About some outdated folk geographical terms of the west of Novgorod lands

Abstract

In the article, based on the materials of Novgorod scribe books, the features of the two main semantic groups of toponyms in the west of medieval Novgorod lands are considered — place names indicating the connection of the named object with another object and place names indicating the morphology of the object. The analytical part of the article is preceded by a brief description of the toponymic study of the region and an analysis of the key natural features of the region that affect the nomination of settlements; the article substantiates the geological and geographical informativeness of the names of settlements in medieval Novgorod lands. The author suggests considering a separate group of toponyms of a mixed type – locative-qualitative, especially characteristic of the early stages of the formation of the toponymic picture of the region (the initial fixation of the most place names of the small villages in official state documents). The author's versions of the origin of such bases in toponyms as: lez'e (wing of the bend), kilom (wedge — for a land area isolated by water with a characteristic wedge-shaped shape) are proposed. Also by author's are proposed the locative and qualitative component in the place names of a number of disappeared and preserved villages on the territory of the former Vodskaya Pyatina. Author proposes a version of the appearance of dialect folk geographical terms on the territory of Novgorod lands.