{"id":2015,"date":"2011-04-21T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2011-04-21T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/?p=2015"},"modified":"2014-07-17T14:44:22","modified_gmt":"2014-07-17T14:44:22","slug":"there-is-more-to-marriage-than-%d0%b1%d1%80%d0%b0%d0%ba","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/there-is-more-to-marriage-than-%d0%b1%d1%80%d0%b0%d0%ba\/","title":{"rendered":"There Is More To Marriage Than “\u0411\u0440\u0430\u043a”"},"content":{"rendered":"

 <\/p>\n

Are you married? Please don\u2019t be offended by what seems to be my idle curiosity. There\u2019s a reason for my asking you this (or is it \u201cme asking you this\u201d?)<\/p>\n

How would you ask this simple question in Russian? The answer depends on the gender of the person you\u2019re speaking with. So if you are asking a woman, you\u2019d say \u00ab<\/strong>\u0412\u044b <\/strong>\u0437\u0430<\/span>\u043c\u0443\u0436\u0435\u043c?\u00bb<\/strong> Yet if you are asking a man, the question becomes \u00ab<\/strong>\u0412\u044b <\/strong>\u0436\u0435\u043d\u0430<\/span>\u0442\u044b?\u00bb<\/strong><\/p>\n

But what if you would like to keep it gender-neutral? Then you can ask \u00ab\u0412\u0430<\/span>\u0448\u0435 \u0441\u0435\u043c\u0435<\/span>\u0439\u043d\u043e\u0435 \u043f\u043e\u043b\u043e\u0436\u0435<\/span>\u043d\u0438\u0435?\u00bb<\/strong> [What is your marital status] or \u00ab<\/strong>\u0421\u043e\u0441\u0442\u043e\u0438<\/span>\u0442\u0435 <\/strong>\u043b\u0438 <\/strong>\u0412\u044b <\/strong>\u0432 <\/strong>\u0431\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u043a\u0435?\u00bb<\/strong> [Are you married?]<\/p>\n

The word \u00ab<\/strong>\u0431\u0440\u0430\u043a\u00bb<\/strong>, of course, has another meaning in addition to \u201cmarriage\u201d. Its second meaning is \u201cdefective articles, discards\u201d. While some marriages do end up discarded, the two \u00ab<\/strong>\u0431\u0440\u0430\u043a\u00bb<\/strong>s are not linguistically related.<\/p>\n

\u00ab<\/strong>\u0411\u0440\u0430\u043a\u00bb<\/strong> as in \u00ab<\/strong>\u0441\u0447\u0430\u0441\u0442\u043b\u0438<\/span>\u0432\u044b\u0439 <\/strong>\u0431\u0440\u0430\u043a\u00bb<\/strong> [happy marriage] is Slavic in origin and actually shares its root \u00ab<\/strong>\u0431\u0440\u0430-\u00bb<\/strong> with the word \u00ab<\/strong>\u0431\u0440\u0430\u0442\u044c\u00bb<\/strong> [to take]. Suffix \u00ab-<\/strong>\u043a-\u00bb<\/strong> is then added to the root. So it makes total sense that after a groom \u00ab<\/strong>\u0431\u0435\u0440\u0451<\/span>\u0442 <\/strong>\u0437\u0430<\/span>\u043c\u0443\u0436\u00bb<\/strong> [takes in marriage] his bride, and she, in turn \u00ab<\/strong>\u0438\u0434\u0451<\/span>\u0442 <\/strong>\u0437\u0430<\/span>\u043c\u0443\u0436\u00bb<\/strong> [becomes married], their marital status changes from \u00ab<\/strong>\u043d\u0435\u0436\u0435\u043d\u0430<\/span>\u0442\u044b\u0439\u00bb and \u00ab<\/strong>\u043d\u0435\u0437\u0430\u043c\u0443<\/span>\u0436\u043d\u044f\u044f\u00bb<\/strong> [unmarried] to \u00ab<\/strong>\u0441\u043e\u0441\u0442\u043e\u044f<\/span>\u0449\u0438\u0435 <\/strong>\u0432 <\/strong>\u0431\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u043a\u0435\u00bb<\/strong> [married].<\/p>\n

