Human names as companion animal names in Poland

Abstract

Our relationships with nonhumans are predominantly affected by how we describe them, as well as by giving some of them individual names. Most animals (wild, pests, cattle and so on) are never granted such privilege. Despite a few gray areas (some zoo animals are named, most are not), we persistently give names to the members of one particularly significant and abundant category: companion animals. By naming an individual, we not only choose how we want to represent that particular animal but also how others are to perceive it (Borkfelt. Animals 1:116-125, 2011). A predominant contemporary Western perception of the companion animal is that of a friend or family member. Would such perception be reflected in how we name our dogs, cats and rabbits? Furthermore, do people frequently use human names to name their companions? And is using human names in such a context an emerging fashion? This chapter presents the analysis of database records of the names of animals laid to rest at the largest Polish pet cemetery, Psi los, between 1993 and 2013. Within the 10,147 records subjected to categorization and temporal analysis, a steady trend of using human names-local, foreign, historical, and derived from pop culture-was observed in roughly 50 % of cases throughout the 20-year span. These findings mirror trends indicated previously in the USA (Bernstein, Schmidt, Topp, Richmond, and Diederich (2010). Linguistic comparison of pet cat names between USA and Belgium and possible meanings. Paper presented at the annual conference of the International Society for Anthrozoology; ISAZ 2010, Stockholm, Sweden. Abstract retrieved from). A relatively high frequency of using foreign names (an average of 18.95 % per year), and a tendency to choose both popular and old-fashioned Polish names for cats, dogs and other companions, were also observed.