Körmendy in the

Hungarian language Hungarian () is an Uralic language spoken in Hungary and parts of several neighbouring countries. It is the official language of Hungary and one of the 24 official languages of the European Union. Outside Hungary, it is also spoken by Hungarian ...

, due to its form and implied meaning, is understood to be a

family name In some cultures, a surname, family name, or last name is the portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family, tribe or community. Practices vary by culture. The family name may be placed at either the start of a person's full name ...

. Literally it means: a person or family of or originating or associated with the place called

Körmend Körmend ( sl, Kermendin, Prekmurje Slovene: ''Karmadén,'' ger, Kirment) is a town in Vas county , Western Hungary. Places of interest The town is especially well known for its castle which used to belong to the Batthyány family, one of the mo ...

, now one of the smaller townships in Western

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

, near the

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

n border. It is evident in some public records that the same family name may have been spelled "Körmendi" as compared to "Körmendy". It is generally understood in the Hungarian tradition that the use of the form "Körmendy" is an entitlement of some sort due to the formerly official title of

nobility Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy (class), aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below Royal family, royalty. Nobility has often been an Estates of the realm, estate of the realm with many e ...

, received as granted in a traditional European meaning and process. The "Körmendi" name, form or usage, may mean in some cases, simply a spelling variation due to whatever reasons, but in some other cases "Körmendi" may be just an adopted name, not entitled to the "Körmendy" form of spelling. There seem to exist many people in the world with these family names, however to this writer at this point it may be highly speculative to guess how many of these may be related at any distance, or whether there are one or more greater

families Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Ideall ...

covered by all these names. On the other hand, as an example, this writer has information of a document and public record granting the

title to a "Körmendy Márton" and his descendants (and the same to a companion by a different name) by "King Ferdinánd I" of

, in the year 1549.Nyitra Vármegye Levéltár, VI. 385, 80/1905. Lt. Sz. – i.e. Nyitra Vármegye Levéltár (archives of

Nyitra Nitra (; also known by other alternative names) is a city in western Slovakia, situated at the foot of Zobor Mountain in the valley of the river Nitra. It is located 95 km east of Bratislava. With a population of about 78,353, it is the fifth la ...

Vármegye, a territory formerly part of the Hungarian Kingdom, now part of modern

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...

) This above cited record also refers to an official transcript of another record of the same subject, originating in "Szentmarja" of Bács Vármegye, formerly part of the Hungarian Kingdom, (now called Szabadka in Hungarian, and is now part of modern

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...

). This later transcript was sent to the Hungarian National Museum and is deposited under "Aldányi Antal, LXI 1549 január 5." The above cited granting of

to said "Körmendy Márton" and his descendants is due to, according to the contents of the cited document(s), a certain incident of his heroic behavior during the Hungarian defensive wars against the

Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

invaders. The said heroic act occurred in a battle at the Hungarian town Győr, rescuing some Christians from the Turks. Along with the title of

this "Körmendy Márton" and his descendants were granted the right to use a certain coat of arms, described in detail within the above said letter of grant of

(''nemeslevél'' in Hungarian). These records at least provide a glimpse into the background and history connected with the name(s) Körmendy.

People

John Kormendy John Kormendy (born June 13, 1948; Graz, Austria), is an American astronomer, currently the Curtis T. Vaughn, Jr. Centennial Chair at University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public rese ...

, American astronomer

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kormendy Surnames