Communist-Era Russian Names












Name Nerds main

This is my attempt at translating a French site on Communist-era Russian first name inventions I found.

First Names

newly-invented first names

The Russian revolution caused upheavals also in the area of first names: in this era, officials distributed brochures with "politically and ideologically" correct names, and invited parents to draw on these ideas for naming their children. These strange names had their moment of glory between 1917 and 1940, but after that, traditional names returned in full force. There remains hardly anything of these names, but they remain a curiosity...

Aelita f - Name of a Martian princess, invented by Alexsi Tolstoy for his sci-fi novel of the same name.
Artaka f (ARTilleriïskaïa AKAdemia) - "the Academy of Artillery"
Arvil m (ARmia V.I. Lenina) - "the army of Vladimir Ilyich Lenin"
Avangard m - "l'avant-garde"

Dalis m (DA zdravstvouïout Lenin I Stalin!) - "Long live Lenin and Stalin!"
Damir m (DA zdravstvouïet MIR!) - "long live peace!"
Dazdraperma f (DA ZDRAvstvouïet PERvoïe MAïa!) - "long live May 1st!"
Dazvsemir m (DA Zdravstvouïet VSEMIrnaïa Revolutsia!) - "long live the world-wide revolution!"
Dekabrina f - December
Delej m (DElo LEnina Jiviot!) - "see the masterpieces of Lenin?"
Diner m, Dinera f (DItia Novoï ERy) - "Child of a new era"
Dognat-Peregnat m - "catch up and succeed!" (refernce to the slogan "catch up to and overtake America!")
Donera f (DOtch' novoï ERy) - "girl of a new era"
Dotnara f (DOtch' Troudovogo NARodA) - "girl of a hard-working people"

Elektrifikatsia f - Electrification
Elektron m - electron
Elem m - "Engels, LEnin, Marx"
Era f - era
Erlen m, Erlena f (ERa LENina) - "the era of Lenin"

Gueni m - "Genius"
Guertrouda f (GUERoï TROUDA) - "Worker Hero"

Ianvar' m - January
Iaslenik m (IA S LENinym I Kroupskoï) - 'I'm with Lenin and & Kroupskaïa"
Ideïa f - Idea
Idillia f - Idyllic?
Idlen m (IDeï LENina) - "Ideas of Lenin"
Iounnata f (IOUNaia NATouralistkA) - "young naturalist"
Iskra f - spark ( reference to the newspaper "Iskra")
Istmat m (ISToritcheskiï MATerializm) - "historical materialism"
Izil m (Ispolniaï Zaviety ILlitcha) - "carry out the orders of Lenin"

Jeldora f (JELeznaïa DORogA) - "train"

Kid m (Kommounistitcheskiï IDeal) - "ideal communist"
Kim m, Kima f (Kommounistitcheskiï Internatsional Molodioji) - Communist Youth International
Koukoutsapol m (KOUKOUrouza - TSAritsa POLeï) - "Corn is the queen of the fields"
Krarmia f (KRasnaïa ARMIA) - "Red Army"

