KEMEROVO, January 10 (RIA Novosti) – Religion, legend and fantasy fiction have all left an impression on Siberia’s population, judging by the names that local dwellers chose for their newborn last year.
The best picks included Germiona – an apparent tribute to Hermione Granger, a character from the “Harry Potter” series – a boy called Angel, and Rusalka (“Mermaid”), the civil registry office in Kemerovo Region said Friday.
Other names unusual for Russia included Minuta (“Minute”), Yevangeliya (from “Yevangeliye,” or gospel), mythology-inspired Aristarkh, and Vladlen – a once-popular portmanteau formulation from the names of Bolshevik leader Vladimir Lenin.
The most popular female names were Darya, Victoria and Anastasia. Top male names were Artyom, Alexander and Ivan.
Young parents were not the only one bitten by the unusual naming bug in Russia last year: A Moscow Region teenager legally changed his name to “Jesse Heisenbergovich Pinkman” in honor of characters from his favorite television show, “Breaking Bad.” His parents reportedly said they were fine with it.
