MOSCOW, November 20 (RIA Novosti) – More than one-third of Russians cannot name the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill, according to a poll published on Tuesday.

Thirty-five percent of Russians were unable to name the patriarch, mainly young people (52 per cent) and residents of big cities (47 per cent), the All-Russia Center for the Study of Public Opinion on Social and Economic Issues (VTsIOM) poll said.

Some 45 per cent of those polled called Patriarch Kirill, who turned 66 on Tuesday, a spiritual leader of the nation. Only 9 per cent said they regard him as a statesman.

The VTsIOM poll embraced 1,600 people in 138 towns and 46 regions of Russia. The margin of error is 3.4 per cent.

Patriarch Kirill, whose secular name is Vladimir Gundyayev, was elected to head the Russian Orthodox Church in January 2009.