The history of the origin of the name Stepanov

To the end of the XV century in Russia was not accepted to use the names. The first owners of the names were people of noble birth, princes, and nobles, and later the nobility. The peasants received the right to have their own name only in the XIX century, after the abolition of serfdom. The word “name” comes from the Latin word familia, which means “family”. Is denoted by this word, not only the family but also the whole race. The name given to a person at birth.

Where did the name Stepanov?

The Mechanism of occurrence of surnames was as follows:

• When you are baptized all Slavs received from the priest names;
• Name should be something unique for the whole family;
• Sometimes, her education took the baptismal names and is the basis of the origin of the names of Stepanov, Ivan Petrov (from the names of Stephen, John and Peter, respectively);
• Often used some of the distinctive characteristics of a person or the whole family;
• It happened that the basis of names taken from the name of the territory where you lived at the time of the family.

Of Course, the names could learn a lot about the history of the genus. The origin of the name Stepanov has its roots deep into the history of Russia and occupies an important place in the rich Russian history. Bearers of this surname took an active part in the development of the Russian Federation, that is embodied in numerous documents of great historical value.

Origin and meaning of the surname Stepanov

In the second half of the XVI century the names of the Russian origin was formed mainly with the use of the suffixes -EV, -ov and-in. This feature explains the origin of the name Stepanov. Later this method of education began to use representatives of other nationalities residing on the territory of the Russian Empire.

One might assume that the name originates from the word “step”, but this is a false judgment. It actually comes from the name given at baptism – Stepan. Partly the origin of the name Stepanov due to the peculiarities of the Russian language in Ancient Rus. Sound “f” at that time there was also a feature of pronunciation. Thus, the Apostle John and has become in Russia Stepan. The history of the name Stephen originates in Greek language from ‘stephane" in Russian means "wreath". The Apostle Stephen was the first archdeacon, who, in his speech to the Sanhedrin priests accused in the murder of Christ. Stefan suffered from a raging mob, sucidava him with stones. So the Apostle Stephen became the first Martyr.

The Prevalence of names Stepanov

Was among the names Stepanovs and nobles. Vintage coat of arms has a shield divided in two. Part of the shield silver, part red. In the center of the shield is a lion that stood on its hind legs, and the front holds two lanes. Need lion located three parallel bands of blue color. The shield is decorated with ostrich feathers, and a noble helmet and the crown.

The Founders and most prominent representatives of the Stepanovs among the nobles,

• The court counselor and the mayor of Kozelsk, Prime major Pyotr Semyonovich Stepanov, who lived in the late XVIII century;
• The writer and the Governor of the Yenisei and Saratov provinces Alexander Petrovich Stepanov, who lived in the late XVIII to the early XIX century.

Name Stepan is the basis for more than a dozen names

Thanks to the many diminutive forms (examples walls, Stec, Stepsa, Stesha, Stepan, etc.) named after Stepan, owe their origin to many names, not one. Stenin, Stepurin, Stepanenko, Stepanyuk, A. stepanishchev, Stepuk - all derive from the name of Stepan, in its different variations and with different suffixes, characteristic of the formation of surnames in a particular area (e.g., Eastern and Western Ukraine). It is not surprising that the name Stepanov, whose history is multifaceted and amazing fifteenth most popular name in Russia.