It is obligatory for people in Russia to have three names: a given name (chosen by parents), a patronymic (based upon fathers name), and a family name (surname).
They are generally presented in that order: e.g.Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev, where "Nikita" is a first name, "Sergeyevich" (his fathers name is "Sergey") is a patronymic, and "Khrushchev" is a family name.
Although everyone in Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus is required to have three names, the full three-name form is virtually never used in direct communication and it is generally reserved for documents and public speeches. In the media, the three-name form could be used for highly respected persons (e.g. leaders of the Soviet Union and Russia).
Oh the internet is a wonderful source of knowledge isn't it!
I had often wondered about this myself, and your question prompted me to look it up.
Interesting stuff.
EDIT: I took this from a website which stated the three name thing is obligatory. I don't actually know if it is law, or just common convention. Hopefully one of our Russian members can clarify this.
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