Imiona i przezwiska w środowisku wiejskim. Inspiracje i perspektywy badawcze

Proper names appeared probably at the initial stage of cultural develop ment, because people always needed to distinguish each other and the elements of the surrounding world. It was possible thanks to proper names. They were always unique signs of the culture where they functioned, they reflected the vision of the world of the community using them and they revealed the character istic features of its history, selfconsciousness and mentality. Therefore, proper names are an interesting subject of anthropological studies. In this article the authoress discusses, how proper names are formed and how they function in the rural environment. This study aims at both presenting some characteristic features of this kind of vocabulary in respect of the past and suggesting any clues that might be followed in futher studies conducted in this field. In the text the autoress focuses on three categories of proper names: names of people, nicknames and names of animals