In the light of the discussion that arised around my last post, I thought I might take today to clear a few things up as well as explain some linguistic peculiarities. After four years in Russia I\u2019ve seen and heard a great deal of things, not all of them have made me happy and proud to be living here, to be able to have the amazing opportunity that I have been blessed with to study a beautiful language and an amazing literature, but some have. I think most people can relate to the problem of immigration, after all we\u2019re living in a \u2018global village\u2019 these days. Personally, I see nothing wrong in wanting a better life. Mankind\u2019s progress [including its harmful reverse side, of course] has been achieved because mankind has always [and will always be] dreaming of a better life and working for a better life. Leaving your country of birth in order to find that better life is something that a huge number of people have done, are doing and will do, and to some of them a better life can be found in Sweden or in the US of A, to others in Russia. But that\u2019s not what matters \u2013 what matters is that you as a foreigner respect the fact that you\u2019re living in another country, and try to learn its language, understand its culture and participate in its traditions.<\/p>\n
\u00ab\u0420\u043e\u0441\u0441\u0438<\/span>\u0439\u0441\u043a\u0438\u0439: \u043e\u0442\u043d\u043e\u0441\u044f<\/span>\u0449\u0438\u0439\u0441\u044f \u043a \u0440\u043e\u0441\u0441\u0438\u044f<\/span>\u043d\u0430\u043c, \u043a \u0440\u0443<\/span>\u0441\u0441\u043a\u0438\u043c, \u0430 \u0442\u0430<\/span>\u043a\u0436\u0435 \u043a \u0420\u043e\u0441\u0441\u0438<\/span>\u0438, \u0435\u0451<\/span> \u0442\u0435\u0440\u0440\u0438\u0442\u043e<\/span>\u0440\u0438\u0438, \u0432\u043d\u0443<\/span>\u0442\u0440\u0435\u043d\u043d\u0435\u043c\u0443 \u0443\u0441\u0442\u0440\u043e<\/span>\u0439\u0441\u0442\u0432\u0443, \u0438\u0441\u0442\u043e<\/span>\u0440\u0438\u0438; \u0442\u0430\u043a\u043e<\/span>\u0439, \u043a\u0430\u043a \u0443 \u0440\u043e\u0441\u0441\u0438\u044f<\/span>\u043d, \u043a\u0430\u043a \u0443 \u0440\u0443<\/span>\u0441\u0441\u043a\u0438\u0445, \u043a\u0430\u043a \u0432 \u0420\u043e\u0441\u0441\u0438<\/span>\u0438.\u00bb <\/strong>[\u2018Rossijsky\u2019: related to citizens of Russia, to Russians, and also to Russia, to its territory, to its internal devise, history; such like citizens of Russia, like Russians, like in Russia.]<\/p>\n \u00ab\u0420\u0443<\/span>\u0441\u0441\u043a\u0438\u0439: 1. \u043d\u0430\u0440\u043e<\/span>\u0434, \u0441\u043e\u0441\u0442\u0430\u0432\u043b\u044f<\/span>\u044e\u0449\u0438\u0439 \u043e\u0441\u043d\u043e\u0432\u043d\u043e<\/span>\u0435 \u043a\u043e\u0440\u0435\u043d\u043d\u043e<\/span>\u0435 \u043d\u0430\u0441\u0435\u043b\u0435<\/span>\u043d\u0438\u0435 \u0420\u043e\u0441\u0441\u0438<\/span>\u0438, 2. \u043e\u0442\u043d\u043e\u0441\u044f<\/span>\u0449\u0438\u0439\u0441\u044f \u043a \u0440\u0443<\/span>\u0441\u0441\u043a\u043e\u043c\u0443 \u043d\u0430\u0440\u043e<\/span>\u0434\u0443, \u043a \u0435\u0433\u043e \u044f\u0437\u044b\u043a\u0443<\/span>, \u043d\u0430\u0446\u0438\u043e\u043d\u0430<\/span>\u043b\u044c\u043d\u043e\u043c\u0443 \u0445\u0430\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u043a\u0442\u0435\u0440\u0443, \u043e<\/span>\u0431\u0440\u0430\u0437\u0443 \u0436\u0438<\/span>\u0437\u043d\u0438, \u043a\u0443\u043b\u044c\u0442\u0443<\/span>\u0440\u0435, \u0430 \u0442\u0430<\/span>\u043a\u0436\u0435 \u043a \u0420\u043e\u0441\u0441\u0438<\/span>\u0438, \u0435\u0451 <\/span>\u0442\u0435\u0440\u0440\u0438\u0442\u043e<\/span>\u0440\u0438\u0438, \u0432\u043d\u0443<\/span>\u0442\u0440\u0435\u043d\u043d\u0435\u043c\u0443 \u0443\u0441\u0442\u0440\u043e<\/span>\u0439\u0441\u0442\u0432\u0443, \u0438\u0441\u0442\u043e<\/span>\u0440\u0438\u0438; \u0442\u0430\u043a\u043e<\/span>\u0439, \u043a\u0430\u043a \u0443 \u0440\u0443<\/span>\u0441\u0441\u043a\u0438\u0445, \u043a\u0430\u043a \u0432 \u0420\u043e\u0441\u0441\u0438<\/span>\u0438.\u00bb<\/strong> [Russian: 1. people making up the main native population of Russia, 2. related to the Russian people, to its language, national character, way of living, culture, and also to Russia, to its territory, to its internal devise, history; such like Russians, like in Russia.]