Archive by Author
Take Your Pronunciation to the Next Level – Part I Posted by Maria on Jul 21, 2014
Does anyone here find Russian pronunciation challenging? Perhaps you are learning Russian abroad and don’t get to hear native speakers very often. Or maybe, despite hearing them, you just can’t grasp how they produce the sounds of Russian and cannot quite repeat them. Let’s hope that’s not the case. But whatever your accent in Russian…
Gender Dynamics in Russia Posted by Maria on Jul 14, 2014
Gender dynamics in Russia are a curious mix of patriarchy, old-fashioned chivalry, and female empowerment. Women are expected to look and act a certain way; at the same time, they are a significant presence in industries considered male elsewhere. Eye Candy Women One of the first things visitors to Russia notice is how attractive the…
Russian Living Spaces — Tiny Before It Was Cool Posted by Maria on Jul 7, 2014
If you have visited Russia or some of the neighboring countries, you have probably noticed that the average family home is much smaller than, say, in the US. There are both cultural and economic reasons behind that. As a result, several space-saving strategies have developed to make homes livable and maximize the little space available…
Celebrities who speak Russian Posted by Maria on Jul 3, 2014
You might have read my previous post about famous foreigners who learned Russian. A reader commented that these people moved to Russia (or what is now Russia) and had plenty of opportunities to master the language. Today I’d like to talk about some celebrities living outside Russia who can speak Russian. Luckily, they are all…
Russian Characters in Orange Is The New Black Posted by Maria on Jun 23, 2014
If you are watched at least one episode of Orange Is the New Black, you will have seen its Russian characters. For those who don’t know, Orange Is the new Black (OITBN) is the highly successful Netflix original series (сериал) set in a women’s prison. I’ll try not to spoil too much for those who…
Unexpected Discoveries After Moving to Moscow (Part 2) Posted by Maria on Jun 16, 2014
This post is continued from last week’s post. Read the beginning here. 3. Being Moscow-born matters One of the things you will sometimes hear said with pride around Moscow is “Я коренной москвич/Я коренная москвичка” (I’m a native Muscovite: male/female). Коренной comes from the word корень (root). In other words, “My roots are here.” Interestingly…
Unexpected Discoveries After Moving to Moscow (Part 1) Posted by Maria on Jun 12, 2014
This is part one of a two-part post. Click here to read part two. As you may know from my introduction, I was born in the city of Chelyabinsk (Челябинск) — to quote Lorde, “we live in cities you’ll never see on screen.” In high school, I moved to Moscow. I was fairly anxious about…