Given names of Soviet origin appeared in the early history of the Soviet Union,[1] coinciding with the period of intensive word formation, both being part of the so-called "revolutionary transformation of the society" with the corresponding fashion of neologisms and acronyms,[2] which Richard Stites characterized as a utopian vision of creating a new reality by means of verbal imagery.[1] They constituted a notable part of the new Soviet phraseology.
Such names may be primarily found in Russian persons,[3] and sometimes in Belarusians and Ukrainians,[4] as well as in other minorities of the former USSR (e.g. Tatar[5]).
The proliferation of the new names was enhanced by the propagation of a short-lived "new Soviet rite" of Octobering, in replacement of the religious tradition of child baptism in the state with the official dogma of Marxist–Leninist atheism.[1] [6]
In defiance of the old tradition of taking names from menology, according to the feast days,[1] many names were taken from nature having patriotic, revolutionary, or progressive connotation: Beryoza (Берёза, "birch tree", a proverbial Russian tree), Gvozdika (Гвоздика, "carnation", a revolutionary flower), Granit (Гранит, "granite", a symbol of power), Radiy (Радий, "radium", a symbol of scientific progress).[2] A peculiarity of the new naming was neologisms based on the revolutionary phraseology of the day, such as Oktyabrin/Oktyabrina, to commemorate the October Revolution, Vladlen for Vladimir Lenin.[1]
Richard Stites classifies the Soviet "revolutionary" names into the following categories:[1]
Most of these names were short-lived linguistic curiosities, but some of them fit well into the framework of the language, proliferated and survived for a long time.[3]
The following names were quite common and may be found in various antroponymic dictionaries.
| Name (Cyrillic) | Transliteration | Origin | Comments | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Вил, Вилен, Владлен, Владлена | Vil, Vilen, Vladlen (m) / Vladlena (f) | Владимир Ильич Ленин (Vladimir Ilyich Lenin) | "Vilen" or "Vilén" is also a traditional Finnish and Swedish surname. - | |
| Мэл | Mel | Маркс, Энгельс и Ленин (Marx, Engels and Lenin) | - | |
| Мэлс | Mels | Маркс, Энгельс, Ленин и Сталин (Marx, Engels, Lenin and Stalin) | - | |
| Баррикад, Баррикада | Barrikad (m) / Barrikada (f) | Barricade | Refers to the revolutionary activity | |
| Ревмир, Ревмира | Revmir (m) / Revmira (f) | Революция мира (Revolyutsiya mira) | Means "The revolution of the World" | |
| Гертруда | Gertruda | Gertrude reinterpreted as Герой труда (Geroy truda) | Means "The Hero of Labour" | |
| Марлен | Marlen (m) | Marlene reinterpreted as Маркс и Ленин (Marx and Lenin) | - | |
| Стэн | Sten, Stan | Stan reinterpreted as Сталин и Энгельс (Stalin and Engels) | - | |
| Ким | Kim | Kim reinterpreted as Коммунистический интернационал молодёжи (Kommunistichesky Internatsional Molodyozhi) | Young Communist International |
Баррикад, from "barricade"
Эле́м = Engels, LEnin, Marx
Эльмира, backronym for "электрификация мира", elektrifikatsiya mira (electrification of the world)
Энгельси́на.
Гелий = "helium"
Patronym = Ге́льевич. Father's name: Geliy = "helium"
Изиль = исполнитель заветов Ильича, ispolnitel zavetov Il'icha (Performer of the Testaments of Il'ich (Lenin))
birth name: Индустрий (Industriy)
И́скра, in reference to Iskra, the revolutionary newspaper, the name of which means "spark"
Марле́н = Marx + Lenin
Мэлор = "Marx, Engels, Lenin, October Revolution"
Нинель = "Lenin" read backwards
born Ноябри́на (Noyabrina), from Noyabr = "November"; October Revolution (which happened in November by the Gregorian calendar)
Patronym = Oктябpинoвич. Father's name: Октябри́н = October
Радий (Radiy) = "radium"
Раднэ́р = радуйся новой эре, raduysya novoy ere ("Hail the new era") [7]
Рево́льт
Рем = революция мировая, revolyutsiya mirovaya (World revolution)
Рэм = Революция, Энгельс, Маркс (Revolution, Engels, Marx)
Спартак = "Spartacus"
Те́льман, from Ernst Thälmann
Вил, from VIL = Vladimir Ilyich Lenin
Вилен, VILen = Vladimir Ilyich Lenin
VILen = Vladimir Ilyich Lenin
Вилли, born Vilen
Віллен (Ukrainian)
Виль
Владилен
Владлен
Жоре́с, after Jean Jaurès
after Jean Jaurès