Easy-breezy Russian idioms with “wind” Posted by bota on Jun 10, 2020
The Russian language is bountiful with idioms (фразеологи́змы) and there are a few particularly fun ones that use the word “ве́тер” (wind). Wind often symbolizes uncertainty, transition, and change. It also carries notions of emptiness and void since we cannot really catch it or hold onto it, but we can definitely feel its power…
20 Years of Attempting to Diversify the Russian Economy – Part II Posted by Nadya on Jun 5, 2020
“Robert has returned to Baku from the east coast of the Caspian sea. He has found excellent naphtha at a depth of 70 feet on Cheleken. Now he has the raw material…” …
How to sound Russian in less than 4 letters Posted by bota on Jun 1, 2020
An interjection is, ironically, a big name for the little words we use to express emotions. Here are five such utterances that have less than four letters. These interjections will help you feel and sound more Russian than saying babooshka over and over again (with the exception of Kate Bush, of course.) Эx [ˈɛx]…
20 Years of Attempting to Diversify the Russian Economy – Part I Posted by Nadya on May 27, 2020
– We wanted to wean off oil dependency… – We wanted to do that, and we are gradually weaning off it, by the way. We are really…
How Is Russia Supporting Its Citizens During The Global Pandemic Posted by Nadya on May 12, 2020
Coronavirus has severely damaged the economies of many countries, and Russia is not an exception. Almost all areas of life are being affected by COVID-19. What is the Russian government doing to minimize the economic losses (экономи́ческие поте́ри) of its citizens? According to the Central Bank of the Russian Federation (Центра́льный банк Росси́йской Федера́ции), and…
When “Yes No Maybe” Is A Complete Sentence Posted by Nadya on Apr 22, 2020
Words or whole phrases, intonation, and stress are used to express confidence and uncertainty in speech. In the Russian language, as well as in other languages, there are formal and informal forms of expression. Let’s look at a few examples. Modal words Modal words (мода́льные слова́) in the Russian language is the category of words…
Russians Who Still Live In The USSR Posted by Nadya on Apr 6, 2020
The USSR (СССР) collapsed in 1991. Republics of the USSR (Сою́зные Респу́блики) became independent (незави́симыми) Post-Soviet States. Each of them began finding their own way forward. By the beginning of the 2000s, there was no trace of the USSR on the Eurasian continent. But it did not disappear completely – it moved. Today, perhaps, the only place on the planet where…