In the United States the typical child was given two names, a first and a middle, before their surname. In some families you might find naming has to do with honoring a father or other family member.
However, it is unusual in Old Polish/Latin records for most children who were baptized to be given two names. This is not just because a person was born humble, a peasant or poor, which may be indicated by the term 'rustic' or 'Ag' = Agriculture = a farmer. (Not all farmers were poor. You may have to find out if they are tenant farmers or subcontractors.)
When a Christian child reached the time to be Confirmed, they got to choose a name for themselves, which was repeated by the priest or bishop who was performing the Confirmation ritual. Old school is that this is the name a person would be called in heaven, having been a 'soldier for Christ'. In the United States Polish immigrants named their child at birth, and the child used the name they chose at Confirmation as their middle name in adulthood. (So that's why three of your aunts all took the name of their mother at Confirmation.)
Try not to get genealogy myopia by looking for Honorifics or naming patterns in your research. Quite likely it is not a person but a saint that the parent or parents were honoring. There were saint calendars with saint name days that they could look to, in order to name their child. Much depends on the church, the order of the priests who ran it, and the place they lived, how big the population was, if it was subject to outside influences because of trade and being a market town (more cosmopolitan). If your ancestors went to a Polish speaking Catholic church as immigrants, you may find that they were still naming a child for the saint whose day they were born on or near.
I've seen pages of children born within a few days of each other all being given the same name indicating to me that the church their parents belonged to and baptized them in was very traditional. This name they found was on the Franciscan name days calendar. The Franciscans were originally out of Italy, and this is how there got to be so many Polish Anthony's (Antonin or Antal).
If the child is Greek Catholic, the choice of names extends to some names that are rarely used within Roman Catholic churches. (Basil, Theodora, etc.) Please note that many Greek Catholics claim a Ruthenian heritage and there is now a revival and cultural awareness of this ethnic group that lived in the Carpathian Mountains and thus at least three countries (depending on the border history. See previous posts about them!) However, when you hear the term Ukrainian, this may mean Ruthenian is the actual ethnic heritage rather than ethnically Ukrainian. In Galicia, there was significant intermarriage between the two groups, and also a group that combined Roman and Greek Catholicism called Uniates.
Now, if you see two or more given names, don't assume that those are twins. You may see the word binomial, that means two names. Gemelli is the word for twins. Another indication of twins may be the number of godparents. Sometimes you will see that the person was given not just two names but three or four. In this case the child most likely has parents or family that is noble, aristocratic, high ranking, notable, or rich. (But the names given still might not be honorifics) or it may simply be a Germanic influence.
Here are some articles that I thought would be of interest on this subject.
CULTURE POLAND : BEGINNERS GUIDE
This guide by Mikolaj Glinski is quite interesting, as it deals with nicknames and the origins of the rarest Slavic names. According to his site, Mikolaj studied classics in Berlin at Humboldt University and also cultural studies at the University of Warsaw Institute of Polish Culture.
WIKITREE : POLISH and UKRANIAN NAMES
EXCERPT: Mary (Marena) Polish 'Marya.' Ukrainian: Mariya or Maria (Note: "Most of our ethnic Polish ancestors who used the name Mary in American were actually baptized as Marianna. This name isn't a combination of "Mary" and "Anna." It's actually a name that means "like Mary." In Polish culture, Mary the Mother of God was held in such reverence that it was considered sacrilegious to name a child Mary, in the same way that one didn't name a boy "Jesus" after the Son of God. Instead, the name Marianne was used, in the hopes that the child would be like Mary." You will see the same Marianna in Ukrainian baptisms and marriage records.
In Hungary Maria is a common name given to the first born daughter.
ROMAN CATHOLIC TRADITIONAL FRANCISCAN SAINTS CALENDER
Please note that you should look for a calendar that was used about the time that the child was born, as there could be some variations by Holy Order and also you will notice that the majority of the saints named on this master list did not seem to get honorifics in Poland. But let's take a look at a fictional family that has a girl child born September 4th. Her name Rose, perhaps Rosalia or Rozalia, which comes from Saint Rose of Viterbo, and Italian saint. Let's say the next year in early September, the couple have another girl child. They can't give another girl the same name, Rose, so instead they might name that child Marianna for the Nativity (birth) of the Blessed Mother. A son born in late August - early September might be Joseph. Alternatively, another girl might be named Josefa.
If you know or suspect someone was baptized in the Greek Orthodox tradition, look for the appropriate saint calendar. On Geneteka, Greek Catholic records are clearly marked in the database as such, however, something you may find is that a surname is represented in both Roman and Greek Catholic churches. Check the meaning of the surname.* This will help you avoid spending time on a surname over a spelling question when the two surnames actually mean very different things though they are quite alike.
In either case, check to see if the church in the village is still standing and what the name of it is, because the records rarely record the name of the church. Some of these old churches are simply breathtaking inside. Others feature amazing structures made of carved wood.
In Hungarian records you will see naming patterns among common people that are mostly about birth order. Also, if a child dies, the given name may be repeated. I have yet to find that in the Polish records. So, remember that the Greek Catholic person does not have to have lived in the Ukraine and you will find Greek Catholics in Hungary - or Hungarian Lands which would include present day Slovakia and Romania too.
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This post is part of a series on the subject. To pull all the topics up, click on the tag Pro Genealogy Tips - Galicia
