OCCUPATIONAL NAMES IN THE HUNGARIAN FAMILY NAME SYSTEM

Occupational names can be regarded as one of the most characteristic type of the Hungarian family name system: 10 out of the 20 most frequent family names of the current name stock are members of this category. The current paper explores the history of this family name type, with special emphasis on the social distribution of the name type and on the change in its frequency in proportion to other family name types. Furthermore, the survey touches upon the role of the occupational name type in the history of official family name changes in Hungary, investigates the social-historical and political background of choosing occupational family names, and also mentions some newly created occupational family names. Finally, the paper deals with the question of social discrimination on the basis of family names in contemporary history, which can lead to the changing of certain occupational family names into more "neutral" ones.