In Czech Republic, battle 'ova' sexist language »
Posted By gamahuche 4 months ago in FamilyLucie Kundra is something of a feminist rebel - not because she wouldn't take her husband's name when they got married in 2008, but because she did.
She adopted his surname exactly as it was and in doing so defied centuries of tradition and the wishes of her own mother. That's because she refused to add the customary feminine suffix "ova" to the end of her husband's name, as the Czech language normally dictates; she answers to Lucie Kundra, not Lucie Kundrova.
The three letters were a step too far for the 27-year-old charity worker.
"I really didn't want 'ova' because (it means) you are owned by your husband," Kundra says. "Language is a huge part of culture and socialization, and if we want to change relations between women and men and promote equal opportunities, this is something we have to deal with."
Though still a small minority, more and more young Czech women are grappling with that question as women make further inroads in Czech society and inch closer to parity with men.
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gamahuche
"I would rather be a square peg than fit in a pigeon hole" -
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gamahuche4 months ago
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It would be a mistake to imagine that this is the burning issue of the day all over the Czech lands but certainly for certain women it IS a very important issue. Unfortunately there is not huge sympathy for people who want to "be different" or "rock the boat". The old Communist training still persists, especially for people of over a certain age and that included doing nothing to make yourself conspicuous - in order to avoid unspecified, undefined problems.
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Charlson4 months ago
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Charlson4 months ago
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"As a sometime TV sports commentator, Zurana Kocumova refused to add “ova” to the names of foreign skiers. Being acquainted with many of the foreign skiers made Kocumova determined to refer to them by their real names. During the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in February, held outside Prague, the Czech capital, some viewers wrote in to complain about Kocumova’s refusal to append “ova” to female skiers’ names during her commentary. She kept doing it her way. The TV station fired her."
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gamahuche4 months ago
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One aspect that might appear particularly threatening in the traditional formulation to many women and more wimmin is that by becoming Kundrova, as in the example quoted, the wife adopts exactly the same name as her mother-in-law - the mother of her husband..
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Actually she's lucky that the name isn't Kunda because that is a slang name for female genitals.. -
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georgiadipirro4 months ago
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Very well written Charlson "It takes a strong person to stand by their convictions and I applaud the women in Czechoslovakia who refuse to cave in to societal pressures." Yes, I very much agree it takes Courage, strength, and self worth to stand by our convictions. Good for her. "Get up Stand up ` ~ Stand up for your Rights" . Thank you for the Post Gamahuche, as always insightful.
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earthlingerer4 months ago
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I live in Lithuania, where there is an analogous tradition of a surname suffix indicating marriage.
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While the law was amended a few years ago, my wife got around the then-law by simply adopting an american surname. Granted, it's a surname entirely uncommon, and almost always mispronounced by anyone local. -
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chevydog4 months ago
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Custom is just that; and can be safely violated every now and then, perhaps even changed. My wife has several cousins who didn't follow the American custom of assuming their husband's name upon marriage. As far as I can tell, the mountains are still standing and the earth beneath us.
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But this -ova thing is so deeply embedded in the language that it may be even deeper than a custom. In that case, I think I'd be a lot more cautious about pushing it.
I think it's interesting how different cultures handle this issue. When a Korean man and woman marry, it's customary for her to keep her name. She is known as whatever her name was, then e.g. Lee's wife. This is a very patriarchal society, who at one time refused to even name female children. The woman's keeping her name is both known to be and is interpreted as a submissive act. Unlike here in the US, where it tends to be viewed in the opposite light.
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