{"id":10379,"date":"2017-11-02T07:29:53","date_gmt":"2017-11-02T07:29:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/?p=10379"},"modified":"2017-11-02T03:25:06","modified_gmt":"2017-11-02T03:25:06","slug":"what-subjects-should-i-avoid-in-a-russian-conversation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/what-subjects-should-i-avoid-in-a-russian-conversation\/","title":{"rendered":"What Subjects Should I Avoid In A Russian Conversation?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Once you\u2019ve learned enough Russian to have a conversation with a native speaker, you need to think beyond what you can <\/em>say about what you should <\/em>say. Let us look at several common \u201ctaboo\u201d subjects and see how they are treated by Russian speakers. I will mostly base my observations on what I saw in Russia, but I would love to hear about your experience in Russia or other Russian-language communities.<\/p>\n

\"man

Image via Pixabay<\/p><\/div>\n

Money<\/h2>\n

While talking about money (\u0434\u0435<\/span>\u043d\u044c\u0433\u0438<\/strong>, always plural) is somewhat awkward in Russia, there are situations where Russians are more candid about this subject than their \u201cWestern\u201d counterparts. For example, while asking a person what they make (\u00ab\u0421\u043a\u043e<\/span>\u043b\u044c\u043a\u043e \u0412\u044b \u0437\u0430\u0440\u0430\u0431\u0430<\/span>\u0442\u044b\u0432\u0430\u0435\u0442\u0435?<\/strong>\u00bb) head-on is considered rude (\u043d\u0435\u0432\u0435<\/span>\u0436\u043b\u0438\u0432\u043e<\/strong>), people will often ask their friends about third parties\u2019 income. For example, a parent may ask their child what the child\u2019s friend makes. It is also common for people to know exactly how much their spouse (fem. \u0441\u0443\u043f\u0440\u0443<\/span>\u0433\u0430<\/strong>, masc. \u0441\u0443\u043f\u0440\u0443<\/span>\u0433<\/strong>) makes each month and where that money is going.<\/p>\n

Family<\/h2>\n
\"mother

Image via Pixabay<\/p><\/div>\n

Another question that Russians will bring up fairly quickly in a conversation is whether a person or a couple (\u043f\u0430<\/span>\u0440\u0430<\/strong>) married or has any children (\u0434\u0435<\/span>\u0442\u0438<\/strong>):<\/p>\n