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Wednesday, January 26, 2000
Plans afoot to let foreign women choose their last names By Katka Krosnar(ova) and Katka Fronk(ova) As the German-born Bock, then a newlywed, signed her name in Prague's Town Hall register two years ago, the female registrar standing a few paces away insisted she add the letters "ova" to her last name. "I was really surprised when she insisted it should be 'Bockova,' " recalls Bock, who married an Englishman, David Vaughan. "And even though I said that was not my name, she was adamant that I had to sign the register that way." Alas, Bock isn't alone. Foreign film stars and other celebrities have also been struck by the "ova" curse, as Czech newspapers and magazines illustrate amply. There are Julia Robertsova, Meryl Streepova, Emma Thompsonova and Steffi Grafova. Bock shrugs off being referred to as "Bockova" and "Vaughnova." But times may be changing. Legislation proposed by the Ministry of Interior would entitle a woman to demand that the "ova" suffix be omitted. "If a foreign woman has to be registered in the Czech Republic because she marries or has a child here, she will be registered with 'ova' added to her last name," says ministry spokesman Jiri Hajek. "But if she makes an official request, documents will be issued without 'ova.' " The ministry insists the proposed law, which would go into effect in a year, has nothing to do with complaints. More foreign women are marrying Czech men, the ministry says. Like the use of the phrase "to honor and obey," reserved for the female portion of Western marriage rituals, "ova" might be headed for the scrapheap. Navratil or Navratilova Eva Kavkova, who runs Relocation Management International, a Prague-based firm that helps companies relocate here, says many women arriving in the country are not forewarned of genitive case rule. In Czech and other Slavic languages, the female ending means "belonging to" the male. "Many foreign women don't like having to adopt 'ova' because they think it raises the position of men, but they do it reluctantly because they accept it as a part of life here," Kav-kova says. "I disagree because it is a way of distinguishing between men and women." Still, abandoning "ova" is unthinkable for most Czech women. "The suffix 'ova' is imbedded in the Czech language and indicates a possessive adjective. To get rid of it altogether would be a rape of the language. The advantage is that it is immediately clear by someone's name whether they are male or female," says Jaroslava Pecirkova of the Czech language department at the Academy of Science in Prague. Adds Pecirkova: "My colleagues and I were trying to imagine Czech surnames without the 'ova,' for example Martina Navratil instead of Martina Navratilova -- it's impossible; it doesn't even sound nice." She also recalls an overseas embarrassment. "Years ago, when my husband and I were on holiday in England, the hotel wouldn't let us share a room because they didn't believe we were married, since my surname was different from his," Pecirkova says. Czech author and feminist Eva Hauserova describes it as "unfortunate" that the suffix "ova" indicates that a woman belongs to her husband or father. "I don't think most Czech women would support dropping the "ova" as they would probably think it one of those idiotic feminist ideas." But Dr. Jana Valdova of the Center for Gender Studies in Prague believes it could soon all be over for "ova." "We are already seeing a trend of dropping the "ova," and after the Czech Republic becomes a member of the European Union we will see it more," she says. Katka Krosnar's email address is kkrosnar@praguepost.cz Katka Fronk's email address is kfronk@praguepost.cz
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