Lagchmivara f (LAGuer' CHMIdta V ARktike) - "Schmidt's arctic encampment" (a scientific explorer who was trapped by an ice floe)
Lapanalda f (LAguer' PApanintsev na ldinie) - "the encampment of Papanin on the ice barrier)
Last m (LAtychskiï STrelok) - "the Latvian gunner"
Ledat m (LEv DAvidovitch Trotski) Lyev (Leon) Davidovich Trotsky
Ledroud m (LEnin - DROUg Deteï) - "Lenin is a friend to children"
Lelud m (LEnin LUbit Deteï) - "Lenin loves kids"
Lemira f (LEnin, MIRovaïa revolutsiA) - "Lenin, the world revolution"
Lenara f (LENinskaïa ARmiA) - "Lenin's army"
Lenguenmir m (LENin - GUENi MIRa) - "Lenin is the genius of the world"
Lenina f
Leninid m (LENINskie IDeï) - "Lenin's ideas"
Leninir m (LENIN I Revolutsia) - "Lenin and the revolution"
Lenior m (LENIn I Oktiabrskaïa Revolutsia) - "Lenin and the October Revolution"
Leniz m (LENInskie Zavety) - "The directives of Lenin"
Lenora f (LENin - Nache ORoujie) - "Lenin is our weapon"
Lenta f (LENinskaïa Troudovaïa Armia) - "Lenin's worker army"
Lentroch m (LENin, TROtski, CHaoumian) "Lenin, Trotsky, Chaoumian)
Leoundiej m (LEnin OUmer, No Delo IEgo Jiviot) - "Lenin is dead, but his masterpiece lives on"
Les m (LEnin, Stalin) - "Lenin, Stalin"
Lestak m (LEnin, STAlin, Kommounizm) - "Lenin, Stalin, Communism"
Lorierik m (Lenin, Oktiabrskaïa Revolutsia, Indoustrializatsia, Elektrifikatsia, Radiofikatsia I Kommounizm) - "Lenin, October REvolution, Industrialization, radiofication, and Communism
Lounio m (Lenin OUmer, No Ideï Ostalis') - "Lenin is dead, but his ideas remain"
Louïdji m, Louïdja f (Lenin OUmer, no IDeï JIvy) - "Lenin is dead, but his ideas live on"
Lublen m (LUBi LENina) - "Lenin Loves"

Maels m (MArks, Engels, Lenin, Stalin) - "Marx, Engels, Lenin, Stalin"
Maenlest m (MArks, ENgels, LEnin, STalin) - "Marx, Engels, Lenin, Stalin"
Magnita f - "Magnet"
Marksen m, Marksena f (MARKS, ENgels) - "Marx, Engels"
Marksina f - of Marx
Marklen m, Marlen m (MARKs, LENin) - "Marx, Lenin"
Mek m (Marks, Engels, Kommounizm) - "Marx, Engels, Communism"
Melo m (Marks, Engels, Lenin, Oktiabr) "Marx, Engels, Lenin, October
Melor m (Marks, Engels, Lenin, Oktiabrskaïa Revolutsia) - "Marx, Engels, Lenin, rOctober Revolution"
Miouda f (Mejdounarodnyï IOUnocheskiï Dien') - "International Day of Youth"
Mir m - "peace" (like the space station)

Ninel f - "Lenin" in reverse. This name was used longer than the others, perhaps because of verlan (word game"? !
Niserkha f (NIkita SERgueïevitch KHrouchtchev) Nikita Sergeiovich Khruschev
Novomir m (NOVyï MIR) - "the new world"

Odvara f (Osobaïa DalneVostotchnaïa ARmia) - "Far East Special Army'
Oïouchminalda f (Otto IOUlievitch CHMIdt NA LDine) - "Otto Yulievich Chmidt on the Ice Floe"
Oktiabrina f - October
Orbita f - Orbit
Orletos m (Oktiabrskaïa Revolutsia, LEnin, Troud - Osnova Sotsializma) - "October Revolution, Lenin and Work are the base of socialism"
Ouriourvkos m (OURa, IOURa V KOSmossie!) - "yuri, Yuri's in space!" (it's about Yuri Gagarin)

Papir m (PArtiïnaïa PIRamida) - "The party pyramid"
Persostrat m (PERvyï SOvietskiï STRATostat) - "The first Soviet Stratostat" (I can't tell exactly what a "stratostat" is-- it looks kind of like a parachute. The only definitions I can find are in Romanian and Vietnamese!)
Piatvtchet m (PIATiletkou V TCHETyrie goda!) - "the 5-year plan in 4 years !"
Plinta f (Partia Lenina I Narodnaïa Troudovaïa Armia) - "Lenin's Party and the Army of Workers of the People"
Pofistal m (PObeditel Fachizma Iossif STALin) - "Josef Stalin, the Vanquisher of Fascism"
Poligraf m - polygraph
Polza f (POmni Leninskie ZAvety) - "remember the precepts of Lenin"
Pores m (POmni REchenia Siezdov) - "Remember the resolutions of the congresses" (about the congress of the Communist Party)
Pravdina f - de "pravda" : "truth" the newspaper of the same name
Pravlen m (PRAVda LENina) - "the truth of Lenin"
Pridespar m (PRIvet DElegatam Siezda PARtii) - "A big Howdy to the delegated congress of the Party" (OK, it's more like "hello to the d...")

