How popular is the baby name Alexei in the United States right now? How popular was it historically? Use the popularity graph and data table below to find out! Plus, see all the blog posts that mention the name Alexei.
The graph will take a few moments to load. (Don't worry, it shouldn't take 9 months!) If it's taking too long, try reloading the page.
The literary surname Karenina first appeared in the U.S. baby name data in 1978:
1980: unlisted
1979: unlisted
1978: 7 baby girls named Karenina [debut]
1977: unlisted
1976: unlisted
But Leo Tolstoy’s famous novel Anna Karenina was first published (in book form) way back in 1878, and it wasn’t translated from Russian to English until 1901. So how did “Karenina” suddenly wind up in the U.S. baby name data in the late 1970s?
Television! Specifically, the 10-episode mini-series Anna Karenina that originally aired on British television in 1977, then aired on American television (as part of PBS’s Masterpiece Theatre) in early 1978. The mini-series starred British actress Nicola Pagett as Countess Anna Karenina.
Russians use gender-specific forms of surnames, so “Karenina” is the feminine form of Karenin (the surname of Anna’s husband, Alexei). How did Tolstoy come up with the surname Karenin?
Many of the invented surnames in the novel have symbolic meanings or associations, some of which are humorous. […] The new passion which Tolstoy developed for learning Greek in the early 1870s is reflected in the etymology of ‘Karenin.’
Karenin was derived from káranon, the ancient Greek word for “head.”
The four-syllable surname Karenina is pronounced with a stress on the second syllable. In English it’s often pronounced kah-REH-nih-nuh, but in Russian (as you can hear at Forvo) it’s more along the lines of kah-RAY-nee-nuh.
Bartless, Rosamund. “Principal Characters and Guide to Pronunciation.” Anna Karenina, by Leo Tolstoy, translated by Rosamund Bartless. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014.
Below are hundreds of baby names with a numerological value of 2.
What do I mean by that?
Well, in numerology, you substitute each letter in a word with that letter’s ordinal value in the alphabet. (The letter C has a value of 3, for instance, because it’s the third letter.) Then you add those ordinal values together to come up with a total. Lastly, you add the digits of that total together to obtain a numerological value.
Here’s an example: The letters in the name Dana have the values 4, 1, 14, and 1. Added together, these values equal 20. And the digits of 20 added together equal 2.
All of the “2” names below are sub-categorized by totals — just in case any of those larger numbers are significant to anyone. Within each group you’ll find some of the most popular “2” names per gender (according to the most recent set of U.S. baby name rankings).
2 via 11
The letters in the following baby names add up to 11, which reduces to two (1+1=2).
Girl names (2 via 11)
Boy names (2 via 11)
Adea, Fe, Aia
Aj, Ja, Cabe
2 via 20
The letters in the following baby names add up to 20, which reduces to two (2+0=2).
What does the number two mean in numerology? Unfortunately, there’s no clear answer. Various numerological systems exist, and each one has its own interpretation of the number two.
That said, if we look at a couple of modern numerology/astrology websites, we see 2 being described as “diplomatic,” “cooperative,” “peaceful,” “gentle,” and “understanding.”
Personally, I prefer to look at associations, which are a bit more concrete. Here are some things that are associated with the number 2:
Hands
Feet
Eyes
Ears
Lungs
Chopsticks
Knitting needles
Complementary pairings (e.g., pen and paper, bow and arrow, peanut butter and jelly)
Dualities (e.g., day and night, yin and yang, war and peace)
Boxing (2 competitors; 2 fists)
Partner dancing
DNA double helix
What does the number 2 mean to you? What are your strongest associations with the number?
(To see names with other numerological values, check out the posts for the numbers one, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, and nine.)
Nikita Khrushchev was the leader of the Soviet Union for over a decade (1953 to 1964) during the early Cold War.
Between the time the U.S.S.R. launched Sputnik in 1957 and sent Yuri Gagarin on the first manned space flight in 1961, Khrushchev became first Soviet head of state to visit the United States.
Upon the invitation of president Dwight D. Eisenhower, Khrushchev and his family (wife Nina, son Sergei, daughters Julia and Rada, and son-in-law Alexei) flew to Washington, D.C., on September 15, 1959. They visited New York, California, Iowa, and Pennsylvania before flying back to Moscow on the 27th.
Though Khrushchev famously never made it to Disneyland, he did manage to make an impression upon expectant parents:
Girls named Nikita
Boys named Nikita
1961
39
21
1960
56
25
1959
44
19*
1958
16
.
1957
13
.
*Debut
The name Nikita had appeared in the U.S. baby name data as a girl name before, but in 1959 it showed up for the very first time as a boy name.*
These days the usage of Nikita is about equal for males and females — 93 baby girls and 92 baby boys got the name in 2015. But there was a spike in female usage in 1985, thanks to the song “Nikita” by Elton John. (American radio listeners similarly interpreted Luka as a girl name a couple of years later.)
The name Nikita can be traced back to the ancient Greek word for “victor,” niketes, which is based on the more familiar word nike, meaning “victory.”
And eight years after the name Nikita debuted, another Russian arrival, Svetlana Stalina, showed up and added yet another Soviet-inspired baby name to the mix…
*To debut in the SSA’s baby name data, a name has to be given to least 5 babies of one gender or the other within a single calendar year.
Looking for a set of baby names with something in common? If so, here are some 6-letter anagram names for you to check out!
Anagrams are words that contain the same set of letters, but not in the same sequence. For instance, the words “listen,” “silent,” and “tinsel” are all anagrams of one another.
Anagram names can be a neat option for siblings — particularly multiples (like twins and triplets). They’re also a clever way to connect a baby name to the name of an older relative (e.g., grandpa Weston, grandson Townes).
Below are hundreds of six-letter names (collected from the SSA’s huge database of U.S. baby names) that happen to be anagrams of other names.
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
Cookie
Duration
Description
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional
11 months
The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy
11 months
The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.