which when mentioned refer to two or more persons, are in some cases placed in the plural, in others - in the singular, namely:
if the surname consists of two male names, then such a surname is put in the plural form, for example: Gilbert and Jean Picard, Thomas and Heinrich Mann, Mikhail and Adolph Gottlieb; Oirstarhi father and son;
There are also non-Russian (mostly German) surnames ending in - them: Freundlich, Argerich, Ehrlich, Dietrich, etc. Such surnames cannot be called Russian surnames ending in - them because in Russian surnames before the ending - they are practically There are no soft consonants that have hard pairs, since in the Russian language there are very few adjective names with such stems (i.e. similar adjective names like red, gray; and are there surnames Krasnykh, Sedykh and the like).
But, if before the ending - theirs in the male surname there is a hissing or velar consonant, such male surnames, as a rule, are not declined, only when the name of the adjective is related (for example, Kodyachikh., Sladkikh); in the absence of this condition, such surnames are usually perceived ambiguously from the point of view of morphology; such surnames include, for example: Valshchikh, Khaskachikh, Trubatsky, Lovchikh, Stotsky. Despite the rarity of such cases, one should not forget this fundamental possibility.
In slightly rare cases, surnames whose original forms end with the letter - й before vowels and or - o are perceived ambiguously. Let's say that surnames such as Lopchiy, Nabozhy, Dopchiy, Borkiy, Zorkiy, Dudoy can also be understood as having endings in the syllables - ii, - oi. Such male surnames are declined according to the rules of adjectives: Lopchego, Lopchemu, Nabozhiy, Nabozhye, Dopchiy, Dopchemu, Borkiy, Borkomu, Zorkiy, Zorkiy, and as having a zero ending with a declension in the manner of nouns (Lopchia, Lopchiyu...,) To clarify such If you are perplexed, you need to consult a dictionary of surnames.
Male surnames that end with the sounds - e, - e, - i, - ы, - у, - у, do not decline. For example, the following: Daudet, Dusset, Manceret, Fourier, Leye, Dabrie, Goethe, Nobile, Maragiale, Tarle, Ordzhonikidze, Maigret, Artmane, Bossuet, Grétry, Devussy, Navoi, Stavigliani, Modigliani, Guare, Gramsci, Salieri, Galsworthy, Shelley, Needly, Rustaveli, Kamandu, Chaburkiani, Gandhi, Jusoity, Landu, Amadou, Shaw, Manzu, Kurande, Nehru, Colnu, Endescu, Camus, Colnu, etc.
Foreign-language male surnames ending with a vowel sound, excluding unstressed ones - a, - i (Hugo, Daudet, Bizet, Rossini, Mussalini, Shaw, Nehru, Goethe, Bruno, Dumas, Zola), ending with the sounds - a, - i , with a leading vowel - and (poems by Garcia, sonnets by Heredia, stories by Gulia) do not decline. The exception may be in common parlance. Male surnames of French origin that end in an accent are inflexible - I: Zola, Broyat.
All other male surnames ending in - i are declined; for example Golovnya, Zabornya, Beria, Zozulya, Danelia, Syrokomlya, Shengelaya, Gamaleya, Goya.
When foreign male surnames are declined and forms of the Russian declension rules are used, the main features of the declension of such words are not preserved in the language of the original itself. (Karel Čapek - Karela Čapek [not Karl Čapek]). Also in Polish names (in Vladek, in Edek, in Janek [not: in Vladek, in Edk, in Jank]).
The most complex picture in declension is represented by male surnames ending with the sound - a. Unlike the previously discussed cases, here the ending is of great importance - a stands after a vowel or after a consonant, and if it is a vowel, then whether the stress falls on this vowel and (in certain cases) what origin this male surname has.
All male surnames ending in the sound -a, standing after vowels (most often y or i), are not declined: Balois, Dorois, Delacroix, Boravia, Edria, Esredia, Boulia.
Male surnames of French origin with the ending of the stressed sound are not declined - I: Zola, Troyat, Belacruya, Doble, Golla, etc.
