The city of Freiburg/Fribourg in western Switzerland has since its foundation in 1157 always been situated on the limit between the french and the german language. This fits also the canton of Fribourg, which counts one third german and two thirds french speaking inhabitants. The street and familynames as well as the geographical names are therefore mostly bilingual. Nevertheless the officially leading language could change during the centuries. The origin of the names went according to different scenarios: Immediate or later translation, borrowing and adaptation or sometimes one single name für both communities. Political motives made noble families translate their names whereas the generalisation of exonyms was due to the sens of order of ancient administration.

The name of the river Lambro/Lambrus near Milano (Italy/Roman province Gallia-Transpadana) will be reconstructed as indoeuropean *h1lṇgwhró-s ‘quick’. Compared with other geographic names it will be supposed, that Lambrus is a celtic relict name. The problem is, in which way celtic labiovelars, e.g. /gw/, are integrated in the post-celtic languages.

Slavic nobility, language and names between the rivers Saale and Elbe (10th-13th centuries) – In 2018 the archbishopric Magdeburg will celebrate its 1050th anniversary of existence. Therefore several questions in connection with interethnic relations between Slavic population and German governers are treated. From 930 up till 1150 a. Chr. a Slavonic majority was dominated by a German minority in all districts between the rivers Saale and Elbe. The author gives different answers and arguments by linguistic material to demonstrate mutual acknowledgement and tolerance by two different ethnics. The historical view allows results about interethnic communication since the 10th century. Furthermore an important fact can be made evident: German government accepted and preserved the old Slavic castles, regional names and lots of toponyms as signs of the former structure of the Slavic territory. The article offers special attention to the members of Slavic nobility. The author verifies about hundred persons with their names as examples of Slavic noble born representatives. Historical documents explain these persons’ duties as well as their secular and clerical charges in the time of Middle Ages. Some can be shown in top functions near to the German king or his margrave. German representatives apparently used the so called lingua Slavica misssionarica not only as language of Christian conversion, but also when it was necessary to discuss and to treat themes of administration.

The study concerning the Slavic district Neletici on the Mulde River follows up on the research done on the Slavic settlement of the Leipzig Land and also of the pagus Quezici (around and to the west of Eilenburg) and is based on the same methodical principles. Taking into account relevant research done by Horst Naumann and Ernst Eichler 96 Slavic place names are again analysed in regard to etymology, formation und meaning. Accordingly, the use of two multi-colored maps aid in illustrating the area settled by the Slavs who immigrated from Bohemia. The core area of the regio Neletici is not the territory directly around Wurzen but lies to the north between the Mulde an the Lossabach. The borders of Neletici are distinctly established by the Slavic districts Chutici and Quezici in the west and northwest and by the Slavic settlements on the Elbe River. The border to the south could be determined even more precisely by analogical research.

Names are treated in historical documents at the beginning of the 12th century in the South-West of Saxony along the rivers Mulde and Chemnitz. The article gives a review about the territories along two rivers with focus on the oldest settlements and their names. So it was possible to offer new facts with help of onymic analyses. The region is described as the real center with the beginning of the so called “Eastern Settlement” in the western part of Saxony and the East of Thuringia. The acceptance of Slavic names by the German administration can be proved already since 930 a. Chr. The initiatives of secular and clerical sovereigns and Lords are widely illustrated.

There are two similar toponyms: some villages called Stainz in Styria and some farms called Steinz(en) in Upper Austria. Their etymology was explained in the same way, that is of slavic origin, although only Stainz is to be found in the former slavic area, whereas Steinz(en) is in the german area. They have also different dialectal pronunciations with the vowel [a] and the diphthong [ai] and differt etymologies. Stainz is really based on slavic *Ščavьnica meaning „sour mineral water“. For the agronym Steinz(en) an OHG word *Stūnitza can be reconstructed. In combination with dialectical words it refers to sprigs growing up in meadows.

The place names ending with -ing are a special phenomenum in Old High German. They give important hints on settlement history, although these depend on written records, especially their first mention in those. Therefore; the terms „echte“ (authentic), „wahrscheinlich echte“ (probably authentic) and „unechte“ (false) became established. The paper discusses the reasons and foundations and the history of these terms and the possibility of changing the nomenclature on occasion of -ing-Names in Lower Austria.

Given present-day distribution of the German family name Nobis in two main areas, the article examines its original meaning as far as the chiefly rural Erzgebirge region in the South West of Saxony is concerned. The author has his doubts about the widely held opinion that Nobis, derived from remote taverns of the same name (Nobiskrug, Nobishaus), is alleged to designate the ‘devil’, or rather, a person of this kind. Instead, the negating, slightly pejorative argot term nobis/Nobis involving the idea of smallness is taken up to explain this family name.

This paper takes a closer look at different contemporary and historical modes of naming, which are used to refer to well-known historical figures, focussing especially on women. Mainly based on the example of Christiana von Goethe (née Vulpius), social and pragmatic dimensions of divers naming practices are discussed. Therefore, using different names is not only essential for reference and identification but also depends on the speaker’s/sender’s objectives speaking/writing about the historical figure. A specific mode of naming, e.g. using a pet name or using only a person’s surname, can express closeness and distance, intimacy and reticence, respect and affection, but also degradation and disregard. Concerning the naming of well-known German women of the 18th century, conventions evolved which also serve as a base of present-day usage. Examining the self-reference of Christiana von Goethe compared to the modes of naming in modern biographies show inconsistencies and partly even contradictions, mostly due to the change of name after marriage or remarriage. Furthermore, differences between naming practices referring to women and men are investigated.

In contrast to generic names, proper names primarily serve to highlight the uniqueness of an object. This task is also fulfilled by personal names, which are intended to characterize people in their uniqueness. The first and last names, which are used most frequently in linguistic communication, play a special role here. If, in most instances, the first names used in the German language are assigned to concrete meanings only in an etymological approach, they often also call particular associations and lead to the formation of assumptions, e.g. With regard to the question, with which other cultural circle, apart from the German, the respective person or their ancestors could be connected additionally. In this way, the first names of the Upper Silesians and their use in the colloquial language show that they come to the interweaving of German and Polish elements, which in turn can be regarded as the linguistic peculiarity of the group.