The common noun soutka in minor place names in Bohemia Cover Image

„Mezi chalupama ulička to ouzká“ aneb Apelativum soutka v pomístních jménech v Čechách
The common noun soutka in minor place names in Bohemia

Author(s): Martina Zirhutová
Subject(s): Sociolinguistics
Published by: AV ČR - Akademie věd České republiky - Ústav pro jazyk český
Keywords: onomastics; minor place names in Bohemia; the common noun soutka; narrow roads between houses or gardens; folk etymology

Summary/Abstract: The paper deals with the use of the common noun soutka in minor place names in Bohemia. This dialectal word refers to narrow roads/footpaths between houses and/or gardens both in rural and urban areas. The focus of the article is on the analysis of minor place names containing this common noun or its variants (souska, šouska) and their geographical occurrence. Whereas the common noun soutka is usually described as specific to Southern Bohemia, minor place names containing this lexical item are found in the southern parts of Central Bohemia and only northern parts of Southern Bohemia. In the rest of this region, other dialectal words with the same or similar meaning are used in the minor place names referring to narrow roads between houses or gardens (zahata, souhrada). Folk etymology often associates the name Soutka with the words soud (a court/trial) or soudek (a small cask). Thus, the name has frequently been written down as Soudka.

  • Issue Year: LXI/2020
  • Issue No: 2
  • Page Range: 388-402
  • Page Count: 15
  • Language: Czech