\u00ab<\/strong>\u0411\u0440\u0430\u043a\u00bb<\/strong> as in \u00ab<\/strong>\u043d\u0435\u043a\u0430<\/span>\u0447\u0435\u0441\u0442\u0432\u0435\u043d\u043d\u044b\u0439 <\/strong>\u0442\u043e\u0432\u0430<\/span>\u0440\u00bb<\/strong> \u00a0[low-quality goods] is borrowed from a Germanic and is directly related to the English \u201cbreak\u201d. As many other foreign words, this one entered Russian language \u00ab<\/strong>\u0432 <\/strong>\u044d\u043f\u043e<\/span>\u0445\u0443 <\/strong>\u041f\u0435\u0442\u0440\u0430<\/span> I\u00bb<\/strong> [in Peter the Great\u2019s time].<\/p>\n

Now, let\u2019s see, would you say that the word \u00ab<\/strong>\u0431\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u0447\u0430\u0449\u0438\u0435\u0441\u044f\u00bb<\/strong> describes<\/p>\n

(a) A couple in the process of entering into the matrimonial bonds or<\/p>\n

(b) Goods in the process of being inspected by quality control and found defective<\/p>\n

(c) Neither, the actual word is \u00ab<\/strong>\u0431\u0440\u0430\u0447\u0443<\/span>\u044e\u0449\u0438\u0435\u0441\u044f\u00bb<\/strong><\/p>\n

If you answered (a) – pat yourself on the back.<\/p>\n

If you answered (b) – you already know it was the wrong answer. A word that describes (b) is \u00ab<\/strong>\u0431\u0440\u0430\u043a\u0443<\/span>\u0435\u043c\u044b\u0439\u00bb<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

If you answered (c) – you\u2019re only partially correct. The word \u00ab<\/strong>\u0431\u0440\u0430\u0447\u0443<\/span>\u044e\u0449\u0438\u0435\u0441\u044f\u00bb<\/strong> used to be the norm until September 2009. Ever since then it is officially \u00ab<\/strong>\u0431\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u0447\u0430\u0449\u0438\u0435\u0441\u044f\u00bb,<\/strong> but you can still hear the old version in some Soviet-era movies.<\/p>\n

A must-know Russian \u00ab<\/strong>\u0431\u0440\u0430\u043a\u00bb<\/strong>-related phrase is a slogan of telecommunication professionals \u00ab<\/strong>\u0417\u0430 <\/strong>\u0441\u0432\u044f\u0437\u044c <\/strong>\u0431\u0435\u0437 <\/strong>\u0431\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u043a\u0430!\u00bb<\/strong> which means either \u00abTo high-quality connections\u201d or \u201cTo connections that don\u2019t end up with marriage\u201d depending on the context. You see, the word \u00ab<\/strong>\u0441\u0432\u044f\u0437\u044c\u00bb<\/strong> can mean either \u201cconnection\u201d or \u201crelationship\u201d.<\/p>\n

You might also hear a phrase \u00ab<\/strong>\u0445\u043e\u0440\u043e<\/span>\u0448\u0443\u044e <\/strong>\u0432\u0435\u0449\u044c \u201c<\/strong>\u0431\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u043a\u043e\u043c\u201d <\/strong>\u043d\u0435 <\/strong>\u043d\u0430\u0437\u043e\u0432\u0443<\/span>\u0442\u00bb<\/strong> [nothing good would ever be called \u201cdiscards\u201d].<\/p>\n

