Hello! I'd like to ask any Russian contributors how Russian names work, since melancholiasecho mentioned that specifically. Also, if possible, could anyone help me out with details on what it's like to live in Norilsk, near the top of Krasnoyarsk Krai? It's so different from where I live (temperate Auckland, New Zealand) that I'm anxious about getting it right. Thanks so much for all your help!
melancholiasecho, would you be able to come over and maybe submit a post about Russian naming systems to help Anon? Or, if it's easier for you, should Anon go over to your askbox and ask you their specific questions there?
Melancholiasecho is currently the only contributor from Russia, so if they can't help you with all your questions then I suggest you could check out the following sources (I can't testify too much to how useful they'll be, since I just did some brief Googling and looking through tags here):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Naming_conventions_(Russia)
http://faculty.virginia.edu/herman/tolstoy/namingconventions.htm
http://uminoko.tumblr.com/post/79919414478/call-me-by-my-true-name-russian-naming-conventions
That last link includes links to other things about Russia that the blogger has written, so that could also be helpful, particularly if you're looking for information for such a specific location! The links are tags to their blog and are in the second paragraph, so hopefully they'll be easy for you to find and access.
I'm also tagging this post so that people from Norilsk or somewhere else in Krasnoyarsk Krai, so for anyone who sees this post and can answer Anon's questions, please message this blog!
You're welcome, Anon, and good luck!