Proper names, including ethnonyms (folk, tribal and other ethnic community names), is an<br />essential component of any language lexis, which particularly brightly reveals a variety ofextralinguistic processes.<br />The aim of the paper is to analyze the conformity of ethnonym transonymization (the change of proper name class) and deonymization (the change of proper name into<br />appellative) in the culture of Latgale, and linguistic techniques and extralinguistic factors.<br />Linguo-culturological approach has been used in the research, and the link between cultural-<br />historical and social processes in the research of linguistic processes has been taken into<br />account. Determining the origin of ancient ethnonyms, the researchers of the Baltic languages<br />acknowledge a transonymization model typical to the Balts: hydronym → name of region<br />→ ethnonym (Zinkevičius 2005, 186–187). This paper attempts to reveal various ethnonym<br />(denoting mostly foreigners) transonymization models in the system of proper names of<br />Latgale, nominating motivation, and the types of word-formation.<br />It seems that the ethnonyms that denote the neighbouring nations (Estonians,<br />Lithuanians, Russians) most frequently turn into other proper names. Transonymization<br />models have been identifi ed as follows:<br />1) ethnonym → anthroponym → oikonym (or ethnonym → oikonym → anthroponym),<br />for example, l ī t a u n ī k i ‘the Lithuanians’ → L ī t a u n ī k s ‘a surname’ →<br />L ī t a u n ī k i ‘a village in Preiļi county’;<br />2) ethnonym → microtoponym, for example, ž y d i ‘the Jews’ → Ž y d a p ū r s<br />‘a marsh in Vārkava county’;<br />3) ethnonym → anthroponym, for example, č y g u o n i ‘the Roma people’ →<br />Č y g u o n s ‘a nickname for a dark-haired man’;<br />4) ethnonym (→ oikonym) → ergonym, for example, l a t g a ļ i ‘The Baltic tribe’ →<br />“L a t g a ļ i” ‘a farm in Mērdzene rural municipality of Kārsava county’.<br />Transonymization of ethnonyms in the culture of Latgale is motivated by historical<br />and social processes. Transonymization processes present the evidence of Latgalians’ stereotypical perception of foreigners, compact settlement of different ethnic groups in<br />Latgale, and historical events.<br />Various types of word-formation are used in the transonymization process:<br />1) semantic, i.e., only the meaning changes, the morphemic system of lexeme is notchanged, for example, ethnonym p o ļ a k i → oikonym P o ļ a k i (→ surname P o ļ a k s<br />(the male singular form of the ethnonym));<br />2) morphological, typically suffixes are added to ethnonyms (sometimes phonetic<br />changes in the root occur), for example, i g a u n i ‘the Estonians’ → surnames I k a u n ī k s<br />(ikaun-+-nīk-s); I g o v e n s (igov-+ - en-s);<br />3) syntactical, forming compound words, for example, the ethnonym k r ī v i<br />‘the Russians’ has motivated the oikonym K r ī v a s o l a <Krīva sola ‘Russian Village’,<br />K r ī v m a i z e s <Krīvu maizes ‘Russian bread’;<br />4) formation of analytical forms, where one of the components has ethnonymic<br />semantics and the second component is a nomenclature word (hill, meadow, marsh, lake,<br />etc.), for example, Ž y d a p ū r s ‘Jew’s marsh’, an attributive adjective, for example, a<br />village M a z i e L ī t a u n ī k i ‘small Lithuanians’, a substantive of other semantics, for<br />example, a meadow Č i g o n e i c a s j ū s t a ‘Gypsy’s belt’.<br />Proper names of foreign origin motivated by ethnonyms have taken their stable<br />place in the system of proper names of Latgale, for example, L a t i š i, a village in Pušmucova<br />rural municipality of Cibla civil-parish (in Russian латыши ‘the Latvians’).<br />Proper names of ethnonymic semantics, used to name various phenomena and<br />realities, are often included in the lexicon of various dialects of Latvian and even other<br />languages. If to assume the fact that ethnonyms are proper names, then it can be concluded<br />that the appellatives mentioned above have appeared in deonymization process: ethnonym<br />→ appellative. Moreover, the material of Latgalian dialects confirms the existence of deethnonymic<br />proper names, for example, a lot of different realities are associated with the<br />ethnonyms denoting Roma people: č y g u o n i ‘participants of masquerade parade’;<br />č y g o n k a 1) a sort of winter apples, the apple of this sort (dark green and red); 2) the railroad;<br />3) achimenes (flower, Achimenes); 4) mushrooms: wild champignon (Rozites caperata) or<br />ugly milkcap (Lactarius necator); č y g u o n a s a u l e ‘the moon’. Appellativeness of<br />ethnonyms has an associative character. The names are reflecting the Latgalians’ stereotypical<br />perception of appearance, occupation, character traits, and traditions of foreigners as alien<br />and different, however, acceptable and assimilable phenomena.
Proper name as an object of semiotic research
