Thread: Just a word (name) for translation

Originally Posted by jgonc

Milanya, no, I am not referring to Johnny Deep's character.

Thans Antonio and RedFox for your answers.

We can take for instance the name Дятлов - Most online translators will give you Woodpecker. But westernizing the word, it is Dyatlov.
I think i'd made a little mistake, the name in question is not Воробей, but Воробьев wich can be translated as Vorobyev, isn't it?

A surname can be Воробей.

Vorobey
Vorobyov

P.S. My logical guess would be that the воробей has this rather monstrous reputation because sparrows like to steal seeds that farmers have planted. In contrast, the ласточка ("swallow") has positive associations because it mostly eats insects (including harmful ones), not seeds.

P.P.S. I've been told that real Russian surnames like Воробьёв, Медведев, Тараканов, and so forth, probably derived from nicknames given to some peasant great-great-great-great-grandfather who was humorously called "Sparrow," "Bear," or "Cockroach" by his neighbors. Thus, Воробьёв signifies "descended from a medieval ancestor who was nicknamed 'the sparrow'."

As opposed to purely patronymic surnames like Павлов (originally "son of Pavel"), or occupational surnames like Кузнецов ("the blacksmith's son"), etc.