ከስሎቫክ አባሉ የተወሰደ vladeti "rule" combined with meru "great, famous". The second element has also been associated with miru meaning "peace, world". This was the name of an 11th-century Grand Prince of Kiev who is venerated as a saint because of his efforts to Christianize his realm (Kievan Rus). It was also borne by the founder of the former Soviet state, Vladimir Ilyich Lenin (1870-1924).