All male surnames ending in an unstressed word - and after consonants, are declined according to the rule of the first declension, for example: Didera - Dider, Didere, Dideru, Dideroy, Seneca - Seneca, Seneca, Seneca, Seneca, etc.; Kafka, Petrarch, Spinoza, Smetana, Kurosawa, Gulyga, Glinka, Deineka, Olesha, Zagnibeda, Okudzhava and others are inclined to the same principle.
The declension of male surnames (singular and plural) due to the fact that it is not clear whether they should retain a fluent vowel in the manner of common nouns similar in appearance, the declension can be difficult (Travetsa or Travetsa - from Travets, Muravel or Ant - from Muravel, Lazurok or Lazurka - from Lazurki, etc.).
To avoid difficulties, it is better to use the reference book. If a man's surname is accompanied by a feminine and a masculine given name, then it remains in the singular form, for example: Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt, Jean and Eslanda Rodson, August and Caroline Schnegel, associates of Richard Sorge, Dick and Anna Krausen, Ariadne and Steve Tur; also Sergey and Valya Bruzzhak, Stanislav and Nina Zhuk;
A man's surname is also written and spoken in the singular if it is accompanied by two common nouns of different genders, for example: Mr. and Mrs. Rayner, Lord and Lady Hamilton; but if in such combinations as husband and wife or brother and sister, the surname is most often used in the plural form: husband and wife Budstrem, brother and sister Viringa;
When using the word spouse, the surname is presented in singular form, for example: spouses Dent, spouses Thorndike, spouses Loddak;
When using the word brothers, a man's surname is also usually presented in the singular form, for example: the Grimm brothers, the Trebel brothers, the Hellenberg brothers, the Vokrass brothers; When using the word family, the surname is usually presented in the singular form, for example: Doppfenheim family, Gramal family.
In combinations of Russian surnames with numerals in declension, the following forms are used: two Ivanovs, both Ivanovs, two Ivanovs, both brothers Ivanovs, two friends Ivanovs; two (both) Perovskys. This rule also applies to combinations of numerals with foreign-language surnames; both Schlegels, two brothers of Manna.
Declension of male surnames of East Slavic origin, having a fluent vowel during declension, such male surnames can be formed in two ways - with and without loss of the vowel during declension: Zayats - Zayatsa - Zayatsem and Zaitsa - Zayets. It must be taken into account that when filling out legal documents, such male surnames must be declined without losing the vowel.
Male surnames of Western Slavic and Western European origin, when declined, having a fluent vowel, are declined without losing the vowel: Slaszek Street, Capek's novels, performed by Gott, Zavranek's lectures. Male surnames, which are adjective names in form (with a stressed or unstressed ending) are declined in the same way as adjectives. Slavic male surnames ending in accented sounds - a, - ya are inclined (from director Mayboroda, with psychologist Skovoroda, to screenwriter Golovnya).
Male surnames of Slavic origin on - o such as Sevko, Darko, Pavlo, Petro are declined according to the rules for declension of masculine and neuter nouns, for example: in front of Sevka, in Dark. As a rule, male surnames ending in unstressed sounds - a, - z are inclined (essay by V. M. Ptitsa, art by Jan Neruda, romances performed by Rosita Quintana, a session with A. Vaida, songs by Okudzhava). Minor fluctuations are observed in the declension of Georgian and Japanese male surnames, where there are episodes of both indeclinability and indeclinability of surnames:
Awarding People's Artist of the USSR Kharava; 120th anniversary of the birth of Sen-Sekatayama, Kurosawa's film; works of A. S. Chikobava (and Chikobava); creativity of Pshavela; at the Ikeda residence; Hatoyama report; films by Vittorio de Sica (not de Sica). Slavic male surnames ending in - and, - ы are recommended to be inclined according to the model of Russian male surnames ending in - й, - й (Dobrovski - Dobrovsky, Pokorny - Pokorny). At the same time, it is allowed to design similar male surnames according to the Russian model and according to the rule of the nominative case (Dobrovsky, Pokorny, Der-Stravinsky). Male surnames that have a stressed ending - a are declined according to the rules of the first declension, that is, the stressed ending disappears in them - a: Pitta - Pitty, Pitt, Pittu, Pittoy; This also includes: Frying pan, Para, Kocherga, Kvasha, Tsadasa, Myrza, Hamza and others.
