Learn how to say "Hello" and how to ask and answer the question, "How are you?"
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| INTRODUCTION |
| Anna: [Здравсвуй Киев! Меня зовут Анна.] |
| Erik:Erik here. Newbie series, season 1, Lesson 2, Russian greetings. Hello, did I do something wrong? |
| Anna: [Привет! И добро пожаловать на RussianPod101.com] |
| Erik: Hello and welcome to russianpod101.com, a fun and effective way to learn Russian. My name is Erik Fritz and I am joined by |
| Anna: Anna Lemeshkina |
| Erik: And we will be your host for this Russian newbie series. |
| Anna: In this series, we will cover the basics of the Russian language including essential phrases, pronunciation and cultural insight. |
| Erik: So brush up on the Russian that you started learning long ago or start learning today. All right Anna, what do we have planned for lesson 2. |
| Anna: Today, we have a great lesson. We are going to talk about a few common greetings in Russian. You will be able to say hello with confidence. |
| Erik: Okay. This conversation takes place on campus as two classmates notice each other while walking into class. Today’s politeness level will be informal and what will the lesson focus on? |
| Anna: Greetings and responses. |
| Erik: All right. Again I will play myself and Anna will play herself. Okay here we go. |
| DIALOGUE |
| Эрик: [Привет Анна!] |
| Эрик: (Privet Anna!) |
| Анна: [Привет Эрик! Как дела?]] |
| Anna: (Privet Erik! Kak dela) |
| Эрик:[Всё нормально. А у тебя?] |
| Erik: (Vsyo normal’no. A u tebya?) |
| Анна: [Хорошо, спасибо.] |
| Anna: (Horosho, spasibo.) |
| Erik: Once more slowly. |
| Anna: Теперь еще раз, медленнее. |
| Эрик: [Привет Анна!] |
| Эрик: (Privet Anna!) |
| Анна: [Привет Эрик! Как дела?] |
| Anna: (Privet Erik! Kak dela) |
| Эрик:[Всё нормально. А у тебя?] |
| Erik: (Vsyo normal’no. A u tebya?) |
| Анна: [Хорошо, спасибо.] |
| Anna: (Horosho, spasibo.) |
| Erik: Once more, this time with the English translation. |
| Anna: [А теперь еще раз, с английским переводом.] |
| Anna: [Привет Анна!] (Privet Anna!) |
| Erik: Hi Anna. |
| Anna: [Привет Эрик! Как дела?] (Privet Erik! Kak dela) |
| Erik: Hey Erik, how are you? |
| Anna: [Всё нормально. А у тебя?] (Vsyo normal’no. A u tebya?) |
| Erik:I am doing all right and you? |
| Anna: [Хорошо, спасибо.] (Horosho, spasibo.) |
| POST CONVERSATION BANTER |
| Erik: Good thanks. So Anna, is that a normal way for classmates to greet each other. How would you greet one of your friends if you saw them say while shopping in town? |
| Anna: Yes this is a very usual way of greeting anyone in Russian. Of course, if you don’t have much time, you can just say [привет] without asking how the person is doing. |
| Erik: Okay and probably you would hear [привет] as a reply as well. Is that right? |
| Anna: Yes but you know what, some girls can greet you by saying [приветик]. This is kind of cute and girlish way of saying [привет] |
| Erik: So would you say that to me Anna or would you say that to a girlfriend? |
| Anna: Well Erik, if you are a really good friend of mine, I would probably say [приветик] to you as well. |
| Erik: Umm so Anna, can guys say this or is this – is this pretty girly? |
| Anna: This is very girly. |
| Erik: Okay. |
| Anna: You better not use it. |
| Erik: So I should not say that. |
| Anna: No better not, yeah. |
| Erik: Umm what if I am in a dress? |
| Anna: Well probably you would hear this from a guy. You can wear a dress. |
| Erik: Okay. Nice. So Anna, would it be totally weird if I said to you? [приветик] |
| Anna: No it’s totally weird. Try some other words. Maybe it works. |
| Erik: All right. We will try [привет]. Is that a little bit… |
| Anna: This works. |
| Erik: Okay nice. |
| Anna: And also if you want to say that you are doing great instead of normal, you can use the word [отлично] which stands for English great. |
| Erik: Can you say that one more time Anna? |
| Anna: [Отлично!] |
| Erik: I see. So how are you doing today? |
| Anna:Oh [Отлично] as usual. |
| Erik: Excellent. |
| Anna: And I hope you are doing great as well Eric? |
| Erik: [Всё нормально.] |
| Anna: Okay. What’s your problem? |
| Erik: No caffeine I think is my problem. |
| Anna:Okay. |
| Erik: All right. Now it’s time for the vocabulary practice. We will look at the vocabulary and phrases for this lesson. First word |
| VOCAB LIST |
