Search:

He seemed logical to me but I'll try to find out some more.

Edit: This link for example.
http://www.wco.ru/biblio/sprav/AngDay/main.htm?mos
Actually, I think that name origins and meanings of...

What's about Лёха Поп, Ильюха Муромский и Никита Добряк? :lol:[/quote]
Great! :D Only why did Добрыня replace his first name with his father's?

Yes, they came from the Greek root "alex". Александр means "defender of people" and Алексей means "defender"(source: Лев Успенский "Ты и твоё имя")

And I can't help recalling Лёха Попович, Илюха...

Лёха is much more informal than Алёша, I'd even say it's a bit crude (well, at least to my tender ears :wink:). For example, it's natural for a schoolteacher to call a student Алёша but she won't...