Выбор имени и коммеморативная практика в XVI в. (Новое о думном дьяке Андрее Щелкалове)

Abstract

ABSTRACT In the medieval Russian anthroponymic system, a lay person could have several names simultaneously. The public name of a person was not always their baptismal forename. Also, recent research has shown that the full sets of personal names of some of the Russian tsars and their relatives are still unknown to us, not to mention the names of the ruling elite of the state. These unknown names, however, were extremely important to their bearers – these were the names used in confessions, weddings, and funeral services; patronal icon would be commissioned and churches built in honor of the name of one’s saint and namesake. The baptismal forename, essentially a mystery to us, was actually perceived as the main and true name of an individual. In this paper we investigate the names of one of the most well-known people of the second half of the 16th century – Andrej Ščelkalov, a man of rather humble birth but of great power, a long-lived administrator called “the chancellor,” “the minister” or even “the tsar” by his contemporaries. Moreover, we attempt to discuss this particular name-giving case within the broader anthroponymic context of the era.