| Anna: [привет] |
| Erik: Hi. |
| Anna: [привет] |
| Erik: Next |
| Anna: [дела] |
| Erik: Matters, things. |
| Anna: [дела] |
| Erik: Next. |
| Anna:[всё] |
| Erik: Everything. |
| Anna: [всё] |
| Erik: Next. |
| Anna: [нормально] |
| Erik: All right, colloquial usage here. |
| Anna: [нормально] |
| Erik: Next. |
| Anna: [а] |
| Erik: And |
| Anna:[а] |
| Erik: Next. |
| Anna: [тебя] |
| Erik: You, informal. |
| Anna:[тебя] |
| Erik: Next. |
| Anna: [хорошо] |
| Erik: Good, okay. |
| Anna: [хорошо] |
| Erik: Next. |
| Anna: [спасибо] |
| Erik: Thank you. |
| Anna:[спасибо] |
| VOCAB AND PHRASE USAGE |
| Erik: Okay. Let’s have a look at the usage for some of the words and phrases that we just learned in this lesson. The first word we will look at is |
| Anna: [Привет] This greeting has quite informal meaning. And you better use it talking to friends or family. |
| Erik: In a formal situation on the other hand, you can use [Здравствуйте] which stands for hello when you see a person for the first time or when you talk to your boss or someone who is older than you. This greeting has a very formal and polite meaning. |
| Anna: You’re right, Eric. In Russia, to be polite when you meet the person for the first time. |
| Erik: So this word is pretty difficult. It took me more than a month to actually say this word properly. |
| Anna: Oh, I see. |
| Erik: Yeah, I was saying [Здрабуит]… So let’s break it down syllable by syllable so we can try to learn this word a little bit better. |
| Anna:Ok, so I’ll go for it. [Здравствуйте] |
| Erik: [Здравствуйте] |
| Anna:Yes. |
| Erik: Ok. |
| Anna: [Здравствуйте] |
| Erik: [Здравствуйте] |
| Anna: [Здравствуйте], Eric. |
| Erik: [Здравствуйте], Anna. |
| Anna:[Как у вас дела?] |
| Erik: [Нормально] |
| Anna: Ok. |
| Erik: Alright, good. Let’s see how this works in a situation. How about I’ll be your boss. |
| Anna: Oh my god. Why do you want to be a boss? |
| Erik: Cause you’re always the boss, Anna? |
| Anna: Ok. |
| Erik: It’s my turn now. Ok, so we’re at work, in the office and maybe you see me? |
| Anna: Ok, so I see you. |
| Erik: I see you. |
| Anna: I see you. [Эрик Ванович, здравствуйте]. |
| Erik: [Здравствуйте], Anna. |
| Anna:I shouldn’t laugh, I'm sorry. Eric Vanovich, I'm sorry. |
| Erik: [Всё нормально, всё нормально] Alright, one more time, from the top. |
| Anna: [Эрик Ванович, здравствуйте]. |
| Erik: [Здравствуй, Анна. Как у тебя дела?] |
| Anna: [Хорошо, спасибо.] |
| Erik: [Отлично] So you said my patronymic in there. |
Lesson focus |
|---|
| Anna: Yes. We usually use patronymic name as well when addressing someone in Russian. |
| Erik: So let’s talk for a moment about patronymics. They’re used in polite situations, but what are they, Anna? |
| Anna: Patronymic is the father’s name. |
| Erik: So for example, in the conversation we just heard, my father’s name is [Ван] with a Russian pronunciation. |
| Anna: Yeah, and it sounds similar to Russian Ivan, actually. |
| Erik: Yeah, a very common Russian name, right? |
| Anna: Yeah, the most common, I guess. |
| Erik: Ok, so [Ван] and then what do we need to add if the person is of the male gender |
| Anna: We would add [ович]. |
| Erik: [ович] |
| Anna:Yeah, so in your case it’s [Иванович] or [Ванович] |
| Erik: [Ванович] So instead of using my last name or surname, you used my patronymic. |
| Anna: Yes, I used your first name and the patronymic name and it sound very, very formal in Russian. |
| Erik: One more time? I just love hearing my patronymic. |
| Anna: Ok, Eric Vanovich. |
| Erik: My students used to call me Eric Vanovich. |
| Anna: Oh really? I didn’t know that. |
| Erik: Yeah. |
| Anna: It’s interesting, Eric Vanovich. |
| Erik: I really like that. |
| Anna: Maybe I should call you Eric Vanovich as well. |
| Erik: That some of the teachers, “Hey, Vanovich!” |
| Anna: Well, this is kind of… This is a joke, I think. |
| Erik: Yeah, I think so. I liked it still. Ok. Again, just to recap. A patronymic is your father’s first name plus [ович] if you’re a make, and if you’re a woman it’s… |
| Anna: [овна] or [евна]. |
| Erik: [овна] or [евна]. |
| Anna: Try to guess my patronymic. |
| Erik: Ok, what’s your father’s name? |
| Anna: It’s Nikolai. |
| Erik: [Николай...Николаевна] |
| Anna: Yes, you’re right. Good guess. |
| Erik: [Николаовна] or [Николаевна]? |
| Anna:[Николаевна] |
