65 Great Russian Cat Names and Their Meanings

Deciding on a name for your cat can be a bit of a nerve-wracking task, but it doesn’t have to be! Looking to different cultures for name ideas is always helpful when naming any pet, including cats. Below, we’ll take a look at 65 unique Russian cat names that are sure to give you the inspiration you need.

1. Vasily

Name meaning: Kingly. Equivalent to the English name Basil.

2. Olga

Name meaning: Blessed or holy. From the Old Norse name Helga.

3. Pavel

Name meaning: Small. It’s the Slavic cognate of the name Paul.

4. Nina

Name meaning: Diminutive form of Anna. It comes from the Hebrew name Hannah, meaning favor or grace.

5. Fyodor

Name meaning: God’s gift. It’s the Russian form of the Greek name Theodore.

6. Masha

Name meaning: Diminutive form of Maria. Has several meanings, including bitter, beloved, and rebelliousness.

7. Gleb

Name meaning: Heir of God. Derived from the Old Norse name Guðleifr.

8. Zoya

Name meaning: Life. It’s a variant of the Greek name Zoe.

9. Yevgeny

Meaning: Noble or high-born. It has many spelling variants, including Yevgeni and Yevgeniy.

10. Angelika

Name meaning: Angelic or messenger. This one is derived from the Latin name Angelicus.

11. Anatoly

Name meaning: Sunrise. Derived from the Greek name Anatolios.

12. Tatiana

Name meaning: Variant of the Roman clan name Tatius.

13. Avel

Name meaning: A gentle breath. Derived from the Biblical Hebrew word hebel.

14. Anoushka

Name meaning: Grace or a favor. Diminutive form of the name Anna. 

15. Yury

Name meaning: The light of God. It’s the Slavic form of the masculine name George.

16. Aurora

Name meaning: Dawn. Comes from the ancient Roman goddess of dawn, Aurora.

17. Boris

Name meaning: Several, including wolf, short, or snow leopard. This name is originally derived from the extinct Oghuric Turkic Bulgar language.

18. Vlada

Name meaning: To rule. 

19. Timur

Name meaning: Iron. It’s a cognate of the Bosnian and Turkish name Demir.

20. Daria/Darya

Name meaning: Wealthy. It’s the feminine counterpart of the Old Persian name Darius.

21. Ilya

Name meaning: My God is great. It’s the East Slavic version of the male Hebrew name Eliyahu.

22. Nadia

Name meaning: Several, including delicate, fragile, and hope. It has many spelling variations, and most come from either Arabic or Slavic languages.

23. Leon

Name meaning: Lion. It was originally of Greek origin but later became popular amongst Russians.

24. Nika

Name meaning: Victory. It comes from the ancient Greek goddess of victory, Nike.

25. Oleg

Name meaning: Holy, sacred, or blessed. It originally comes from the Old Norse name Helgi.

26. Yulia

Name meaning: A descendant of Julus. The equivalent of the Latin name Julia.

27. Osip

Name meaning: “Jehovah or God shall add.” This one is a variant of the name Joseph.

28. Elvira

Name meaning: White or truth. This name was first recorded in medieval Spain, and it later became popular elsewhere.

29. Georgiy

Name meaning: Farmer or earth worker. It comes from the Greek name Georgios.

30. Mila

Name meaning: Gracious or dear. This name originated somewhere in eastern or central Europe.

31. Nikola

Name meaning: Victory of the people. Originally, it comes from the Greek name Nikolaos.

32. Diana

Name meaning: Heavenly or divine. Originally referred to the Greek goddess Diana.

33. Agap

Name meaning: To love. It came from the Greek name Agapios, which in turn comes from the Greek verb agapaō, meaning “to love.”

34. Vesna

Name meaning: Spring. It comes from the name of the ancient Slavic goddess of spring, Vesna.

35. Ivan

Name meaning: God is gracious. It comes from the Hebrew name Yôḥānnān.

36. Vera

Name meaning: Truth or faith. 

37. Avros

Name meaning: Golden or rich in gold. Originally, it comes from the Latin word meaning “rich in gold.”

38. Lana

Name meaning: Little rock, light, or pure. It can be considered a diminutive form of the Russian name Svetlana.

39. Yakov

Name meaning: It’s a Russian or Hebrew variant of the Name Jacob, which means “may God protect.”

40. Sonia

Name meaning: Wisdom. It has several spelling variants, including Sonya or Sonja.

41. Lukyan

Name meaning: Light or bringer of light. It’s actually a variant of the Latin name Lucian.

42. Arina

Name meaning: It’s a variant of the name Irina, meaning “peace.” It comes from the name of the Greek goddess of peace.

43. Vadim

Name meaning: To rule. It’s now a quite popular name in Russia and Ukraine.

44. Agatha

Name meaning: Good. It comes from the Greek feminine name Agáthē.

45. Valentin

Name meaning: Strong, healthy, power, or rule. It originally comes from the Latin name Valentinus.

46. Raisa/Raissa

Name meaning: Chief or leader.

47. Vladimir

Name meaning: Several, including of great power, ruler of the world, or bright and famous.

48. Katya

Name meaning: Pure or perfect. It’s the diminutive form of Yekaterina.

49. Victor

Name meaning: Winner or conqueror. Notably, Victor is one of the earliest Christian names.

50. Irina

Name meaning: Peace. It originally comes from the ancient Greek goddess Eirene, the personification of peace.

51. Yefim

Name meaning: It comes from the Greek name Euthymios, which means “in good spirits” or “good cheer.”

52. Alina

Name meaning: Noble. Though it’s actually of European and Arabic origin, it’s become very popular throughout Eastern Europe.

53. Renat

Name meaning: Born again. It comes from the Latin word “renatus.”

54. Raya

Name meaning: Happy or queen. It can also be a diminutive form of the name Raisa.

55. Nikita

Name meaning: Unconquered, victory, or victory of the people. This name can be masculine or feminine.

56. Anastasia

Name meaning: It originally comes from the Greek word “anástasis,” meaning “resurrection.”

57. Daniil

Name meaning: The Russian equivalent of the English name Daniel, which means “God is my judge.”

58. Kira

Name meaning: This name has several meanings, including beam of light, like Ra, shine, and ruler of the people.

59. Kolya

Name meaning: It’s the diminutive form of Nikolai, which in turn is an East Slavic variant of the name Nicholas, which means “victory of the people.”

60. Ruslana

Name meaning: This is the feminine version of the name Ruslan, which means “lion.”

61. Matvei/Matvey

Name meaning: The Russian version of the name Matthew, which means “gift of God.”

62. Lyubov/Lubov

Name meaning: Love.

63. Avva

Name meaning: This uncommon Russian name likely comes from the Biblical Hebrew word abba, which means “father.”

64. Valeria

Name meaning: Strong or brave.

65. Bogdan

Name meaning: Given by God. 

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