Rada f (RAbotchaïa DemokratiA) - "Democracy of the people"
Radi m - "Radium", chemical element
Raïtia f (RAïonnaïa TIpografiA) - "the typography of the district"
Rakieta f - rocket
Rem m, Remir m (Revolutsia, Elektrifikatsia, MIR) - "revolution, electrification, peace"
Revmark m (REVolutsionnyï MARKsizm) - "revolutionary Marxism"
Revmira f (REVolutsia MIRA) - "revolution of the world"
Revold m (REVOLutsionnoïe Dvijenie) - "revolutionary movement"
Revolutsia f - revolution
Rim m (Revolutsia I Mir) - "revolution and peace"
Roblen m (ROdilsia Byt' LENintsem) - "Born to be a Leninist"

Selsoviet m (SELskiï SOVIET) - "Soviet of the village"
Sentiabrina f - September
Silen m (SIla LENina) - "Lenin's Might"
Spermaïa f (S PERvym MAÏA) - "Happy May First!"
Stalen m (STAlin, LENin) Stalin, Lenin
Stalina f
Stator m (STAlin TORjestvouïet) - "Stalin triumphs"
Statrazav m (STAlinskiï TRAktornyï ZAVod) - factory of Stalin tractors

Taklis m (TAKtika Lenina I Stalina) - "the tactics of Lenin and Stalin"
Tchelnaldina f, Tchelusnaldina f (TCHELUSkin NA LDINie) - "Tcheluskine on the ice floe" (the ship of the aforementioned Shmidt)
Tomik m (TOrjestvouïet Marksizm I Kommounizm) - "Marxism and Communism triumphant"
Tomil m (TOrjestvo Marksa I Lenina) - "the triumph of Marx and Lenin"
Traktor m, Traktorina f -tractor
Trolen m (TROtski, LENin) Trotsky, Lenin
Trolezin m (TROtski, LEnin, ZINoviev) Trotsky, Lenin, Zinoviev (soviet hero)

Vaterpejekosma f (VAlentina TERechkova - PErvaïa JEnchtchina- KOSMonAvt) - "Valentina Terechkova - the first female cosmonaut"
Vektor m (VElikiï Kommounizm TORjestvouïet) - "the greatness of communism triumphs"
Velior m (VELIkaïa Oktiabrskaïa Revolutsia) - "the great October Revolution"
Velira f (VELIkiï RAbotchiï) - "the great worker"
Veor m (VElikaïa Oktiabrskaïa Revolutsia) - "the great October Revolution"
Vidlen m (Velikie IDeï LENina) - "the great ideas of Lenin"
Vilan m (V.I.Lenin i Akademia Naouk) - "Vladimir Ilitch Lenin and the academy of sciences"
Vilen m (V.I.LENin) - "Vladimir Ilyich Lenin"
Vilis m (V.I.Lenin, I.Stalin) - "Vladimir Ilitch Lenin, Josef Stalin"
Vilor m, Vilora f (V.I.Lenin - Organizator Revolutsii) - "Vladimir Ilitch Lenin is the founder of the revolution"
Vilorik m (V.I.Lenin - Osvoboditel Rabotchikh I Krestian) - "Vladimir Ilitch Lenin is the liberator of workman and peasants"
Vilur m (Vladimir Ilitch LUbit Rodinou) - "Vladimir Ilitch loves the fatherland"
Vinoun m (Vladimir Ilitch Nie OUmriot Nikogda) - "Vladimir Ilitch will never die"
Vist m (Velikaïa Istoritcheskaïa Sila Trouda) - "the great historical force of work"
Vladlen m, Vladlena f (VLADimir LENin) - "Vladimir Lenin"
Vladilen m, Vladilena f (VLADImir LENin) - "Vladimir Lenin"
Volen m (VOlia LENina) - "the will of Lenin"
Vors m (VORochilovskiï Strelok) - "the gunner of Vorochilov"
Vykraznar m (VYche KRAsnoïe ZNAmia Revolutsii !) - "the red flag of the revolution-- raise it high!"