Andrei or Alek - please help!

Boy Names
1

I’ve posted before - we are still deciding on a name that will reflect our son’s Russian heritage but also be familiar and pronounced correctly (or at least close to correct).

Our two top choices are [name_u]Alek[/name_u] (a dimunutive of [name_m]Aleksandr[/name_m] - we are leaning against using [name_m]Aleksandr[/name_m] in full because my husband cannot pronounce it correctly and other reasons…) or [name_m]Andrei[/name_m].

We need to decide soon and I’m still not sure…

Can you give me your thoughts?

Thank you!

2

I like [name_u]Alek[/name_u] much better than [name_m]Andrei[/name_m]. As a native English speaker, I have no idea how [name_m]Andrei[/name_m] is supposed to be pronounced: An-dray? On-dray? Emphasis on the first syllable or the second? [name_u]Alek[/name_u] is much more intuitive.

Also, what about [name_m]Alexander[/name_m] but with a Russian nickname? I know an [name_m]Alexander[/name_m] who goes by [name_u]Sasha[/name_u] which I think is very handsome.

3

Thanks for the feedback. I like the name [name_m]Andrei[/name_m] but I’m familiar with it and know it is pronounced like [name_u]Andre[/name_u]. It’s helpful to know that even people who are into names have no idea how to pronounce it. :slight_smile:

We are trying to avoid nicknames since he will actually be going by a different nickname. So this name we give him ([name_u]Alek[/name_u] or [name_m]Andrei[/name_m]) will only be used if he wants to be called something more formal and I prefer [name_u]Alek[/name_u] to the full Aleksander.

4

I love the name [name_m]Andrei[/name_m]! I live in the US and it feels pretty familiar as a Russian name. It has the formal feel you’re looking for. Might get misspelled as [name_u]Andre[/name_u] or [name_m]Andres[/name_m] due to the pronunciation though.

5

I quite like [name_u]Alek[/name_u] for you. I think it has a cosmopolitan, contemporary but grounded vibe that would serve your son well.

6

I vote [name_u]Alek[/name_u] as well!

I am in [name_f]Canada[/name_f] and I pronounced [name_m]Andrei[/name_m] as “[name_u]Andre[/name_u]” intuitively. Both names have a strong Russian connection I think.

However, these names have different vibes to me. I think that I prefer [name_u]Alek[/name_u] because it seems a little less fussy than [name_m]Andrei[/name_m]. It seems more versatile!