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Attitude toward Russian in Europe | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : Specific Languages |  | |
| floydak Tetraglot Groupie Slovakia Joined 4845 days ago 60 posts - 85 votes  Speaks: Slovak*, English, German, Spanish Studies: French | Message 65 of 128 06 December 2011 at 11:53am | IP Logged | |||||
nice. everything necessary on this topic was just said. :) 1 person has voted this message useful | ||||||
| Solfrid Cristin Heptaglot Winner TAC 2011 & 2012 Senior Member Norway Joined 5325 days ago 4143 posts - 8864 votes Speaks: Norwegian*, Spanish, Swedish, French, English, German, Italian Studies: Russian | Message 66 of 128 06 December 2011 at 11:55am | IP Logged | |||||
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We have focused a lot on visas here, and it is a drag to go through that. I got the brilliant idea to apply for a multiple entry visa for Russia some time ago, since I was longing to go to Russia whenever I wanted to. The nice lady at the embassy explained to me how that was impossible, and that I had to apply each time, and everything involved, (plus they take your passport while they do it, and with my travel regime, I cannot be without my passport). At the end of her explanation I said. "O.k. so basically, what you are saying is: go to Ukraine instead."
However, I doubt that the visa problems is the major reason why people do not study Russian. Where there is a will there is a way. I am in the "target group" for the OPs question as a language loving Scandinavian, but I had simply never ever had any use for it until a few years ago. There are so many languages to study, and I think most people take the ones they would get to use most often or which offers most job opportunities. Anyway availability is not everything. 99% of the people who go on vacation to Greece or Spain make no effort to learn the language. I think I agree with Ari, Russia has a PR job to do. Let's start with the Russians on the forum: Why do you think we should learn Russian? Edited by Solfrid Cristin on 06 December 2011 at 11:56am 5 persons have voted this message useful | ||||||
| Volte Tetraglot Senior Member Switzerland Joined 6430 days ago 4474 posts - 6726 votes Speaks: English*, Esperanto, German, Italian Studies: French, Finnish, Mandarin, Japanese | Message 67 of 128 06 December 2011 at 12:19pm | IP Logged | |||||
Agreed on both points. The visa situation is why I don't go to Russia. It's only a mild damper on my studies of Russian. If Russia had been one of the places I'd visited and found I wanted to spend a lot of time in, Russian would be a higher priority for me - but that's not a given even if I had visited it.
While I'm not Russian, I'd like to chime in on this. In no particular order: a) To enjoy Russian literature. I think Russian authors such as Bulgakov have written some excellent literature, and it loses a lot in translation. b) To have access to material which is only or primarily in Russian. The USSR did a lot of research. Whether you're looking to find out more about athletics with a focus on tendon strength (sadly neglected in most publications in languages I read easily), or whether subjects more popular at other points in Russia's history such as Orthodox Christianity interest you (not my cup of tea, but some people are into it), there can really be no substitute for Russian. And, obviously, finding out more about Russia itself is firmly in this category. c) To enjoy contemporary Russian pop culture. Can I be the only one on this forum who enjoys Russian music videos? It's not high art, but Russian has an enjoyable slice of the lighter things in life. d) To get a view of what's being said to Russians by the Russian media, and what people are discussing on Russian-language forums. A bit of the Zeitgeist comes through from talking to Russians in other languages, but news related to Russia by or intended for external audiences tends to have a different tilt to it than Russian news in Russian for Russians (the same is true of every other language/culture I've looked at, though the extent varies). This is something I find interesting everywhere, but all the more so for large countries with a significant impact on world history and events. e) It's fun. This goes for any language, but Russian is full of fun, quirky, interesting bits (and frustrating oddities). 2 persons have voted this message useful | ||||||
| floydak Tetraglot Groupie Slovakia Joined 4845 days ago 60 posts - 85 votes Speaks: Slovak*, English, German, Spanish Studies: French | Message 68 of 128 06 December 2011 at 12:36pm | IP Logged | |||||
this one, however often mentioned, I never understood completely. I mean, if you are non-native speaker and are just learning the language, the only thing you can do, is to read and translate the words on your own. So how is this better than reading translated version and how did you minimize loses in translation? Edited by floydak on 06 December 2011 at 12:36pm 3 persons have voted this message useful | ||||||
| Марк Senior Member Russian Federation Joined 5047 days ago 2096 posts - 2972 votes Speaks: Russian* | Message 70 of 128 06 December 2011 at 4:19pm | IP Logged | |||||
The most obvious reason is that it is an enourmous language spoken in several big countries. It is necessary there. And the countries are very interesting and worth seeing. From the linguistic point of view Russian doesn't seem to be very interesting - a usual Indo-European language. Somebody has different opinion. What was interesting for you in Russian as a language? In phonology, vocabulary, grammar? Edited by Марк on 06 December 2011 at 4:43pm 2 persons have voted this message useful | ||||||
| Volte Tetraglot Senior Member Switzerland Joined 6430 days ago 4474 posts - 6726 votes Speaks: English*, Esperanto, German, Italian Studies: French, Finnish, Mandarin, Japanese | Message 71 of 128 06 December 2011 at 4:35pm | IP Logged | |||||
My Italian and Esperanto are at a level where I'd rather read original literature in them than a translation in English (or in each other). I see no reason any of my other languages couldn't get to this level - it takes time and effort, but it's feasible. Sure, it's not something I can do on day 1, or day 20 - but so what? My lifespan is hopefully longer than that. 3 persons have voted this message useful | ||||||
| Teango Triglot Winner TAC 2010 & 2012 Senior Member United States teango.wordpress.comRegistered users can see my Skype Name Joined 5547 days ago 2210 posts - 3734 votes Speaks: English*, German, Russian Studies: Hawaiian, French, Toki Pona | Message 72 of 128 07 December 2011 at 11:26am | IP Logged | |||||
You're not the only one. :) 1 person has voted this message useful |
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