Czech and Polish male surnames in – tskiy, – skiy, i – й, – й, should be declined with full endings in the nominative case, for example: Oginskiy – Oginskiy, Pandovskiy – Pandovskiy.
Ukrainian male surnames ending in -ko (-enko), as a rule, are declined according to a different type of declension only in fiction or in colloquial speech, but not in legal documents, for example: command to the head of Evtukh Makogonenko; the nobleman killed by Kukubenko rested, a poem dedicated to Rodzianka; Male surnames with the ending, both stressed and unstressed, do not decline - ko (Borovko, Dyatko, Granko, Zagorudko, Kiriyenko, Yanko, Levchenko’s anniversary, Makarenko’s activities, Korolenko’s works), where some of them decline in colloquial speech, (Borovko Borovki, letter to V.G. Korolenko - letter to V.G. Korolenka). Or: “In the evening Belikov... headed towards Kovalenki.” Men's surnames do not incline toward - ko with an emphasis on the last one - oh, for example: the Franko Theater, Bozhko's legacy.
In complex multi-word surnames of Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, the last part of the surname ending in a consonant is declined, for example: Di Wen’s speech, Pam Zan Gong’s statement, conversation with Ye Du Sing.
Georgian male surnames can be inflected or indeclinable, depending on the form in which a particular surname is borrowed into the Russian language: surnames ending in - ia are indeclinable (Daneliya, Gornelia), those ending in - ia are indeclinable (Gulia).
Particular attention should be paid to the fact that in ordinary communication, if the bearer of a rare or difficult to declension surname allows the incorrect pronunciation of his surname, this is not considered a gross violation of the general rules of declension. But when filling out legal documents, media publications and works of art, if you are unsure of the correct declension, it is recommended to turn to the directory of surnames, otherwise you can find yourself in an unpleasant situation, which entails a number of inconveniences, loss of time to prove the authenticity, belonging of the very person about whom it was written this document.
From school, many have learned the rule that when pronouncing and writing, women's surnames are not declined by case, but men's surnames are not declined, on the contrary, like analogous adjectives or nouns. Is everything so simple, and are foreign male surnames inclined in Russian? This is the subject of this article, based on the monograph by L.P. Kalakutskaya, published in 1984.
Importance of the problem
There are many situations in which the correct spelling and correct pronunciation of surnames in different cases is very important:
- The child has started school and needs to sign his notebook or diary correctly.
- A young man or an adult man is awarded a diploma or letter of gratitude.
- At a serious event, the appearance or performance of a man with a complex surname is announced. It will be unpleasant if it is distorted.
- When preparing important documents (certificate, diploma) or preparing case materials to establish family ties (in court, at a notary).
- Knowing whether male surnames are inclined is necessary for people of many professions who deal with the preparation of personal files or other business papers.
Russian surnames
The most common surnames in Russia - with suffixes - sk (-tsk), ov (-ev), in (-yn): Razumovsky, Slutsky, Ivanov, Turgenev, Mukhin, Sinitsyn. All of them are easily declined, like ordinary adjectives, in both the feminine and masculine gender. Exception - surnames on -ov, -in, the ending of which in the prepositional case is somewhat different from the traditional one.
Foreign surnames with suffix -in (-yn) also have a discrepancy with Russians in the instrumental case. Let's look at an example:
Do male surnames tend to th without suffix - sk, which are also found in Russia (Tolstoy, Berezhnoy, Sukhoi)? Not numerous (there is a complete list of them in scientific works on philology), they are easily changed by case, similar to adjectives with a similar ending.
Ukrainian surnames
The most famous Ukrainian surnames are on -enko And -ko: Bondarenko, Luchko, Molodyko. If you look at Russian literature, then in works of art (A.P. Chekhov, for example), writers are quite free with their writing in the masculine version and in the plural: “Let’s go to visit the Bondarenki.”
