Hugs, backslapping, kisses on the cheeks and other expansive gestures are common among friends or acquaintances and between members of the same sex. Russians stand close when talking. Putting your thumb through your index and middle fingers or making the "OK" sign are considered very rude gestures in Russia.
Always show heightened respect to those who are older than you. It's common to adopt a more formal demeanour. Offer your seat to an elderly person, pregnant woman or woman with a small child if they do not have one. Men are expected to open doors for women, pay for their food, help them carry items, etc.
As a rule, Russians do not smile at strangers on the streets, in the Metro, in the store, or anywhere else. The reason Russians don't smile at each other on the streets is that smiling is generally considered to be something to be shared with a friend.
In Russia, the middle finger is used to simply point (usually at the speaker themselves) and to communicate emphasis.
There's a well-known Russian greeting tradition: the triple cheek-kiss. It's usually common between close relatives. Sometimes, it's shortened to two kisses. One cheek kiss is often used by girls to greet friends, or even close female coworkers.
If you smile at a stranger in Russia, he/she can smile back, but it can already mean an invitation to come and talk. Russians take smiling as a sign that the person cares about them. To smile at a stranger can raise the question:” Do we know each other?”
In modern Russian culture flicking a finger on the neck is interpreted as an invitation for a drink. There are a lot of versions of the origin of this gesture. It is believed, that in the 15th century Russian Tsar wanted to reward a talented craftsman and asked him what he had wanted to receive as a reward.
People give the appropriate formal greeting depending on what time of day it is: “Dobroe utro” (Good morning), “Dobriy den” (Good afternoon) or “Dobriy vecher” (Good evening). A more casual greeting is “Privet” (Hi).
Малыш/малышка/малышонок
Pronunciation: maLYSH/maLYSHka/malySHOnuk. Translation: baby/baby girl/little baby. Meaning: baby/baby boy/baby girl. Малыш can be used both for males and females (малышка is the female term of the word). Малышонок is most commonly used when talking to or about a small child.
The Unfriendly Countries List (Russian: Список недружественных стран, romanized: Spisok nedruzhestvennykh stran) is a list of countries published by the Russian government that it says "commit unfriendly actions against Russia, Russian companies and citizens".
In Russian communication, a smile is not a signal of politeness. Russians consider a polite smile as “servant's smile.” It is considered a demonstration of unwillingness to show one's true feelings.
Tips are common in Russia but are usually smaller than in the US. For a good experience in a restaurant, a 10% gratuity is considered a generous tip. If you have booked one of our private tours and would like to give some gratuity to your guide, the recommended amount is $25 for every 8 hours of work.
First of all, you need to know that Russian people aren't really enthusiastic about giving compliments. They praise each other from time to time, but not as much as Americans do, for example. Moreover, Russians almost never give compliments to strangers or people they've just met.
Я тебя люблю
This phrase is the most common way to say "I love you" in the Russian language, and it's used in the same way as the English expression. You can swap the words around in different ways without losing the meaning, such as Я люблю тебя (I love you), Люблю тебя (love you), and Тебя люблю (love you).
It is expected that you make eye contact whilst greeting as a sign of respect and trustworthiness. Some Russians may see you as untrustworthy if you laugh and joke too much, especially if you are discussing important matters.
Did you know that when a Bulgarian nods his head, that means “no,” and when a Russian nods his head, it means “yes?” The same thing goes for shaking one's head from side to side.
Breaking of drinkware, or, in wider context, any tableware, is believed in Russia to bring luck and happiness.
Of all the Russian vowels, the letter 'О' undergoes the most changes depending on stress. When stressed it sounds like the 'o' in “go”. However, when unstressed, the 'O' may be pronounced as either 'ah' (as in father) or the schwa/uh sound. Often, it's pronounced as 'ah' when it's before the stressed vowel.
Sixty percent of the country's population drinks water from contaminated wells, mostly in rural, backwater regions. As a New York Times report from Moscow a few years ago concluded, in Russia “the rich buy bottled water, and the rest boil, hold their noses and drink.”
The grammar rules in Russian are very complex and have numerous exceptions. In addition, many learners struggle with the pronunciation – the stress in words is largely unpredictable and not marked in writing, while there are multiple homonyms.