User-submitted Reference

Version 1. What does the name Medvedev mean?

The surname Medvedev goes back to the nickname Bear. Usually they called it either a sweet tooth or a clumsy, awkward person. However, quite often this nickname was associated with pagan ideas of the Slavs. From ancient times it was believed that the Bear is closely connected with evil spirits, that he is a sibling or hellish subject to hell and hell, as his master. At the same time, the devil is afraid and runs away from the Bear. In this case, the nickname Bear could act as the so-called 'protective' naming. According to the superstitious custom that existed in Russia, similar nicknames were assigned to children in order to avert evil forces. In order not to tempt fate and avert evil, children were given names with a meaning directly opposite to what the parents expected or desired for the children. The image of the Bear is also inherent in marriage symbolism, the symbolism of fertility and fertility, presented, in particular, in the wedding ceremony, in love magic, in the treatment of infertility, etc. Based on this, it can be assumed that the villagers could give the nickname the Bear, wishing him , thereby, a happy family life. Bear, eventually got the name Medvedev.

Version 2

Bear, teddy bear - not only the name of the animal, but also the name that was given to the baby if they wanted to grow him strong and courageous. In adulthood, this nickname could get louder, not knowing how to calculate their strength. There are a lot of 'bearish' surnames: Medvedev, Medvedin, Medvedikhin, Medveditsyn, Medvedkin, Medvedkov, Medvednikov, Medved, Medvezhatnikov (bear hunter, bear skins merchant). In some areas of Russia, a bear was called a skating rink for rolling roads, and a bear was a cart for transporting ships by drag; barrel workbench, a jack-type hoist. People related to these items could very well be nicknamed the Bear. It is worth remembering that there are plants of bear ears, a bear, a bear paw; Bears are a family of butterflies, and Bears are a family of insects. So free will - the meaning of these surnames is very diverse.

Version 3.

It was not for nothing that in ancient times Russia was called the country of bears, and the owner of the forests reigned on the coat of arms of Yaroslavl. Not a single beast, except the fox, has so many songs, fairy tales, proverbs, riddles. Crowbar, slough, chiropractor, clubfoot, scabby, shaggy, mohnach, lashak, forest devil, black dumb - what nicknames Mikhailo Toptygin came up with! A bear was called a skating rink, a threshing skating rink, a two-handed carpenter's plow, a two-handed carpenter's plow, a cart for transporting ships by drag, a barrel work bench, a jack-type hoist, etc. And what are the names of the phenomena of nature and plants: a bear sun (moon), a bear root, a bear berry, a bear paw, a bear ... Naturally, 'bear' nicknames such as the Bear, the Bear Head, the Bear Ear, the Bear arose; others then became surnames: Medveditsyn, Medvedev, Medvedkov, Medvednikov, Medvezhatnikov. Simeon Agafonnikovich Medvedev (as a monk Sylvester, 1641–91) - writer, scientist, educator. The author of notes on the uprising of 1682, theological works, syllabic verses. The most likely compiler of the first Russian bibliographic work: 'The table of contents of the books of who composed them.' For the support of Princess Sophia Medvedev was arrested in 1689; executed.