Meaning of the "y" termination in Hungarian names

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Migra
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Joined:2012-04-24, 13:11
Meaning of the "y" termination in Hungarian names

Postby Migra » 2012-04-24, 13:17

Hi,

I recently learned that by adding an "i" to a name, this means "from", in Hungarian, meaning that the family of that person originally was from one or another city in Hungary. I see also names finishing in "y" like Esterhazy, Horthy, Nagy and other. What does this means this "y" termination in Hungarian surnames? Any information is most welcome! :-)

Warvick
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Location:P??sp??khatvan
Country:HUHungary (Magyarország)

Re: Meaning of the "y" termination in Hungarian names

Postby Warvick » 2012-04-25, 20:30

Hi there,

Both "i" and "y" may mean that the family of that person is from a particular geographic location.
The reasons why are there family names with a "y" termination may vary.

The first answer that came to my mind upon reading your question was the possible noble origins (like the Eszterházy and Horthy names you mentioned) of those with the names finishing in "y". Most people are told so in school about these names. However, it seems that this is not always the case.

Further reading about the subject showed, that the preferences of the nobles to finish their names varied from one geographic location to another. An article I have found says that those nobles who lived to the north or east from the Tisza river used the "i" ending, while those to the west from the river used the "y". There are noble families, whose names finishes with "i" (such as Rákóczi, Teleki).

Be warned though that there are digraphs in Hungarian language, such as "gy", "ly", "ny" (there are others, and even a trigraph, but those have no "y" in them). There are cases, where the "y" is just the latter part of these digraphs, like in the "Nagy" name, which is very common. Nagy also means big, great, large in Hungarian as an adjective.

For Example: Charlemagne = Nagy Károly, Alexander the Great = Nagy Sándor, etc.

Hope you find my post helpful :)

Migra
Posts:10
Joined:2012-04-24, 13:11

Re: Meaning of the "y" termination in Hungarian names

Postby Migra » 2012-04-25, 20:44

Hi Warwick,

Many thanks, your information was clear and right to the point. :-) in the case of the surname Migrazzy, which I found is used by some families in Hungary, is there a Migra or Migraz region, city in Hungary or those could be foreign words as it particularly seems to me the Migrazzy surname?

Warvick
Posts:3
Joined:2012-04-25, 18:38
Gender:male
Location:P??sp??khatvan
Country:HUHungary (Magyarország)

Re: Meaning of the "y" termination in Hungarian names

Postby Warvick » 2012-04-25, 21:47

Never heard of the Migrazzy family before, and it is highly unlikely that it has any connection with Hungarian cities or regions. I suspect that the Migrazzy name is not of Hungarian origin. It sounds Italian to me, but that's just my opinion.

All I've found is a genealogy and local history database, which seems to contain data about a Migrazzy family, based on the 1891 national census' data about shopkeepers and craftsmen.

The database is found here, and it links the Migrazzy family with a settlement named "Malonya", which is found in modern-day Slovakia by the name Taszármalonya.

Migra
Posts:10
Joined:2012-04-24, 13:11

Re: Meaning of the "y" termination in Hungarian names

Postby Migra » 2012-04-26, 15:37

Thank you Warwick. Seems like the Migra, MIgrazzy, are surnames foreign to Hungary. There is no city or place called Migra in Hungary. Through a quick research I found only La Migra (Mexico), Il Migra (Malta). I need now to try to find the origin of this surname. :-)


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