This is incorrect, because official writing differs from literary works and colloquial speech. The answer to the question whether Ukrainian male surnames tend to be - enko And -ko, unequivocal - no. Example:
- I am writing a letter to Oleg Bondarenko.
- She has an affair with Ivan Luchko.
Moreover, this applies to all surnames of Ukrainian origin, even such rare ones as Alekhno, Rushailo, Mylo, Tolokno. Surnames are never inclined to -ago, -ovo, -yago: Vodolago, Durnovo, Dubyago. What about those that end in consonants?
Surnames starting with the consonant -k
Historically, suffixes -uk (-yuk) indicated either a related or semantic affiliation: Ivan’s son is Ivanchuk, the cooper’s assistant is Bondarchuk. To a greater extent, they are characteristic of the western part of Ukraine, but are widespread among all Slavic peoples. Do men's surnames tend to - uk?
According to the laws of the Russian language, female surnames do not change according to cases, but male surnames ending in a consonant (the exception is the ending -them, -s), bow without fail:
- I wrote a letter to Olga Dimitryuk.
- I was invited to visit Igor Shevchuk.
- I recently saw Sergei Ignatyuk.
All surnames expressed by nouns are also subject to change by case: Mole, Wolf, Wind, Pillar. There is one subtlety here: if the surname is Slavic, then the existing fluent vowel in the root is not always preserved. In jurisdictions, it is important to spell it out, although many sources do not consider pronunciation without it incorrect. As an example, consider the surname Hare. More often it is said: “She called Ivan Zayets.” This is acceptable, but more correct: “She called Ivan Zayats.”
Common in Ukraine and surnames in -ok, -hic: Pochinok, Gorelik. Knowing the rule that all male surnames with a consonant at the end change according to cases, it is easy to answer the question: do male surnames decline to -To:
- She came to the house of Ilya Pochinok (here the fluent vowel disappears).
- He knew Larisa Petrik well.
Exception to the rule
The Slavs often have family endings in -their(s): Chernykh, Ilyinsky. In the first half of the 20th century, men's surnames with similar endings were often changed by case. According to the norms of the Russian language today, this is incorrect.
The origin of these surnames from the plural adjective requires the preservation of their individuality:
- He greeted Peter Bela X.
Although there is a consonant sound at the end, this is an exception to the rule that you need to be aware of when answering the question of whether male surnames are declined.
It is quite common to end with -h: Stojkovic, Rabinovich, Gorbach. The general rule applies here:
- Waiting for Semyon Rabinovich to visit.
- He really liked Anna Porkhach's exhibition.
Armenian surnames
Armenia is a small country with a population of barely more than 3 million people. But about 8.5 million members of the diaspora live in other countries, so they are widespread. They can often be identified by the traditional ending - an(-yang): Avdzhan, Dzhigarkhanyan. In ancient times there was a more archaic family form: -ants (-yantz), -untz, which is still common today in the south of Armenia: Kurants, Sarkisyants, Tonunts. Does an Armenian male surname decline?
It is subject to the rules of the Russian language, which have already been discussed in the article. Male surnames with a consonant at the end are subject to case declension:
- together with Armen Avjan ( at the same time "together with Anush Avjan");
- watched a film with Georg Tonunts ( at the same time "film with Lili Tonunts").
Ending with vowels
Male surnames remain unchanged if they, regardless of origin and affiliation with a particular country, end in the following vowels: i, s, u, yu, e, e. Example: Gandhi, Dzhusoity, Shoigu, Camus, Maigret, Manet. In this case, it does not matter at all whether the stress falls on the first or last syllable. These include Moldavian, Indian, French, Georgian, Italian and Example: “ Recently he read poems by Shota Rustaveli" But do men's surnames tend to - a (i)?
