February 27, 2024

Fighting for the Matriarchy, in Name


Fighting for the Matriarchy, in Name
With March 8th coming up, here's one way you can pay tribute to the most important woman in your life... Russian Life files.

What's in a name?

In June 2023, the Constitutional Court of Kyrgyzstan ruled that women can take a "matronymic," taken from their mothers' names. In honor of this decision, Kholod Media spoke to women who have chosen to take matronymics there and elsewhere.

In addition to a surname inherited from the paternal side, Slavic women have a patronymic, a middle name derived from their fathers' first name. In recent years, however, women in Slavic countries have begun taking a stand against this traditional practice, taking their mothers' names instead. 

Many of the stories of those who are a part of this movement are linked with feminism: When 37-year-old Alexandra Irinovna began identifying as a feminist, she realized she could honor the mother who had raised her instead of the father she had never known. Yekaterina Galinovna does not absolve her mother for the flawed parenting she exhibited alongside Yekaterina's father, but as a woman and a feminist, Yekaterina feels she can more easily understand and forgive her mother. After being abandoned by her biological father and abused by her stepfather, 21-year-old Elena Svetlanovna changed her name to pay tribute to her "closest person." 

Patronymics are synonymous with respect and heritage in Slavic cultures, so it should come as no surprise that these women choose to be called by names they themselves honor. 

You Might Also Like

Russian Women: An Awesome Force
  • March 01, 1998

Russian Women: An Awesome Force

A look at how Russian women strive to look good, while balancing between the old spiritual traditions of Mother Russia and the multiple temptations of modern times.
The Women of Russian Diplomacy
  • March 01, 2018

The Women of Russian Diplomacy

Over the 70-year lifespan of the “most equal and democratic nation” known as the Soviet Union, just a handful of women rose to the rank of ambassador. A few more have attained this level since 1991, yet diplomacy in Russia remains largely a male preserve.
Women's Day?
  • October 09, 2007

Women's Day?

A look at the origins of International Womens Day (March 8), how it was celebrated in Soviet times, and how it is changing today.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

Fish: A History of One Migration

Fish: A History of One Migration

This mesmerizing novel from one of Russia’s most important modern authors traces the life journey of a selfless Russian everywoman. In the wake of the Soviet breakup, inexorable forces drag Vera across the breadth of the Russian empire. Facing a relentless onslaught of human and social trials, she swims against the current of life, countering adversity and pain with compassion and hope, in many ways personifying Mother Russia’s torment and resilience amid the Soviet disintegration.
White Magic

White Magic

The thirteen tales in this volume – all written by Russian émigrés, writers who fled their native country in the early twentieth century – contain a fair dose of magic and mysticism, of terror and the supernatural. There are Petersburg revenants, grief-stricken avengers, Lithuanian vampires, flying skeletons, murders and duels, and even a ghostly Edgar Allen Poe.
Dostoyevsky Bilingual

Dostoyevsky Bilingual

Bilingual series of short, lesser known, but highly significant works that show the traditional view of Dostoyevsky as a dour, intense, philosophical writer to be unnecessarily one-sided. 
Fearful Majesty

Fearful Majesty

This acclaimed biography of one of Russia’s most important and tyrannical rulers is not only a rich, readable biography, it is also surprisingly timely, revealing how many of the issues Russia faces today have their roots in Ivan’s reign.
Tolstoy Bilingual

Tolstoy Bilingual

This compact, yet surprisingly broad look at the life and work of Tolstoy spans from one of his earliest stories to one of his last, looking at works that made him famous and others that made him notorious. 
93 Untranslatable Russian Words

93 Untranslatable Russian Words

Every language has concepts, ideas, words and idioms that are nearly impossible to translate into another language. This book looks at nearly 100 such Russian words and offers paths to their understanding and translation by way of examples from literature and everyday life. Difficult to translate words and concepts are introduced with dictionary definitions, then elucidated with citations from literature, speech and prose, helping the student of Russian comprehend the word/concept in context.
Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices

Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices

Stargorod is a mid-sized provincial city that exists only in Russian metaphorical space. It has its roots in Gogol, and Ilf and Petrov, and is a place far from Moscow, but close to Russian hearts. It is a place of mystery and normality, of provincial innocence and Black Earth wisdom. Strange, inexplicable things happen in Stargorod. So do good things. And bad things. A lot like life everywhere, one might say. Only with a heavy dose of vodka, longing and mystery.
The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

This exciting new trilogy by a Russian author – who has been compared to Orhan Pamuk and Umberto Eco – vividly recreates a lost world, yet its passions and characters are entirely relevant to the present day. Full of mystery, memorable characters, and non-stop adventure, The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas is a must read for lovers of historical fiction and international thrillers.  

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955