Can Talk About Where You're From - Examples and Variations

Learn how to say where you're from

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Lesson Transcript

Let’s look at how the genitive was formed:

In Russian, all nouns have grammatical gender and are either singular or plural.

Нью-Йорк (N'yu-York) is masculine singular.

To form the genitive of masculine nouns ending in a consonant, simply add an -а (-a) to the end of the noun.

Нью-Йорк (N'yu-York) becomes Нью-Йоркa (N'yu-Yorka).

All together, Я из Нью-Йорка. (Ya iz N'yu-Yorka.) Literally "I from New York," but it translates as "I’m from New York."

Я из Нью-Йорка.

The pattern is

Я из LOCATION. (Ya iz {LOCATION}).

"I am from LOCATION.”

Я из LOCATION.

To use this pattern, simply replace the LOCATION placeholder with the name of your hometown city.

Note: this pattern requires the proper noun of a location, and this location name must be placed in the genitive.

Imagine you’re from Sydney. In Russian, Сидней (Sidney). Сидней.

Сидней is masculine singular.

To form the genitive of masculine nouns ending in -й (-y), replace it with -я (-ya).

Сидней becomes Сиднея.

Say

"I am from Sydney."

Ready?

Я из Сиднея. (Ya iz Sidneya.)

"I am from Sydney."

Я из Сиднея. (Ya iz Sidneya.)

When talking about where you are from, the pattern Я из (Ya iz) requires the proper noun of a location, and this location name must be placed in the genitive.

There are some simple rules that will help you create the genitive case based on the ending of the noun.

For masculine nouns,

if the noun ends in a consonant, add an -а (-a) at the end:

Нью-Йорк (N'yu-York). "New York," becomes Нью-Йоркa (N'yu-Yorka).

If the noun ends in a -й (-y) or ь (-ʼ), replace the ending with -я (-ya):

Сидней. “Sidney." becomes Сиднея. (Sidneya.)

Версаль (Versal'). "Palace of Versaille," becomes Версаля (Versalya).

A good rule of thumb, masculine nouns often end in a consonant or й.

For feminine nouns,

if the noun ends in an -а (-a), replace it with -ы (-y):

Москва (Moskva). "Moscow," becomes Москвы (Moskvy).

If the noun ends in a я or ь, replace it with an и:

Россия (Rossiya). "Russia," becomes России (Rossii).

And as for neuter nouns, if the noun ends in an о, replace it with an а.

cело (selo). "Village," becomes села (sela).

If the noun ends in an е, replace it with a я.

Уречье (Urech'ye). "Urechye," becomes Уречья (Urech'ya).

Let's look at some examples.

Listen and repeat or speak along with the native speakers.

Я из Нью-Йорка. (Ya iz N'yu-Yorka.)

Я из Норильска. А вы? (Ya iz Noril'ska. A vy?)

Я из Сиэтла. (Ya iz Sietla.)

Я из Лондона. А ты? (Ya iz Londona. A ty?)

Я из России. (Ya iz Rossii.)

Я австралийка. (Ya avstraliyka.)

Did you notice how the last speaker uses a different pattern?

Я австралийка. (Ya avstraliyka.) “I [am] Australian.” Я австралийка.

First is я (ya), "I." Я.

Next is австралийка (avstraliyka), an “Australian,” woman. австралийка (avstraliyka) (enuciated). австралийка (avstraliyka).

In Russian, all nouns have grammatical gender and are either singular or plural.

In Mia Martin’s case, she uses a feminine noun, австралийка (avstraliyka), to identify herself.

This pattern is

Я NATIONALITY. (Ya {NATIONALITY}.)

"I am NATIONALITY."

To use this pattern, simply replace the NATIONALITY placeholder with your nationality.

Note: This pattern requires a noun, and its gender will depend on the gender of the speaker.

Recall Mia Martin uses a feminine singular noun, австралийка (avstraliyka).

A male speaker from Australia would use a masculine singular noun, австралиец (avstraliets).

Я австралиец. (Ya avstraliets.) “I’m Australian.” Я австралиец.

You can use this response to answer the question, Вы откуда? (Vy otkuda?)

You should be aware of this pattern, but you won’t need it for this lesson.

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