Both options occur here, so it is better to present them in a table:
| Leaning | Don't bow | |
| Letters -a(s) not under stress | The last letters follow the consonants: Pie Ha, Kaf ka.
| If the last letters follow a vowel - And: Pestilence ia, Gars and I.
|
| Letters -a(s) are under stress | The last letters follow the consonants, but have Slavic roots: Loza, Mitta.
| The last letters follow consonants or vowels and are of French origin: Dumas, Benoit, Delacroix, Zola.
|
To consolidate knowledge of whether male surnames tend to - A, we offer you an algorithm that can always be at hand.
German surnames
The origin of Germanic surnames is similar to their history in other states: most are derived from personal names, place names, nicknames or occupations of their bearers.
Since German surnames change according to cases, they should be distinguished from Slavic ones. In addition to the common ones, such as Müller, Hoffman, Wittgenstein, Wolf, there are those ending in -their: Dietrich, Freundlich, Ulrich. In Russian surnames before -their There are rarely soft consonants with hard pairs. This is explained by the fact that adjectives with similar stems are almost never found in the language. Slavic surnames, unlike German ones, are not declined (Pyatykh, Borovsky).
If the end is -ь or -й
The rule by which male surnames that have consonants without an ending as their basis are declined also applies to those cases when they are put at the end -ь or th. They change by case as nouns belonging to the second declension. However, in the instrumental case they have a special ending - om (eat). They are perceived as foreign. To answer the question whether male surnames tend to -ь And th, an example should be considered:
- Nominative (who?): Vrubel, Gaidai;
- Genitive (whom?): Vrubel, Gaidai;
- Dative (to whom?): Vrubel, Gaidai;
- Accusative (of whom?): Vrubel, Gaidai;
- Creative (by whom?): Vrubel, Gaidai;
- Prepositional (about whom?): about Vrubel, about Gaidai.
There are exceptions to the rule. Thus, dissonant surnames (Pelmen), as well as those coinciding with a geographical name (Uruguay, Taiwan), are not declined. Even if it comes after a hissing word (Night, Mouse), the surname is inclined to be masculine.
Double and compound surnames
China, Vietnam and Korea are distinguished by the fact that their residents have compound surnames made up of several words. If they end in a consonant, then they are declined according to the general rules, but only their last part. Example:
- We listened to Kim Jong Il's speech.
Russian double surnames are declined in both parts according to general rules:
- painting by Petrov-Vodkin;
- Nemirovich-Danchenko Theater.
If the first part is not a surname, but serves as a component, it does not change by case:
- Ter-Ovanesyan's jump;
- work by Demut-Malinovsky.
Whether male surnames of other foreign countries are declined depends entirely on the rules of Russian grammar discussed in the article. The question of using the plural or singular when listing two persons remained unclear.
Singular and plural
In which cases the plural is used and in which the singular is used, it is best to see from the table:
Men's surnames, unlike women's, are declined, but there are many cases discussed in the article when they also cannot be changed. The main criteria are the ending of the word and the country of origin of the surname.
From the questions received by the “Help Bureau” of “Gramoty.ru”:
- Hello, my surname is Ossa, emphasis on O, they wrote Ossa in my diploma, and now I have to do an examination, which costs a lot of money, to prove that the surname is not inclined.
- My last name is Pogrebnyak. This is a Ukrainian surname, but they don’t seem to bow down. Some people decline my surname, write Pogrebnyak, Pogrebnyaku, Pogrebnyak. Is this possible?
- My last name is Eroshevich, it is of Polish origin (this is known for sure). I'm interested in this question: is my last name inclined? My (male) relative was given a certificate in which his last name was omitted. And with this certificate they didn’t take him anywhere. They said that the surname does not decline. Teachers also say that it is not inclined, but on your website it says that it is inclined. I'm confused!
