Articles of category "Names in Russia Empire, USSR and CIS"

Many Western people have been confused by the inevitably strange and long Russian names, when picking up, for instance, a volume of Chekhov or Tolstoy. Yuri Mikhailovich, Olga Nikolaevna, Ivan Alexandrovich, Elena Sergueievna... did you ever try to read and pronounce these Russian words yourself? What is the origin of all these strange sets of characters? Read this article to find it all out.

It is obligatory for people in Russia and in the countries affected by Russian linguistics, to have three names. There are three names Russian is given when born: a given name, a patronymic and surname (family name). These names are usually presented in the order stated above, though a patronymic name may sometimes be omitted (as in case with the English middle name).