<\/p>\n I never once questioned that you could be \u00ab\u0440\u0443<\/span>\u0441\u0441\u043a\u0438\u0439\u00bb<\/strong> anywhere in the world without necessarily also being a \u00ab\u0440\u043e\u0441\u0441\u0438\u044f<\/span>\u043d\u0438\u043d\u00bb<\/strong>, and that even if you were a \u00ab\u0440\u043e\u0441\u0441\u0438\u044f<\/span>\u043d\u0438\u043d\u00bb<\/strong> and a citizen of the Russian Federation, it didn\u2019t automatically make you \u00ab\u0440\u0443<\/span>\u0441\u0441\u043a\u0438\u0439\u00bb<\/strong>. As my first \u2018real\u2019 experiences of living in Russia [not counting those first frail six months in Saint Petersburg, as I did spend most of them doing heavy drinking with Swedes on the banks of Neva] took place in Siberia, I was faced very early with the reality of meeting many Russians who weren\u2019t actually Russians at all. My best friend in Russia, with whom I became acquainted over 3,5 years ago, is Tartar, and I have spent much time with her visiting her family back in Tobolsk. They\u2019re Muslim, they speak another language at home (Tartar) than they do elsewhere in society, they eat mostly their own traditional food and do not participate in Orthodox Christian holidays, though they do respect them. For me, a young Swedish girl of 20, meeting my friend\u2019s family was a very important event in my life. It was the first time in my life that I had come across \u2018a country within a country\u2019<\/em>, and what struck me most was their harmony with rest of society, as well as their awereness of not being Russian ethincally, but still Russian politically, culturally and, yes in many ways, emotionally. Since then I have met many more \u2018countries\u2019<\/em> within Russia and this has grown to be one of my favorite features of this country. After all, no one in Russia is actually a 100% Russian [but is there anyone out there in the world today that can claim they\u2019re a 100% anything?], and there are two popular sayings dealing with this, the first one being: \u201cScratch a Russian and you\u2019ll find a Tartar\u201d and the second: \u201cMy father was German, my mother Jewish, so I\u2019m a Russian\u201d.<\/p>\n Say whatever you want about the Soviet Union [no, I suppose them GULAG camps, the political oppression and that lack of freedom of speech were no good things], but it deserves to be honored in some respects \u2013 it did bond many peoples together in bringing them a common language [Russian] and giving them common holidays [Soviet\/Communistic] and creating a union that in many ways still lives on today, as you can always crack an anecdote in Russian no matter if you\u2019re in line at the post office in Moscow, sipping black tea on the train to Ulan-Ude, fishing with business partners outside of Kamchatka, haggling for watermelons in Odessa or hiking in the mountains of Kirgizstan.<\/p>\n
\nQuite often when driving around in Russia you\u2019ll come across big posters along the road side that say: \u00ab\u0414\u0430 \u0437\u0434\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u0432\u0441\u0442\u0432\u0443\u0435\u0442 \u0440\u043e\u0441\u0441\u0438<\/span>\u0439\u0441\u043a\u0438\u0439 \u043d\u0430\u0440\u043e<\/span>\u0434!\u00bb<\/strong> [\u2018Long Live The Russian People!\u2019] (never mind that the same side on reverse proclaims: \u00ab\u0414\u0430 \u0437\u0434\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u0432\u0441\u0442\u0432\u0443\u0435\u0442 \u0415\u0434\u0438<\/span>\u043d\u0430\u044f \u0420\u043e\u0441\u0441\u0438<\/span>\u044f!\u00bb<\/strong> [\u2018Long Live (the political party<\/em>) United Russia!\u2019]). Though I probably should\u2019ve, I never did ask myself why the adjective used was \u00ab\u0440\u043e\u0441\u0441\u0438<\/span>\u0439\u0441\u043a\u0438\u0439\u00bb<\/strong> and not \u00ab\u0440\u0443<\/span>\u0441\u0441\u043a\u0438\u0439\u00bb<\/strong>, because to me the difference between these two words has always been more or less clear. When translating these two words you are, of course, faced with difficulties no matter if you\u2019re Hindu, Icelandic or Tartar, because many languages make no difference between the two. Here<\/a> you can read a thread discussion about that in English, and here<\/a> is one in Russian. According to my \u00ab\u0442\u043e\u043b\u043a\u043e<\/span>\u0432\u044b\u0439 \u0441\u043b\u043e\u0432\u0430<\/span>\u0440\u044c \u0440\u0443<\/span>\u0441\u0441\u043a\u043e\u0433\u043e \u044f\u0437\u044b\u043a\u0430<\/span>\u00bb<\/strong> the difference is as follows:<\/p>\n