Such questions are not uncommon in the Help Desk of our portal. Most often they are asked in May–June and at the very beginning of September. This is, of course, due to the fact that at the end of the school year, school and university graduates receive certificates and diplomas, and in September children go to school and begin signing notebooks. The certificate and diploma will necessarily say who it was issued to (i.e., the surname in the dative case), and on the cover of the notebook - whose it is (i.e., the surname in the genitive case). And in cases where the student’s last name does not end in -ov(s), -in (-yn) or - skiy (-tskiy)(i.e., does not belong to the so-called standard), the question almost always arises: is it necessary to decline the surname and, if so, how exactly to decline it? It is with this that native speakers turn to linguists for help. And this question is often followed by another: “How to prove that the surname is inclined?” or “How to defend the right to undeclination of a surname?” The question “To decline or not to decline the surname?” often goes beyond the language, causing heated debate and leading to serious conflicts.
Of course, such questions come not only from students, their parents and teachers, they are asked throughout the year, but the peaks of requests to linguists are precisely in May-June and September, due to the aggravation of this problem in schools and universities. This is not accidental: after all, it is in an educational institution that many native speakers have their first meeting with a specialist - a teacher of the Russian language, and the teacher’s demand to change the surname, which in the family has always been considered unchangeable, by case, surprises, irritates and causes resistance. Similar difficulties are experienced by office workers (secretaries, clerks), who are faced with categorical demands from management not to decline names.
The experience of our “Reference Bureau” shows that the laws of declension of surnames are indeed unknown to a large number of native speakers (and even some philologists), although they are given in many reference books on the Russian language, including widely available ones. Among these manuals are “Handbook of Spelling and Literary Editing” by D. E. Rosenthal, a stylistic dictionary of variants by L. K. Graudina, V. A. Itskovich, L. P. Katlinskaya “Grammatical Correctness of Russian Speech” (3rd edition - under the heading “Dictionary of grammatical variants of the Russian language”), “Dictionary of Russian personal names” by A. V. Superanskaya, research by L. P. Kalakutskaya “Surnames. Names. Middle names. Spelling and their declension" and many other sources. A study of the requests of Internet users and monitoring of the blogosphere allows us to conclude: there are many misconceptions among native speakers regarding the rules of declension of surnames. Here are the main ones: the decisive factor is the linguistic origin of the surname (“Georgian, Armenian, Polish, etc. surnames are not declined”); in all cases, the declension of the surname depends on the gender of the bearer; surnames that coincide with common nouns (Thunderstorm, Beetle, Stick), do not bow. A considerable number of native speakers are convinced that there are so many rules for declension of surnames that it is not possible to remember them.
To show that all these ideas do not correspond to reality, we present the basic rules for declension of surnames. They are taken from the sources listed above and formulated by us in the form of step-by-step instructions, a kind of algorithm with which you can quickly find the answer to the question: “Does the surname decline?”
This is the algorithm.
1. As stated above, declension of surnames ending in -ov (-ev,), -in (-yn), -sky (-tsky), i.e., so-called standard surnames, does not cause difficulties for native speakers. You just need to remember two important rules.
A. Borrowed surnames -ov, -in which belong foreigners, in the form of the instrumental case they have an ending -ohm(as nouns of the second school declension, for example table, table): the theory was proposed by Darwin, the film was directed by Chaplin, the book was written by Cronin.(Interestingly, the pseudonym is also inclined Green, owned by a Russian writer: the book has been written Green.) Homonymous Russian surnames have the ending - th in the instrumental case: with Chaplin(from the dialect word Chaplya"heron"), with Kronin(from crown).
B. Women's surnames starting with - ina type Currant, Pearl Declined in two ways, depending on the declension of the male surname ( Irina Zhemchuzhina And Irina Zhemchuzhina, Zoya Smorodina And Zoe Smorodina). If the man's surname is Zhemchuzhin, then correct: arrival Irina Zhemchuzhina. If the man's surname is Pearl, then correct: arrival Irina Zhemchuzhina(surname is declined as a common noun pearl).
2. Now we move directly to the so-called non-standard surnames. The first thing to remember: contrary to popular misconception, the gender of the bearer of a surname does not always influence whether one is inclined or not. Even less often, this is influenced by the origin of the surname. First of all, it matters what sound the surname ends with - a consonant or a vowel.
