Published on 08/25/2020 10:33 By Jennie Hughes;Sarah Hallam
Edited by Sarah Hallam | Fact-checked by
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The search for a baby name can take time, but we’ve made things easier with this list of 101 of our favourite Slavic names.
“Slavic” covers an incredibly wide variety of countries, languages and cultures, and we’d never be able to include all the lovely names of Slavic origins in just one list (well, we could, but we think it would get a bit overwhelming).
If you feel like continuing your search for names of Slavic origin, check out our lists of Russian names and Polish names as well.
The Slavic countries cover three main areas: Eastern (Belarus, Russia, and Ukraine), Western (the Czech Republic, Poland, and Slovakia) and Southern (Bosnia & Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, and Slovenia). Most Slavic names are gendered, with Slavic girl names usually ending in -a while Slavic boy names usually end in a consonant.
For example, the Polish boys’ name Casimir becomes Casimira when given to a girl.
We’ve included both variants where they’re in common usage. Although most names do have specific countries and regions of origin, many of the most well-known Slavic baby names are widely used, so we’ve included them where they’ve got the most popularity, or popped them into the Traditional Favourites section.
Traditional Slavic Baby Names
These lovely Slavic baby names enjoy lasting popularity across many countries in the region.
1.Alexei, Aleksandra: defender of mankind. A form of popular baby name Alexander.
2.Alina:noble and kind, or bright and beautiful.
3.Andrei:brave warrior; strong fighter. A Russian-origin form of classic baby name Andrew.
4.Anton: Form of Antony which comes from a Roman family name, and belonged to famous Russian writer Anton Chekhov.
5.Boris: variantly short, wolf or snow leopard. A popular name across many Slavic countries since the 11th century.
6.Chessa: Slavic-origin name meaning at peace.
7.Danica: Slavic-origin name meaning morning star.
8.Maksim: the greatest.
9.Miloslav, Miloslava: lover of glory. This name enjoys great popularity all over Eastern Europe.
10.Nadia:hope.
11.Sonia: wisdom. A Russian form of Sophia popular across the region.
12.Svetlana:light; holy.
13.Troian: father of triplets.
14.Valentin, Valentina: strong and healthy.
15.Valeriy, Valeriya: healthy and cheerful.
Eastern Slavic Baby Names
These popular Slavic baby names have their origin in the Eastern Slavic areas of Belarus, Russia, and Ukraine.
16.Akim: Russian-origin variant of Joachim, which means God establishes.
17.Alyona: diminutive of Helena, meaning light and now popular in its own right.
18.Anastasia: resurrection. Famously belonged to the daughter of the last Tsar of Russia.
19.Anatoly: sunrise. Derived from Anatolius.
20.Demyan: Russian and Ukrainian-origin form of Damian, meaning to tame.
21.Marina: this popular Russian name means from the sea.
22.Misha: a nickname for Michal, now popular in its own right, this name means who is like God?
23.Oksana: praise be to God.
24.Oleg: holy, blessed.
25.Rurik: noted ruler.
26.Yakov:supplanter. A form of Jacob.
27.Yevgeniy, Yevgeniya:noble aristocrat.
28.Zoya: life.
Western Slavic Baby Names
These lovely Slavic baby names come from the Western Slavic area, which covers Czechia, Poland, and Slovakia and includes baby names of Czech, Polish and Slovakian origin.
29.Agnieszka: pure; holy.
30.Baruska:traveller.
31.Casimir, Casimira: Polish-origin baby name which means proclamation of peace.
32.Czeslav, Czeslava: glory.
33.Dagmara: day maiden.
34.Idania: hardworking.
35.Jan: Western Slavicform of the ever-popular baby name John, meaning God is gracious.
36.Jaromir, Jaromira: the meaning is debated, but usually taken as spring peace or great spring.
37.Katarina: pure. A Polish form of popular baby name Katherine.
38.Miroslaw, Miroslawa:peace and glory.
39.Sagan: A Polish-origin name that meant kettle, it was originally a surname.
40.Wislaw, Wislawa:great glory.
Southern Slavic Baby Names
These beautiful Slavic baby names come from the Southern Slavic region, which includes Bosnia & Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, and Slovenia.
41.Admetos: wild; one who cannot be tamed.
42.Dragan, Dragana:beloved.
43.Dusan:soul.
44.Gavrail, Gavraila:God is my strength. A form of Gabriel.
45.Jadran, Jadrana: the Adriatic sea.
46.Jasenka: clear and sharp.
47.Jovan: like Jove; majestic.
48.Lala: this Bulgarian-origin baby name also has meanings in Hawaiian and Arabic, but its Slavic meaning is tulip.
49.Mirce:peace.
50.Radoslav, Radoslava:happy glory.
51.Slavica:glory.
52.Stanislav, Stanislava: one who has achieved glory.
Baby Names From Slavic Folklore
These Slavic-origin baby names are taken from mythology and folklore traditions across the region.
53.Bozic: meaning little god in Serbian and Croatian, there were many of these in traditional folklore.
54.Jarilo: the Slavic god of the Spring.
55.Koleda: a Slavic goddess of the New Year.
56.Marta: Baba Marta is a mythological being from Bulgarian folklore.
57.Marzanna: the Polish name of the ancient Slavic goddess of winter.
58.Perun: meaning thunder, this is the name of a god of lightning.
