Imiennictwo w polskich rodzinach ziemiańskich na przełomie XIX i XX wieku

The article concerns Polish personal names and their various unofficial versions and names of animals in the family language of Polish gentry families. Based on the diaries of representatives of landed gentry families concerning the second half of the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century, the author presents and interprets the unofficial forms of names and nicknames used in these families. She shows the main structural types of word-formation variants of male and female names, discusses their pragmatic functions and typical contexts of use. She reveals the forms of names characteristic of the gentry. The author shows the landowner’s name as an essential component of the family language of this social class.