Post: #1

hey so i'm thinking of traveling eastern europe ( ukraine estonia latvia macedonia belarus etc) in a few years and i want to learn some of their language, but i dont think learning 5 different languages is going to be helpful, is there any common language that is spoken in most of these countries like a second language besides english?

Post: #2

IMO handsdown Russian.

Post: #3

(12-06-2010 10:30 PM)genjuro Wrote:  IMO handsdown Russian.

thanks mate

Post: #4

Russian is widely spoken in many former USSR countries. Including Kazakhstan etc.

Post: #5

(12-06-2010 10:27 PM)Langas Wrote:  hey so i'm thinking of traveling eastern europe ( ukraine estonia latvia macedonia belarus etc) in a few years and i want to learn some of their language, but i dont think learning 5 different languages is going to be helpful, is there any common language that is spoken in most of these countries like a second language besides english?

Russian is common in Ukraine in Belarus, and widely spoken in Estonia and Latvia. No idea about Macedonia though.

Are you American? You'll need visa for Belarus, quite some hassle.

Post: #6

There's no one language that'll cover it all.

Russian for former USSRs
Serbian for ex-yugoslavia
Bulgarian if you're gonna stick to macedonia and bulgaria

See the following thread:
/thread-2094-post-20072.html

Post: #7

Learn Russian... its the primary language in Ukraine as well as Russia and popular second language in other EE countries. The ex-yugoslavia places speak English pretty well so I wouldnt bother with learning Serbian. If you speak both russian and english you will get around Eastern Europe effectively.

Post: #8

Also Serbian is very similar to Russian, there is a lot of common words. While in Romania I tried to talk to Serbian girls in Russian and we quite understood each others.

Post: #9

(12-08-2010 04:23 AM)oldnemesis Wrote:  Also Serbian is very similar to Russian, there is a lot of common words. While in Romania I tried to talk to Serbian girls in Russian and we quite understood each others.

How similar is Polish to Russian?

Post: #10

(12-08-2010 05:25 AM)Badstuber Wrote:  How similar is Polish to Russian?

I'd say barely similarl. However Polish and Ukrainian are quite similar.

Post: #11

Guys, I have started using russianpod101.com for 2 months, and I have to tell you, It blows Rosetta Stone out of the water for purposes of banging women. You see, Rosetta Stone teaches you proper Russian or proper/formal any language designed more for business meetings. Russianpod101.com (<anylanguage>pod101.com) teaches you both informal speech - even has a guy approaching a girl on the street to introduce himself, but using informal words she can relate to, not approaching a a girl as if she were your corporate boss or business partner.


Now, the real test came when I used what I learned on 3 different native speaking Russian girls!

I approached, I said hello (informally), introduced myself, told her it was nice to meet her, and if she'd like to grab a drink with me sometime....the responses I got were mind-blowing!! SMILES FROM EAR TO EAR FROM ALL OF THEM!!

The following conversation took place in Russian Language.

MIxx: Excuse me, You speak Russian? (girl is blown away)
Russian Girl: "yes" -- answers in Russian..
Mixx: "Great, My name is Mixx, what's yours?" -- Notice the informal way of asking...
Russian Target: "Anna" -- Somehow, Anna in Russia is like "Maria" in Mexico, very common name.
Mixx: "Nice to meet you"
RT:"same here"
Mixx:"So, now that I know a little Russian, what do you say you teach me more phrases over a drink?"
RT:" you are learning Russian?" --very surprised and shocked!
Mixx:"yes, I am very shy, so please help me relax"
RT: Smiles form ear to ear, and agrees for an insta-date.


Now, that is what I call a good lesson., and money well spent!

It is a subscription based service, and you can download your audio and video lessons to you iphone/ipod for convenience when travelling.


By the way, if you are a native Spanish/Potuguese/Italian speaker, it will not be very difficult for you to pronounce the words. This has a feature that you can record yoru voice, and playback to compare with a native speaker - golden! I did very well.

Mixx

Post: #12

Nice
Also check out Pimsleurs russian.

http://thepiratebay.org/torrent/5356700/...s_-_MP3%29

free

Post: #13

(12-09-2010 02:40 PM)MiXX Wrote:  Russian Target: "Anna" -- Somehow, Anna in Russia is like "Maria" in Mexico, very common name.

That sounds like very formal introduction. Pretty much every Russian/Ukrainian name has two forms - a formal/legal form (which is written in your birth certificate and you use it on job interviews, official ceremonies etc), and informal form, which is used everywhere else. "Anna", "Maria", "Natalya", "Tatyana" are formal forms; "Anya", "Masha", "Natasha", "Tanya" are informal. The American equivalent of formal form is something near using "Ms. <last name>", which is probably not the name you want to use when discussing how to spend the evening. Therefore I'd suggest trying to switch to informal names as soon as possible.

Since this is not typical for Russians to introduce themselves using a formal name, there may be two reasons for that.

One reason may be that you introduce yourself using your name in the "official" way, and there is a known informal name for it (for example, you say you're "Victor" while "Vitya" is used in Russia), and this triggers a formal reply. PM me with the name you use, I'll check it out.

Second reason may be she talked with foreigners before and she experienced problems with them trying to spell her informal name properly. In this case you just come back with her informal name, i.e. "Anya?" and this will help you tremendously as it would show her you know more about her culture than a typical foreigner.

An exception to this rule is when you're introduced to a lady which is significantly older than you; in this case she'll tell you her formal name AND father name (kind of middle name), i.e. "Anna Vasilyevna". This is the name you should use then. It is possible to switch to using informal names later though.

Quote:Mixx: "Nice to meet you"
RT:"same here"

This is kind of formal introduction ("priyatno poznakomitsa" or "ochen priyatno"), I usually skip this phrase completely, it is not necessary. You may get some brownie points by saying that in English though, to remind her of your "exotic" status.

Quote:By the way, if you are a native Spanish/Potuguese/Italian speaker, it will not be very difficult for you to pronounce the words.

This is true, last Fri I was singing some Spanish karaoke (Julio Iglesias) and got a lot of comments how good my Spanish is. Nobody believed I don't know meaning of a single word in the song I just sang. A strong "R" is used all the way in Russian the same way as in Spanish, and this is one of the things extremely difficult to master for English speakers. Same for hard "L".