Boris

bu-REES; BAWR-iss; BO-rees; BAW-rees; BOH-riss

Slavic

"to fight"

Boris Origin and Meaning

The name Boris is a boy's name of Slavic origin meaning "to fight".

Boris is one of the old Russian names being revived by chic Europeans; it hasn't quite made a comeback yet in the U.S., but it does have potential.

For a long time the name has been associated with Boris Karloff, famed for playing Frankenstein's monster; he was William Henry Pratt before taking on the more captivating stage name of Boris — and the Karloff fear factor may have kept some parents away. Now, it might be the association with ex-Prime Minister of the UK, Boris Johnson that puts some people off.

A Russian saint's name, Boris has other more benign and inspiring namesakes like German-born tennis champ Boris Becker and writer Boris Pasternak, author of Dr. Zhivago, as well as the early Tsar Boris Gudonov, son-in-law of Ivan the Terrible, the subject of the Moussorgsky opera.

Boris Trigorin is a main character in the Chekhov play The Seagull.

Boris Rank in US Top 1000

# 893 in the US

Boris Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

# 1681 on Nameberry

Popularity of the name Boris

• 1681 Nameberry 2025
• 817 England 2021
• 88 Netherlands 2024

20 Names Similar to Boris

These 20 names were selected by our users that were looking for other names like Boris.

• Ebenezer
• Ludwig
• Neville
• Hubert
• Homer
• Orville
• Claus
• Franz
• Rudolph
• Hans
• Sigmund
• Wilhelm
• Cletus
• Mortimer
• Horace
• Moses
• Sid
• Vlad
• Clem
• Milton

Famous People Named Boris

• Boris Fyodorovich Godunov Tsar of Russia
• Boris Karloff (born William Henry Pratt) English actor
• Boris Said American NASCAR driver
• Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin Russian President
• Boris Franz Becker German tennis player
• Boris Vian French novelist, jazz musician and polymath
• Boris Aronson American theatrical scenic designer
• (Alexander) Boris de Pfeffel Johnson British Prime Minister
• Boris Mikhaylovich Moiseev Russian singer and dancer
• Boris Kodjoe American actor
• Boris Leonidovich Pasternak Russian novelist
• Boris Vasilievich Spassky Russian chess grandmaster and World Champion
• Boris Babacar Diaw French basketball player

The name Boris in Pop Culture

• Boris the Wolf fictional character that appears in the horror game "Bendy and the Ink Machine"
• Boris Walleyska main character on TV's "Alien Dawn"
• Boris Badenov a main adversary on "The Rocky & Bullwinkle Show"
• Boris a snow goose in the animated movie Balto
• Boris Pavliovsky character in Donna Tartt's "The Goldfinch"
• Boris later Sparrowpelt, character in Erin Hunter's "Warriors" book series
• Boris Great Dane dog in the 2018 Disney Channel Original Movie/musical "Freaky Friday"