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ArchivesRe: Sanya & Vanya
in reply to a message by egyptianpanda
That's my point. I've never seen Sanja or Sanya in any reputable etymological name book connect it to Alexandra, so I'll stay with my opinion. However it's useful to hear other comments and research it further.
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Current 'V' favorites:
Valentin
Vanya
Vedran
Velimir
Vincente
Valentina
Verena
Veronica
Victoria
Viola
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Current 'V' favorites:
Valentin
Vanya
Vedran
Velimir
Vincente
Valentina
Verena
Veronica
Victoria
Viola
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Replies
Edwin D. Lawson's article about Russian names (a very reliable source) lists Sasha as nickname for Alexander and Alexandra and Sanya only for Alexander (not for Sofya), which means that in Russian it is not even feminine:
http://www.fredonia.edu/faculty/emeritus/edwinlawson/russiannames/
It is probable that when heard by non-Russian speakers, the ending -a was interpreted as a feminine mark and connected by folk etymology with Sonya (because Sanya and Sonya are similar) and then used incorrectly.
That said, I completely agree that Wikipedia is not a reliable source in general (some of the versions are better than others), especially in onomastics.
http://www.fredonia.edu/faculty/emeritus/edwinlawson/russiannames/
It is probable that when heard by non-Russian speakers, the ending -a was interpreted as a feminine mark and connected by folk etymology with Sonya (because Sanya and Sonya are similar) and then used incorrectly.
That said, I completely agree that Wikipedia is not a reliable source in general (some of the versions are better than others), especially in onomastics.
This message was edited 11/13/2009, 12:08 AM
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Thank you so much for that information!
Well, in Croatia both Vanja and Sasha are used as unisex names, so I's not hard to see where Sanja would also go under this category (although Sanja is exclusively female here).
It's also possible that it was created as a mix of Sonja and Tanja here, since both names were very popular at the time Sanja came into prominence.
Add the fact that Sanja is a word name here, I doubt there even is a clear answer.
BTW, there's a male form in use here - Sanjin.
Well, in Croatia both Vanja and Sasha are used as unisex names, so I's not hard to see where Sanja would also go under this category (although Sanja is exclusively female here).
It's also possible that it was created as a mix of Sonja and Tanja here, since both names were very popular at the time Sanja came into prominence.
Add the fact that Sanja is a word name here, I doubt there even is a clear answer.
BTW, there's a male form in use here - Sanjin.
1