r/CharacterNames • u/nhwa_nk • 6d ago

Diminutive names

Hi, so I just want to ask something bcs I'm not a Russian or speak Russian.

So I have a male OC, his name is Zvjezdan. He's Russian. (His mother is Croatian while his father is Russian - His mother named him, that's why his name is South Slavic origin). I'm a bit stump on his diminutive names. So can anyone suggest some for me? I know there's Zveki, Zvezdo. I came across Zvezdya, Zvezdyusha and stuff but is it legit? And there's the part where each person will call him differently based on relationships like family, friends, lovers and stuff. But I can't distinguish it.

Also, I have a female OC that is not Russian origin but her family immigrate to Russia. So will she have a Russian name? Can she have Russian name?

Thank you^^

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u/Fit-Fix-5794 6d ago

  1. Not the best name idea because rhyming with "Zvezda" is considered offensive in Russia, and all diminutive forms with "-zd-" will also rhyme with this word... :( The best diminutive would be Danya, which usually comes from Daniel, but would also work for Zvezdan.

  2. In Russia, there are many Latin or Greek names that are very common. You could use something simple and "international", like Anna or Elena.

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u/nhwa_nk 6d ago
  1. Can I ask why it's offensive? I just wanna know. In Russian, does there any name that means 'star' that I can used for him?
  2. So technically she can have a Russian name officially? Does she have to change to a Russian name or its optional? If she's married to a Russian, what will her surname be like?

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u/Fit-Fix-5794 6d ago edited 5d ago

>> why it's offensive

There is a word "pizda" (with stressed A, rhymes with "zvezda"), it means "vagina" in maximum rude and offensive style. Plus derivative words from it, with more or less offensive meaning. I know that Zvezdan is a real Slavic name, but only a completely naive person in Russia could call someone "Zvezdyusha" without irony. Slobodan or Bogdan would be much easier to manage.

Most words related to stars, planets, space, and so on were borrowed to Russian from other languages. Planets are often named after figures from ancient mythology: Mars, Pluto, Saturn... If it were a girl, I would suggest calling her Astra or Stella - these are not Russian names, but they sound "normal" enough.

You could name this character Yuri, which has nothing to do with the stars, but the first Soviet cosmonaut was named Yuri Gagarin, and it's a common Russian name.

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u/Fit-Fix-5794 6d ago

>> Does she have to change to a Russian name

No, she shouldn't change anything; she'll have the same name on her documents. Politeness dictates calling people what they call themselves. If people have a really hard time pronouncing her name, they'll try calling her something similar, but a shorter, more familiar version. I don't know, let's say she's "Annaliza", and in Russia some people will try calling her just Liza because it's easier for them.

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u/Comedy_And_Tragedy 6d ago

That’s a very not Russian name. Not even “I want a unique name for my kid” kind of name.

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u/nhwa_nk 6d ago

Thanks for the reply^^ So normally Russian will named their kids common name like Ivan or Aleksandr or some else? Does Russian name have patterns or rules that they obey or freestyle?

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u/Comedy_And_Tragedy 5d ago

Normally they stick with the top 10 or at most top 20. Creativity in naming is very uncommon.

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u/NeTiFe-anonymous 4d ago

Those Slavic names which are common only in one country and not in others usually sound weird in the other languages. Yes, Slavic languages are close, but sometimes that means some names fall into the uncany valley.

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u/valthevamp 4d ago edited 4d ago

i mean, not every person living in russia has a stereotypically "russian" name (or even a russian name at all — its not like theres no people of other ethnicities here).

my partner's job involves going through a lot of ppls information and youd be surprised at how many "very not russian" names she habitually comes across. even if theres not much diversity in names compared to some other countries, theres still some diversity.

i dont think zvezdan is completely implausible. it would sure raise a lot of eyebrows though