chrematonyms; ergonyms; Czech literary texts; short stories; memorial prose; Bohumil Hrabal; Ota Pavel

This text is focused on chrématonymy and its role in the literary texts by two Czech authors, Bohumil Hrabal and Ota Pavel. Although both authors use real chrematonyms, in the case of Hrabal?s texts the use of brand names has a slightly different function to that in Pavel?s stories. Hrabal used brand names and slogans not only to evoke the world he (or his characters) knew, but predominantly to contrast the dull era of Communism with the colourful period that preceded it. In Pavel?s stories they are used not only to evoke the lost world of his childhood, but also to create an atmosphere of his father?s job as a salesman for the Electrolux company. They are used in another sense also - to express an intimate connection between Pavel?s pre-war and post-war life.