Etymology
The etymology of the word ataman / hetman is disputed. There may be several independent Germanic and Turkic origins for seemingly cognate forms of the word, all referring to the same concept. The hetman form may derive from the German Hauptmann by the way of Polish, like several other titles. The ataman form is more probably of Turkic origin, literally meaning "father of horsemen". During certain periods, broadly corresponding with involvement with the Polish-Lithuanian or Polish-Lithuanian-Ruthenian Commonwealth, the supreme leader of Ukrainian Cossacks was called Hetman. The ataman form is more commonly found in Russian periods, and exists in modern Russian, Turkish and Tatar. Also see Hetman: Etymology.
Read more about this topic: Ataman
Famous quotes containing the word etymology:
“The universal principle of etymology in all languages: words are carried over from bodies and from the properties of bodies to express the things of the mind and spirit. The order of ideas must follow the order of things.”
—Giambattista Vico (1688–1744)
“Semantically, taste is rich and confusing, its etymology as odd and interesting as that of “style.” But while style—deriving from the stylus or pointed rod which Roman scribes used to make marks on wax tablets—suggests activity, taste is more passive.... Etymologically, the word we use derives from the Old French, meaning touch or feel, a sense that is preserved in the current Italian word for a keyboard, tastiera.”
—Stephen Bayley, British historian, art critic. “Taste: The Story of an Idea,” Taste: The Secret Meaning of Things, Random House (1991)