Russian Names

Every Russian has three names: a first name, a patronymic, and a surname:

Антон (first name) Павлович (patronymic) Чехов (surname)

First Name

The first name is a given name. Every Russian name has a variety of forms which can express all kinds of emotions. For example, there are more than twenty forms of Maria in Russian!
The full form - Maria (Мария) - is used in official papers, in formal relationships and with unfamiliar people.
The shortened form - Masha (Маша) - is neutral and used in relationships with friends.
Form of affection - Mashen'ka(Машенька).
Intimate, tender forms - Mashunechka(Машунечка), Mashunya(Машуня), Marusya(Маруся).
The unceremonious/vulgar form - Mashka(Машка) - is quite impolite but o.k. within the family or between children or adult friends.

See a list of popular Russian names here.


Partonimic

The second name is a patronymic. Russian patronymic is a name derived from the father's first name by adding -ович/-евич (son of) for male, or -овна/-евна (daughter of) for females. For example, in the name Мария Ивановна Петрова, the middle name, Ивановна, means daughter of Иван; in the name Николай Викторович Козлов, the patronymic, Викторович, means son of Виктор.
Patronymics are usually stressed according to the position of a stressed syllable in the first name they derived from. For example, Алексей (ah-lehk-SEHY) - Алексеевич (ah-lehk-SEH-yeh- vich); Владимир (vla-DEE-meer) - Владимировна (vla-DEE-mee-rahv-na). But there are some exceptions, e.g. Михаил (mee-ha-EEl) - Михайлович (mee-HAHY-la-vich).

Children and close friends are called by their first names. The personal pronoun and the verb are in the singular.

Антон, иди обедать.
Маша, где ты была?
Здравствуй, Николай.

The usual official form of address among adults is the first name and patronymic; the person pronoun and the verb are in the plural

Здравствуйте, Владимир Иванович.
Анна Дмитриевна, вы придёте к нам сегодня вечером?

Surname

Russian surnames or family names take on a feminine ending for women. For example:

Compare the following:
Men's names:

Иван Иванович Иванов
Владимир Андреевич Филатов

Women's names:

Анастасия Ивановна Иванова
Елена Андреевна Филатова

Below is a list of some popular Russian names and their common forms:

Men's Names

Women's Names

Learn how to ask somebody's name or to present yourself in Russian in our Personal Correspondence Guide Book.

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