It is also interesting that when two people are married, they are said to be \u00ab<\/strong>\u0441\u0432\u044f<\/span>\u0437\u0430\u043d\u044b <\/strong>\u0443<\/span><\/strong>\u0437\u0430\u043c\u0438 <\/strong>\u0431\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u043a\u0430\u00bb<\/strong> [lit: tied by the bonds of marriage]. In English these people are called \u201cspouses\u201d. In Russian they are \u00ab<\/strong>\u0441\u0443\u043f\u0440\u0443<\/span>\u0433\u0438\u00bb<\/strong>. The word \u00ab<\/strong>\u0441\u0443\u043f\u0440\u0443<\/span>\u0433\u00bb<\/strong> has the same root as the words \u00ab<\/strong>\u0443<\/span><\/strong>\u043f\u0440\u044f\u0436\u044c\u00bb<\/strong> [harness] and \u00ab<\/strong>\u0443\u043f\u0440\u044f<\/span>\u0436\u043a\u0430\u00bb<\/strong> [a team of horses] and has a literally meaning of someone in the same harness and consequently pulling the same load.<\/p>\n

By the way, a still-popular in Russia 1964 movie \u00ab<\/strong>\u0411\u0440\u0430\u043a <\/strong>\u043f\u043e-<\/strong>\u0438\u0442\u0430\u043b\u044c\u044f<\/span>\u043d\u0441\u043a\u0438\u00bb<\/strong> [Marriage Italian-style] with Sophia Loren, made popular use of a language form \u00ab<\/strong>\u043f\u043e+<\/strong>\u043a\u043e\u0440\u0435\u043d\u044c+<\/strong>\u0441\u043a\u0438\u00bb<\/strong> in news headlines, typically with negative connotation:<\/p>\n

\u00ab<\/strong>\u0417\u0430\u0431\u0430\u0441\u0442\u043e<\/span>\u0432\u043a\u0430 <\/strong>\u043f\u043e-<\/strong>\u0444\u0440\u0430\u043d\u0446\u0443<\/span>\u0437\u0441\u043a\u0438\u00bb<\/strong> [Labor Strike French-style<\/a>]<\/p>\n

\u00ab\u0418\u043f\u043e\u0442\u0435<\/span>\u043a\u0430 \u043f\u043e-\u0430\u043c\u0435\u0440\u0438\u043a\u0430<\/span>\u043d\u0441\u043a\u0438\u00bb<\/strong> [Mortgage American-style<\/a>]<\/p>\n

\u00ab\u0414\u0435\u043c\u043e\u043a\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u0442\u0438\u044f \u043f\u043e-\u0441\u043e\u0432\u0435<\/span>\u0442\u0441\u043a\u0438\u00bb<\/strong> [Democracy Soviet-style<\/a>]<\/p>\n

\u00ab\u0420\u0430\u0441\u043f\u0440\u043e\u0434\u0430<\/span>\u0436\u0430 \u043f\u043e-\u043b\u0443\u0436\u043a\u043e<\/span>\u0432\u0441\u043a\u0438\u00bb<\/strong> [Sale Luzhkov-style<\/a>]<\/p>\n

Finally, May is probably the most popular month for weddings in the US. But in Russia the common belief is \u00ab<\/strong>\u0432 <\/strong>\u043c\u0430<\/span>\u0435 <\/strong>\u0436\u0435\u043d\u0438<\/span>\u0442\u044c\u0441\u044f – <\/strong>\u0432\u0435\u043a <\/strong>\u043c\u0430<\/span>\u044f\u0442\u044c\u0441\u044f\u00bb<\/strong> [to get married in May is to drudge through the rest of your days].<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"\"

Are you married? Please don\u2019t be offended by what seems to be my idle curiosity. There\u2019s a reason for my asking you this (or is it \u201cme asking you this\u201d?) How would you ask this simple question in Russian? The answer depends on the gender of the person you\u2019re speaking with. So if you…<\/p>\n

Continue Reading<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":39,"featured_media":2016,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":""},"categories":[3,8],"tags":[12460,35351,35350,1248],"class_list":["post-2015","post","type-post","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-culture","category-language","tag-confusing-russian-words","tag-marriage-russian-style","tag-russian-homonyms","tag-russian-language"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2015","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/39"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2015"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2015\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6306,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2015\/revisions\/6306"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2016"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2015"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2015"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2015"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}