oa The Slavic word for “bear”

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The Slavic word for “bear”, Page 1 of 1

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The Slavic word for “bear” (Russian medvéd´, Polish niedźwiedź, etc.) means “honey eater” and is a taboo word. In Slavic names, it is well-documented. In the case of hydronyms, place and field names, the frequent appearance of the animal close to rivers and other places motivated the naming. Concerning Slavic family names, it is often about a man supposed to be a “bear” in life and battle. Here, the wish of a human being to be similar to the animal or the belief to be intrinsically linked to the animal is of importance. The bear is also common in personal and family names in other languages and cultures. In the German language alone, the basic word Bär “bear” is attested c 15,000 times as a family name.