| Erik: [Николаевна], ok. So you would be [Анна Николаевна]… |
| Anna:Yes, I am Anna [Анна Николаевна Лемешкина]. |
| Erik: [Лемешкина] |
| Anna: Yeah, very long name. |
| Erik: So let’s just recap for a second. Anna, can you say your first name and your patronymic? |
| Anna: Yes, I'm Anna [Николаевна]. And yours? |
| Erik: Eric Vanovich. |
| Anna: Cool. |
| Erik: So if anybody wants to know their patronymic. For example, if your father’s name is Patrick, it would be… |
| Anna:[Патрикович] |
| Erik: So let’s use that patronymic form in a short dialogue, ok? |
| Anna: Ok. |
| Erik: So let’s say we’re both teachers at a highschool. |
| Anna:Ok. |
| Erik: And we walk in and I say [Здравствуйте, Анна Николаевна!]. |
| Anna:[О, Эрик Ванович, Здравствуйте.] |
| Erik: [Как у вас дела? ] |
| Anna: [Хорошо. А как у вас?] |
| Erik: [Отлично] |
| Anna:I'm glad to hear that, Eric Vanovich. |
| Erik: Alright. Let’s talk a bit more about how you can answer the question [как дела?], which means “How are you ?” in English. I our conversation, we used the phrase [всё нормально]. How often would you hear that, Anna? |
| Anna: I think almost every day. There are several variations of it though. For example, you can say [всё хорошо] which mean “Everything is good” or you can reply just by saying [отлично], which is “great” in English. |
| Erik: So we learned that in lesson one, right? That word, [отлично]. |
| Anna: Yeah, yeah, yeah, that’s true. |
| Erik: Can you say [всё отлично]? |
| Anna: You can say [всё отлично], yeah, that works. |
| Erik: Really? |
| Anna: Yes. |
| Erik: So everything is ok, everything is good, everything is excellent. Can you translate? |
| Anna:Ok, “everything is good” is [всё хорошо], “everything is great” is [всё отлично]. |
| Erik: “Everything is ok”, yeah, normal. |
| Anna: “Everything is normal” is [всё нормально]. |
| Erik:Well, now I know how to tell people that I'm in a good or great mood, but how can I say that I don’t really feel that well |
| Anna: Oh, you can reply by saying [не очень] which means “not very”. But if you say this, be ready to answer the next question - [почему] or “why?” |
| Erik: Ok, so for example can you say this phrase one more time, slower? |
| Anna: [почему] |
| Erik: Good, “why?” And then the “not very”? |
| Anna:[не очень] |
| Erik:[не очень] |
| Anna: [не очень] |
| Erik:So let’s put this in a short dialogue, ok? |
| Anna:Ok. |
| Erik: [Привет, Анна!] |
| Anna:[Привет, Эрик! Как дела?] |
| Erik:[Не очень] |
| Anna: But Eric, you don’t sound that upset. |
| Erik: Alright, let’s do it one more time and I’ll be a little bit sadder. [Привет], Anna. |
| Anna: [Привет, Эрик! Как дела?] |
| Erik: [Не очень?] |
| Anna: [Почему?] |
| Erik: Wow, Anna, you sound as if you almost care! |
| Anna: Well, I was just acting. |
| Erik: Ok. For our last word, let’s look at [спасибо]. |
| Anna: It’s normal to hear [спасибо] or “thanks” when people are being asked about their mood. For example, if you ask me “how are you?” |
| Erik: [Анна, как дела?] |
| Anna: [Спасибо, хорошо.] |
| Erik: So, in this case, “thank you” preceded the answer but you can also put it at the end, right? |
| Anna: Yes, you’re right. |
| Erik: Ok, and I noticed sometimes people… I don't know if they would say it in a different way, almost like [пасибо]. |
| Anna:Yes, they do. They sound very, very Russian. |
| Erik: It’s like they couldn’t be bothered to put that S sound in the beginning. |
| Anna:Yeah, you know… |
| Erik: I like that, [пасибо, хорошо]. Anna, can we have you say it once? |
| Anna: Ok, I’ll try. It’s [пасибо]. |
| Erik: Nice. |
| Anna: [пасибо, пасибо...] |
Outro |
| Erik: Alright, Anna. Wow, we covered a lot of ground today. I think that’s going to do it for this lesson. Be sure to pick up the PDF at RussianPod101.com. Also, if you have any questions, please feel free to use our forum or comment on today’s lesson. |
| Anna: And don’t forget, if you want to learn about your patronymic, please stop by and leave us a comment. Спасибо! |
| Erik: Пасибо! |
| Anna: Пока, пока! |
| -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Эрик: [Привет Анна!] |
| Эрик: (Privet Anna!) |
| Анна: [Привет Эрик! Как дела?]] |
| Anna: (Privet Erik! Kak dela) |
| Эрик:[Всё нормально. А у тебя?] |
| Erik: (Vsyo normal’no. A u tebya?) |
| Анна: [Хорошо, спасибо.] |
| Anna: (Horosho, spasibo.) |
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