Alexey
Alexey, Alexei, Alexie, or Aleksey (Russian: Алексе́й [ɐlʲɪkˈsʲej]; Bulgarian: Алексей [ɐlɛkˈsɛj]) is a Russian and Bulgarian male first name deriving from the Greek Aléxios (Αλέξιος), meaning "Defender", and thus of the same origin as the Latin Alexius.
| Pronunciation | Russian: [ɐlʲɪkˈsʲej] |
|---|---|
| Gender | Male |
| Language(s) | Russian, from Greek |
| Origin | |
| Meaning | Defender |
| Other names | |
| See also | Alexis, Alexius |
Alexey may also be romanized as Aleksei, Aleksey, Alexej, Aleksej, etc. It has been commonly westernized as Alexis.
Similar Ukrainian and Belarusian name is romanized as Oleksii (Олексій) and Aliaksiej (Аляксей), respectively.
The Russian Orthodox Church uses the Old Church Slavonic version, Alexiy (Алексiй, or Алексий in modern spelling), for its Saints and hierarchs (most notably, this is the form used for Patriarchs Alexius I and Alexius II).
The common hypocoristic is Alyosha (Алёша) or simply Lyosha (Лёша). These may be further transformed into Alyoshka, Alyoshenka, Lyoshka, Lyoha, Lyoshenka (Алёша, Алёшка, Алёшенька, Лёша, Лёшка, Лёха, Лёшенька), sometimes rendered as Alesha/Aleshenka in English. The form Alyosha may be used as a full first name in Bulgaria (Альоша) and Armenia.
In theory, Alexia is the female form. It is however virtually nonexistent in Russian-speaking countries. A popular Ukrainian and Belarusian female name Olesia/Olesya/Alesia/Alesya is one possible form.
The patronymics based on Alexey are Alexeyevich and Alexeev (male) and Alexeyevna and Alexeeva (female).
The following surnames derive from Alexey and its various forms:
- Alexeyev/Alekseyev
- Alexeyevsky
- Alyoshin
- Alyokhin (Alekhine, Alekhin)
- Lyoshin
- Alexeytsev/Alekseytsev /Alekseitsev
- Alexeychuk/Alekseychuk/Alekseichuk
- Alexeychik/Alekseychik/Alekseichik
- Alexeyuk/Alekseyuk
- Alexeyenko/Alekseyenko/Alekseenko
- Alexeychenko/Alekseychenko/Alekseichenko
- Alexievich
Alexeyevka is a common Russian village name.
Persons known by first name Alexey
- Aleksei (Russian convert to Judaism)
- Alexei, a fictional character in the science fiction horror web television series Stranger Things
- Alexis of Russia, Tsar of Russia from 1645 to 1676, son of Tsar Michael
- Aleshenka, a rumored alien found in Russia
- Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich of Russia, son of Tsar Alexander II
- Alexey Andreevich Anselm, Russian theoretical physicist
- Alexei Beletski, Ukrainian-born Israeli ice dancer
- Oleksii Bychenko (born 1988), Ukrainian-born Israeli figure skater, Olympian
- Alexei Cherepanov (1989-2008), Russian hockey player
- Alexei A. Efros, American computer scientist
- Alexei L. Efros, American physicist
- Alexey Goloborodko, Russian dancing contortionist
- Alexey Karamazov, fictional character from Fyodor Dostoyevsky's The Brothers Karamazov
- Alexei Kovalev, Russian professional ice hockey player
- Aleksey Kuleshov, Russian volleyball player
- Alexei Leonov, pioneering Russian cosmonaut, first person to conduct a space walk
- Alexei Makeyev (born 1991), Russian ice hockey player
- Grand Duke Alexei Mikhailovich of Russia, grandson of Tsar Nicholas I
- Alexei Navalny, Russian politician
- Alexei Nikolaevich, Tsarevich of Russia, the son of Nicholas II of Russia and Alexandra Feodorovna (Alix of Hesse) and younger brother of Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna of Russia
- Alexei Nemov, Russian gymnast
- Alexey Pajitnov, inventor of the popular puzzle game Tetris
- Tsarevich Alexei Petrovich of Russia, son of Peter I the Great of Russia
- Alexei Ponikarovsky, Ukrainian-Canadian professional ice hockey player
- Alexei Ramírez, Cuban baseball player
- Alexey Rykov, a Bolshevik revolutionary and Soviet politician
- Alexei Savrasov, Russian artist
- Alexei Sayle, English comedian and author
- Alexei Shirov, chess Grandmaster
- Alexey Shved, Russian basketball player
- Aleksey Sorokin, several people
- Aleksei Sytsevich, fictional character in the Marvel universe better known as Rhino
- Alexei Tezikov (1978–2020), Russian ice hockey player
- Alexei Yagudin, Russian figure skater