Blackbird and Dove most common animal surnames
Ljubljana, 27 September - Kos, which translates as blackbird, and Golob, the Slovenian word for dove, are the most common surnames in Slovenia named after animals. As many as 115 animal species have given their names to Slovenian families.
Ljubljana
Birds.
Photo: Tamino Petelinšek/STA
Among some 40,000 Slovenian citizens that have the name of an animal for their surname, Kos comes up 3,900 times and Golob 3,850 times.
Following Kos and Golob is the mighty Medved (bear), which gave its name to some 2,200 citizens. Next in line comes cat (Maček) and hart (Jelen), who have each given their names to 1,500 Slovenians.
Also common are Jerebs (grouse), Čuks (little owl), Jazbecs (badger), Volks (wolf) and Strnads (bunting), the Statistic Office said ahead of World Animal Day on 4 October.