Though my English did receive some praise to date, my language learning skills was only criticised so far. This is quite expected given how I did not learn English in a “proper” academic setting per se, as I learned it along the way whilst playing a tad too many video games as a kid, and then as a teen, and then as a man… This “success” could not really be replicated for the case of German, which had those infuriating articles, and not that many great games to enjoy. Spanish was all the same, after all, I had very little taste for South American soap operas. After many failed attempts to learn a new language, I decided to try my chance with Russian. My renewed interest in the history of the region which requires one to learn the language if you really want to have a good grasp of it also motivated me in this path. Thankfully, my experience with learning Russian turned out to be quite different. No one said my pronunciation was terrible although it is not perfect, and I did manage to find many fun ways to complement my studies on the side. It goes without saying that I moved to the Russian Federation (yes, in the middle of all of “this”) to make sure that I attend a decent class on the language at HSE’s Nizhny Novgorod campus but given my previous experience with classes such a course would never be enough on its own for me. That is why, I decided to come up with a list of things that would let me to enjoy learning the language. What follows is a list of “tips and tricks” for learning Russian that I compiled over the last few months.
Russians do not joke around when it comes to the internet. Russian is the second most used language on the internet for a reason. This means that there are plenty of websites out there to help practice your Russian, too many to count them. The following two are some of the nicest that I came across so far. They have practices for everything from listening to reading, and then writing to speaking. Do give both a shot and see what works for you the best, or better yet, use them both for doubling down on your goals!
Soviet/Russian Movies and YouTube Channels
Though quite a lot are Soviet-era goodies, you can find a lot of decent works to watch in Russian if you know where to find them. Thankfully, most movies that come to my mind, especially almost all the Soviet ones are free of charge so you can watch them legally on many platforms. Better yet, quite a lot of them are being subbed and dubbed regularly by certain groups so even beginners like me can have a shot at following the plot. Check out all the YouTube channels below that have a lot going on for them for all Russian enthusiasts.
Mosfilm – More Soviet and Russian movies than you know what to do with. Often with burned in English subtitles.
Антон Птушкин – Simply incredible, extremely high-quality travel videos that come with their own elaborately created English subtitles.
Russian with Max – Practice your Russian as you listen to this lovely gent talk about a variety of issues in a clear Russian.
Орел и Решка – Exceptional travel show with a fun little twist. Has subs in English and Russian in most videos.
The thing is, if you have a certain hobby or a specific interest (mine is traveling, which is clearly reflected in the list above) you will more than likely be able to find a dedicated YouTube channel or two to that issue and enjoy such channels instead. All you need to do is search for a keyword on YouTube, and something will turn up.
Russian Videogames
I have been a gamer for almost all my life. One of the first memories I have is playing the original Doom as a three-year-old in an office computer that was used for anything but office-related tasks. I had almost all the PlayStation systems except the first and the last, and I did spend a fair time playing games on a PC as well. Without getting too cocky (or nerdy) I feel like I can say that I know what I am speaking about when it comes gaming. Unfortunately, vast majority of Russian games are simply not made for the vast majority of players out there. They are often not very polished, and that is apparently how some of the Russian players prefer it anyways. Games are often a bit harder to play (though not necessarily in a “cool challenging way”) than their “Western” counterparts, graphics are rarely anything to write back home about, and plots can be quite confusing to say the least. That being said, there are some games out there that can be what you are looking for. Here is a list of mostly indie games that are either Russian made or have decent Russian translations and are great for learning the language as you play them for hours. Do not forget to stay hydrated!
ATOM RPG – An homage to the original Fallout, an excellent post-apocalyptic RPG.
ATOM RPG – Trudograd – The sequel of ATOM RPG.
Black Book – A unique game with Russian and Komi folk tales at its core.
The Final Station – Zombie-themed survival indie game.
Graveyard Keeper – A self-proclaimed medieval cemetery sim. Too unique to explain shortly.
Stardew Valley – A village life simulator/RPG game. Also too unique to explain.
Stellaris – Realtime strategy game with a focus on space exploration and stellar conquest.
Apps for Language Acquisition
We all tried to keep up our streak in Duolingo at least once and failed to do so, receiving a very passive aggressive mail from an artificial bird. I know I have been there, many times. Not all apps are made equal, and not all are for everyone. The two below are what remains of my journey as I tried out almost ten different apps that promised to teach me Russian. Sure, there are many others, and sure, Duolingo just may be your thing, and sure, none of the two below actually teach you any grammar, but if you want to learn a few words a day by only spending a few minutes in an app they are both perfect for that job.
Learning Together
One of the biggest advantages of learning Russian in my opinion is access to millions of people who are for the most part extremely friendly with anyone who truly wishes to study their language. Russian people are obsessed with language-learners of all sorts, and it is all the better if you are trying to learn Russian. They try really hard to understand you rather than ridicule your grammar/pronunciation as you try to speak to locals in your broken Russian. What really helped me with my own Russian learning journey at the beginning was a few Russian friends I had at the university who were there as exchange students. Their encouragement put me on the right mindset. Later, I had a bunch of language learning partners and all of them proved to be extremely helpful people that found some time for me to help me out with learning the language. Likewise, most young Russians are very much into learning foreign languages themselves these days, and they always welcome those that lend a hand as well. Apps like Tandem are great places to find such lovely folks, though simply writing to your Russian teacher/professor to set you up with a volunteer could work wonders too depending on wherever you are in the world. No matter the case, have some native on your side, and you will see that your progress will accelerate faster than you imagine all the while getting to meet a whole new person coming from a whole new background. Finally, always remember this one key to success, find ways to make learning anything fun for yourself, and it will go smoother than you could even dream about!