(no subject)

[adelaide129.livejournal.com]

i work as a waitress, and last night a russian family came in to the restaurant where i work. i spoke to them in english, and after hearing their accent, i asked if they were russian. they seemed slightly annoyed, but i took their order in russian and it was a wonderful experience for me. however, i was wondering if russians living in america get sick of being asked about their origins by russian students? is this irritating at all? i could imagine being annoyed by people trying out english on me, so i was worrying that i had offended the family.

also, i found this site of swears and vulgar language...i know it isn't appropriate, but often people in this community ask about colloquial vulgarity, and this page seemed to be full of it. http://www.insultmonger.com/swearing/russian.htm

thank you.

Comments

[valikv.livejournal.com]

I am not annoyed at all, why hide the obvious. You can always practice your russian on me. It might actualy be an ego boost for both of us:)

[shalapanova.livejournal.com]

Be careful.
After opening the link I found that someone offered me to install something on my PC. Be afraid of viruses!

I guess that the problem was that they didn't want to see anyone from Russia. Sometimes abroad I have similar wishes ;-)

[viata.livejournal.com]

Had lots of fun reading the slang expressions, though some of them are not correct actually.

As far as I remember, the only thing you start to go crazy about is that people always ask, "How do you like it here?", "What is the most suprising difference between here and Russia?"
Anyway, I'm still asking the same questions when I meet a foreigner here in Russia>>

[gera.livejournal.com]

This could be irritating if it was happening on a daily basis, but you don't meet too many Russian students in America. So it's ok, or may even be exciting.

[korolyeva525.livejournal.com]

I've had both happen, where I ask people if they are from Russia and they are either very annoyed or very pleased to speak with me in Russian. I had it once happen that I asked a man if he was Russian, and he told me he was Polish, and I think I offended him greatly.

In any case, I've learned to drop it if they seem annoyed, but if they are happy to learn I know a bit of Russian, they will immediately start speaking to me or offering to help me with my lessons.

[typodudes.livejournal.com]

My parents get really irritated if people ask them if they're Russian. They've been living in America for twenty years now, and they consider themselves American, not Russian. Plus, it's a reminder that they've got heavy accents that they still haven't gotten rid of.

[coldmacana.livejournal.com]

The easy way to answer this question is to do so based on the evidence: how did they tip? :)

I think you're going to find, though, that this is entirely dependent on the individual person. Some are going to be flattered or impressed, and some are going to see you as arrogant or intrusive. Maybe a good rule of thumb would be this: refrain from using your Russian except in cases where the other person is struggling with their English? This way, you're simply "helping"(in this case, especially so, since this is part of your job description -- I'd say it removes any sort of ulterior motive) rather than (at least by some perceptions) treating them as exotic objects.

From the other side of the issue, and I know that I'm in a somewhat different position since I was a student actively studying Russian, it drove me nuts when people in Russia found out I was an English-speaker and would switch to that, whether to be "helpful" to me or just to practice their own English. It certainly wasn't some great offense, but it was slightly annoying.

[stephenwolfe.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the link. it will come in handy.

[snopova.livejournal.com]

"We repeated our order 7 times, and still the waiter wasn't satisfied with our accent"))) - it is from a story about two Russians traveling in America. Some ppl in the States show their hostility towards Russians, alas...

[vargtimmen.livejournal.com]

I agree with the above comment. If they're Ukranian, even if they're speaking Russian instead of Ukranian, Vy iz Rossiya? can be really offensive. Maybe "May I practice my Russian with you?" would be slightly less intrusive.

[ars-longa.livejournal.com]

+1. I'm getting tired of being called Russian, which I never was. If someone just asked me if he/she can practice Russian with me, I'd try to be as helpful as I can. But asking me if I'm Russian, in addition to nationality factor, which is greatly aggravating, may sound as if you're implying my English isn't adequate. In any case, I would have probably been annoyed with such a question.

[wolk-off.livejournal.com]

Not necesserily towards Russians; towards foreigners, I guess. This happens. There are ignorant xenophobic people everywhere, Russia massively included.

