The folklorist explained the reasons for Russians' craving for unusual names for children.

The folklorist, head of the folklore and ethnographic department of the State Republican Center of Russian Folklore, Varvara Dobrovolskaya, spoke about the reasons for Russians' craving for unusual names for children.

In conversation with aif.ru On February 8, the specialist noted that the name Elisha is now among the most popular male names.

"Elisha is a Hebrew name. It means "God is salvation" or "God saves." This name has a female counterpart. It would seem that the name Elisha is suitable here, but in fact the female equivalent is the name Alice," Dobrovolskaya explained.

According to her, choosing an unusual name often becomes a way to emphasize a certain social status. She also explained that the name Elisha is of Hebrew origin and goes back to the name Elisha, which was the name of one of the prophets of the Old Testament. At the same time, in the Russian cultural tradition, the name Elisha is strongly associated with the image of the prince from Alexander Pushkin's "The Tale of the Dead Princess and the Seven Heroes", a hero who embarks on a long journey to find a missing bride.

Svetlana Ukhaneva, head of the Moscow Registry Office, said on January 21 that Anna and Mikhail had become the most popular names in Moscow in 2025. The unusual ones include the Rook, the Tor and the Ocean, the Moscow City News agency notes.

On January 16, it was reported that Sofia and Mikhail were the top names for newborns in Russia in 2025. This is evidenced by the data on the information and analytical portal Registry Registry Office. Last year, 20,864 girls were named Sofia. Eva, Anna, Maria and Varvara were also among the five favorite names of Russians. 360.ru .

As the website notes kp.ru When choosing an unusual name, parents are advised to think about the consequences for the child in advance.

In January last year, State Duma Deputy Speaker Vladislav Davankov called for allowing minors to change their name because of harassment, even without parental permission. The deputy proposed to give the child the opportunity to choose only from the traditional common names in Russia, writes NSN.

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