The subject of the article is the occurrence of dialectal features in Internet nicknames. The analysis was carried out on the basis of about 2500 nicknames that contained dialectal features. The names were obtained within the years 2012–2015. In the analysis, linguistic areas were indicated in which we may notice the influence of local dialects on that layer of the Internet anthroponymy. The influence of local dialects is visible in the fact that the Internet users reach for traditional folk names as well as name models related to the folk manner of identifying a human being, e.g. Jagatka, Jantecek, Janielka od Genowefy, Cesiek z Tuchowa. Apart from references to folk anthroponymy, the Internet nicknames reflect the influence of local dialect lexis (e.g. gzub, graślok, fusyt), phonetics (janioł, Carownica, łokrutny łoptymista), inflection (Śpisok z Łapsóf, ciupaga łod tater) and word-formation, e.g. (rzemyszek, cwaniuk).

The common layer of Jewish and Christian name systems consists of biblical names from the Old Testament. The comparison showing how these Old Testament names functioned in both faiths on Podlasie in 15th–16th centuries revealed a close connection between chosen names as well as their popularity over the centuries and cultural traditions formed by faith.

This paper is devoted to the surname changes performed through administrative channels in the interwar period. The research is based on the announcements of the “Official Gazette of the Republic of Poland” in 1929. The author describes main reasons for the decisions of surname changes taking into account characteristics of avoided surnames and chosen demographic tendencies, especially those connected with the age and profession of applicants. People of Jewish origin, Poles and representatives of other nationalities showed different motives for surname changes. Jews most frequently changed their surnames due to legal reasons — they wanted to legalize the unlawful use of a surname of the so-called ritual father. The changes carried out under the motive of assimilation occurred definitely less often. Non-Jewish applicants changed mainly appellative names, especially those derived from words related to animals. After comparing tendencies occurring before and after World War II one concludes that besides legal and assimilation factors which are particular to the pre-war decades (connected with the ethnic, legal and religious situation of the time), the remaining reasons for the surname changes are universal and do not distinguish the pre-war period from that of the post-war.

In light of the publication of the last volume of the onomasticon “Polish Anthroponymy of 16th–18th Century”, the authors reflect on the inspiration for the dictionary. They highlight the role of Professor Aleksandra Cieślikowa in shaping the concept of the volume and present stages of its creation and publication, as well as indicating the importance of describing anthroponymic phenomena in a historical and sociocultural context. The authors discuss the structure of each entry and of the whole dictionary and the sources used. The uniqueness of the onomasticon, owing to the variety of textual data referred to in the dictionary, is emphasised. The authors believe that “Polish Anthroponymy” may be a good starting point for further syntheses for other researchers.

This article aims to present several gender theories related to linguistics which could be useful for contemporary onomastics. The author would also like to demonstrate their applicability (especially the theory by R. Connell) in particular onomastic and textological analyses. In the first part of the article, the author explains that there are numerous ways to define gender within the discipline of gender studies. The author focuses on constructivist and performative approaches, especially on those which understand gender as a discursive and normative category. In the second part, the author presents four gender theories by: J. Butler, R. Connell, J. Scott, and by French feminists (J. Kristeva, H. Cixous), paying attention to their methodological value: understanding gender as a linguistic/performative/semiotic/symbolic/discursive category, as a group of textual practices (games) existing in the dominant culture, and the maintenance or defiance of gender. All of those notions can be related to different groups of onyms and their associated communicative practices. In the third part, the author presents the directions of research conducted in post-1945 Polish anthroponomastics in the field of feminine names (she is particularly interested in lexical, systemic, and contextual (social, historical etc.) mechanisms). In the empirical section, the author formulates her most important assumption concerning research of gender onomastics in the media (Polish women’s magazines): femininities are constructs, primarily of a normative, model-creating function, they produce hierarchy and difference; proper names are important “notional nodes” in those constructs. The analysis claims that there are at least three different femininities: dominant (celebrity), banal (anonymous) and defiant (rebellious). Female proper names are an important part of each construct as their arrangement (name and surname, name alone, diminutive of the name or culturally-loaded name), along with the appropriate description of their bearers, can give an impression of the popularity and familiarity of certain people and of their high social status or of their anonymity, closeness or unreality.This article aims to present several gender theories related to linguistics which could be useful for contemporary onomastics. The author would also like to demonstrate their applicability (especially the theory by R. Connell) in particular onomastic and textological analyses. In the first part of the article, the author explains that there are numerous ways to define gender within the discipline of gender studies. The author focuses on constructivist and performative approaches, especially on those which understand gender as a discursive and normative category. In the second part, the author presents four gender theories by: J. Butler, R. Connell, J. Scott, and by French feminists (J. Kristeva, H. Cixous), paying attention to their methodological value: understanding gender as a linguistic/performative/semiotic/symbolic/discursive category, as a group of textual practices (games) existing in the dominant culture, and the maintenance or defiance of gender. All of those notions can be related to different groups of onyms and their associated communicative practices. In the third part, the author presents the directions of research conducted in post-1945 Polish anthroponomastics in the field of feminine names (she is particularly interested in lexical, systemic, and contextual (social, historical etc.) mechanisms). In the empirical section, the author formulates her most important assumption concerning research of gender onomastics in the media (Polish women’s magazines): femininities are constructs, primarily of a normative, model-creating function, they produce hierarchy and difference; proper names are important “notional nodes” in those constructs. The analysis claims that there are at least three different femininities: dominant (celebrity), banal (anonymous) and defiant (rebellious). Female proper names are an important part of each construct as their arrangement (name and surname, name alone, diminutive of the name or culturally-loaded name), along with the appropriate description of their bearers, can give an impression of the popularity and familiarity of certain people and of their high social status or of their anonymity, closeness or unreality.

In 2018, the 90th anniversary of Professor Vasiliy Danilovich Bondaletov`s birth will be celebrated. The aim of the article is to remind readers of the quantitative and qualitative method of statistical analysis in anthroponomastic research developed by Professor Bondaletov, as well as to show its advantages over simplified descriptions of the frequency of personal names. In this article, the detailed analysis of male Christian names found in customs books from Northern Russia (1633–1636 and 1678–1680) was conducted. The comparison of statistical data, according to the suggestion of Professor V. D. Bondaletov, enabled us to observe subtle differences between the abovementioned resources, namely to estimate the level of their (dis)similarity and describe the dynamics of the evolution of the resources of male Christian names throughout the 17th century, as well as changes in the popularity of various names.