3. Let us immediately describe several groups of indeclinable surnames. In modern Russian literary language don't bow Russian surnames, ending in -ы, -и (type Black, Long), as well as all surnames, ending in vowels e, i, o, u, y, e, yu .
Examples: notebooks of Irina Chernykh, Lydia Meie, Roman Grymau; the diploma was issued to Viktor Dolgikh, Andrey Gretry, Nikolai Shtanenko, Maya Lee; meeting with Nikolai Kruchenykh and Alexander Minadze.
Note. In colloquial speech and in the language of fiction, reflecting oral speech, it is considered acceptable to decline male surnames into - oh, -them (in Chernykh’s script, meeting with Ryzhikh), as well as the declination of surnames of Ukrainian origin to -ko, -enko according to the declension of feminine nouns -a: go to Semashka, visiting Ustimenka. Note that Ukrainian surnames of this type were consistently declined in the fiction of the 19th century ( at Shevchenko; Nalivaika's confession; poem dedicated to Rodzianka).
4. If the surname ends in a consonant(except surnames on -y, -them, which were mentioned above), then here – and only here! – the gender of the bearer of the surname matters. All male surnames ending in a consonant are declined - this is the law of Russian grammar. All female surnames ending in a consonant are not declined. In this case, the linguistic origin of the surname does not matter. Male surnames that coincide with common nouns are also declined.
Examples: notebook by Mikhail Bok, diplomas issued to Alexander Krug and Konstantin Korol, meeting with Igor Shipelevich, visiting Andrei Martynyuk, daughter of Ilya Skalozub, work by Isaac Akopyan; Notebook by Anna Bok, diplomas issued to Natalia Krug and Lydia Korol, meeting with Yulia Shipelevich, visiting Ekaterina Martynyuk, daughter of Svetlana Skalozub, work by Marina Akopyan.
Note 1. Male surnames of East Slavic origin, which have a fluent vowel during declination, can be declined in two ways - with and without loss of the vowel: Mikhail Zayats And Mikhail Zaits, with Alexander Zhuravel And Alexander Zhuravl, Igor Gritsevets And Igor Gritsevets. In a number of sources, declension without dropping a vowel is considered preferable (i.e. Hare, Crane, Gritsevets), since surnames also perform a legal function. But the final choice is up to the bearer of the surname. It is important to adhere to the chosen type of declination in all documents.
Note 2. Separately, it is necessary to say about surnames ending in a consonant y. If preceded by a vowel And(less often - O), the surname can be declined in two ways. Surnames like Topchiy, Pobozhiy, Bokiy, Rudoy, can be perceived as having endings -yy, -yy and decline as adjectives ( Topchego, Topchego, feminine Topchaya, Topchey), or it is possible - as having a zero ending with declension modeled on nouns ( Topchiya, Topchiya, feminine invariant form Topchy). If you agree th at the end of the surname preceded by any other vowel, the surname follows the general rules (Igor Shakhrai, Nikolai Adzhubey, But Inna Shakhrai, Alexandra Adzhubey).
5. If the surname ends in a vowel -я preceded by another vowel
(eg: Shengelaya, Lomaya, Rhea, Beria, Danelia), she leans.
Examples: Inna Shengelai's notebook, diploma given to Nikolai Lomaya, meeting with Anna Reya; crimes of Lavrentiy Beria, meeting with Georgy Danelia.
6. If the surname ends in a vowel -a preceded by another vowel
(eg: Galois, Maurois, Delacroix, Moravia, Eria, Heredia, Gulia), she doesn't bow.
Examples: notebook Nikolai Galois, diploma issued to Irina Eria, meeting with Igor Gulia.
7. And the last group of surnames - ending in -а, -я, preceded by a consonant . Here - and only here! – the origin of the surname and the place of emphasis in it matters. There are only two exceptions to remember:
A. Don't bow French surnames with emphasis on the last syllable: books by Alexandre Dumas, Emile Zola and Anna Gavalda, aphorisms by Jacques Derrida, goals by Diarra and Drogba.
B. Mostly don't bow Finnish surnames ending in - A unstressed: meeting with Mauno Pekkala(although a number of sources recommend inclining them too).
