# Пѣевъ



## Mikeo38

Forgive me if this query does not exactly fit the rules but I'd appreciate some help. 
Could someone pse decipher the Cyrillic lettering from a 1930s picture of a hotel?
I suspect that it may have been in Serbia.

Thanks in advance - M


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## Awwal12

It obviously ends in -евъ, which corresponds to Russian -ев before 1918 and Bulgarian -ев before 1945 (a formant of surnames and an inflection of certain grammatical forms, both in Russian and in Bulgarian). I suspect the inscription is Bulgarian. The beginning is in some fancy font and is thus unclear. Looks like ??ъевъ.


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## Mikeo38

Thanks "Awwal12" for your reply.
Here below is the un-cropped shot, perhaps a little clearer now.
The open car is a Lagonda. Its driver, later a Battle of Britain pilot, lost his life in WW2 while delivering a 'Liberator' bomber across the Atlantic.
I know that he was in Vienna for a while in the 1930s - he may well have driven down through the Balkans but I doubt that he went to Russia.
M


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## Awwal12

Yes, хотелъ "hotel" is a Bulgarian or probably Macedonian word in the old spelling, Russian has a phonetic loan отель (with the soft ль) instead. The name is still unclear. Maybe mods can move the thread to All Slavic when it can be properly answered by native speakers.


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## Mikeo38

OK, great ... thanks.
Yes, perhaps they would be kind enough to move the thread.
M


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## stream21

Google finds the word "Пъевъ" if it is in quotation marks.


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## Mikeo38

OK - so that must be something like 'Peve'
Could that be the name of the hotel, perhaps the name of the owner?
It's looks like quite a smart place.
M


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## stream21

Mikeo38 said:


> OK - so that must be something like 'Peve'
> Could that be the name of the hotel, perhaps the name of the owner?
> It's looks like quite a smart place.
> M


The word in Cyrillic transcription is a surname in Bulgaria


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## Mikeo38

OK thanks for the information.
So the hotel may have been called Hotel Пъевъ.
What is the transliteration in English?
A bit of a long shot but I wonder whether the hotel still exists.
Of course, it could be (could have been) anywhere.
Perhaps Sofia for starters. On the other hand, "Awwal12" suggested that the word/name might be Macedonian.
Does Google accept both Cyrillic and Roman letters?
I don't have Cyrillic installed on this computer. And in any case I would not be able to understand anything.
M


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## stream21

Mikeo38 said:


> OK thanks for the information.
> So the hotel may have been called Hotel Пъевъ.
> What is the transliteration in English?
> A bit of a long shot but I wonder whether the hotel still exists.
> Of course, it could be (could have been) anywhere.
> Perhaps Sofia for starters. On the other hand, "Awwal12" suggested that the word/name might be Macedonian.
> Does Google accept both Cyrillic and Roman letters?
> I don't have Cyrillic installed on this computer. And in any case I would not be able to understand anything.


Пъевъ =  Peev.   And  the "Hotel Peev in Bulgaria" still exists. Have a look at the picture.


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## Mikeo38

Wow! This is an amazing find ... talk about a shot in the dark!
I never thought in a million years that I'd be able to locate even the country of this hotel.
Let alone the name of the town.
I've also looked on Google Maps and found it there.
OK, so all we need now is for this to be a family-owned hotel - one that's been in the family for generations.
And that they've kept all the old registration / visitors' books.
And that the man in question is named and listed.
Probably asking too much - but perhaps I'm on a roll (as we say in BE) ... anyway, I'll report back to this forum.
Once again many thanks to all of you.
M


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## Panceltic

It says Пѣевъ which would be Пеев in modern spelling.

Ѣ is an obsolete letter which was replaced by Е in Bulgarian (and Russian, for that matter) and its cursive form is quite different from its standard shape (see here).


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## Mikeo38

Thank you ... I've not yet tried to contact the hotel.
As a matter of interest, do you know whether 'Пѣевъ' / 'Пеев' is a common surname in Bulgaria ... I mean something like 'Smith' or 'Brown' in English? Earlier in this thread someone mentioned that it's a surname.
All noted about the obsolete letter ... the Wiki article about 'yat' is something that I'll read later this evening.
Renewed thanks ...
M


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## Panceltic

It is indeed a surname, but I’m not sure how common it is. It has its own Wikipedia page listing half a dozen people of note bearing it so it is not rare, but probably not on the ‘Smith’ level. I’m not Bulgarian so can’t comment any further


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## stream21

"Georgi Peev is a former Bulgarian footballer"

Maybe it won't beat  Smith or Brown in this respect but google returns plenty of entries


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## Mikeo38

OK and thanks again ... suddenly developed a runny nose and a headache. Hope it's not the dreaded 'C'. Anyway, will take a lateral flow test and go to bed. All being well, I'll e-mail the hotel tomorrow and hope for the best.
M


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## DarkChild

Mikeo38 said:


> Wow! This is an amazing find ... talk about a shot in the dark!
> I never thought in a million years that I'd be able to locate even the country of this hotel.
> Let alone the name of the town.
> I've also looked on Google Maps and found it there.
> OK, so all we need now is for this to be a family-owned hotel - one that's been in the family for generations.
> And that they've kept all the old registration / visitors' books.
> And that the man in question is named and listed.
> Probably asking too much - but perhaps I'm on a roll (as we say in BE) ... anyway, I'll report back to this forum.
> Once again many thanks to all of you.
> M


Sorry to rain on your parade, but I don't think the hotel you found is the same as the one in the picture. I looked as well and it appears to be a new hotel in Ravda (a small village). The one in the picture is most likely in Sofia.

To be honest, it's not exactly clear that Peev is the name of the hotel. It looks like it could be a separate entity.


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## Mikeo38

Well, I did wonder whether it was all too good to be true!
I tried to phone but could not get past the booking service ... the latter probably an agency. So I'll write and see if that leads anywhere.
For what it's worth, enter "Like a falling leaf Eastbourne" into Google.
Thanks to everyone - and congratulations to 'DarkChild' on your opening idiom!
M


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## stream21

DarkChild said:


> Sorry to rain on your parade


It is so easy to destroy a fairy tale.. literally with the stroke of a pen.
But the idiom is really good. I am going to use it a lot!
Thanks.


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## Mikeo38

Of course, I realise this is a language forum and not a Bulgarian history forum ... and I'm grateful to the mods for allowing the digression. But in my defence it all started out because of my inability to read the Cyrillic script. I've tried via Google to find something like the 'Local History Society of Sofia' but to no avail. I'm passionate about local history (as well as languages) and our LHS has a website at (www.eastbournehistory.org.uk/publications.php). It's just possible that there are some enthusiasts in Sofia who may be able to follow this query through ... perhaps someone on this forum can assist by providing me with a link. Many thanks in advance.
M


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