Cultural Post 3

[Taylor Johnson]

Similar to Russian, Ukrainian uses the system of patronymics for naming. The patronymic is created by using the person's father's name, and adding an ending to it. For girls, the ending is -евна and for a boy, the ending is -вич. A person's patronymic is typically used during introductions, in formal situations, and on official documents. Addressing someone without their patronymic, especially upon first introduction, is a major faux pas because it is considered incredibly rude. In addition to patronymics, Ukrainian has a lot of different diminutive versions of a person's name. For example, the name Tatiana has several variants, and you can use them based on the level of familiarity you have with that person (in this case, Tatiana). Until you develop some sort of relationship with Tatiana, you are to address her with her full patronymic (for example: Tatiana Ivanovna). Once you start to see each other as acquaintances, you may address her as simply Tatiana. If you become friends, you can call her Tanya. Her family members or her boyfriend may address her as Tanechka, Tanyusha, Tanyura, Tanyukha or Tatianka. As you can see, there are many different names that a Ukrainian person can answer to, and knowing which names you can call someone is a very important social concept to understand.