All other surnames (Slavic, eastern and others; ending in stressed and unstressed -a, -i) bow down. Contrary to popular belief, surnames that coincide with common nouns are also declined.
Examples: notebook by Irina Groza, diploma issued to Nikolai Mukha, lecture by Elena Kara-Murza, songs by Bulat Okudzhava, roles by Igor Kvasha, films by Akira Kurosawa.
Note. In the past, fluctuations were observed in the declension of Japanese surnames, but reference manuals note that recently such surnames have been consistently declined, and in the “Grammar Dictionary of the Russian Language” by A. A. Zaliznyak there is an indeclinable version at Akutagawa, along with the inflexible near Okudzhava, called a “gross violation of the norm” .
That, in fact, is all the main rules; as you can see, there are not so many of them. Now we can refute the misconceptions listed above related to the declination of surnames. So, contrary to popular belief: a) there is no rule “all Armenian, Georgian, Polish, etc. surnames are not declined” - the declension of surnames is subject to the laws of language grammar, and if the final element of the surname is amenable to Russian inflection, it is declined; b) the rule “men's surnames are declined, women's are not” does not apply to all surnames, but only to those that end in a consonant; c) the coincidence of the surname in form with common nouns is not an obstacle to their declension.
It is important to remember: the surname is word and, like all words, it must obey the grammatical laws of the language. In this sense there is no difference between the sentences The certificate was issued to Ivan Golod(instead of the correct Golodu Ivan) And The villagers suffered from hunger(instead of suffered from hunger), there is a grammatical error in both sentences.
It is also important to follow the rules for declension of surnames because refusal to change the surname being declined by case can lead to misunderstandings and incidents, disorienting the addressee of the speech. In fact, let’s imagine a situation: a person with the surname Storm signed his work: article by Nikolai Groz. According to the laws of Russian grammar, a man's surname ending in the genitive case singular. numbers on - A, is restored in its original form, in the nominative case, with a zero ending, so the reader will make an unambiguous conclusion: the author’s name is Nikolai Groz. Submitted to the dean's office work by A. Pogrebnyak will lead to the search for the student (Anna? Antonina? Alisa?) Pogrebnyak, and the student Alexander Pogrebnyak’s belonging to her will still need to be proven. It is necessary to follow the rules of declension of surnames for the same reason that it is necessary to follow the rules of spelling, otherwise a situation arises similar to the famous “opteka” described by L. Uspensky in “A Lay on Words.” The authors of the “Dictionary of grammatical variants of the Russian language” L.K. Graudina, V.A. Itskovich, L.P. Katlinskaya indicate: “For the inflection of surnames, the law on absolute deducibility by them must be immutable. case of the surname from its indirect cases.”
Therefore, we invite you to remember elementary truth No. 8.
Basic Truth No. 8. The declension of surnames is subject to the laws of Russian grammar. There is no rule “all Armenian, Georgian, Polish, etc. surnames are not declined.” The declension of a surname depends primarily on what sound the surname ends with - a consonant or a vowel. The rule “men's surnames are declined, women's are not” does not apply to all surnames, but only to those that end in consonant. Matching of the surname in form with common nouns (Fly, Hare, Stick etc.) is not an obstacle to their inclination.
Literature:
- Ageenko F. L. Dictionary of proper names of the Russian language. M., 2010.
- Graudina L.K., Itskovich V.A., Katlinskaya L.P. Dictionary of grammatical variants of the Russian language. –3rd ed., erased. M., 2008.
- Zaliznyak A. A. Grammar dictionary of the Russian language. – 5th ed., rev. M., 2008.
- Kalakutskaya L.P. Surnames. Names. Middle names. Spelling and Declension. M., 1994.
- Rosenthal D. E. Handbook of spelling and literary editing. – 8th ed., rev. and additional M., 2003.
- Superanskaya A.V. Dictionary of Russian personal names. M., 2004.
V. M. Pakhomov,
Candidate of Philological Sciences,
editor-in-chief of the portal "Gramota.ru"
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