59.Svantovit:blessed sight. The god of light and war.
60.Volos:ox. the god of cattle, who was also associated with poetry and wealth.
61.Zaria: The goddess of beauty in Slavic mythology, this name also means rose in Arabic and princess in Hebrew.
62.Ziva: meaning living, the name of the Slavic goddess of life.
Slavic Saint Names
Many of these Slavic-origin saint names come from the Eastern Orthodox church, where these saints are widely venerated.
63.Alla: This Russian-origin name belonged to a saint who was the widow of a Gothic chief.
64.Cyril:lordly. Not strictly Slavic (it’s of Greek origin), but St. Cyril did give his name to the writing system used throughout the region.
65.Fedor: One of the most popular Slavic baby names, it belonged to St. Fedor, and means gift of God.
66.Kseniya: hospitality.A Russian-origin variant of the name of St. Xenia, patron saint of Moscow.
67.Gorazd:man of the mountains. A Slovak bishop and writer of the 9th and 10th Century.
68.Ivan, Ivana: A Russian form of John, meaning God is gracious.
69.Matrona: St. Matrona of Moscow is a more modern saint, canonised in 1999.
70.Naum:comfort. This saint is well-known in Slavic countries but rarely heard of in the rest of the world.
71.Piotr: Another saint name with lasting popularity, this Slavic form of Peter means rock.
72.Radim: This name means great joy, and also lets you call your baby “Rad” for short. St. Radim was the first ever Polish archbishop.
73.Sergius: a monk and hermit, St. Sergius appears all over Eastern Orthodox art.
74.Vasily, Vasilisa: kindly. A saint whose popularity is so high, he gave his name to the famous St. Basil’s Cathedral in Moscow.
Baby Names Of Famous Slavic People
These baby names of Slavic origin all belong to famous performers, authors, thinkers and more.
75.Goran: This famous name meaning mountain man belongs to actor Goran Visnjic, who is of Croatian descent.
76.Irina: A popular Slavic name meaning peace, it most famously belongs to Russian model Irina Shayk.
77.Ivo: This pet form of Ivan, meaning God is gracious, belongs to Nobel Prize for Literature winner Ivo Andric.
78.Ludmilla: Meaning loved by the people, it belongs to well-known contemporary authors Ludmilla Petrushskevskaya and Ludmila Ulitskaya.
79.Mila: meaning gracious, this name belongs to Ukrainian actress Mila Kunis. It can also be spelled Milla, as worn by Milla Jovovitch.
80.Natalia: Popular Polish-German actress and singer Natalia Avelon carries this name meaning nativity.
81.Nina: a short form of many popular names with -nina endings, it belongs to Nina Dobrev, and can be found in almost every language.
82.Olga: This name meaning blessed; holy belongs to Ukrainian-French actress and model Olga Kurylenko.
83.Taras: This name originally means ason of Poseidon, but rose in popularity because of Ukrainian poet and writer Taras Shevchenko, also known as Kobzar.
84.Tomislav: This name belongs to Thirty Seconds To Mars guitarist Tomislav Milicevic, who was born in Bosnia and Herzegovina and is of Croatian descent.
Mediaeval names
These ancient Slavic baby names are still in popular usage in many areas of the region, and make a great choice for anyone on a baby name search.
85.Athanasi: A form of Athanasius, meaning immortal.
86.Blaz:blessed; happy.
87.Dobrogost:good guest.
88.Desislava: an ancient name of Bulgarian origin, it means to seek glory.
89.Mislav, Mislava: glorious thought, or my glory. This baby name is still frequently used in Croatia.
90.Samo: The meaning of this Slavic-origin name is uncertain, although some think it’s a variant of Samuel, meaning told by God. It belonged to a seventh-century king.
91.Veceslav, Veceslava:more glory. This was the original Slavic form of Wenceslas, a tenth-century saint.
92.Vladimeru: older variant of Vladimir, meaning great ruler.
Unisex names
Gender-neutral baby names have started to gain in popularity in recent years. Most Slavic girls’ names end in -a, so these might seem mostly feminine at first glance. However, most of them are nicknames or pet names which can act as short forms of both a boy’s name and a girl’s name.
93.Ivica:God is gracious. Originally a pet name for popular Slavic baby names Ivan and Ivana, it’s distinctly feminine in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, but gender-neutral elsewhere.
94.Kaja:manly. Short for Slavic names like Karolina or Karl, this baby name is gender-neutral in the Czech Republic but feminine in other countries such as Slovenia and Poland.
95.Mira:peace. Short for names like Miroslav and Miroslava, or any of the popular Slavic baby names ending in -mir or -mira.
96.Nikola: victory of the people. More popular for boys in Southern Slavic countries and for girls in Western Slavic countries. This baby name famously belonged to Serbian-American inventor Nikola Tesla.
97.Sasa:defender of mankind. A nickname for popular Slavic baby names Aleksander or Aleksandra.
98.Valera: healthy and cheerful. Short for baby names Valeriy and Valeriya.
99.Valya: strong and healthy. Short for the Slavic baby names Valentin and Valentina.
100.Vanya:God is gracious. Originally a pet name for popular Slavic baby names Ivan and Ivana.
101.Zhenya:noble aristocrat. A short form of the Slavic baby names Yevgeniy and Yevgeniya.
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