Russian ladies' names

One thing that seems to confuse many men when they start corresponding with Russian women is their names. The situation often is that they write to a lady by one name and get a reply signed with a different name; their natural reaction is to think something is wrong, they are being scammed, etc. However, if you get more familiar with the Russian culture, you will see that Russian language has plenty of variations for personal names and it probably will take you some time to get used to it!
Full names are normally used for official paperwork, in formal relationships, when communicating with people you do not know. You may also notice that some people will use their first and middle name when addressing officials or older people; it is a very common practice in Russia for former Soviet Union countries, it expresses a high level of respect. Russian middle names are formed from a person's father's name plus a suffix.
Shorter nickname versions can be used by friends and family; if you use formal version of the name with friends and people you know well, it can be perceived as a sign of anger, dissatisfaction, or some problem. It is appropriate to use nicknames for younger people, however, for older men and women it is best to use the full name. Names can also be changed with a form of suffixes to express affection (suffixes -chka, -shka, -enka, etc); such forms are common to use between people who are very familiar with each other. Finally, some people will have individual variations of their name; some such variations can be very unexpected and normally signify exceptional warmth and affection when used. Russian names can also have vulgar forms (normally formed with the help of suffix -ka) - they should not be used in communication as they are perceived as offensive (i.e. from Anna: Anya is short, Anechka - affectionate, Anka - vulgar).
Some names that seem highly unusual can have strictly Russian roots (i.e. Praskovya, Miroslava, etc); however, you will notice that many younger women will have names that sound more like Western and European names (i.e. Christine, Elvira, etc). Below is a list of most common Russian names (some with English equivalents) which can help you avoid confusion in communication with ladies.
Alexandra: short - Sasha, Shura; affectionate - Sashenka, Shurochka.

Anna (Eng. Ann): short - Anya; affectionate - Anechka, Anyuta.

Ekaterina (Eng. Katherine): short - Katya; affectionate - Katenka, Katyusha.

Elena (Eng. Helen): short - Lena; affectionate - Lenochka, Lenusik.

Galina: short - Galya; affectionate - Galochka, Galyusya.

Irina (Eng. Irene): short - Ira; affectionate - Irochka, Irisha, Irishka.

Larisa: short - Lara; affectionate - Larochka.

Lyudmila: short - Lyuda, Lyusa, Mila; affectionate - Lyudochka, Milochka.

Lyubov: short - Lyuba; affectionate - Lyubochka, Lyubasha.

Margarita: short - Rita; affectionate - Ritochka.

Maria: short - Masha; affectionate - Mashenka, Mashulya, Manyasha.

Marina: no short version; affectionate - Marishka, Marisha.

Nadezhda: short - Nadya; affectionate - Nadyusha, Nadechka.

Natalia (Eng. Nataly): short - Natasha; affectionate - Natusik, Natashenka.

Nina: no short version; affectionate - Ninochka, Ninulya.

Oksana: no short version; affectionate - Ksyusha, Oksanochka.

Olesya: short - Lesya; affectionate - Lesechka.

Olga: short - Olya; affectionate - Olechka, Olenka.

Raisa