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Archiver > HUNGARY > 2000-12 > 0975742962


From: Joseph J Jarfas <>
Subject: Re: [HUNGARY-L] Re: Pronunciation
Date: Sat, 02 Dec 2000 02:42:42 -0500
References: <41.42e3269.2759c445@aol.com>


wrote:

> Dear List,
> I just read the Roman Catholic church registry book for Karasz, Hungary, and
> I believe I found her baptism record. Her maiden name was Martha Matyi, or so I
> thought that was the correct spelling. She always pronounced it as "Mutt-yee".
> It looks on this registry that the last name is spelled Mathe, with and accent '
> over the last e. Could this be the name? Is this a common Hungarian name? In
> America in
> 1910 on her marriage license it was spelled two ways: Matye and Matyi.
> Any help would be appreciated. Thank you.
> Jamene Farrell

Hi Jamene,

Mathé would be more likely than Matye, Matyi or any other variation. Mathé is
the old way of spelling this name though. Today it is Máté.

Do you know if she was literate? Any spellings on documents where she would be
the 'speller' is of course suspect - if she was illiterate herself. Not to speak
of the fact that different officials spelled the same name differently.

Matyi is the nickname for Máttyás, Mátyás, which is a given name = Matthias
... but even these are used as surnames some times.

Joe

--
Joseph J Jarfas
Equinunk, PA - USA




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