Any Russian Speakers out there? Does Chertoff mean "of the devil"

[Mind_your_head]

<snip>
This may be really quite something of poetic irony. According to Politico, one of the contenders to replace the soon to be "spending more time with his family" Attorney General Alberto Gonzales is none other than the failure-chief of DHS, Michael Chertoff:

"Among the names floated Monday by administration officials were Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff and White House anti-terrorism coordinator Frances Townsend. Former Deputy Attorney General Larry Thompson is a White House prospect. So is former solicitor general Theodore B. Olson, but sources were unsure whether he would want the job."

In Russian, Chertoff translates to "of the Devil." I wonder how our Christian right citizenry will find this nomination, assuming it happens? I mean Fox news has made much of Senator Obama's name, for example, fearing all-convulsive like that he may have ties to Islamic militants. So I wonder how someone "of the devil" himself will bode as the chief law enforcement official for the nation? Cute, no?
<snip>

http://www.atlargely.com/

Just read this and it made me go :wow: if true.

[pinto]

1. Eh. I don't give a hoot about Obama's middle name *nor* the translation of Chertoff.

[Mind_your_head]

2. Well, in a certain way I agree (it's more of a curiosity re: Chertoff)

Origins of Surnames - When they were created, they answered one of the following questions: Who is this person's father? Where is this person from? What does this person do for a living? What is his or her most prominent feature?

I did a quick search and found that Cheney means: (origin: Fr. Local) From Chene, an oak; Chenaie, a grove, a plantation of oaks.

(too bad it wasn't aspens, eh? - it would make me go :wow: again)

It's difficult to use those Russian translator sites b/c Russian has that funky alphabet. However, I just remembered that I do know someone who speaks Russian and will ask them tomorrow about the name Chertoff. You have to admit that the guy does have a weird skeletal look about him.

Anyway, thanks for replying! :-)

[pinto]

4. LOL. Aspens...yeah, I can see it as a fun curiosity. I thought "Chertoff" was

from the Cheney - "f*** off", colloquial slang, usually used in the well of the Senate..:evilgrin:

[The Blue Flower]

3. Russian epithet

I remember from my college Russian that "chort vas-MI" means go to the devil.

[LisaL]

9. Yes, it's incredibly silly.

[Behind the Aegis]

5. From what I can find...

"Cher-" is actually a form for the word "black." Therefore, "chertoff" would be "family of Blacks" or the "Black Family." There is a mythological character called "CHERNOBOG" which means "Black god" in Slavic. It seems it was co-opted into Russian myth and associated with a "devil", but from what I can find, not "the" Devil, as we know him.

http://ftp.vpcit.ru/cgi-bin/dict/bobo/trans?name=black&ttype%3Aint=2">Russian transliteration: black (blk) chjornyjj

чёрт

That is what I found. However, a Russian speaker (or Slavic) might be able to explain better.

[LisaL]

6. Chert means the devil. Not black.

[FreeState]

7. Not according to google

Not that google knows anything... but it translated it as "lie"

[LisaL]

8. Well, if google did it, it would be a wrong translation.

[Behind the Aegis]

10. Do you speak Russian?

[mooseprime]

11. i'm a russian speaker

yes it does mean that literally. but it isn't something native speakers would necessarily register -- for example, when you hear the last name 'cooper' you don't typically think of barrel-making. last names were not used in russia until the 18th century, and all kinds of wild ones entered the language at that time.

[Behind the Aegis]

12. Interesting.

I like the origin of words and names. I have found one entry where chert means 'devil.' The other word I found was, энергичный. Most of the entries I found would indicate it was a derivative of the word "black," including the "devil" meaning "black one." So, is it possible that the name wasn't created to mean "Family of the Devil", but rather "Family of the Black (usually skin color/hair or personality)"? Thanks for the info.