Russian Names

Not much to recommend this relative of Wilma; consider Willa or Willow instead.

Madelina is the Madeline equivalent used in many European cultures. While it's a simple and melodic name, like its mother name it can lead to lots of spelling and pronunciation problems. The first syllable may be "may" or rhyme with dad; last two syllables pronounce lee-na, though of course some will inevitably say lye-na. Only a handful of girls received this name in the US last year, making it a distinctive and pretty classic, but don't choose it ignoring its very real down side.

One of the many international variations of the classic Helen.

Fedora is occasionally heard among the British Mayfair and Belgravia set, but we're afraid that in this country there would be too strong an association with the man's felt hat.

In an English-speaking country, stick with Eugenia.

Bold and spirited sounding Slavic short form of male and female names containing the element slava "glory".

Nice, bouncy three-syllable rhythm, à la Jeremy and Barnaby.

A timeless cultural crossover name, Nadiya can either be a variant spelling of Nadia, a diminutive of the Russian name Nadezhda, meaning "hope"; or derived from the Arabic word Nada, meaning "morning dew" or "to be wet with dew" — something especially precious in dry climates.

A not as appealing variation on an attractive original.