Re: Help with family name, please


"John Atkinson" <johnacko@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote...
"John Atkinson" johnacko@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote...
"Paul J Kriha" <paul.nospam.kriha@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote...
Brian M. Scott <b.scott@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote...
John Atkinson <johnacko@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> "Judy Bolton" <jbolton@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote...

>> My maternal grandmother's side is Venezky, originally Winnitzky >> or
>> something close > to that. Could someone please tell me the
>> meaning of Winnitz? It it a place or...?

> My atlas tells me there's a city called Vinnitsa in Ukraine, a > couple
> of hundred km SW of Kiyev. Is it possible that the family came
>from there?

[...]

The "-ky" ("-sky") looks like a common Slavic adjectiviser.
For example, a person originally from Moskva is likely to be
called Moskovsky, Moskevsky, or similar.

My first reaction on seeing the name "Venez-" was to assume
the family ancestors came from Venice (Venezia, Benatky, etc.).
However, Judy says an older spelling of his name was Winnitzky.
"Winnitz-" looks very much like a germanized spelling of "Vinic-"
(vinice) in which case it would indeed be related to a pan-Slavic
word for "vineyard". This word is commonly used in many (possibly
all) Slavic languages. Without any other clues it's next to
impossible to tie it to any particular country let alone a town
or a village.

Presumably that city Vinnitsa in Ukraine actually means "vineyard"?

Google doesn't support the idea that the Vinnytsia Oblast (often called the "Vinnitsky region" in English) produces much wine.

But there seems little doubt that the name derives from wine:

"Vinnytsya (vynnytsa | vinica | vinnytsia):

City in Vinnytsa Oblast. The first mention refers to 1363 when it was a Lithuanian fortress. The name is connected with Old Russian word "vino" (wine) - ransom, dowry. ...."

(http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/ua-vin.html)

J.

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