The patronymic ( otchestvo ) part of a Russian person’s name is derived from the father’s first name and generally serves as a middle name for Russians. Patronyms are used in both formal and informal speech. Students always address their teachers with their first name and patronymic; Colleagues in an office do the same. Patronyms also appear in official documents, such as passports, as does your middle name.
The patronymic has a different ending depending on the gender of the person. Male patronyms generally end in ovich or evich . Female patronymics generally end in ovna or evna . Russian patronyms are formed by combining the father’s first name with the appropriate suffix.
To use an example from Russian literature, in Crime and Punishment , Raskolnikov’s full name is Rodion Romanovich Raskolnikov; Romanovich (a combination of his father’s name, Roman, with the final ovich ) is his patronymic. Her sister, Avdotya, uses the female version of the same patronymic because she and Rodion share the same father. Her full name is Avdotya Romanovna (Roman + ovna ) Raskolnikova.
However, Rodion and Avdotya’s mother, Pulkheria Raskolnikova, uses her father’s name to form her patronymic, Alexandrovna (Alexander + ovna ).
Below are some more examples of patronyms. The father’s name appears first, followed by the male and female versions of the patronymic:
- Vladimir – Vladimirovich, Vladimirovna
- Mikhail – Mikhailovich, Mikhailovna
- Ivan – Ivanovich, Ivanovna
More on Russian names
