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ArchivesIosif and Osip in modern Russia
How common are the names Iosif and Osip in modern Russia? Do Russians associate the name with Stalin?
I figured I'd ask since most famous Russian men with the names were born before the Russian Revolution, so I'm wondering if Stalin's infamy led to those names falling out of favor. (Actually, I've noticed that the Russian Revolution brought major changes to Russian names - not just the invention of Soviet names, but to what names were preferred by the general population. A lot of the heavily Orthodox names seem to have fallen out of favor after the Revolution.)
On Wikipedia, Osip has more famous Russian bearers than Iosif, so I feel like Osip was traditionally the more common form of the name. I've also noticed that both names were surprisingly uncommon in Russia compared to forms of Joseph elsewhere in Europe. In many European countries, forms of Joseph were traditionally among the most common male names.
I figured I'd ask since most famous Russian men with the names were born before the Russian Revolution, so I'm wondering if Stalin's infamy led to those names falling out of favor. (Actually, I've noticed that the Russian Revolution brought major changes to Russian names - not just the invention of Soviet names, but to what names were preferred by the general population. A lot of the heavily Orthodox names seem to have fallen out of favor after the Revolution.)
On Wikipedia, Osip has more famous Russian bearers than Iosif, so I feel like Osip was traditionally the more common form of the name. I've also noticed that both names were surprisingly uncommon in Russia compared to forms of Joseph elsewhere in Europe. In many European countries, forms of Joseph were traditionally among the most common male names.
This message was edited 9/27/2022, 4:37 PM
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Replies
I *think* Osip (and Iosif) were predominantly used by Russian Jews. The most famous Osip I can think of is Mandelstam, who was Jewish. Neither Iosip or Osip currently chart in Russia, but that's not particularly helpful information, as only Moscow data is published, and only the fifty most common name at that.
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