The most famous female name in the world. The most common name in the world
The sentence “may the earth rest in peace” has quite ancient roots, dating back to the times when paganism dominated the earth. According to most historians, it came to us from Ancient Rome, where these words sounded in Latin as “Sit tibi terra levis”.
The wish for a “land made of fluff” was used by some Roman poets and philosophers in their works. Thus, in the poems of a certain Mark Valery Martial there are the following lines: “Sit tibi terra levis, molliquetegaris harena, Ne tua non possint eruere ossa canes,” in other words, “May the earth rest in peace and softly cover you with sand, so that dogs can dig your bones." What did this phrase mean to the Romans: a wish for good or, on the contrary, was it used as a curse?
A wish for good or evil?
Undoubtedly, from the point of view modern man continuation of the common Latin expression“Sit tibi terra levis” sounds from Martial as a wish for evil and torment even after death. However, we should not forget that we're talking about after all, it’s about paganism, which means that it’s not worth interpreting the poet’s words in the light of today’s culture, civilization or religion. Moreover, archaeologists find the abbreviation of the wish “Sit tibi terra levis” - “S.T.T.L” on many gravestones of those times. There were also various interpretations this phrase: T·L·S - “Terra levis sit” (May the earth rest in peace) or S·E·T·L - “Sit ei terra levis” (May the earth rest in peace).
The fact is that pagans often believed that human soul after his death, it does not disappear anywhere from the body, and therefore, if desired, the deceased can turn around, sit down, stand up, or even go somewhere. It was precisely in order for the deceased to lie comfortably in the grave or, if necessary, to get out, that they wished him “rest in peace.”
Attitude to the phrase from a religious point of view
Some people mistakenly believe that the expression “may you rest in peace” is absolutely identical to the wish for the “Kingdom of Heaven.” However Orthodox priests argue that this is far from true. In their opinion, “Sit tibi terra levis” is a pagan phrase and has nothing to do with Christianity. After all, according to Christian teaching, soul in dead body does not remain, but leaves him, rushing to the judgment of God. This means that this phrase should not be uttered by a believer.
27-10-2017, 00:29
Tomorrow, October 28, - Dimitrievskaya parent's Saturday. As a rule, it falls on the closest Saturday before the day of remembrance of the Great Martyr Demetrius of Thessaloniki (November 8). However, this year, due to the fact that November 4 will be the feast of the Kazan Icon Holy Mother of God, Dimitrievskaya Parents' Saturday is moved a week earlier.
On this day, all Orthodox believers will remember their deceased relatives and friends.
But today we would like to talk a little about another topic that is directly related to our ancestors and the memory of them, namely about the pagan ritual, when during the funeral the deceased is told the words “May the earth rest in peace...”.
The fact is, as some philologists believe, these words are nothing more than an ancient Roman curse on the deceased. The pagans considered it the highest dishonor when the body did not rest in the ground. The ancient Roman poet Marcus Valerius Martial, who lived in the first century after Christ (40-104), has a poem that contains the following words:
Sit tibi terra levis, mollique tegaris harena,
Ne tua non possint eruere ossa canes.
Translated it sounds like this:
May the earth rest in peace to you,
And softly covers the sand,
so the dogs can dig up your bones
In fairness, it should be said that another part of philologists does not agree with the opinion of the first that the words “May the earth rest in peace...” are a curse. They claim that this expression was used before Martial. On ancient Roman tombstones you can often see the following letters - S·T·T·L - this is the epitaph of - “Sit tibi terra levis” (may the earth rest in peace). There were options: T·L·S - “Terra levis sit” (May the earth rest in peace) or S·E·T·L - “Sit ei terra levis” (May the earth rest in peace). Currently, a similar epitaph can be found in English speaking countries, there tombstones often have the inscription - R.I.P. (Rest In Peace) - rest in peace.
But despite this, a Christian should not use this expression in any case. Why? Because we do not believe that the soul is in the earth along with the decaying body. We know that the soul of the deceased will gain or eternal life in Heaven, or eternal torment in hell.