[wolk-off.livejournal.com]

>Ukranian

Actually, this is even more insulting :)))
It's Ukraine, not Ukrane, and Ukrainian, not Ukranian.

[im-such-a-slav.livejournal.com]

from the other end, i dont mind when people ask me if i am american...but i do get annoyed if they switch to english. this is because i am learning russian, so a family situation might be different, but who knows?

also, i have looked at this site before and i they have the best insult anyone can ever use, "Ja Pycckij pidaras-You are a loser."

yea, that one will really put someone in their place.

[ekeme-ndiba.livejournal.com]

Keep in mind that about 90% of immigrants from Russia to America aren't ethnic Russians.

[ekeme-ndiba.livejournal.com]

Why should we bother? :-)

[wolk-off.livejournal.com]

Why should we insult people needlessly?

BTW my father was born in Ukraine.

[coldmacana.livejournal.com]

That's quite interesting - do you have a source for this? What are the largest immigrant ethnic groups, then?

[chirashi-don.livejournal.com]

I think a better way to go about it is to ask "do you speak Russian".

In any case, everyone who I've met who DOES speak is thrilled, :)
everyone who I've met who DOESN'T is not so thrilled. :(

[aciel.livejournal.com]

I once asked a Dutch girl if she was Russian. That was embarrassing.

On the other hand, a lot of Russian people get sort of annoyed-looking if I try to speak Russian to them. They're very helpful, but only after the initial burst of cynicism. Heh.

[theminion.livejournal.com]

"Shliushka Little slut"
Can I get this in Cyrillic please?
Thanks

~Ryan

[ja-va.livejournal.com]

it depends on a person, but russian people do have tendency to get annoyed when recognized OUTSIDE OF THE HOME COUNTRY.

[noser.livejournal.com]

I'd be slightly annoyed, because that would mean I've got to work on my accent :)

Another thing that could happen, they could have been from one of the former Soviet republics. Sometimes it's easier to nod "whatever, I'm Russian" than explain what the heck and where the heck something like Belarus or Moldova is to a local. Especially since most Americans have no idea where "between Poland and Lithuania" is anyway, and would forget any explanation you give them in a second. I know a Belarussian guy here in US who gave up, and now always replies "yes, I'm from Russia".

[noser.livejournal.com]

I meant "next to Poland and Lithuania", of course :)

[nymphatacita.livejournal.com]

I usually don't ask, but my Rob always does. He does it politely enough though... "May I ask where your accent is from?"
Then you don't have to worry about non-Russians being insulted, etc.

[nymphatacita.livejournal.com]

I just assumed you meant Kalingrad, and was then confused... Kalingrad is Russia, non?

[noser.livejournal.com]

Kaliningrad region. It certainly is. I was actually talking about Belarus, which is not. :)

[nymphatacita.livejournal.com]

I noticed when I reread. :c) I'm so tired...

[ars-longa.livejournal.com]

Jewish and, sometimes, Ukrainians and Belorussians - especially some religious groups. Ethnic Russians are a minority.

[mithgol.livejournal.com]

шлюшка

[theminion.livejournal.com]

Thanks.

~Ryan

[wolk-off.livejournal.com]

Why, "between Poland and Lithuania" sounds quite nice ;)

[imkshch.livejournal.com]

When I speak Russian, i frequently get asked whether I'm French. This being Canada. Shish :)...

[oncelosthorizon.livejournal.com]

LOL, I almost asked a quebecoise if she was Russian when I was little :P

[oncelosthorizon.livejournal.com]

LOL, it's Russia if you omit the letter p from the beginning of the word :P

[oncelosthorizon.livejournal.com]

I have Russian-American friends, and each and every one of them would react differently. Tanya, for example, is a bit of a psychotic hothead (although I love her for it!) and she'd probably tell anyone who asked her that question to piss off. When I told her I was learning Russian, she said, "Well, I always knew you were quite the psycho!" On the other hand, Dmitry would say yes, and would be willing to talk about life back in Russia.

[oncelosthorizon.livejournal.com]

Actually, a friend of mine is Ukrainian, and is more offended by the fact that he is Ukrainian. He tells everyone he's Russian and refuses to speak the Ukrainian language.