From Russia with Love

From Russia with Love

Everyone from Eastern Europe is moving out of Eastern Europe, Russians who stay there are learning English, other ex Soviet countries don’t speak Russian any more – so what’s the point of learning a language that doesn’t even have the same alphabet as English? There’s not even a career path as a spy like there used to be during the cold war!

Russia has a fascinating history and culture, with beautiful countryside, impressive architecture, compelling literature, cosmopolitan towns, great nightlife, and a vast amount of natural resources for trading. In fact, business connections between Russia and Western Europe are increasing each year and if you are interested in dealing with companies in Russia it is vital that you have some knowledge of the language of the country.

Russian looks like a tough language to learn, doesn’t it? Well, yes. It is harder than other European languages such as Spanish or Dutch, but it is much easier than something like Arabic. The alphabet actually isn’t that difficult to learn, and with a bit of practice most people don’t have a problem with it. The thing that causes most difficulties is the grammar. It is similar to German grammar, but more complicated! Russian grammar has a lot in common with other Eastern European languages such as Polish, so if you speak one of those you shouldn’t have any problems learning Russian.

You will probably be surprised at how many Russian words you recognise if you start learning the language. For example, you may have heard of the word ‘Pravda’. It means ‘truth’. There are also a lot of words that are similar or the same in English. Have a look on the internet and see if you can find the Russian for ‘radio’, ‘restaurant’, ‘water’ and ‘luggage’.

Russian lessons are available in colleges and privately across the UK and elsewhere in the world. By far the best way to learn is to go to Russian to learn. There are a number of companies who offer opportunities, but do your homework before you go and check references if you can. St Petersburg and Moscow are the most popular places to go (and are both definitely worth visiting) but you can find opportunities in other cities. Courses can be long or short and can often be combined with sightseeing or volunteering opportunities.

If you try and learn Russian, it is important to have a variety of techniques to help you. Of course if you are taking a class then that’s great as you’ll have the support of your teacher and other students. If you’re trying to learn via books, the internet or podcasts then that makes it more difficult. You will still have access to a range of materials but you’ll have to make more of an effort to find them. It is important, though to try and watch some Russian TV/video/film sometimes, or to listen to real Russian being spoken. Drilling yourself on pronunciation and spelling is often useful and many people remember things by doing that, especially with an unfamiliar alphabet.

Paula is a qualified EFL teacher who has taught in the UK and abroad. She has also taught adult literacy and numeracy in prisons and is now combining a small amount of private teaching with writing.