The pagans thought differently. They thought that the earth could put pressure on a person’s body, causing him discomfort, so in last minutes When bidding farewell to loved ones, they wished “the world to rest in peace.” This all points to the pagan belief that the soul can reside next to its body or even in the body itself. If we remember history, we will see confirmation of these words among various ancient peoples who equipped their relatives and friends in last way very carefully: in addition to rich jewelry, clothing, kitchen utensils, wines, oils, they often killed slaves and servants of the deceased, and even their wives, who were buried in the same grave with the deceased.
At the same time, undoubtedly, one should have reasoning and a sense of spiritual tact when hearing at a funeral from a grief-stricken person the words he says to a deceased relative or neighbor: “May the earth rest in peace...”. You should not interrupt him in order to reason with him or start a discussion with him. We must wait for the time and, when the opportunity presents itself, very carefully tell him that it is not appropriate for Christians to use such an expression.
A name is given to a person once - and for the rest of his life. Some still decide to change it, but in most cases this gift from their parents is worn all their lives. But there are a lot of people in the world, but not very many names. As a result, often certain periods a fashion for one name or another appears. It changes over time, but some stay at the top for years. And today we will try to find the most common name, the one that occurs most often.
Ivan
Just Russian name actually has very deep roots. It originally appeared in ancient Judea. True, then it did not sound very familiar: Yehoan, which means “Yahweh will be merciful.” In this simple way, mothers wanted to attract good luck to their sons. What mother would want the opposite? It is not surprising that the number of Yehoans increased every year.
The name Ivan was and remains especially popular among Slavic peoples. It even became a household word, denoting a Russian. And during Soviet Union on the wave of friendship with fraternal peoples it spread to Latin American countries.
How many Ivans do you see on the map of the most common names?
At the same time, most languages have their own version of the name Ivan. But it’s not always possible to recognize them. Their list is impressive: John, Jan, Yas, Jean, Juan, Zhuan, Johann, Hans, Vano, Gianni, Giovanni, John, Ivo, Ehan, Sean, Ivan. And this is not counting the female variations: Ivanna, Ivanka, Yasya, Yana. By the way, one of the most popular Russian surnames, Ivanov, is popular for this very reason.
Anna
Like many other most common names, this one has biblical story. By the way, in meaning it is close to Ivan and means “favor, disposition.” It is interesting that the Bible mentions both women who bore this name (the mother of the Virgin Mary, for example), and men (the high priest, one of the members of the Sanhedrin who condemned Jesus Christ). There is also a more common male version - Hanan.
And now we are looking for An
But still, today this name has become exclusively female, but has become widespread in many languages: Anna, Ann, Ani, Ganna, Nana, Hannah. It turns out that, unlike Ivan, numerous translations from language to language spared Anna. Relatively.
Muhammad
And this name is already from a different culture. And if Anna and Ivan are most often found among Christian countries, then Muhammad is one of the favorite names of Muslims, whose number is increasing every year.
It is not difficult to explain this popularity. It was the name Muhammad that the prophet bore - the most revered personality of Islam. Members of many faiths traditionally call their firstborn this way, so it is not surprising that this is now the most common name among men.
The statistics are enhanced when we consider that this name has a lot of variations: Muhammad, Magomed, Muhamad, Mahmud, Magomed, Magoma, Mamed, Mehmet, Maoma, Mamado. Outside of Islam, this name is quite rare; one is very strong in it religious aspect.
Alexander/Alexandra
One of the most popular names has long history. Its roots must be sought back in Ancient Greece, when it meant the banal “man, man,” sometimes it meant “defender.” Such a long history allowed it not only to spread, but also to gain a fairly popular female form.
IN different languages Alexander accepted the most different shapes: Alex, Oles, Sandor, Iskander, Alejandro, Leso. At the same time, there are also women’s ones: Alexandra, Sandra, Alex. And there are a great many such diverse Alexanders around the world.
Now you know which name is the most popular in the world. They all have deep meaning and a long history. They are beautiful and noble, but if you don't want five children turning around when you call yours, you should look for something more original. The main thing is not to overdo it.
