Dombrovsky

[Margaret Mikulska]

> ------------------------------
>
> Date:    Sun, 3 Nov 1996 10:48:44 -0500
> From:    Serge Rogosin <SRogosin at aol.com>
> Subject: Slv. surname ref.;Pol.(?)name Dombrovsky
>
> Is there a standard reference work to Slavic last names?  I am currently
> searching for  the meaning and origin of the name Dombrovsky in connection to
> possibly related Russian and Ukrainian surnames.  Any information--or even
> educated guesses--would be much appreciated.
>
> Serge Rogosin
>
> ------------------------------

The name Da,browski is Polish (spelled with a cedilla-like "tail"
underneath the "a" - the spelling "Dombrovsky" is only a transcription
approximating the original Polish pronunciation).  The origin is simple:
it derives from the word "da,b" , meaning "oak tree" or "da,browa" ,
meaning "a forest or wood of oak trees".  It is most certainly related
to the Russian "dub" and "Dubrovskij".

It is often hard to tell what _exactly_ the "meaning" of a family name
is.  In this case, the most likely association would be "somebody
living near an oak forest".  Alternatively, it could mean "somebody from
the village called Dabrowa".  Since oaks are very common in Poland,
villages and small towns called "Da,browa", "Da,bro'wka", etc. are also
common.

-Margaret Mikulska
mikulska at astro.princeton.edu