10 famous writers you know by their pseudonyms

We know some writers and poets under an assumed name and surname. Many of them take pseudonyms so that they are not compared with namesakes or well-known relatives, in order to simplify their complex name or make it more euphonious and effective.

10 Anna Akhmatova (Anna Andreevna Gorenko)

Anna Gorenko’s father was Andrey Gorenko, a hereditary nobleman who once worked as a fleet mechanical engineer.

She wrote her first poems after a serious illness, she was then only 11 years old. For several days the girl was delirious, her relatives no longer hoped for her recovery. But when she woke up and regained her strength, she was able to pick up her first rhymes.

She read the poems of French poets and tried to compose poetry herself. But the father did not really like his daughter’s hobby. He not only was not interested in her poems, but also spoke dismissively of them.

Realizing that Anna nevertheless decided to become a poetess, he forbade her to sign her real name, because. was sure that she would dishonor his name. Anna did not argue with him. She decided to choose a pseudonym for herself. Upon learning that her maternal grandmother had a sonorous surname “Akhmatova”, she took it.

So the famous Russian poetess chose a Tatar surname for herself, which allegedly went to her ancestors, because. they were from the clan of the Tatar Khan Akhmat.

9. Ilya Ilf (Ilya Arnoldovich Fainzilberg)

The famous author of “12 Chairs” took his pseudonym to make it easier to sign his works.

His daughter said that his real name, Fainzilberg, was too long for a newspaper article. And, in order to shorten it, he often signed “Ilya F” or “IF”, and gradually his pseudonym “Ilf” turned out on its own.

But there is another version. At birth, he was Yehiel-Leib Arevich Fainzilberg, was born into a Jewish family. And his pseudonym is an abbreviation in accordance with the tradition of Jewish nominal abbreviations.

He sometimes signed by other names. So, acting as a literary critic, Ilya called himself Anton Extreme.

8. Evgeny Petrov (Evgeny Petrovich Kataev)

The elder brother of Evgeny Kataev was Valentin Kataev. He was a famous writer, founder and editor of the Youth magazine.

Not wanting to use the fame and popularity of his brother, Eugene took a pseudonym. He became Petrov, slightly altering the name of his father, Pyotr Vasilyevich Kataev.

7. Arkady Gaidar (Golikov Arkady Petrovich)

The writer himself never told why he decided to become Gaidar. When asked about it, he usually joked, never explaining anything.

There were several versions of the origin of his name. The most popular was the version of the writer B. Emelyanov. He was sure that the pseudonym came from the Mongolian word “gaidar”, which meant a rider galloping in front.

There is another version. A school friend of the writer A.M. Goldin is sure that the pseudonym is an encrypted message. Since childhood, he was a great inventor, he loved to invent his own ciphers. “Gaidar” is deciphered as follows: “G” is the first letter of his last name Golikov, “ay” is the first and last letters of the name Arkady, “d” is from the French “de”, which means “from”, and “ar” is the first letters of his hometown. It turns out “Golikov Arkady from Arzamas.”

6. Boris Akunin (Grigory Chkhartishvili)

The writer publishes critical and documentary works under his own name. He became Boris Akunin in 1998, after he began to write fiction.

At first, no one knew what the letter “B” before his new name meant. A little later, in an interview, he said that this is the first letter of his name – Boris.

There are several suggestions as to why he took this pseudonym. “Akunin” can be translated from Japanese as “a supporter of evil or a villain.” Someone believes that this pseudonym is associated with the name of the famous anarchist Mikhail Bakunin.

The writer himself explains that his novels are not like his other activities. Akunin’s thought does not work in the same way as Chkhartishvili, who writes articles. They are two completely different people, Akunin is an idealist, kind, and believes in God. In addition, you should not write detective stories with such an unpronounceable surname.

5. O. Henry (William Sydney Porter)

Once he was accused of embezzlement and was in a hard labor prison. He had an education as a pharmacist, so William was allowed to work in the infirmary as a night apothecary.

At night, sitting on duty, he composed his stories. Some of them got free. But the writer did not want readers to know about his hard labor past. He was always ashamed of him and afraid of exposure. Therefore, it was published only under a pseudonym.

It is believed that he became O. Henry, remaking the name of the pharmacist Etienne Ocean Henri. He was the author of the reference book, which was also used in the prison pharmacy.

William himself assured that he chose the initial “O” only because it is the simplest letter and it stands for Oliver. And the name “Henry” he took from the newspaper.

4. Lewis Carroll (Charles Lutwidge Dodgson)

The writer was a famous English mathematician, graduated with honors from Oxford. In order to become a professor and give lectures, according to the charter, he had to take the clergy, which he did when he became a deacon.

After that, it was dangerous for him to sign humorous stories with his own name, because. both the church and colleagues could react painfully to his work. In addition, he did not like his own name, it seemed to him boring and dissonant.

Dodgson had a double name, in honor of his father and mother. He translated both parts into Latin, it turned out “Carolus Ludovicus”. After that, I changed their places and again translated into English. This is how his pseudonym Lewis Carroll came about. But he always signed his mathematical works with his real name.

3. Mark Twain (Samuel Langhorn Clemens)

Once an aspiring writer worked as a sailor on the Mississippi River. The safe depth through which the steamer could pass was considered a mark of 2 phantoms or 3,6 m. In the slang of sailors, this depth was called “twins”. Boatmen measured it with a special stick, and if everything was in order, they shouted “by mark twain”. This combination of words was to the liking of the writer.

2. Daniil Kharms (Daniil Ivanovich Yuvachev)

The writer came up with this pseudonym while still a schoolboy, signing his notebooks with this surname. He later made it his official name.

It is still unknown why he chose such a surname for himself, there are many versions of its origin. But the most common – Harms sounds almost like Holmes, and this was Harms’ favorite character. From him, he adopted the style of dressing and often posed with a pipe in the pictures.

1. Korney Ivanovich Chukovsky (Nikolai Vasilyevich Korneichukov)

The writer was illegitimate. His father was Emmanuil Levenson, and his mother was the peasant Ekaterina Korneichuk, who was his maid. Therefore, the boy did not have a patronymic.

After he became a writer, he used a pseudonym – Korney Chukovsky, adding a fictitious middle name to it. And after the revolution, the pseudonym became his name.