Name «Mal»

The ancient Slavic personal name Mal originates from the adjective "malъ," which means "small," "little," or "tiny." The name could also have arisen through abbreviation from two-rooted names such as Malodobrъ, Mаломиръ, Maloslavъ, Malok, and similar.The earliest mention of the name Mal dates back to 945 AD: "da poidi za князь нашъ Malъ, бѣ бо имя ему Malъ князю Дьрьв-ску." This means that the Drevlyan prince Mal hailed from the city of Lyubech, located near Kyiv. He is also known as Malko Lyubchanin. Later mentions of this name appear in records from the 15th to the 18th centuries. For example, in 1465, Mat Tarhowka is mentioned, and in 1649 — the Cossack of the Chyhyryn regiment, Mal Korennyi.Many derivatives have been created from the name Mal, such as Malik, Malysh, Malko, Malii, Malюta, as well as patronymics like Malovych, Malenko, Malechkovych. Mentions of these names can be found in archival documents, for instance, in 1565: Khvedor Malievych — a resident of Ratne, Ihnat Malievych, and also Matey Malych — a resident of Kamianets. In Medieval Poland and Serbia, the Slavic name corresponded to the names Mat or Malъ.