bˈɔːɹɪs hˈɛsən wʌz bˈɔːɹn tʊ ɐ dʒˈuːɪʃ fˈæmɪli ɪn ᵻlˈɪsɐvˌɛtɡɹæd, ɪnðə kˈɜːsən ɡˈʌvɚnɚɹˌeɪt ʌvðə ɹˈʌʃən ˈɛmpaɪɚ nˈaʊ kɹˈɑːpɪvnˌɪtskɪi, juːkɹˈeɪn.
Boris Hessen was born to a Jewish family in Elisavetgrad, in the Kherson Governorate of the Russian Empire (now Kropyvnytskyi, Ukraine).