The Russian surname Zhikovich is a symbol of a proud and colorful Slavic heritage. The Slavic people originally used only a single name, but as the population grew and people began to travel, they began to find it necessary to take on an additional name to differentiate themselves. Fairly general principles guided the development of hereditary surnames in Russia. Most Russian surnames are either patronymic, which are surnames derived from the father's given name, or metronymic, which are surnames derived from the mother's given name. However, nickname surnames also emerged in Russia. Nickname surnames were derived from an eke-name, or added name. They usually reflected the physical characteristics or attributes of the first person that used the name. The surname Zhikovich was originally derived from the Russian word zhuk, which means beetle. The most common Russian suffixes are ov or ev, which are used after words ending in a consonant, and in, which follows words ending in a vowel.
Russia
