Learn how to ask "Where are you from?"
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| Hello and welcome to Russian Survival Phrases. This course is designed to equip you with the language skills and knowledge to enable you to get the most out of your visit to Russia. So join us for Russian Survival phrases. You will be surprised at how far a little Russian will go. |
| In today's lesson, we'll introduce you to a phrase that will provide you with the tools to learn from the people around you. |
| Now, a dictionary is a great idea, but don't forget that you can use your Russian to learn in a more fun and interactive way. |
| In Russian, “I'm American” is “Ya amerikanets”. Ya amerikanets. Let`s break it down by syllable: Ya a-me-ri-ka-nets. Now, let`s hear it once again: Ya amerikanets. |
| The first word “ya” means “I”. Let`s break down this word and hear it one more time: ya and ya. |
| This is followed by “amerikanets”, which in English is “American”: amerikanets, a-me-ri-ka-nets and amerikanets. |
| So, to recap here, we have “Ya amerikanets”, which literally means “I'm American”. |
| Now, let's try a different nationality. Let's try to say “I'm French”. In Russian, “I'm French” is “Ya frantsus” for a man, and “Ya frantsuzhenka” for woman. Let's try “I'm Spanish”, which in Russian is “Ya ispanets” for men and “Ya ispanka” for women. As to a Japanese, in Russian it is “Ya yaponets” for men and “Ya yaponka” for women. |
| In Russian, “My name is Jennifer” is “Menya zavut Dzhenifer”. Menya zavut Dzhenifer. Let`s break it down by syllable: Me-nya za-vut Dzhe-ni-fer. Now, let`s hear it once again: Menya zavut Dzhenifer. |
| The first word “menya” means “I”. Let`s break down this word and hear it one more time: me-nya and menya. This is followed by “zavut”, which in English is “called”: zavut, za-vut and zavut. So, to recap here we have “Menya zavut”. Literally this means: “I am called”. |
| In the end you just use your name. In our example it was “Jennifer”. Foreign names can look unusual when translated into Russian. But in case of a name, it's fine to pronounce it as it is. So altogether we have “Menya zavut Dzhenifer”. Literally this means “My name is Jennifer”. |
| In lesson 52 we learned expressions for first encounters. Today we can create an example of the introduction. “How do you do, my name is Alex, I'm Russian, nice to meet you”, which in Russian is: “Zdrastvuite, menya zavut Aleks, ya russkiy, priyatna s vami paznakomitsa”. All you need to change is the name and nationality.You can amaze Russians with your knowledge of Russian. |
| We should mention that there's one more way to disclose your origin. This is “Ya priekhal iz Ameriki”, which in English literally means “I came from America”. If you are interested in the precise place of origin of someone, then you ask: “A vy is kakoy chasti Rasii?”, which is “What part of Russia are you from?”. |
| Russia is big and person's origin can explain his character or even his life. The same question could be asked from you if you are from America, or generalize or permanent location as European Union. |
| To close out today`s lesson we'd like for you to practice what we`d just learnt. I will provide you with the English equivalent of the phrase and you are responsible for saying it aloud. You'll have a few seconds before I`ll give you the answer. Udachi! That means “good luck”! Ok, here we go! |
| I'm American……..Ya amerikanets |
| I'm American (for women)....Ya amerikanka |
| I'm Spanish……..Ya ispanets |
| I'm Spanish (for women)...........Ya ispanka |
| I'm French………..Ya frantsus |
| I'm French (for women)...........Ya frantsuzhenka |
| I'm Japanese……..Ya yaponets |
| I'm Japanese (for women)........Ya yaponka |
| My name is Jennifer……...Menya zavut Dzhenifer |
| Alright, that's going to do for today. See you tomorrow, which in Russian is da zaftra! |
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