Author: Ginka Bakardzhieva
Plovdiv university Paisii Hilendarski
Published in: Slavyanski dialozi, VII, 2010, 10-11
Abstract: Appellativization is the process in which a proper name loses its proprial function and moves into the class of common nouns. The basic mechanisms enabling this transition are metaphor and metonymy, and the basic sources for that are anthroponyms (юда/jidáš, меценат/ mecenáš), toponyms (дамаска/damašek), and chrematonyms (ксерокс/xerox). In specialized terminology appellativized names are introduced on purpose and have the character of international words with nominative function (ом/ohm, ват/watt). In contrastive studies, stylistically marked appellativized names of both domestic and foreign origin that appeared spontaneously and were imposed by the usage (байганьо, гаврош, janek, grázl), are of particular interest.