Post by ALEX on Jan 13, 2011 0:09:41 GMT -5
1. Russians are going to nuke you and you will die -- In Cold War times, perhaps. But how many of us have exaggerated something to scare someone off? Trust me, your average Russian is not a spy, communist, traitor, scientist etc etc geddit?
2. They're all alchoholics -- Because they make vodka? Please. On that note they may as well be fur-hat wearing, doll painting lesbians, who have a past time of making nuclear weapons
3. "Velcome to ze spacestation" -- They're not all astronauts or insanely clever or devious. Just like any nation. You get some real smart peeps and the thick ones.
4. They speak terrible English. -- This one is just silly. I think the accent is quite cute. Some Russians have trouble because the language is completely backwards compared to Russian and there is a different alphabet, but they can learn just as well. Lena Katina is a good example of a Russian who speaks good English
5. They're all poor. -- Difficult one. You'll find very rich Russians, but some do live in poverty
So now you have a less prejudiced view of Russians (at least I hope!) when making a character you'll need to bear these things in mind:
Names: Russians have three names, first middle and last, but it all depends on the family. Women add an 'a' to the end of the surname e.g. Smirnov becomes Smirnova. Children take their father's name as a second name, so if the father's name was Nicholas the feminine version would be Nikolaevna. First name is whatever you wish, here is a list of typical Russian names.
Other: Bear in mind that any character over 16 would have lived in Soviet times so this may affect their history. Most Russians live in the big cities, (Moscow, St. Petersburg etc) but a few will live in the country. Many Russians are Orthodox.
2. They're all alchoholics -- Because they make vodka? Please. On that note they may as well be fur-hat wearing, doll painting lesbians, who have a past time of making nuclear weapons
3. "Velcome to ze spacestation" -- They're not all astronauts or insanely clever or devious. Just like any nation. You get some real smart peeps and the thick ones.
4. They speak terrible English. -- This one is just silly. I think the accent is quite cute. Some Russians have trouble because the language is completely backwards compared to Russian and there is a different alphabet, but they can learn just as well. Lena Katina is a good example of a Russian who speaks good English
5. They're all poor. -- Difficult one. You'll find very rich Russians, but some do live in poverty
So now you have a less prejudiced view of Russians (at least I hope!) when making a character you'll need to bear these things in mind:
Names: Russians have three names, first middle and last, but it all depends on the family. Women add an 'a' to the end of the surname e.g. Smirnov becomes Smirnova. Children take their father's name as a second name, so if the father's name was Nicholas the feminine version would be Nikolaevna. First name is whatever you wish, here is a list of typical Russian names.
Other: Bear in mind that any character over 16 would have lived in Soviet times so this may affect their history. Most Russians live in the big cities, (Moscow, St. Petersburg etc) but a few will live in the country. Many Russians are Orthodox.
