Vuk (Serbian Cyrillic: Вук) (listenⓘ) is a male Slavic given name, predominantly recorded among Serbs as well as Croatians, Macedonians, Montenegrins, Slovenes.
[1] Vuk Karadžić, 19th-century Serbian philologist and ethnographer, explained the traditional, apotropaic use of the name: a woman who had lost several babies in succession would name her newborn son Vuk because it was believed that the witches, who "ate" the babies, were afraid to attack the wolves.
The following are male names recorded among the Serbs by the 19th century: Vukaj, Vuko, Vukoje, Vukovoj, Vukovoje, Vukal, Vukalj, Vukajlo, Vukola, Vukel, Vukelja, Vukula, Vukan, Vukolin, Vukota, Vukić, Vukadin, Vukac, Vukas, Vuksan, Vukač, Vukašin, Vukša, Vukdrag, Vukman, Vukoman, Vukmir, Vukomir, Vukmilj, Vukoslav, Vukosav, Dobrovuk, Vučo, Vučko, Vučela, Vučan, Vučen, Vučin, Vučihna, Vučina, Vučeta, Vučić, Vučkulin, Vujo, Vujan, Vujat, Vujadin, Vujin, Vujeta, Vujčeta, Vujčin, Vujić, Vujko, Vujak, Vujica, Vujača, Vujaš, Vule, Vulina, Vulić, Vulic, and Vuleš.
[1] There are also female names derived from vuk: Vuka, Vukana, Vujana, Vukava, Vučica, Vukadinka, Vujadinka, Vukmira, Vukomirka, Vukomanka, and Vukosava.
In this way Vlk became Vuk, and by the same process the initial Vuk- and Vuč- in the derivatives developed from Vlk- and Vlč-; e.g., Vukašin from Vlkašin.