Thread: Dmitri to Valya - Russian Term of Endearment needed

Originally Posted by translationsnmru

I wouldn't use "dorogaya" (dear) in the circumstances described by rockzmom. Solnyshko (солнышко), perhaps. It is a sort of a diminutive word for the sun, and people use it sometimes to refer to the actual sun, but it is also frequently used as a term of endearment as well.

translationsnmru, you are correct...dorogaya would not be appropriate in this case. Solnyshko (солнышко), now this one is interesting.

Would this be at all similar to the American endearment and expression of "sunshine" as in "Good morning sunshine, how's it going?"

There is a diminutive form of the name Valya which reads "Валентинка" (Valentinka, pronounced as something like "Vah-len-'teen-kah"). This diminutive form on the other hand is used to denote a Valentine's day greeting card. This is a really nice term of endearment for a girl with the name Valya.