Where did Bobby Balls, Bugs, Polkans and Tuziki come from?

2024 Author: Seth Attwood | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 15:55

Have you ever thought about how the famous and once very popular dog names appeared: Tuzik, Zhuchka Polkan, Barbos or Sharik? By the way, about the latter, in honor of the geometric figure, the dogs were not called at all because of the fluffy fur or rounded shapes.

Watchdog

This nickname became especially popular after the release of the legendary short films by Leonid Gaidai. It appeared in Russia in the 19th century thanks to novels about pirates and robbers. The protagonist of one of the stories was Captain Barbossa, famous for his abundant facial hair and intolerant disposition. His name comes from the Latin word "barbe" - beard. In many modern languages, the word has retained its meaning, for example, in Romanian bărbós means bearded.

Tuzik

All tuziki owe their name to the popularity of the French language among noble persons. Often, the “cream of society” spent their evenings playing cards, slowly stroking their lapdogs, and it so happened that among all the colors and names the ace took root best of all, only in a diminutive form.

Ball

Here, it would seem, everything is clear, small fluffy hairballs, they are Balls. But not everything is so simple, especially when you consider that Balls were often called far from small and not always fluffy mongrels. In all likelihood, the name came from the Polish language, in which the word szary ("shary") means "gray".

But there is another version, it says that this nickname was invented by peasants, whose ears and tongues did not perceive the soft French word Chéri ("cutie"), which the noblewomen often called their favorites.

Which version is more plausible for you to decide.

Trezor

Opinions are also divided about the roots of this nickname. Some believe that she has French roots, because the word Tresor is translated as "treasure". What is not a nickname for a beloved pet. According to another version, Trezor, or Trevzor, is an Old Slavonic name that means "clairvoyant", "having a third eye", "looking in three eyes." A treasure with vigilance in three eyes can not only be nursed, but also left to guard the house.

Bug

Many believe that dogs owe this name to small black beetles. Perhaps it was the annoying buzzing of insects and the same annoying barking of small dogs that someone considered very similar. But you can also remember the verbs with Polish roots "to bug", that is, "to throw" or "zhutsach shche" - to throw yourself at someone or somewhere. Seems to fit perfectly.

Polkan

Son of the regiment? Nearly. This name is found even in the ancient Russian heroic tale of the 16th century about Bove the Korolevich and his battle with Polkan - a monster, half-man, half-dog of huge size. By false etymology, he was identified with a centaur, and then they thought, why not call Polkans very large dogs, almost the size of a horse.

But there is one caveat. If we analyze the roots of the story of Bove the Royal, it turns out that this is a later version of the already existing Western European story of the 12th century about a knight. In the Italian version, the main opponent of the valiant warrior was a certain Pulican, in him a Polkan muzzle is clearly traced.

Rex

From Latin, Rex is translated as king, king. And the fact that the nickname has taken root in Russian life is also the result of the nobility's enthusiasm for foreign languages.

Tobik and Bobik

Everything is very simple here, these names are variants of the Russian adaptation of the English names Bobby and Tobby, although they appeared a little later than the others.

Mukhtar

They began to call the dogs that after the release of the film "To Me, Mukhtar" (1965) with Yuri Nikulin and a German shepherd in the lead roles. And this was the case when Israel Metter, a writer and screenwriter, visited the Museum of the Leningrad Criminal Investigation Department, he saw a stuffed animal of the heroic dog Sultan, who had worked in the police for ten years and helped to detain more than a thousand criminals. After talking with Sultan's partner, retired Major Pyotr Bushmin, Metter wrote a short story, which was then used to make a film. He changed his nickname to a consonant, retaining the Arabic root: in Arabic Mukhtar means "chosen, chosen one", in Turkish - "headman, overseer."